Oversight Watch: Week of May 12 — IG Vacancies Persist as USDA Audit Flags $48M, OSC Confirms $30M HHS Waste Disclosure
An Investigative Journal accountability digest. Records suggest the federal oversight community is operating at reduced capacity even as new fraud findings, whistleblower disclosures, and qui tam recoveries continue to pile…
Watchdog Roundup: Week of May 12 — GAO Flags $186 Billion in Improper Federal Payments
GAO reports federal improper payments hit $186B in FY2025, VA acquisition reorganization under scrutiny, ProPublica details a quashed Puerto Rico vote-fraud probe, and the FBI surfaces 1.9M pages from a…
Legislative Watch: Week of May 12, 2026 — FY2027 Defense Hearings Open as $72B Border Reconciliation Tranche Awaits Conference
Senate appropriators open FY2027 defense hearings as a 2B border reconciliation tranche awaits conference, the House clears the 2026 Farm Bill, and AI energy and privacy bills proliferate amid a…
Global Corruption Watch: Week of May 12, 2026 – Worldclear Files, EU 20th Package, and PEMEX Pleas
OCCRP's Worldclear Files expose a NZ payment shop moving money for a Belarusian oligarch; EU adopts 20th Russia sanctions package; DOJ secures second PEMEX bribery plea; SFO inks £15M Ultra…
Sanctions Watch: Week of May 12, 2026 — Cuba’s GAESA Hits the SDN List
Treasury, State, and DOJ moved in parallel this week: GAESA hit the SDN List under E.O. 14404, Economic Fury targeted Iran's shadow banking and a Chinese oil terminal, and the…
Nonprofit Watch: Week of May 12, 2026 — SPLC Indictment and the State AG Surge
A federal indictment of the SPLC, a $6.5M state civil case in Minneapolis, and a stubborn IRS enforcement gap on 501(c)(4) political nonprofits.
Spending Watch: Week of May 12 — Improper Payments Hit $186 Billion as Pentagon, DOE Lock In Multi-Billion Awards
Federal agencies booked $186 billion in improper payments in FY 2025, GAO finds, even as the Pentagon, DOE, and FEMA close out multi-billion-dollar contract and grant cycles.
Court Watch: Week of May 11 — Mifepristone Stay Extended, Tariffs Struck Down
A weekly survey of consequential court action: the Supreme Court keeps the mifepristone telehealth stay alive, the Court of International Trade voids the administration's replacement global tariffs, the D.C. Circuit…
Public Records Roundup: Week of May 12 — Pentagon UAP Files, IRS IT Gaps, and a $317K Embezzlement Indictment
TIJ's weekly survey of newly released federal audits, IG findings, and state and municipal records — including the Pentagon's PURSUE UAP portal, new GAO IT deficiencies at the IRS, and…
Capitol Watch: May 12, 2026 — Hegseth, Caine Defend FY2027 Pentagon Budget Under Iran Questions
Defense Secretary Hegseth and Gen. Caine faced House appropriators on the FY2027 Pentagon budget and Iran operations. Senate Armed Services examined Army posture; Oversight set a Pentagon-audit hearing; CBO updated…