S. 1957: Taxpayers Right to Know Act

112th Congress · introduced 2011-12-07 · Government Operations and Politics · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2011-12-07 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Coburn, Tom [R-OK] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Taxpayers Right to Know Act

Plain summary

Taxpayers Right to Know Act - Requires the head of each federal agency in each fiscal year to: (1) identify and describe every program administered by such agency; (2) determine the total administrative expenses and expenditures for services for each program; (3) estimate the number of clients served by each program and the beneficiaries who received assistance under each program; (4) estimate the number of full-time federal and contract employees who administer each program; and (5) identify federal programs with duplicative or overlapping missions, services, and allowable uses of funds. Requires agency heads to publish on agency websites the information required by this Act, the latest performance reviews of each agency program, improper payment rates, the total amount of unspent and unobligated program funds held by the agency and grant recipients, and recommendations for consolidating duplicative programs, eliminating waste and inefficiency, and terminating lower priority, outdated, and unnecessary programs and initiatives. Expands the scope of information required in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance to include: (1) programs providing assistance to foreign nations, international organizations, and services provided or funded by agencies operating outside the United States; (2) information required by this Act; and (3) budget functions and authorization and appropriation amounts for each assistance program in the Catalog.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Taxpayers Right to Know Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Coburn, Tom [R-OK] · 32 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Susan M. Collins (R-ME), Rand Paul (R-KY), Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Thune (R-SD), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Mike Lee (R-UT), John Boozman (R-AR), John Hoeven (R-ND), John Cornyn (R-TX), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), James E. Risch (R-ID), Roger F. Wicker (R-MS), John Barrasso (R-WY)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Ballot initiative: A proposed law or constitutional amendment that citizens place on the ballot by gathering enough voter signatures, so voters decide it directly. About half the states allow some form of it.
Fiscal year: The 12-month period a government uses for its budget. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30 and is named for the calendar year in which it ends. Most states use July 1 to June 30.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-112s1957.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/112/s>

Record fed-us-cong112-s1957 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112