River Region Times

Representatives Barry Moore and Jimmy Panetta have introduced the Stop Secret Spending Act of 2025. This legislation aims to require federal agencies to report other transaction agreements (OTAs) on USAspending.gov, aligning them with standard contracts, cooperative agreements, and grants. Senator Joni Ernst has led a similar effort in the Senate.

OTAs are legally binding but do not fall under certain federal acquisition laws. The General Services Administration has identified that many OTAs are currently unreported.

Rep. Moore stated, "Federal agencies should be disclosing every taxpayer dollar they spend, especially as we close in on $35 trillion in national debt. Unfortunately, the current OTA loophole allows these agencies to spend billions and leave Americans in the dark." He expressed gratitude to Rep. Panetta for supporting this bipartisan effort.

Rep. Panetta emphasized the need for transparency: "Right now, billions in federal spending go unreported due to a loophole in the disclosure of other transaction agreements. Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation would close that gap by ensuring these expenditures are accounted for on USAspending.gov."

The proposed act seeks to enhance public trust and fiscal accountability by making federal spending more transparent.