Congressman Flood Introduces the No More D.C. Waste Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Congressman Mike Flood (NE-01), along with Rep. William Timmons (SC-04) as a cosponsor, introduced the “No More D.C. Waste Act.” This bill provides oversight to the D.C. Tuition Assistance Grant (DCTAG) program and reins in its excessive funding moving forward. 

“For about ten years, the D.C. local government has quietly stockpiled tens of millions of taxpayer dollars from an overfunded program,” said Congressman Flood (NE-01). “The DCTAG program has $80 million in unused funding, which this legislation lapses. House Republicans are fighting to eliminate bloated and wasteful federal spending, and this bill is a straightforward step toward getting our federal checkbook in order.”

“Congress allocates millions of dollars annually to the DCTAG program, leading to significant overfunding. It is a top priority of mine to protect American taxpayer dollars from waste, fraud, and abuse. This common-sense bill prevents the D.C. government from carrying over surplus funds to avoid further wasted taxpayer dollars,” said Congressman Timmons (SC-04).

The DCTAG program has received $40 million annually from Congress since 2015. However, it consistently falls short of awarding this full amount each year, leaving tens of millions of unspent funds accumulated over time.

The “No More D.C. Waste Act” amends current law by retroactively preventing the D.C. government from having continued access to previously appropriated funds for DCTAG, dating as far back as 2015. Furthermore, the bill ensures that future unused funding for this program is not eligible to pile up to this level again. The bill accomplishes this by eliminating the D.C. government’s ability to roll over future DCTAG funding.

This legislation additionally improves congressional oversight by requiring the D.C. government to report DCTAG’s finances, key statistics, and outcomes to Congress annually— including how much funding went unused during the previous fiscal year. 

The “No More D.C. Waste Act” is endorsed and supported by Americans for Prosperity:

“The No More D.C. Waste Act is an important reform to reclaim unused and misplaced educational funding. Americans for Prosperity applauds Representative Flood for his leadership in driving this reform and setting the tone on even broader federal budget reforms that make our federal government more accountable while improving our economic security.”

Full text of the legislation can be read here.