WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) introduced the Contracting and Tax Accountability Act of 2019 today to require prospective federal government contractors to certify that they don’t owe back taxes. 

“If you want to benefit from taxpayer dollars through government contracts, then you need to pay your taxes,” said Sen. Kennedy.  “Federal contractors owe billions of dollars in back taxes.  They shouldn’t be rewarded for shirking their responsibilities.  We don’t need to employ deadbeats.”

A report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-742T) found that thousands of federal contractors owe more than $7 billion in unpaid taxes.

The bill will:

• Require contractors to certify they do not have seriously delinquent tax debt during an agency’s grant/contract solicitation process.
• Authorize the secretary of Treasury to disclose information on seriously delinquent tax debt.

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