H.R. 1387: Cost Openness and Spending Transparency Act of 2025

This bill, known as the Cost Openness and Spending Transparency Act of 2025, aims to enhance transparency regarding the use of federal funds for various programs, projects, or activities. Here are the key elements of the proposed legislation:

Definition of Agencies

The bill defines "agency" to include:

• Executive agencies as outlined by U.S. law.
• Independent regulatory agencies defined in existing legislation.

Disclosure Requirements

Federal agencies and any entities using federal funds for programs, projects, or activities must disclose specific financial information in their communications. This includes:

• The percentage of total program costs that will be financed with federal funds.
• The total dollar amount of federal funds allocated for the program, project, or activity.
• The percentage of total costs and total dollar amount financed by non-governmental sources.

These disclosures must be included in documents such as statements, press releases, and requests for proposals, with the exception of short communications under 280 characters.

Certification of Compliance

Entities conducting federal-funded programs must certify their compliance with these disclosure requirements in their performance progress reports.

Compliance Review

The Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is mandated to conduct an annual review. This involves:

• Randomly sampling communications issued by agencies and federal fund recipients to check for compliance with the disclosure requirements.
• Publishing the findings from the review to ensure public access to compliance information.

Public Reporting Mechanism

Within one year of the bill's enactment, the OMB must provide a way for the public to anonymously report any non-compliant communications. Reports must include:

• A description or location of the non-compliant communication.
• Relevant details of the federal-funded program, project, or activity involved.

Technical Amendments

The bill also proposes minor technical adjustments to existing U.S. Code to integrate the new disclosure section smoothly.

Relevant Companies

None found