-
May 8, 2026
Topline: The Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general identified $200 million in improper payments that Medicaid made for autism services between 2019 and...
-
May 7, 2026
Topline: Most football fans are likely jealous of anyone who can afford tickets to the Super Bowl, which typically cost thousands of dollars. But in 2012, fans watching at home were...
-
May 6, 2026
Topline: The Army and Navy found 14 weapons systems that had “critical cost growth” in 2023 and 2024, meaning it will cost at least 25% more than expected to maintain...
-
May 5, 2026
Topline: The Los Angeles Police Department spent $315.5 million on overtime last year, and the fire department spent $283.4 million, leading to inflated take-home pay, according to...
-
May 4, 2026
Topline: The Department of the Interior spent $2.6 billion to help state and local governments and nonprofits manage drought conditions in the Colorado River Basin, but it’s...
-
May 1, 2026
Topline: The fox is guarding the henhouse at Montclair Public Schools in New Jersey.
After the district’s annual audit uncovered seven “deficiencies” with its...
-
Apr 30, 2026
Topline: In 2012, researchers at Purdue University used optical illusions to show that making a golf hole appear larger helps golfers improve their performance.
The $350,000 hole in...
-
Apr 29, 2026
Topline: President Donald Trump made it a priority to downsize the federal workforce last year, but the top-paid employees are making more money than previously.
There were 1,540...
-
Apr 28, 2026
Topline: Aretha Ferrell-Benavides — the disgraced former city manager of Martinsville, Va. — spent $96,613 on her city credit card without proper approval, according to...
-
Apr 27, 2026
Topline: Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was not kidding when he complained that there are too many “fat troops” in the military.
The military has spent nearly $726 million...
-
Apr 24, 2026
Topline: The firing of then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem came after she funded a $220 million ad campaign without a competitive bidding process, but she is far from the...
-
Apr 23, 2026
Topline: PepsiCo’s odd attempt at being associated with health foods ended in failure in 2015, when its Greek yogurt factory closed due to poor sales.
The government tried its...
-
Apr 22, 2026
Topline: Texas taxpayers spent an estimated $42.3 million to $111.5 million to help local governments lobby the state legislature in 2025, even though 83% of voters oppose the...
-
Apr 21, 2026
Topline: Employees at the Internal Revenue Service are busy processing tax returns, but they’re equipped with supplies that go far beyond laptops and calculators. The IRS spent...
-
Apr 20, 2026
Topline: Economic development corporation JobsOhio controls the sale of liquor in Ohio and uses most of the profits — $359 million last year — for job creation programs....
-
Apr 17, 2026
Topline: A new Oklahoma state audit alleges that a former public school employee wrote fraudulent checks to herself and hid money meant for the school’s activity fund.
Key...
-
Apr 16, 2026
Topline: America’s dogs and cats were awash in dollar bills when Nebraska used a $505,000 federal grant to manufacture pet shampoo and toothpaste.
The money went to...
-
Apr 15, 2026
Topline: The City of Pittsburgh’s staffing shortage continued to drain the city’s budget in 2025. Payroll records obtained by Open the Books show the city spent $70.8...
-
Apr 14, 2026
Topline: The seven governors of the Federal Reserve are supported by a staff of more than 3,000 economists who analyze current fiscal conditions. But, according to an inspector...
-
Apr 13, 2026
Topline: The song “This Land Is Your Land” celebrates America’s golden valleys and diamond deserts — which, notably, are natural and free of charge.
But...
-
Apr 9, 2026
Topline: Smokey Bear is fond of reminding the public that “Only you can prevent forest fires.” But, in reality, federal funding for actual firefighters would probably be...
-
Apr 8, 2026
Topline: The City of Chicago has spent almost $160 million paying private lawyers to fight wrongful conviction lawsuits since 2016, but The Chicago Tribune found there is...
-
Apr 7, 2026
Topline: $193.6 trillion is the most important number in the United States. That’s how much extra money will be needed to fund Social Security and Medicare indefinitely, even...
-
Apr 6, 2026
Topline: Maryland state employees earned a record $406 million in overtime last year, according to payroll records, backing up the findings of a recent state audit that found...
-
Apr 3, 2026
Topline: Alabama legalized medical marijuana five years ago, but not one person has received a treatment. A flawed licensing process developed by the state and attorney William...
-
Apr 2, 2026
The State of Texas has become as synonymous with crippling public school debt as it is with oil wells and tumbleweeds.
Its public schools have $148.3 billion in bond...
-
Apr 2, 2026
Topline: In 2012, NASA set out to conquer a new frontier: the iPad App Store.
App development proved to be more difficult than actual space exploration. NASA spent $1.5 million to...
-
Apr 1, 2026
Topline: Regina Speaker and Sandra Edling, directors of the county office managing schools in Montgomery, Penn., recently took the trip of a lifetime: a 14-day African safari with...
-
Mar 31, 2026
Topline: Lawmakers added 1,090 congressional increases in back-door earmarks worth $34 billion into the Department of War’s budget for 2026, according to analysis from...
-
Mar 30, 2026
Topline: New York is the city where dreams come true — like making $325,000 to fix thermostats for the Department of Correction.
That’s how much the city’s top-paid...
-
Mar 27, 2026
Topline: The National Science Foundation is spending $67 million on software that will protect American research from cybercriminals in enemy nations like China. But it’s being...
-
Mar 26, 2026
Topline: If the federal government wants to address homelessness, Rodeo Drive might not be the best place to start. That hasn’t stopped Beverly Hills — with no qualified...
-
Mar 25, 2026
Topline: More than 18,000 Arizona families used school vouchers to make an "unallowable” purchase in 2025, costing the state at least $10.3 million for banned items like...
-
Mar 24, 2026
Topline: It takes less time to put a man on the moon than to build an outdoor bathroom in New York City, according to former NYC Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe.
The nonprofit...
-
Mar 23, 2026
Topline: The federal government spent $8.4 million on purchases that included golf carts in fiscal year 2025, according to spending records obtained by Open the Books.
Key facts: Of...
-
Mar 20, 2026
Topline: Faith Family Academy, a taxpayer-funded charter school district in North Texas, was nearly shut down by the state following three consecutive years of poor student...
-
Mar 19, 2026
Topline: In 2012, artificial intelligence researchers funded by the federal government were not concerned whether their technology could interpret data or streamline workflows. They...
-
Mar 18, 2026
Topline: The General Services Administration spent $133 million hiring consultants to study its own buildings, but nobody is keeping track of what the studies found or checking if...
-
Mar 17, 2026
Topline: Almost 80% of the City of Rocky Mount’s cash and investments are gone following the disastrous tenure of City Manager Keith Rogers, according to a North Carolina state...
-
Mar 16, 2026
Topline: Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) has billed taxpayers $111,000 for limousine services since 2019, according to a review of disbursement reports by The Center Square. The other 434...
-
Mar 13, 2026
Topline: The Caring for Denver Foundation, tasked with running substance abuse prevention programs, is seemingly drunk on its own spending. The nonprofit spent $28,200 on its own...
-
Mar 12, 2026
Topline: West Virginia government officials spent $24 million in 2010 on expensive, high-capacity internet routers that could handle tens of thousands of users at once. Then, they...
-
Mar 11, 2026
Topline: The City of Boston’s soccer stadium renovation was supposed to cost taxpayers $50 million when it was announced in March 2024. The cost is now up to $135 million...
-
Mar 10, 2026
Topline: The Congressional Budget Office’s annual 10-year economic forecast warns that, by 2030, the federal debt held by the public will be $40.3 trillion, or 108% of the...
-
Mar 9, 2026
Topline: The Rhode Island Department of Corrections spent a record $38.9 million on overtime in 2025, nearly a quarter of its total payroll expense, according to records obtained by...
-
Mar 6, 2026
Topline: Controversial education firms that helped embed diversity, equity and inclusion principles in K-12 military schools during President Joe Biden’s administration are...
-
Mar 5, 2026
Topline: The federal government paid $2 million in service fees for bank accounts with a balance of $0 in 2011, many of which had been empty for over three years, according to a...
-
Mar 4, 2026
Topline: The 2026 federal budget contains $15.8 billion in earmark funding for 8,475 local projects in lawmakers’ home districts, but the money was not distributed equitably....
-
Mar 3, 2026
Topline: Florida spent $405 million in emergency funding on its immigration crackdown in the last six months, with nearly a quarter paying for porta-potties and millions going to...
-
Mar 2, 2026
Topline: One doesn’t associate luxury with being in the military, but Pentagon personnel spent record amounts of money dining on seafood in 2025, according to federal spending...
-
Feb 27, 2026
Topline: The federal government lost $186 billion to improper payments in fiscal year 2025, according to newly released data from the Office of Management and Budget. That’s...
-
Feb 26, 2026
Topline: There is one major reason why most Americans do not regularly buy caviar: the price. Publicity is not the issue.
The Department of Agriculture ignored that fact in 2012,...
-
Feb 25, 2026
Topline: At each of the eight public universities in Utah, a volunteer Board of Trustees is responsible for evaluating the school’s president, among other things. But according...
-
Feb 24, 2026
Topline: The purchasing platform offered by the General Services Administration is putting government agencies at a disadvantage, according to a new audit from the GSA inspector...
-
Feb 23, 2026
Topline: Illinois State Rep. Robin Gabel reportedly told his colleagues that “there is no pork” in the 2026 state budget bill he sponsored. Yet ongoing analysis from the...
-
Feb 20, 2026
Topline: A taxpayer-funded Connecticut nonprofit closed down after a state audit found it lost $300,000 to wire fraud, gave a grant to an employee, and had no records to prove that...
-
Feb 19, 2026
Topline: Dr. Frankenstein was able to bring his monster back to life using just rusty tools and a cramped workshop. Researchers in California needed taxpayer funding from the...
-
Feb 18, 2026
Topline: No matter how far smartphone addiction spreads in America, it’s still impossible to keep texting from the grave. Yet state spending records say otherwise.
Phone and...
-
Feb 17, 2026
Topline: The federal welfare program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, is sending less money directly to families and more to nonprofits and state agencies, leading the Wall...
-
Feb 16, 2026
Topline: Most New York public school lunches consist of room temperature chicken nuggets or reheated pizza. But at Wyandanch Memorial High School on Long Island, principal Paul...
-
Feb 13, 2026
Topline: Eight Massachusetts state agencies and 13 colleges spent $6.8 million to settle grievances, partly in secret, brought by their own employees from 2019 to 2024, according to...
-
Feb 12, 2026
Topline: The U.S. Agency for International Development’s pottery classes in Morocco seemed like an irresponsible use of money before they even began, but somehow the execution...
-
Feb 11, 2026
Topline: Eleven state and local governments that received a collective $45 million from the federal government to remove lead from houses were never flagged as “high...
-
Feb 10, 2026
Topline: The Washington State Department of Commerce ignored “the fundamental tenets of government accountability” by awarding grants that lacked a clear purpose,...
-
Feb 9, 2026
Topline: The Environmental Protection Agency “did not follow standard operating procedures” for reviewing its spending and underestimated its improper payments in 2022...
-
Feb 6, 2026
Topline: The U.S. Postal Service spent a record $42.8 billion on payroll in 2025 while posting a $9 billion loss, according to payroll records obtained by Open the Books.
Key facts:...
-
Feb 5, 2026
Topline: In 2012, there was little reason not to close the Lake Murray State Park Airport in Oklahoma. There were no planes stored at the airport, and it averaged only one flight per...
-
Feb 4, 2026
Topline: A Los Angeles advocacy group that sued the city twice was simultaneously being funded by the city itself.
Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE) has received at least...
-
Feb 3, 2026
Topline: The federal government gives billions of dollars in research grants to universities every year, but not all of it directly funds scientific inquiry. Most universities enjoy...
-
Feb 2, 2026
Topline: Taxpayers are often suspicious that government insiders can rewrite the rules to benefit themselves. But in Connecticut, the problem is that the rules were not...
-
Jan 30, 2026
Topline: Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander claims one of the city’s health insurance funds has “no path to solvency” after labor unions used it to cover...
-
Jan 29, 2026
Topline: In 2012, a study published by Agnes Scott College and Emory University concluded that chimpanzees that know how to throw their own feces have stronger communication skills...
-
Jan 28, 2026
Topline: The State Department did not have consistent oversight requirements for $5.7 billion it contributed to the United Nations and other international organizations in 2024,...
-
Jan 27, 2026
Topline: The Grinch did not successfully steal Christmas this season, but he did use up $30,493 in taxpayer money.
A viral Grinch-themed house in Dallas drew crowds so large that the...
-
Jan 26, 2026
Topline: In fiscal year 2025, Congress funded 1,326 federal programs that had expired legal authorizations to receive taxpayer funding — the most since at least 2019, when the...
-
Jan 23, 2026
Topline: The company administering taxpayer-funded health insurance for New York State employees overpaid hospitals by $19.3 million, according to a new audit from the State...
-
Jan 22, 2026
Topline: The U.S. Agency for International Development had noble intentions when it created the Afghan Civilian Assistance Program. It spent $52 million from 2007 to March 2011 to...
-
Jan 21, 2026
Topline: “Three strikes and you’re out” is an excellent rule for baseball, but apparently not for Medicaid.
The Maine health-care company Gateway Community Services...
-
Jan 20, 2026
Topline: Texas Southern University has no idea where most of its inventory is located, ignored safeguards meant to prevent overspending, and reported inaccurate information to the...
-
Jan 19, 2026
Topline: North Carolina’s state website claims that about 30% of the revenue from lottery tickets helps fund public schools. Yet despite record-breaking sales, that has not...
-
Jan 16, 2026
Topline: A new federal audit revealed that “human errors” and “system issues” in Maryland’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program caused the state...
-
Jan 15, 2026
Topline: What do most people look for in a potential partner? Maybe kindness, or a sense of humor? What about $1.9 million in federal funding?
Taxpayers were forced to choose the...
-
Jan 14, 2026
Topline: The federal government often does not have enough time to ensure that oil and gas companies are properly reporting the royalties they owe from drilling on federal land,...
-
Jan 13, 2026
Topline: A Dec. 18 report from the California State Auditor claims that Mendocino County is “vulnerable to waste, fraud, and abuse” after spending thousands of dollars on...
-
Jan 12, 2026
Topline: The federal government is unable to verify that $5.8 billion in rental assistance paid to more than 204,000 recipients in 2024 was not fraudulent, according to the...
-
Jan 9, 2026
Topline: Hello? Is anyone there? Not at California’s Employment Development Department, where the state spent $4.6 million on 6,285 unused cell phones.
The devices belong to...
-
Jan 8, 2026
Topline: In 2006, Congress’ guidelines for Homeland Security’s grant program for firefighters mostly ignored the most obvious function of a fire department: putting out...
-
Jan 7, 2026
Topline: Americans have already turned the calendar to 2026, but it will take years to pay back the debt incurred by the federal initiatives listed in Sen. Rand Paul’s 11th...
-
Jan 6, 2026
Topline: The nonprofit New Opportunities, Inc. used $2.8 million in taxpayer funds meant for low-income families’ heating bills on its own operating expenses, according to the...
-
Jan 5, 2026
Topline: There is no “reasonable assurance” that Department of Energy loans are being approved impartially and without conflicts of interest, according to a Dec. 18 audit...
-
Jan 2, 2026
Topline: A California state employee recently took one of the longest paid vacations in history.
The unnamed worker stayed on paid leave for over two years after announcing his...
-
Jan 1, 2026
Topline: Millions of Americans watched the ball drop in Times Square on TV last night, including federal government employees out of the office to celebrate the New Year.
Back in...
May 8, 2026Topline: The Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general identified $200 million in improper payments that Medicaid made for autism services between 2019 and...
May 7, 2026Topline: Most football fans are likely jealous of anyone who can afford tickets to the Super Bowl, which typically cost thousands of dollars. But in 2012, fans watching at home were...
May 6, 2026Topline: The Army and Navy found 14 weapons systems that had “critical cost growth” in 2023 and 2024, meaning it will cost at least 25% more than expected to maintain...
May 5, 2026Topline: The Los Angeles Police Department spent $315.5 million on overtime last year, and the fire department spent $283.4 million, leading to inflated take-home pay, according to...
May 4, 2026Topline: The Department of the Interior spent $2.6 billion to help state and local governments and nonprofits manage drought conditions in the Colorado River Basin, but it’s...
May 1, 2026Topline: The fox is guarding the henhouse at Montclair Public Schools in New Jersey. After the district’s annual audit uncovered seven “deficiencies” with its...
Apr 30, 2026Topline: In 2012, researchers at Purdue University used optical illusions to show that making a golf hole appear larger helps golfers improve their performance. The $350,000 hole in...
Apr 29, 2026Topline: President Donald Trump made it a priority to downsize the federal workforce last year, but the top-paid employees are making more money than previously. There were 1,540...
Apr 28, 2026Topline: Aretha Ferrell-Benavides — the disgraced former city manager of Martinsville, Va. — spent $96,613 on her city credit card without proper approval, according to...
Apr 27, 2026Topline: Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was not kidding when he complained that there are too many “fat troops” in the military. The military has spent nearly $726 million...
Apr 24, 2026Topline: The firing of then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem came after she funded a $220 million ad campaign without a competitive bidding process, but she is far from the...
Apr 23, 2026Topline: PepsiCo’s odd attempt at being associated with health foods ended in failure in 2015, when its Greek yogurt factory closed due to poor sales. The government tried its...
Apr 22, 2026Topline: Texas taxpayers spent an estimated $42.3 million to $111.5 million to help local governments lobby the state legislature in 2025, even though 83% of voters oppose the...
Apr 21, 2026Topline: Employees at the Internal Revenue Service are busy processing tax returns, but they’re equipped with supplies that go far beyond laptops and calculators. The IRS spent...
Apr 20, 2026Topline: Economic development corporation JobsOhio controls the sale of liquor in Ohio and uses most of the profits — $359 million last year — for job creation programs....
Apr 17, 2026Topline: A new Oklahoma state audit alleges that a former public school employee wrote fraudulent checks to herself and hid money meant for the school’s activity fund. Key...
Apr 16, 2026Topline: America’s dogs and cats were awash in dollar bills when Nebraska used a $505,000 federal grant to manufacture pet shampoo and toothpaste. The money went to...
Apr 15, 2026Topline: The City of Pittsburgh’s staffing shortage continued to drain the city’s budget in 2025. Payroll records obtained by Open the Books show the city spent $70.8...
Apr 14, 2026Topline: The seven governors of the Federal Reserve are supported by a staff of more than 3,000 economists who analyze current fiscal conditions. But, according to an inspector...
Apr 13, 2026Topline: The song “This Land Is Your Land” celebrates America’s golden valleys and diamond deserts — which, notably, are natural and free of charge. But...
Apr 9, 2026Topline: Smokey Bear is fond of reminding the public that “Only you can prevent forest fires.” But, in reality, federal funding for actual firefighters would probably be...
Apr 8, 2026Topline: The City of Chicago has spent almost $160 million paying private lawyers to fight wrongful conviction lawsuits since 2016, but The Chicago Tribune found there is...
Apr 7, 2026Topline: $193.6 trillion is the most important number in the United States. That’s how much extra money will be needed to fund Social Security and Medicare indefinitely, even...
Apr 6, 2026Topline: Maryland state employees earned a record $406 million in overtime last year, according to payroll records, backing up the findings of a recent state audit that found...
Apr 3, 2026Topline: Alabama legalized medical marijuana five years ago, but not one person has received a treatment. A flawed licensing process developed by the state and attorney William...
Apr 2, 2026The State of Texas has become as synonymous with crippling public school debt as it is with oil wells and tumbleweeds. Its public schools have $148.3 billion in bond...
Apr 2, 2026Topline: In 2012, NASA set out to conquer a new frontier: the iPad App Store. App development proved to be more difficult than actual space exploration. NASA spent $1.5 million to...
Apr 1, 2026Topline: Regina Speaker and Sandra Edling, directors of the county office managing schools in Montgomery, Penn., recently took the trip of a lifetime: a 14-day African safari with...
Mar 31, 2026Topline: Lawmakers added 1,090 congressional increases in back-door earmarks worth $34 billion into the Department of War’s budget for 2026, according to analysis from...
Mar 30, 2026Topline: New York is the city where dreams come true — like making $325,000 to fix thermostats for the Department of Correction. That’s how much the city’s top-paid...
Mar 27, 2026Topline: The National Science Foundation is spending $67 million on software that will protect American research from cybercriminals in enemy nations like China. But it’s being...
Mar 26, 2026Topline: If the federal government wants to address homelessness, Rodeo Drive might not be the best place to start. That hasn’t stopped Beverly Hills — with no qualified...
Mar 25, 2026Topline: More than 18,000 Arizona families used school vouchers to make an "unallowable” purchase in 2025, costing the state at least $10.3 million for banned items like...
Mar 24, 2026Topline: It takes less time to put a man on the moon than to build an outdoor bathroom in New York City, according to former NYC Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe. The nonprofit...
Mar 23, 2026Topline: The federal government spent $8.4 million on purchases that included golf carts in fiscal year 2025, according to spending records obtained by Open the Books. Key facts: Of...
Mar 20, 2026Topline: Faith Family Academy, a taxpayer-funded charter school district in North Texas, was nearly shut down by the state following three consecutive years of poor student...
Mar 19, 2026Topline: In 2012, artificial intelligence researchers funded by the federal government were not concerned whether their technology could interpret data or streamline workflows. They...
Mar 18, 2026Topline: The General Services Administration spent $133 million hiring consultants to study its own buildings, but nobody is keeping track of what the studies found or checking if...
Mar 17, 2026Topline: Almost 80% of the City of Rocky Mount’s cash and investments are gone following the disastrous tenure of City Manager Keith Rogers, according to a North Carolina state...
Mar 16, 2026Topline: Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) has billed taxpayers $111,000 for limousine services since 2019, according to a review of disbursement reports by The Center Square. The other 434...
Mar 13, 2026Topline: The Caring for Denver Foundation, tasked with running substance abuse prevention programs, is seemingly drunk on its own spending. The nonprofit spent $28,200 on its own...
Mar 12, 2026Topline: West Virginia government officials spent $24 million in 2010 on expensive, high-capacity internet routers that could handle tens of thousands of users at once. Then, they...
Mar 11, 2026Topline: The City of Boston’s soccer stadium renovation was supposed to cost taxpayers $50 million when it was announced in March 2024. The cost is now up to $135 million...
Mar 10, 2026Topline: The Congressional Budget Office’s annual 10-year economic forecast warns that, by 2030, the federal debt held by the public will be $40.3 trillion, or 108% of the...
Mar 9, 2026Topline: The Rhode Island Department of Corrections spent a record $38.9 million on overtime in 2025, nearly a quarter of its total payroll expense, according to records obtained by...
Mar 6, 2026Topline: Controversial education firms that helped embed diversity, equity and inclusion principles in K-12 military schools during President Joe Biden’s administration are...
Mar 5, 2026Topline: The federal government paid $2 million in service fees for bank accounts with a balance of $0 in 2011, many of which had been empty for over three years, according to a...
Mar 4, 2026Topline: The 2026 federal budget contains $15.8 billion in earmark funding for 8,475 local projects in lawmakers’ home districts, but the money was not distributed equitably....
Mar 3, 2026Topline: Florida spent $405 million in emergency funding on its immigration crackdown in the last six months, with nearly a quarter paying for porta-potties and millions going to...
Mar 2, 2026Topline: One doesn’t associate luxury with being in the military, but Pentagon personnel spent record amounts of money dining on seafood in 2025, according to federal spending...
Feb 27, 2026Topline: The federal government lost $186 billion to improper payments in fiscal year 2025, according to newly released data from the Office of Management and Budget. That’s...
Feb 26, 2026Topline: There is one major reason why most Americans do not regularly buy caviar: the price. Publicity is not the issue. The Department of Agriculture ignored that fact in 2012,...
Feb 24, 2026Topline: The purchasing platform offered by the General Services Administration is putting government agencies at a disadvantage, according to a new audit from the GSA inspector...
Feb 23, 2026Topline: Illinois State Rep. Robin Gabel reportedly told his colleagues that “there is no pork” in the 2026 state budget bill he sponsored. Yet ongoing analysis from the...
Feb 20, 2026Topline: A taxpayer-funded Connecticut nonprofit closed down after a state audit found it lost $300,000 to wire fraud, gave a grant to an employee, and had no records to prove that...
Feb 19, 2026Topline: Dr. Frankenstein was able to bring his monster back to life using just rusty tools and a cramped workshop. Researchers in California needed taxpayer funding from the...
Feb 18, 2026Topline: No matter how far smartphone addiction spreads in America, it’s still impossible to keep texting from the grave. Yet state spending records say otherwise. Phone and...
Feb 17, 2026Topline: The federal welfare program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, is sending less money directly to families and more to nonprofits and state agencies, leading the Wall...
Feb 16, 2026Topline: Most New York public school lunches consist of room temperature chicken nuggets or reheated pizza. But at Wyandanch Memorial High School on Long Island, principal Paul...
Feb 13, 2026Topline: Eight Massachusetts state agencies and 13 colleges spent $6.8 million to settle grievances, partly in secret, brought by their own employees from 2019 to 2024, according to...
Feb 12, 2026Topline: The U.S. Agency for International Development’s pottery classes in Morocco seemed like an irresponsible use of money before they even began, but somehow the execution...
Feb 11, 2026Topline: Eleven state and local governments that received a collective $45 million from the federal government to remove lead from houses were never flagged as “high...
Feb 10, 2026Topline: The Washington State Department of Commerce ignored “the fundamental tenets of government accountability” by awarding grants that lacked a clear purpose,...
Feb 9, 2026Topline: The Environmental Protection Agency “did not follow standard operating procedures” for reviewing its spending and underestimated its improper payments in 2022...
Feb 6, 2026Topline: The U.S. Postal Service spent a record $42.8 billion on payroll in 2025 while posting a $9 billion loss, according to payroll records obtained by Open the Books. Key facts:...
Feb 5, 2026Topline: In 2012, there was little reason not to close the Lake Murray State Park Airport in Oklahoma. There were no planes stored at the airport, and it averaged only one flight per...
Feb 4, 2026Topline: A Los Angeles advocacy group that sued the city twice was simultaneously being funded by the city itself. Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE) has received at least...
Feb 3, 2026Topline: The federal government gives billions of dollars in research grants to universities every year, but not all of it directly funds scientific inquiry. Most universities enjoy...
Feb 2, 2026Topline: Taxpayers are often suspicious that government insiders can rewrite the rules to benefit themselves. But in Connecticut, the problem is that the rules were not...
Jan 30, 2026Topline: Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander claims one of the city’s health insurance funds has “no path to solvency” after labor unions used it to cover...
Jan 29, 2026Topline: In 2012, a study published by Agnes Scott College and Emory University concluded that chimpanzees that know how to throw their own feces have stronger communication skills...
Jan 28, 2026Topline: The State Department did not have consistent oversight requirements for $5.7 billion it contributed to the United Nations and other international organizations in 2024,...
Jan 27, 2026Topline: The Grinch did not successfully steal Christmas this season, but he did use up $30,493 in taxpayer money. A viral Grinch-themed house in Dallas drew crowds so large that the...
Jan 26, 2026Topline: In fiscal year 2025, Congress funded 1,326 federal programs that had expired legal authorizations to receive taxpayer funding — the most since at least 2019, when the...
Jan 23, 2026Topline: The company administering taxpayer-funded health insurance for New York State employees overpaid hospitals by $19.3 million, according to a new audit from the State...
Jan 22, 2026Topline: The U.S. Agency for International Development had noble intentions when it created the Afghan Civilian Assistance Program. It spent $52 million from 2007 to March 2011 to...
Jan 21, 2026Topline: “Three strikes and you’re out” is an excellent rule for baseball, but apparently not for Medicaid. The Maine health-care company Gateway Community Services...
Jan 20, 2026Topline: Texas Southern University has no idea where most of its inventory is located, ignored safeguards meant to prevent overspending, and reported inaccurate information to the...
Jan 19, 2026Topline: North Carolina’s state website claims that about 30% of the revenue from lottery tickets helps fund public schools. Yet despite record-breaking sales, that has not...
Jan 16, 2026Topline: A new federal audit revealed that “human errors” and “system issues” in Maryland’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program caused the state...
Jan 15, 2026Topline: What do most people look for in a potential partner? Maybe kindness, or a sense of humor? What about $1.9 million in federal funding? Taxpayers were forced to choose the...
Jan 14, 2026Topline: The federal government often does not have enough time to ensure that oil and gas companies are properly reporting the royalties they owe from drilling on federal land,...
Jan 13, 2026Topline: A Dec. 18 report from the California State Auditor claims that Mendocino County is “vulnerable to waste, fraud, and abuse” after spending thousands of dollars on...
Jan 12, 2026Topline: The federal government is unable to verify that $5.8 billion in rental assistance paid to more than 204,000 recipients in 2024 was not fraudulent, according to the...
Jan 9, 2026Topline: Hello? Is anyone there? Not at California’s Employment Development Department, where the state spent $4.6 million on 6,285 unused cell phones. The devices belong to...
Jan 8, 2026Topline: In 2006, Congress’ guidelines for Homeland Security’s grant program for firefighters mostly ignored the most obvious function of a fire department: putting out...
Jan 7, 2026Topline: Americans have already turned the calendar to 2026, but it will take years to pay back the debt incurred by the federal initiatives listed in Sen. Rand Paul’s 11th...
Jan 6, 2026Topline: The nonprofit New Opportunities, Inc. used $2.8 million in taxpayer funds meant for low-income families’ heating bills on its own operating expenses, according to the...
Jan 5, 2026Topline: There is no “reasonable assurance” that Department of Energy loans are being approved impartially and without conflicts of interest, according to a Dec. 18 audit...
Jan 2, 2026Topline: A California state employee recently took one of the longest paid vacations in history. The unnamed worker stayed on paid leave for over two years after announcing his...
Jan 1, 2026Topline: Millions of Americans watched the ball drop in Times Square on TV last night, including federal government employees out of the office to celebrate the New Year. Back in...