S 766: Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act of 2025

S 766 in plain English: This bill requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to collect and report to Congress information about federally funded projects that are either more than five years behind schedule or have exceeded their original cost estimate by at least $1 billion. Agencies must submit annual data on each such project, including original and current timelines, inflation-adjusted cost estimates, explanations for delays or cost increases, and any bonuses awarded. OMB must publish this information in an annual report posted publicly on its website.

Stated purpose

The bill requires the federal government to identify and publicly report on taxpayer-funded projects that are significantly over budget or behind schedule, so Congress and the public can see where cost overruns and delays are occurring.

Key points

• Covers federal projects that are more than 5 years behind schedule or at least $1 billion over original cost estimates
• Requires agencies to annually report project descriptions, schedule changes, and inflation-adjusted original and current cost estimates
• Agencies must explain reasons for delays or cost overruns and disclose any bonuses or incentive fees paid
• OMB must compile the data into an annual report submitted to Congress and posted on the OMB website

Arguments supporters make

• Taxpayers deserve to know when federal projects waste money or drag on for years past their deadlines, and this bill creates a simple, public way to track that.
• Shining a light on cost overruns and delays puts pressure on agencies and contractors to manage projects more responsibly and discourages bonuses for poor performance.
• Giving Congress a regular, consolidated report on problem projects makes government oversight more effective without adding a large new bureaucracy.

Arguments opponents make

• Reporting requirements alone do not fix the underlying problems — agencies may submit paperwork without any real consequence, leaving costly overruns and delays to continue unchanged.
• The administrative burden of compiling and submitting detailed annual data could divert agency staff and resources away from actually completing the projects.
• Large, complex federal projects often run long or over budget due to factors like changing national needs or supply chain issues, so a list without full context could mislead the public or be used to unfairly target legitimate programs.

Tradeoffs

The bill increases transparency and congressional oversight of government spending, but adds reporting responsibilities to federal agencies without establishing enforcement mechanisms or penalties, leaving open whether disclosure alone is enough to change outcomes.

Current status in Congress: To president.

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