To require an annual report of taxpayer-funded projects that are over budget and behind schedule.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed SenateReported by Mr. Paul, without amendment
Passed Senate (inferred from es version)
Ms. Ernst introduced the following bill; which was read twice …
Ms. Ernst (for herself, Ms. Hassan, and Mrs. Moody) introduced …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act requires the federal government to create an annual public "hall of shame" for major projects that have gone disastrously over budget or behind schedule. Specifically, the Office of Management and Budget must publish a detailed report listing every federal project that is either more than $1 billion over its original cost estimate or running more than 5 years behind schedule.
Who Benefits and How
Taxpayer advocacy groups, congressional oversight committees, and watchdog organizations benefit from unprecedented transparency into government waste. They gain access to comprehensive, standardized data showing exactly which projects are failing, by how much, and who the contractors are. This empowers them to demand accountability and investigate wasteful spending. The general public benefits from being able to see how their tax dollars are being spent on troubled mega-projects.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Federal agencies face new reporting requirements, forcing them to track and annually submit extensive details on troubled projects including contractor names, cost overruns, timeline delays, and explanations for failures. The Office of Management and Budget must develop reporting guidance, collect information from all agencies, and compile and publish annual reports. Federal contractors working on large projects face increased public scrutiny, as their names and performance on over-budget or delayed projects will be publicly disclosed each year, potentially harming their reputations.
Key Provisions
- Defines "covered projects" as those at least $1 billion over budget OR more than 5 years behind schedule
- Requires agencies to report project purpose, locations, contractors, original vs. current cost estimates (adjusted for inflation), original vs. current completion dates, and explanations for delays
- Mandates OMB to publish reports both to Congress and on its public website annually
- Covers major acquisitions, defense programs, procurements, construction, and remediation efforts (but excludes direct spending programs like Social Security)
- Takes effect within one year of enactment, with the first report due one year after the bill becomes law
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Requires the Office of Management and Budget to create an annual public report of federal projects that are over $1 billion over budget or more than 5 years behind schedule.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Increase transparency and public accountability for federal spending on large-scale projects by requiring systematic reporting of cost overruns and delays"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Taxpayer advocacy groups seeking greater transparency
- Congressional oversight committees
- Media organizations covering government waste
- Think tanks focused on government efficiency
Likely Burden Bearers
- Office of Management and Budget (must develop guidance and compile annual reports)
- Federal agencies (must track and report detailed project information)
- Federal contractors with projects meeting the threshold (face increased scrutiny)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_director"
- → Director of the Office of Management and Budget
- "covered_agencies"
- → Executive agencies (as defined in 5 USC 105) and independent regulatory agencies (as defined in 44 USC 3502)
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
An Executive agency (as defined in section 105 of title 5, United States Code) or an independent regulatory agency (as defined in section 3502 of title 44, United States Code)
A major acquisition, major defense acquisition program, procurement, construction project, remediation or clean-up effort, or any other time-limited endeavor that is not funded through direct spending (as defined in section 250(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985)
The Director of the Office of Management and Budget
A project funded by a covered agency that is more than 5 years behind schedule OR for which the amount spent is at least $1,000,000,000 more than the original cost estimate
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology