U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI) recently joined a group of his GOP colleagues to introduce legislation that would end U.S. aid funds to Afghanistan over concerns the Taliban is intercepting the monies.
“After leaving billions of dollars in taxpayer funded military equipment in the hands of the Taliban, the Biden-Harris administration continues to fail American taxpayers,” Rep. Huizenga said Sept. 20. “It is an absolute disgrace that the Biden-Harris administration has failed to set up the appropriate safeguards to ensure American taxpayer dollars do not flow into the coffers of the Taliban.”
Rep. Huizenga on Sept. 9 sponsored the Protecting Taxpayer Dollars from Taliban Theft Act, H.R. 9503, alongside 10 original cosponsors, including U.S. Reps. Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), to prohibit U.S. taxpayer dollars in the form of taxes, fees, duties, and utilities from being paid to the Taliban.
According to the congressman’s statement, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction in May found that at least $10.9 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars went to the Taliban in the form of taxes, fees, duties, and utilities, and since the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the report found that neither the State Department nor USAID have a true accounting of the amount of U.S. taxpayer dollars that were paid to the Taliban by relief organizations operating in Afghanistan and funded by American taxpayers.
“With interest payments on our national debt now exceeding what we spend on defense, the federal government must make every effort to end waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars,” said Rep. Huizenga. “The Protecting Taxpayer Dollars from Taliban Theft Act is a common-sense measure that will save millions of taxpayer dollars from being wasted and funding the oppressive Taliban regime.”
If enacted, H.R. 9503 also would require the U.S. State Department and USAID to promulgate reporting regulations for any payments or withholdings made to the Taliban, state-owned enterprises, or governing institutions in Afghanistan by an implementing partner receiving funding from American taxpayers.
Additionally, the measure would require the State Department and USAID to amend existing grants and contracts to include language prohibiting these activities, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Huizenga’s staff.