This Week In Waste – April 24, 2026
Welcome to This Week in Waste, a series by Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) that highlights how taxpayer dollars are being wasted in the federal, state, and local levels of government and efforts to fight back against this spendthrift behavior.
CAGW Names Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) April Porker of the Month
CAGW named Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) its April Porker of the Month. The senator distinguished herself for this dishonor by introducing legislation that would resurrect the costly and wasteful Direct File program that would have made the IRS the nation’s tax preparer, biller and enforcer of everyone’s taxes. Direct File was justifiably eliminated in 2025, and taxpayers continue to have access to Free File, the public-private partnership that was created in 2003. For these reasons, Sen. Warren was an easy choice for April 2026 Porker of the Month. Read more here.
FirstNet Reauthorization One Step Closer
On April 26, 2026, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 7386, the First Responder Network Reauthorization Act of 2026, which will ensure that first responders can continue to rely on the program for communications capabilities in emergency situations. The next step is for the Senate to also act on the legislation. Read more here.
Senate Republicans Unveil Bundle of Anti-Fraud Bills to Save $240 Billion
The Protecting American Taxpayers Act, introduced by 13 senators led by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) consists of 17 bills that would save up to $240 billion by reducing waste and fraud across federal agencies and should be approved by Congress. Read more here.
Data Privacy Legislation Introduced
The House Committees on Energy and Commerce and Financial Services introduced two bills on April 22, 2026, to address the need for a national framework for consumer data privacy protection. The SECURE Data Act and the GUARD Financial Data Act are good starting points for moving the debate forward. Read more here.
Bill To Create New Treasury Watchdog Introduced
On April 17, 2026, Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) introduced The Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act to create a new permanent inspector general for fraud, accountability, and recovery (IGFAR) at the Treasury Department. The IGFAR will help federal agency IGs to detect and mitigate fraud for federal grants greater than $50,000. The bill also requires the secretary of the Treasury to make recommendations to Congress that would help to prevent the widespread fraud that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic from occurring in a future emergency relief or recovery effort. Read more here.
Governor Kathy Hochul (D-N.Y.) Announces Pied-À-Terre Tax Proposal
Gov. Hochul has proposed a tax on second homes valued at $5 million or more in New York City, sometimes called a pied-à-terre tax, to help Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) close a $5.5 billion budget gap. The tax will likely discourage investment, push non-resident property owners to shift their assets elsewhere, and shrink the city’s tax base. When this tax was imposed in other cities, it failed to raise the estimated revenue, and it will not solve the city’s continuing failure to reduce spending to match revenue. Read more here.
