Republican Lawmaker Seeks to Phase Out ‘Zombie’ Federal Programs Costing Over $510 Billion
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) wants to phase out the more than 1,100 “zombie” federal agencies and programs that have continued for years after legislative authorizations have expired, at a cost of more than $358 billion annually.
The McMorris Rodgers proposal is the Unauthorized Spending Act (USA), which she has introduced in every Congress since 2016. The Washington state Republican believes the measure (H.R. 1518) is needed to restore to voters the power of accountability in the nation’s capital.
“We have a fiscal crisis in America today, too much of the federal government is on autopilot. Americans are rightly frustrated by a government that thinks it knows best,” McMorris Rodgers explained in a statement on her official website. “These frustrations are a symptom of the people losing our power to ensure every penny of taxpayer money and every decision by federal agencies are subject to citizens’ scrutiny….