Duplication Scoring Act of 2026

119th Congress Introduced by Tim Burchett and 4 co-sponsors

Requires GAO analysis to flag and publish potential duplicative or overlapping features in new bills, guiding committees and budget estimates.

Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held

Summary of HR 8096 (Duplication Scoring Act of 2026)

Purpose and intent

Establishes a formal requirement for analyzing reported legislation to prevent duplication or overlap with existing federal programs, offices, and initiatives.

Tasked with examining new bills to identify potential duplicative features and to inform Congress and stakeholders about such overlaps.

Key provisions and changes

Amendment to GAO assessment process (District: 31 U.S.C. § 719, new subsection (i))

Introduces specific definitions critical to the duplication assessment:
“Covered bill or joint resolution” = any public-character bill or joint resolution reported by a congressional committee (including Appropriations and Budget Committees).
“Director” = Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
“Existing duplicative or overlapping feature” = an element previously identified as duplication/overlap/fragmentation in a GAO duplication and overlap report.
“GAO duplication and overlap report” = GAO’s annual report on duplication and overlap (based on 2010 Joint Resolution language updating the debt limit).
“New duplicative or overlapping feature” = a new federal program, office, or initiative created by a covered bill that would duplicate or overlap with an existing feature.
For each covered bill or joint resolution, GAO must:
(i) Assess the risk of creating a new duplicative or overlapping feature and, if warranted, identify:
- (I) the name of the new federal program, office, or initiative.
- (II) the section of the bill where the new feature is established.
- (III) which GAO duplication and overlap report identifies the existing overlap.
(ii) Submit this information to the Director and the committee that reported the bill.
(iii) Publish the information on GAO’s website.
(ii)/(iii) May be incorporated by the Director as a supplement to the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (CBO) estimate (section 402) as allowable, subject to timing.
If GAO information has not been submitted by the time the Director prepares the bill’s budget estimate, the Director may still provide the supplement once GAO information is submitted (with a parallel process for delivering to committees).

Effective date and implementation

The amendment takes effect on the earlier of:

60 days after the Director of the OMB updates the information on GAO’s website per 31 U.S.C. § 1122(a); or
the date a new Congress begins after one year from the bill’s enactment.

This creates a staggered start tied to Executive Branch budget document updates and congressional term progress.

Procedural status and sponsors

Introduced in the 119th Congress, House of Representatives, March 26, 2026.

Reported with amendments on May 20, 2026 (yea/nay 39-1) and sent to the Senate for consideration.

Sponsors include Rep. Mark Burchett (primary) and several co-sponsors:

Nancy Mace
Tim Burchett
Melanie Stansbury
Paul Gosar
Jasmine Crockett

Potential impact

Aimed at increasing transparency around potential duplication in new legislation, potentially reducing redundancy in federal programs and funding.

Could influence how committees evaluate introduced legislation by providing a structured, GAO-led duplication risk assessment and ensuring findings are publicly accessible.

Creates a formal mechanism to flag duplicative features early, potentially affecting bill design, amendments, or offsets.

Debatable practical effects depend on how often GAO finds duplicative features and how the Director uses GAO-supplied information in budget estimates.