Summary

• Purpose: Require single‑subject bills, ban omnibus packages, eliminate hidden riders, prohibit deceptive titles, and empower citizens and courts to enforce compliance.
• Net fiscal impact (annual): Low: ~$4B | Mid: ~$6B | High: ~$8B+ in savings; admin costs ~$150M.
• Primary beneficiaries: Taxpayers, watchdog groups, courts, and legislators who gain clarity and accountability.

Mechanism of savings

• End of omnibus bills: Prevents log‑rolling and hostage‑taking votes that inflate costs with unrelated spending.
• Hidden riders voided: Non‑germane provisions struck down in court, eliminating billions in pork‑barrel allocations.
• Accurate titles: Stops deceptive branding that hides costly carve‑outs.
• Transparency requirements: 72‑hour posting, statutory citations, and ban on “and for other purposes” reduce rushed, opaque spending.
• Citizen enforcement: Courts can surgically strike riders or misleading titles without killing entire bills, reducing litigation and uncertainty.
• Congressional penalties: Sponsors of deceptive or multi‑subject bills face censure; committees lose 5% of budget if they report them out.

Assumptions

• Baseline: Federal budget ~$6T annually.
• Pork/riders: ~$10–15B annually in hidden riders and carve‑outs.
• Transparency savings: 1–2% efficiency gain in appropriations through clarity and advance posting.
• Admin costs: ~$150M/year for Parliamentarian certifications, dashboards, and court enforcement.
• Citizen suits: Limited to compliance enforcement, not policy disputes, keeping litigation manageable.

Calculations

• Low case: $4.2B savings – $0.15B costs = ≈ $4B net.
• Mid case: $6.1B savings – $0.15B costs = ≈ $6B net.
• High case: $8.2B savings – $0.15B costs = ≈ $8B net.

Risks and mitigation

• Congressional resistance: Courts empowered to void riders; citizen standing ensures accountability.
• Title manipulation: Parliamentarian certification + judicial review prevent abuse.
• Litigation overload: Narrow standing and attorney’s fee shifting discourage frivolous suits.

Measurement and reporting

• KPIs: % of bills certified single‑subject, number of riders voided, committee budget penalties imposed, citizen suits filed/resolved.
• Cadence: Certifications published before floor votes; dashboards updated within 72 hours of bill posting; GAO annual reports.

Bottom line

The Single Subject and Transparency in Legislation Act ends Christmas‑tree bills, bans deceptive titles, and forces Congress to legislate issue by issue. The result: billions in savings, cleaner lawmaking, and receipts the public can see.