WASHINGTON, D.C. — Last week, the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC) held a hearing titled Reducing Waste, Fraud and Abuse Through Innovation: How AI & Data Can Improve Government Efficiency. Members engaged with witnesses on how AI implementation could streamline government operations, reduce costs, and enhance public services.

 

Watch Chairman Schweikert’s remarks here.

Chairman Schweikert Pushes for Federal AI Implementation: “We Have the Tools, We Need the Will.”

Chairman David Schweikert (R-AZ-01) challenged witnesses and agencies to move beyond reports and into real-world implementation of advanced technology tools, especially for healthcare modernization and centralized data systems for fraud detection. “How do I get them to stop sending me papers about ideas for implementation and actually implement?” asked Chairman Schweikert. “We have the tools; we need the will.”

Dr. Brian Miller described the ways technology can improve the cost and access of healthcare for society, mentioning three potential reforms: automation of Medicaid eligibility, automation of diagnosis coding across Medicare, and making prior authorization submissions fully electronic.

Dr. Sterling Thomas endorsed a living system approach to fraud detection and recommended looking at existing models like PACE, a centralized analytics program used to coordinate fraud prevention efforts. “Fraudsters evolve too,” Dr. Thomas warned. “Our systems must evolve with them.”

As the hearing concluded, Chairman Schweikert noted that moving from ideas to impact will require more than reports, it will require commitment, collaboration, and congressional leadership. “If these data sources across government actually communicated between one another, you could mine and design from a single location. I need to know if that’s caffeine-fueled rambling or brilliance.”

 

Watch Vice Chairman Schmitt’s remarks here.

Vice Chairman Schmitt Presses Agencies on Inaction: "We Know the Problem, Why Aren’t We Fixing It?"

Vice Chairman Eric Schmitt (R-MO) sharply criticized federal agencies for failing to act on longstanding recommendations to prevent fraud. He focused his remarks on the disconnect between identifying fraud and implementing operational solutions. “We know what the problem is. Recommendations are made… What is the disconnect? How are the controls not actually put in place? How does this keep happening?”

Dr. Brian Miller emphasized that part of the challenge is political, “whether it is fraud or an improper payment, that is someone’s revenue. That person who has revenue doesn’t like when you take the revenue away—so that is a political issue.” He also pointed to a second failure, agencies often issue reports without taking action “we measure the problem, write a paper, and then we do not get the agency wheels going to address it.”

Mr. Andrew Cannarsa urged Congress to enhance transparency and press agencies directly, noting “the information is there—it’s just understanding what is holding the agency back.”

Mr. Neil Chilson echoed the need for personal accountability, noting that recent guidance on AI implementation calls for assigning risk ownership to specific individuals responsible for the program’s mission. “That type of personal accountability… is the sort of thing that keeps new technologies under the right amount [of scrutiny].”

 

Watch Rep. Malliotakis’ remarks here.

Rep. Malliotakis Urges Implementing Tools to Reduce Fraud and Protect Taxpayer Dollars

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11) highlighted a troubling trend hitting her district: the theft and laundering of federal Treasury checks, noting roughly 400 constituent cases totaling $5.4 million. Rep. Malliotakis noted the problem extends far beyond New York, citing GAO estimates of $162 billion in improper payments in FY2025 alone, with a cumulative $2.8 trillion since 2003. Rep. Malliotakis outlined several potential solutions, including moving more recipients to direct deposit, using check-tracking technology, and software to detect suspicious activity. She then engaged witnesses on ideas they have and what has worked in the private sector that could be applied in federal agencies.

Dr. Sterling Thomas acknowledged the relevance of Rep. Malliotakis’s concerns and noted that fraud analytics tools used in the private sector could be adapted by government agencies. “Analytics could certainly help by tracking the actual payment and making sure the individual is actually receiving it.”

Mr. Neil Chilson strongly endorsed expanding direct deposit use, explaining that while not a new technology, it significantly reduces vulnerability to physical theft. “Taking the middleman out—which is the mailbox, I guess—and doing direct deposit makes a ton of sense.” He added that private companies invest heavily in making sure electronic transactions are secure and traceable, offering a model the government can follow.

Rep. Malliotakis also pressed for better interagency data sharing, referencing the need to extend Social Security Administration’s authority to share its full death master file (DMF) with the U.S. Treasury, a tool that has helped recover millions in improper payments. She closed by asking “what is the most significant barrier stopping the federal government from implementing these advanced AI technologies?”

Dr. Sterling Thomas responded that the two main challenges are partitioned data that’s not easily shareable across agencies and the lack of validated datasets, which are essential for training accurate fraud-detection models.

 

Watch Rep. Estes’ remarks here.

Rep. Ron Estes Highlights Link Between Fraud Prevention and Benefit Integrity

Rep. Ron Estes (R-KS-04) delivered a strong call for bipartisan action and the use of modern technology to tackle persistent financial mismanagement across government agencies. Rep. Estes stated, “every dollar saved by eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse is a dollar that can go toward benefits for seniors who have earned them, or toward other beneficial programs.” Rep. Estes expressed concern that efforts to eliminate fraud, once a bipartisan mission, have become politically divisive. “It’s unfathomable that people would be against finding and eliminating this blatant theft of taxpayer dollars.”

Rep. Estes engaged the witnesses to clarify how AI can target only bad actors while preserving benefits for rightful recipients.

Mr. Neil Chilson answered by drawing a parallel to the financial sector, noting “these tools can help eliminate fraud while also serving people who are rightfully receiving benefits more quickly and accurately…We have real opportunities in this space.”

Rep. Estes concluded by urging continued cooperation and innovation, noting that the private sector succeeds by adapting, something Washington must embrace: “In D.C., as Ronald Reagan once said, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life you’ll ever see on earth.”

Watch Rep. Spartz’s remarks here.

Rep. Spartz Slams Bureaucratic Delays, Demands Stronger Controls and Automation to Stop Government Fraud

Rep. Spartz (R-IN-05) sharply criticized the federal government’s failure to implement basic accounting and fraud detection controls, calling for automated systems and continuous auditing to bring Washington up to speed with private-sector standards. “This is Accounting 101,” Rep. Spartz declared. “We’re talking about having authorization for all transactions. Why are we still debating whether there should be controls on government spending?”

Drawing on a background in financial auditing, Rep. Spartz repeatedly pressed the witnesses on why government agencies have failed to implement simple but essential controls like invoice validation, transaction authorization, and database safeguards, tools that have existed in the private sector for decades.