Ways & Means and Energy & Commerce Break through Unprecedented Obstruction, Obtain Documents Confirming Administration Broke the Law to Fund Obamacare

Press Release

The House Ways and Means Committee, chaired by Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), and the House Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), today released new information in an addendum to a joint report, "Joint Congressional Investigative Report into the Source of Funding for the ACA's Cost Sharing Reduction Program," released in July 2016.

The initial report chronicled the Committees' investigation into the Obama Administration's decision-making processes on the source of funding for the cost sharing reduction (CSR) program, a key Obamacare program. Despite unprecedented obstruction of the investigation and a refusal by the Administration to comply with Congressional subpoenas, the report revealed the Administration knowingly violated the Constitution to fund the CSR program without a Congressional appropriation.

Since the release of the initial report, the two Committees have continued our investigation to obtain information withheld by the Administration. After six more months of aggressive oversight, the Treasury Department, Health and Human Services Department (HHS), and Office and Management and Budget (OMB) complied with the subpoenas and released documents confirming the initial findings, as well as shedding more light on the Administration's decision-making process. The Committees have learned:

High-ranking officials at Treasury, HHS, and OMB discussed and deliberated using money appropriated for tax credits to fund the CSR program.
Numerous federal employees raised concerns about using the tax credit account to make the CSR payments, but top Administration officials decided to use the unappropriated funds anyway.
Administration officials based their decision to fund the CSR program on a flawed legal analysis.
Upon the release of these new findings, Chairmen Brady and Upton said:

"These new findings are deeply troubling and further demonstrate just how far over the line this Administration has gone to prop up its broken health care law. Because of our Committees' persistence, we have learned much more about the Administration's decision to ignore the clear text of the ACA, disregard the separation of powers, and obstruct a Congressional investigation to further its own political agenda."

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