Committee advances bill to route federal funds through Legislature for review

House Bill 12-21 passed the General Government Committee by a 5-2 vote. Representative West, sponsor of the bill, said it would require federal funds coming into state government to be received into a legislative revolving account so the Legislature could review terms, timing and any strings attached before funds are disbursed to agencies.

“Most all of those federal dollars are already directed to where they're supposed to go,” Representative West told the committee, adding the bill would not permit the Legislature to reassign funds to unrelated purposes but would give legislators the opportunity to review conditions attached to grants or block grants. He cited concerns about past large transfers such as ARPA, saying the proposal would allow lawmakers to “lay eyes on it” and reduce risk of later federal audits, clawbacks or accounting issues.

Members asked about timing and added bureaucracy. Representative Munson and others raised concerns that an added legislative review could slow disbursements to agencies and nonprofit grantees; Representative West said most funds would continue to be passed through automatically and that only a small portion (he estimated) would require detailed review. The sponsor said the measure would be particularly useful if federal programs shift to block grants, which the Trump administration had discussed, because block grants could otherwise flow directly to agencies.

The committee voted 5-2 to report the bill as passed. Representative West said the bill does not change legal restrictions on how federal funds must be spent, and he indicated the measure is intended to give the Legislature visibility and an opportunity to assess conditions attached to special federal funds.

The bill will be reported to the next committee.