Senator Chuck Grassley released the following statement after Senator Norm Coleman of Minnesota released a Government Accountability Office report that showed continued misuse of government credit cards.
Grassley introduced legislation this Congress that would establish safeguards and internal controls for government charge card programs as well as establish penalties for violations. The legislation, originally cosponsored by Senators Joe Lieberman, Susan Collins and Coleman, is expected to be considered by the Senate Homeland Security/Government Affairs Committee on Thursday.
Grassley first began looking at government credit card abuse in 2001 in the Department of Defense. The Government Accountability Office documented abuses in the Departments of Defense and Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Forest Service, the Federal Aviation Administration and others. He also introduced legislation to address the problems found with government credit cards in 2003 and 2006.
Here is a comment from Grassley regarding the GAO report, followed by the specific provisions of Grassley’s bill to stop waste, fraud and abuse of government credit cards.
“It’s clear that there continue to be problems with government credit cards. You’d think that after seeing report after report, year after year, agencies would figure out what’s appropriate to spend taxpayer money on. But, it looks like government employees are still ripping off the taxpayer. How somebody can go 6 years fleecing the taxpayer for nearly $650,000 or use an internet dating service without anybody knowing is beyond me. It just gives further evidence that legislation is the only way to stop these outrageous spending habits, which is why the Homeland Security/Government Affairs Committee’s action on Thursday is so important.”
Here is a summary of Grassley’s bill expected to be considered by the Senate Homeland Security/Government Affairs Committee on Thursday.
"Government Credit Card Abuse Prevention Act" Summary
The bill would require all federal agencies to establish certain safeguards and internal controls for government charge card programs, and to establish penalties for violations. Cases of fraud will be investigated by the agency IG and referred to the U.S. Attorney for prosecution. Employees that egregiously abuse or commit fraud with a government charge card will be fired. The bill would also increase oversight by providing that each agency Inspector General periodically conduct risk assessments and audits to identify fraud and improper use of government charge cards. These reforms are based on the experience of Senator Grassley and other members of Congress, the GAO, and agency Inspectors General in investigating the weaknesses in agency policies and procedures that have lead to instances of waste, fraud, and abuse in government charge card programs.
The required safeguards and internal controls include:
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performing credit checks for travel card holders and issuing restricted cards for those with poor or no credit to reduce the potential for misuse
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maintaining a record of each cardholder, including single transaction limits and total credit limits so agencies can effectively manage their cardholders
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implementing periodic reviews to determine if cardholders have a need for a card
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properly recording rebates to the government based on prompt payment
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providing training for cardholders and managers
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utilizing available technologies to prevent or catch fraudulent purchases
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establishing specific policies about the number of cards to be issued, the credit limits for certain categories of cardholders, and categories of employees eligible to be issued cards
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invalidating cards when employees leave the agency or transfer
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establishing an approving official other than the purchase card holder so employees cannot approve their own purchases
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reconciling purchase card charges on the bill with receipts and supporting documentation
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reconciling disputed purchase card charges and discrepancies with the bank according to the proper procedure
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making purchase card payments promptly to avoid interest penalties
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retaining records of purchase card transactions in accordance with standard government record keeping polices
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utilizing direct payments to the bank when reimbursing employees for travel card purchases to ensure that travel card bills get paid
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comparing items submitted on travel vouchers with items already paid for with centrally billed accounts to avoid reimbursing employees for items already paid for by the agency
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submitting refund requests for unused airline tickets so the taxpayers don
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t pay for tickets that were not used
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disputing unauthorized charges and tracking the status of disputed charges to proper resolution