Sponsors (67)
The bill protects USAID's independent status and continuity of U.S. development assistance—strengthening soft power and congressional oversight—while reducing executive flexibility and potentially increasing administrative and program costs for taxpayers.
U.S. foreign partners, program beneficiaries abroad, and taxpayers: USAID programs and U.S. soft power are less likely to be disrupted because the bill preserves USAID's independent status and requires reorganizations to follow existing law, maintaining continuity of development and aid delivery.
Congress and the public: The bill affirms that only Congress can eliminate USAID as an independent establishment, protecting congressional prerogative and limiting unilateral executive termination of the agency.
Congress and federal oversight: Requiring the Secretary of State to certify USAID's status within 30 days and annually for five years increases transparency and gives Congress regular, documented information about compliance and any changes.
Federal leadership, federal agencies, and efforts to streamline government: The bill limits executive-branch flexibility to reorganize or consolidate foreign assistance functions, which could constrain efficiency or policy realignment efforts.
Taxpayers: By protecting USAID and emphasizing preventing gaps for competitors, the bill could foreclose administrative consolidation savings and steer policy toward sustaining or expanding programs abroad, leading to continued or higher U.S. spending.
State Department staff and federal resources: The required certifications and annual reporting for five years impose an administrative burden that uses staff time and departmental resources.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Bars use of appropriated funds to eliminate USAID's independent-establishment status and requires five years of annual Secretary of State certifications to two congressional committees.
Official title: To prohibit the use of Federal funds to eliminate the United States Agency for International Development.
Introduced February 11, 2025 by Sara Jacobs · Last progress February 11, 2025
Prohibits use of federal funds to eliminate or dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as an independent establishment and requires annual certification from the Secretary of State for five years that appropriations are not being used to do so. It reaffirms that only an act of Congress can change USAID’s status and extends an existing funding prohibition while adding a five-year, yearly reporting requirement to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Senate Foreign Relations Committee.