Introduction
Like the Sorcerer’s Apprentice conjuring more brooms than he could control, Washington conjures new programs that duplicate one another. When Congress tries to solve a problem, it often creates yet another initiative without checking whether one already exists.
The bipartisan Duplication Scoring Act (S. 2733), reintroduced by Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), offers lawmakers a new tool to prevent waste. The bill would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to flag proposed legislation for duplication risk before enactment and transmit that assessment to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the relevant committees.
A Growing Government and Mounting Debt
Despite the efforts of the Department of Government Efficiency, which claims $214 billion in savings to date, the federal debt at the end of Fiscal Year 2025 was $1.8 trillion higher than a year ago. In addition to the total $38 trillion debt burden, a new database from the federal government underscores the sheer size of the federal government.
Thanks to work by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) spanning the Biden and Trump Administrations, the federal government has finally completed a program inventory, as required by the Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010. Cato Institute’s Chris Edwards has tracked the number of subsidy programs over the years and noted that the updated inventory of the $7 trillion budget identifies 2,623 benefit and subsidy programs across the federal budget—up from 1,019 in 1970 and 1,425 in 2000—reflecting the extraordinary expansion of Washington’s role over the past half-century.
Across these programs there is significant duplication and overlap. GAO’s 2025 annual report on fragmentation, overlap, and duplication found 600 open recommendations to reduce inefficiencies across federal agencies, including 43 new areas of duplication and 148 new recommendations for Congress and the executive branch to tackle. Fully implementing them could save taxpayers at least $100 billion.
With this background, as Congress drafts legislation to reauthorize existing programs or create new ones, lawmakers should have a clearer picture of whether those proposals would duplicate existing efforts. The Duplication Scoring Act would help provide that insight before redundancy becomes another line in the federal budget.
How the Duplication Scoring Act Works
The Duplication Scoring Act would give Congress an early-warning system against wasteful and overlapping federal programs. Under the bill, GAO would review legislation reported by congressional committees to determine whether any provisions would create new programs, offices, or initiatives that duplicate existing federal efforts.
GAO would then provide its assessment, essentially a duplication risk review, to the relevant committees and to CBO to include in its cost analyses of legislation. This process would enable lawmakers to see, before a vote, whether a bill risks adding to the complex web of overlapping programs identified in GAO’s annual reports.
Conclusion: Preventing Waste Before It Starts
By incorporating a “duplication score” into CBO’s cost estimates, Congress would gain a clearer view of how legislation affects both spending and efficiency. Senators Paul and Hassan’s Duplication Scoring Act would strengthen oversight and help prevent taxpayer dollars from being wasted on redundant programs. If enacted, it would help Congress rein in its inner Sorcerer’s Apprentice and stop duplication before it floods the federal budget.