“House Republicans are aiming to slash funding for the nonpartisan watchdog for waste, fraud and abuse within the federal government by nearly half in the next fiscal year, according to spending bill text released Sunday night.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“GAO has served as the nation\u2019s chief investigator of wrongdoing at federal agencies for more than a century, but has been fighting for months as Republicans in Congress and the Trump administration have attempted to undercut its legal conclusions and independence. Now, they are attempting to shrink the agency into submission as it pursues nearly 40 investigations into whether the White House is illegally withholding, or \u201cimpounding,\u201d money Congress had previously approved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also tucked into the bill is a major policy change that would eliminate the GAO\u2019s ability to bring civil action against the executive branch over impoundments of funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGAO\u2019s work makes it possible for the legislative branch to hold government accountable,\u201d said Daniel Schuman, executive director of the American Governance Institute. \u201cCongress needs independent expert advice, which is exactly what GAO provides.\u201d”<\/p>\n\n\n\n