Congress is spending nearly of its AI budget on ChatGPT

House disbursement records analyzed by CNBC show that ChatGPT claimed close to 90 cents of every dollar directed toward identifiable AI vendors by House offices, committees and institutional accounts in the twelve months through March 31. Within that window, CNBC tallied a minimum of $113,740 in traceable AI vendor payments; ChatGPT absorbed $100,580 of that sum across 798 individual transactions, translating to roughly 88% of expenditures and 96% of transaction volume. Anthropic's Claude came in second at $13,160 across 37 transactions.

The figures cover only a slice of Congress' actual AI use. The analysis excludes free accounts, AI features bundled into broader software contracts such as Microsoft $MSFT Copilot, and most Senate spending. House disbursement records do not identify vendors in a way that makes Senate ChatGPT use traceable.

Democratic member offices accounted for $54,165 in identified AI purchases — more than three times the $15,782 spent by Republican offices. ChatGPT purchases appeared in 44 Democratic offices and 27 Republican offices.

According to Marci Harris, CEO of POPVOX Foundation, a nonprofit that trains members of Congress and staff on AI use, aides are turning to these tools for tasks ranging from condensing bills and writing internal memos to getting ready for hearings and fielding constituent mail. "Staffers are famously overwhelmed, and actually AI is exacerbating that," Harris said, noting that lobbyists and constituents are also using AI to send longer and more detailed material to congressional offices.

Rep. Julie Fedorchak, R-N.D., said that her office used ChatGPT to build a searchable database of legislation and constituent materials, with AI generating briefing memos from that information. The approach is "saving dozens and dozens of hours every week of staff time," she said.

ChatGPT's commanding position in congressional offices has its roots in how early the tool established itself on the Hill. The House Digital Service handed out the initial batch of 40 ChatGPT Plus licenses to a cross-party group of aides back in 2023. OpenAI also partnered with the Congressional Management Foundation to run ChatGPT training sessions for senior House and Senate staff.

Federal lobbying disclosures reviewed by Issue One, a nonprofit government watchdog, show OpenAI's first-quarter 2026 lobbying bill reached $1 million — an 82.5% jump compared with the same three months in 2025. Anthropic spent nearly $1.6 million in the same period, more than tripling its first-quarter 2025 total.

Eric Petry of the Brennan Center for Justice said that legislators and their staff need hands-on exposure to a range of AI products — evaluating how different systems perform — well ahead of any rulemaking for the sector. "We want to make sure that taxpayer dollars are being used to give the government the best tools available, and not to reward political favorites," he said.