# 119-hr-7387: Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2026

119-hr-7387, Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Gooden, Lance [R-TX-5] (R-TX); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-08-01).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7387
- As of: 2026-08-01
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-7387
- Congress: 119
- Title: Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-02-05
- Sponsor: Rep. Gooden, Lance [R-TX-5] (R-TX)
- Cosponsors: 9
- Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-08-01

## Summary

**This bill would stop federal settlement agreements from directing payments to outside parties except for direct restitution or payment for services.** It would add penalties, require annual reporting to the Congressional Budget Office, and mandate yearly Inspector General audits with a 7-year reporting sunset. - Federal agencies and officials would be barred from entering or enforcing settlement agreements that send money to anyone other than the United States, except for payments that directly remedy harm or pay for services. Violations would carry the same penalties that apply under 31 U.S.C. 3302. - Heads of each federal agency would have to submit an annual electronic report to the Congressional Budget Office for every settlement that pays third parties for restitution or services. Reports must list the parties, the source of funds, and where and how payments were or will be distributed, and the reporting rule would end after 7 years. - Inspectors General would be required to audit annually and publish reports on any settlement made in violation and send those reports to the Judiciary, Budget, and Appropriations Committees of both the Senate and the House. The bill prohibits additional appropriations to carry out the reporting and audit subsections.

## Cosponsors (9)

- Rep. Tenney, Claudia [R-NY-24] (R-NY), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Rouzer, David [R-NC-7] (R-NC), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Moore, Barry [R-AL-1] (R-AL), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Tiffany, Thomas P. [R-WI-7] (R-WI), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Roy, Chip [R-TX-21] (R-TX), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Ogles, Andrew [R-TN-5] (R-TN), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Palmer, Gary J. [R-AL-6] (R-AL), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Fry, Russell [R-SC-7] (R-SC), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. McDowell, Addison P. [R-NC-6] (R-NC), 2026-02-05T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Annual settlement reports and audits: benefit, medium. This bill would require agency heads to send an annual electronic report to the Congressional Budget Office on each qualifying settlement that paid someone other than the United States. Reports would list the parties, the source of settlement funds, and where and how the funds were or will be distr…
- Ban third-party settlement payments: benefit, medium. This bill would ban federal officials from signing or enforcing any settlement that directs payment to anyone other than the United States. Payments would be allowed only to pay restitution for actual harm (including environmental harm) directly and proximately caused by the paying party, or to pay…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-21: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act
- 119-hr-404: Hearing Protection Act
- 119-hr-1301: Death Tax Repeal Act
- 119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act
- 119-hr-925: Dismantle DEI Act of 2025
- 119-hr-22: SAVE Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-7387 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7387)

## Related
- [119-hr-21: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-21)
- [119-hr-404: Hearing Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-404)
- [119-hr-1301: Death Tax Repeal Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1301)
- [119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-425)
- [119-hr-925: Dismantle DEI Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-925)
- [119-hr-22: SAVE Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-22)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7387 (as of 2026-08-01).