HHS inspector general recovers $6.9 billion in 2012
Agency inspectors general can’t solve the government's deficit problem on their own, but they can – and do - recoup ill-gotten gains that add up to a tidy sum. That’s especially true when massive...
View ArticleUn-American sewer project called out by EPA inspector general
The 2009 economic stimulus law, formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, pumps billions of dollars into local infrastructure projects across the country. Inspectors General play a...
View ArticleSchool lunch program wasted $1.7 million, inspector general finds
While a couple of million dollars may be mere crumbs relative to the $11 billion National School Lunch Program– those crumbs should be swept back into the government’s coffers, a recent USDA Inspector...
View ArticleMilitary paid lobbyists to push for earmarks, IG suspects
The Defense Department may have wrongly paid lobbyists $100,000 to lobby for earmarks for defense projects, according to an inspector general’s report.
View ArticleWest Virginia wasted federal broadband money, IG charges
The state could have saved between $500,000 and $1.2 million of a $126 million grant from the Commerce Department to extend and improve high-speed Internet access in the state, according to the...
View ArticleWatchdogs wanted: inspector general vacancies irk Congress
Senate and House committees overseeing government operations are urging the Obama administration to fill inspector general slots at key federal agencies, including the departments of Defense, State and...
View ArticleMillions may be missing in Alaska energy accounts
Bank accounts containing as much as $100 million to sustain federally-funded energy projects in Alaska have either gone missing or were never established to begin with, according to the Denali...
View ArticleProbe Bank of America settlement, says consumer group
Some investigative tales are known as “whodunits.” Maybe this one should be dubbed a “howdunit.”Last month, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) approved a $3.55 billion settlement between Bank of...
View ArticleVA has overpaid some $1 billion on disability, inspector general charges
The backlog in processing veterans’ disability claims has been getting a lot of attention lately -- but while the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has been slow to pay some claims, it has also been...
View ArticleAir Force won’t reopen F-22 crash probe despite inspector general's criticism
The Air Force will not reopen its investigation into the 2010 crash of its F-22 “Raptor” fighter plane, even in light of harsh criticism by the Department of Defense Inspector General (IG).
View ArticleElectric car grant squandered on idle employees, inspector general finds
When LG Chem Michigan Inc. didn’t have enough work for its employees making or testing batteries for electric cars, it let them play video and board games or had them do volunteer work – all on the...
View ArticleInterior inspector general targeted in harsh report
Sometimes inspectors general become objects of investigation themselves. That’s the case at the Interior Department, whose IG has been accused of being too cozy with officials at her agency.
View ArticleNASA threatened by shrinking budgets, says internal watchdog
An inspector general’s office can, at times, be a cheerleader for its agency, as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s IG proved this week. On Feb. 28, it issued a mostly glowing report...
View ArticleBridge repairs, high-speed rail make transportation top ten list
The DOT's internal watchdog spells out priorities as the agency tries to overhaul aging infrastructure, transform air traffic control, and build a modern rail system.
View ArticleMedicare fails to police conflicts of interest, inspector general finds
The government does a poor of ensuring Medicare drug-recommendation committees are independent and unbiased, the HHS inspector general charges.
View ArticleFighting plagues federal civil rights section, inspector general finds
A recent report from an internal watchdog finds President Obama’s pick for Labor Secretary, Thomas Perez, has had difficulties with harassment and infighting in a section of the division he currently...
View ArticleFDA can’t protect you from dangerous dietary supplements
Dietary supplements like vitamins and herbal medicines are a multi-billion dollar business in the U.S., but as a recent Government Accountability Office report highlights, government regulators have...
View ArticleBanks’ mortgage abuses go unmonitored by feds, inspector general finds
Neither Freddie Mac nor the FHFA has been enforcing rules designed to limit unfair foreclosures and other bad behavior in the mortgage industry, an internal watchdog finds.
View ArticleFHFA fails on consumer protection, says inspector general
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is neglecting to ensure that banks selling federally-backed mortgages follow consumer protection laws. That’s according to the agency’s inspector general (IG),...
View ArticleDozens indicted for prescription drug trafficking in Michigan, Ohio
In a case authorities say demonstrates the increasing sophistication of healthcare crime networks, the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) internal watchdog helped indict 44 people last week...
View Article