Keeping Government Employees Accountable

In some regards, recent headlines it seem more like 1973 than 2013 right now. From the IRS targeting to the Benghazi attacks, from running guns to planning luxurious retreats on the taxpayer dime, our government is out of control.

Like you, I was outraged last year when news broke that GSA employees were put on paid leave after spending nearly $900,000 of taxpayer money on a lavish conference in Las Vegas. Similarly, high-ranking IRS bureaucrats who have been implicated in the agency's outrageous targeting scandal, such as Lois Lerner, are still on the government's payroll.

For this reason, my colleagues and I in the House of Representatives passed a bill to give federal agencies the proper authority to enforce discipline whenever an official betrays the public's trust in such an egregious manner.

The Stop Government Abuse Act allows federal agencies to fire reckless employees on the spot and stop those currently under investigation from receiving salaries paid for by the very public whose trust they abused. Beneath all of the recent government scandals is the fact that for too long, many federal employees have had the luxury of playing by different rules than hardworking taxpayers outside of Washington. This must end.

This bill is just the first step to restoring accountability in Washington. Americans deserve a government they can once again trust, and as your Representative I will continue to fight this reckless behavior in order to restore that trust.

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