The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently determined that the Trump administration violated the Impoundment Control Act when it withheld funds appropriated to the Department of Transportation. In what is likely a response to that decision, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sent a letter to GAO expressing concerns about the agencies’ interactions.
OMB noted that it has struggled to keep up with GAO engagements. OMB lamented that GAO often “unhelpfully injects itself” into OMB’s programs, and “hampers the Executive Branch’s ability to carry out its statutory mandates.” OMB alleges that GAO’s requests undermine the agency’s efforts to implement the President’s priorities. In light of these concerns, OMB states that it will only cooperate with GAO engagements “in a manner that ensures that the burdens of such engagements do not unduly impede the President’s agenda.”
