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2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 |1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2008  POGO Report - U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex: Livermore Homes and Plutonium Make Bad Neighbors, March 17, 2008.Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (Livermore Lab), a nuclear weapons facility located in the greater metropolis of San Francisco, CA, poses the most significant security threat of any such facility in the U.S. Roughly seven million people live within a 50 mile radius of the Livermore Lab, which has approximately one ton of weapons-grade and weapons-quantity of plutonium and highly enriched uranium, DOE’s most dangerous and expensive-to-guard special nuclear material (SNM). If terrorists gained access to this material, they could detonate them, devastating the San Francisco Bay Area and inland regions—the key agricultural areas of POGO Report - Pandemic Flu: Lack of Leadership and Disclosure Plague Vaccine Program, March 6, 2008.The POGO Report - Inspectors General: Many Lack Essential Tools for Independence, February 28, 2008.As the 30th anniversary of the law creating the Inspector General system approaches, POGO has seized the moment to closely examine how effective this critical component of our government actually functions. POGO distributed a questionnaire to all 64 statutory IGs, receiving responses from 49 of them. Many were found to lack sufficient resources, the ability to tap into their own budgets, reliable in-house legal advice, autonomy over their own websites, and unfettered investigative authority. POGO’s findings raise critical questions that must be addressed; to that end, the report makes a number of recommendations aimed at improving Inspector General independence so IGs can better serve the 2007 POGO Report - Rescue at Risk: Crucial Helicopter Requirement Weakened, November 15, 2007 A crucial weapons system requirement for the Air Force’s second highest procurement priority, a helicopter replacement program (dubbed CSAR-X) for its combat search and rescue mission, was significantly and inappropriately weakened by Air Force program officials to allow Boeing’s Chinook helicopter to compete. Boeing eventually won the CSAR-X contract, worth an estimated $10-15 billion. POGO’s findings indicate that the acquisition process was subverted, and the needs of the warfighter consequently undermined. As a result, the wrong helicopter for the mission may have been procured, possibly putting at risk the men and women in our armed forces who need to be rescued. 2006  POGO's 2006 Annual Report (click on the report cover to view a pdf of this report) POGO Investigative Report - U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex: Y-12 and Oak Ridge National Laboratory at High Risk, October 16, 2006.POGO analysis concludes that Y-12, the U.S. stockpile of highly-enriched uranium, will not meet the government’s security standards for the next seven years, and Oak Ridge National Lab is also at high risk. POGO Investigative Report - Federal Contracting: Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina, August 28, 2006.In August 2005, a tropical storm gathered strength and inched its way toward the United States. After reaching a nearly unprecedented level of strength, the now-Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, destroying houses, businesses, and critical infrastructure. In some cases, relief efforts started before Katrina hit landfall. The federal government has so far appropriated approximately $120 billion to respond to the relief, recovery, and reconstruction needs of the hurricane victims. POGO has identified several systemic failures in, and evaporating oversight controls of, the federal contracting process and recommends that government contracting laws and regulations need to be strengthened because of: 1. Poor Planning; 2. Inadequate Competition; 3. Lack of Accountability; and 4. Minimal Transparency.  POGO Investigative Report - Preying On The Taxpayer: The F-22A Raptor, July 25, 2006.In June, the Senate authorized the government to purchase 20 F-22A Raptor fighter jets each year for 2008, 2009, and 2010 using a multiyear procurement (MYP) strategy. If Lockheed, the aircraft’s manufacturer is able to secure MYP status, it would essentially lock the government into buying the 60 additional troubled F-22A’s and minimize the possibility that the program could suffer further funding cuts. An MYP would also result in the American taxpayers paying Lockheed $1 billion more than they would under the normal annual procurement process. POGO Investigative Report - The Politics of Contracting: Bajagua's No-Bid Deal. March 31, 2006.Americans believe in the important role competition plays in maximizing return on dollars spent and in reducing favoritism. But the deal to give Bajagua a sole-source contract to build and operate a wastewater treatment plant in 2005 POGO's 2005 Annual Report (click on the report cover to view a pdf of this report) POGO Investigative Report - U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex: Homeland Security Opportunities. As internal tests and analyses have shown, the Department of Energy cannot adequately protect
POGO Investigative Report - Homeland and National Security Whistleblower Protections: The Unfinished Agenda. The 9/11 attacks spawned a movement of national security whistleblowers who came forward to expose the weaknesses in America’s defenses. Despite their patriotic motivations many government security professionals have been systematically ignored by and targeted by bureaucrats who would rather cover up their own screw ups then properly secure America’s aviation system, ports, intelligence community, borders and nuclear facilities. In this comprehensive report, POGO details the holes in the whistleblower protection system and offers numerous ways to strengthen those protections and our national security. April 28, 2005. POGO Investigative Report - Taxpayers Carry The Load: The C-130J Cargo Plane Does Not. In the closing days of 2004, the Department of Defense cancelled the overpriced C-130J aircraft program. The program’s boosters in Congress and Lockheed Martin, the contractor, immediately began a massive disinformation program about the alleged (but non-existent) need for the aircraft – the Air Force has been moth-balling older but better versions of the transport aircraft yet is asking for C-130Js despite their wide ranging technical problems. Not to mention the government’s inability to truly audit the costs of the contractor on this project. Now many in Congress are trying to reinstate funding for the C-130J, a move that will benefit Lockheed Martin more than America’s war-fighting capabilities. March 15, 2005.2004 POGO's 2004 Annual Report (click on the report cover to view a pdf of this report) POGO Investigative Report - The Politics of Contracting. There is a revolving door between the government and large private contractors where conflict of interest is the rule, not the exception. Within the government contracting system, individuals move seamlessly between government and contractor positions, potentially subverting the contracting process. This practice is both accepted and entrenched. The Politics of Contracting details specific revolving door cases and sheds light on the flawed system that allows them. June 29, 2004. POGO Investigative Report - Federal Contracting and Iraq Reconstruction. Recently, policymakers, the media, and the American public have inquired about Iraq reconstruction contracts. What most people do not realize is that those contracts are not anomalies - in fact, they simply reflect the flawed federal contracting system that exists today. Favoritism, waste, abuse, and even fraud are far more likely today because of the systemic reduction of oversight and transparency in government contracting over the past decade. The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) has identified the following problems with the current procurement system and provides realistic recommendations that will assist the government in protecting the American taxpayer. Updated March 11, 2004.2003 POGO's 2003 Annual Report (click on the report cover to view a pdf of this report) POGO Investigative Report - Congressional Research Service Products: Taxpayers Should Have Easy Access. $81 million of tax-payer money funded the Congressional Research Service (CRS) in FY 2002. CRS authors products at the request of current Members of Congress, many of whom become lobbyists, but CRS products are made difficult if not impossible for the public to access. CRS also operates both the CRS website and the Legislative Information System (LIS) website, which are arguably the best sources of information regarding the legislative process of the United States. However, they are not available to the public in any form. To prevent public access to its websites, CRS has erected a firewall which redirects non-Congressional inquiries to the public THOMAS site which is not as comprehensive. POGO champions open government and recommends that CRS products be made more accessible to the citizenry.February 10, 2003.2002  How-to Guide for Public Employees Exposing Problems. "The Art of Anonymous Activism gives us the tools and guidance necessary to 'make noise' in defense of our fellow citizens while protecting ourselves from harm." -- Frank Serpico (in forward to the book) Three national nonprofits have joined forces to help public employees who blow the whistle on waste, fraud, or abuse by releasing a how-to manual, "The Art of Anonymous Activism: Serving the Public While Surviving Public Service." Citing the increased dangers of whistleblowing, the support groups hope the guide will allow more public employees to come forward while avoiding retaliation from agencies seeking to hide their foibles and corruption.To order a copy online, click here. POGO Investigative Report - Nuclear Power Plant Security: Voices from Inside the Fences. POGO interviewed more than 20 security guards protecting over 20% of the nuclear reactors across the country. Of those interviewed, security guards at only one of four nuclear plants are confident their security force could currently defeat a terrorist attack. September 12, 2002. POGO Investigative Report - BIG DREAMS STILL NEED OVERSIGHT: Missile Defense Testing and Financial Accountability are Being Circumvented. The Department of Defense is cutting testing requirements and financial oversight of the missile defense program, one of the most technologically challenging and expensive Pentagon weapons programs ever. History has demonstrated that cutting-edge defense initiatives, lacking oversight, will lead to cost overruns and ultimately to the production of weapons that don't work. On the other hand, experience also indicates that adding independent oversight to the mix yields a winning formula. The office of the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E) has played an integral role over the years in the successes of defense programs, providing independent advice and structure in the developmental stages to pre-empt costly post-production modifications. DOT&E was elemental in bringing an end to an era of costly Defense embarrassments that included the B-1 Bomber, the C-5 Cargo Jet, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and the Sergeant York Gun. And yet, according to a January 2002 defense directive issued by Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the new Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is exempted from DOT&E oversight during those early stages where its contributions have meant the most. At the same time, missile defense contracts are eligible for "other transactions" status which enables them to bypass the normal procurement contract requirements in favor of virtually unregulated acquisition. Denied the security of testing requirements and financial oversight protections that have traditionally been guaranteed, the nation is in danger of buying a weapons system that doesn't work, at an alarming cost. July 16, 2002. POGO Investigative Report - Federal Contractor Misconduct: Failures of the Suspension and Debarment System. POGO conducted a year-long investigation of the government's top contractors and their track records of violating federal laws and regulations. Despite regulations that require that the government only do business with "responsible" contractors, violating companies continue to receive the lion's share of government contracts. Revised Edition. May 10, 2002. POGO Investigative Report - Fill 'Er Up: Back-Door Deal For Boeing Will Leave The Taxpayer on Empty. Using back-room political tactics, Congress in December 2001 authorized the U.S. Air Force to lease 100 Boeing 767 converted tanker aircraft. Not only would a lease deal cost the taxpayers billions of dollars more than purchasing the tankers outright, it would likely have the effect of reducing the numbers of tankers in the Air Force. In a May 2002 report, the GAO concluded that with relatively cheap engine and avionics upgrades, the current fleet of 545 KC-135 tankers would not need to begin being replaced until 2040. May 7, 2002. POGO Investigative Report - Pick Pocketing the Taxpayer: The Insidious Effects of Acquisition Reform. In the 1990s, corporate lobbyists mounted an offensive against what they saw as an overbearing government system of buying goods and services. Most of the reforms they sought, however, unraveled useful taxpayer protections created during the infamous defense contractor scandals of the 1980s. Under the rubric of streamlining government and increasing competition, taxpayer protections were rolled back using a platform of reforms known as "Acquisition Reform."Revised, March 11, 2002.2001 POGO's 20th Anniversary Report (click on the report cover to view a pdf of this report) POGO Investigative Report - U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex: Security At Risk. Our investigation revealed that the Department of Energy (DOE) is failing to adequately protect the American public from the possibility of a terrorist attack on one of its nuclear weapons facilities. Guards at the facilities are poorly equipped, spread thin, and lack training needed to defend against a real terrorist attack. The DOE stores tons of weapons-grade plutonium and uranium that could be stolen or used to create and detonate an improvised nuclear device. October, 2001. POGO Investigative Report - Is the Air Force Spending Itself Into Unilateral Disarmament? by U.S. Air Force Colonel Everest E. Riccioni, Ret. As the cost of the B-1 and B-2 skyrocketed, the number of bombers the Air Force could actually purchase declined, leading to the Air Force's inability to buy fighter jets in meaningful numbers. August, 2001 POGO Investigative Report - At The Federal Election Commission Things Don't Add Up. The Federal Elections Commission's (FEC) campaign contribution databases are severely flawed. Out of more than 500 members of Congress, only six had campaign finance reports that matched the reports filed by the Political Action Committees (PAC) contributing to them. Press Release, March 28, 2001. POGO Investigative Report - Heavy Lifting for Boeing: Sweetheart Deal Helps Defense Contractor and Hurts Taxpayers. The Air Force is promoting a highly speculative sweetheart deal that would put billions of taxpayers dollars at risk and provide little or no benefit to the federal government. March 19, 2001. POGO Investigative Report - Will We Ever Fly Before We Buy? F-22: Doesn't Meet Basic Testing Criteria, January 3rd Decision Could Fund Production of Fighter Jet that Doesn't Work. POGO's new report warns that approving production before testing is complete on the F-22 may make it a "buy before fly" fiasco like the B-1 and B-2 bombers and the V-22 Osprey, January 2, 2001.2000 POGO Investigative Report - A report criticizing the F-22 aircraft by legendary aircraft designer and retired Air Force Col. Everest E. Riccioni, Revised August 10, 2000.1999 POGO Investigative Report - Defense Waste & Fraud Camouflaged As Reinventing Government. September 1999. POGO Investigative Report - NRC Sells Environment Down the River: Radiation Flows Unchecked into the Colorado River. March 23, 1999.1998 POGO Investigative Report - Tripwired?: Document Trail of Faulty Airplane Wiring Demonstrates Need For Comprehensive Review. May 11, 1998. POGO Investigative Report - Re-Establishing Institutional Integrity at the FEC: Ten Common Sense Campaign Finance Disclosure Reforms. March 5. 1998. POGO Investigative Report - Addicted to Fraud? Health Care Industriy Forced to Return Nearly $2 Billion to Taxpayers Under the False Claims Act. 1998. POGO Investigative Report - More Brass, More Bucks, Officer Inflation in Today's Military. March 1998.1997 POGO Investigative Report - Drilling For the Truth: More Information Surfaces On Unpaid Oil Royalties. 1997. POGO Investigative Report - Defense and Health Care Industries: Rather Than Clean Up Their Act, They Attack the Act. 1997.1996 POGO Investigative Report - Wait! There Is More Money to Collect...Unpaid Oil Royalties Across the Nation. 1996. POGO Investigative Report - Who the Hell is Regulating Who? The NRC's Abdication of Responsibility. After a two-year investigation of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), POGO's findings proved that for nearly twenty years the NRC has acquiesced to the nuclear industry by allowing significant safety problems to fester for years before they are actually, if ever, fixed. The NRC had not verified 389 high priority safety improvements that the operators claim to have fixed, or implemented, at every nuclear power plant in the United States. Additionally, there were 76 "high priority" safety improvements that remained unimplemented at a minimum of 62 different nuclear plants - some of which were "resolved" by the NRC as far back as 1978. September 1996. POGO Investigative Report - With A Wink And A Nod: How the Oil Industry and the Department of Interior Are Cheating the American Public and California School Children. 1996.1995 POGO Investigative Report - Corporate Welfare for Arms Merchants: U.S. Subsidies Benefit Our Adversaries -- Not Ourselves. 1995. POGO Investigative Report - Department of Interior Looks the Other Way: The Government's Slick Deal for the Oil Industry. 1995. POGO Investigative Report - No Light At the End Of This Tunnel: Boston's Central Artery/Third Harbor Tunnel Project. February 1995.1994 POGO Investigative Report - Survey of Defense Contractor Signatories of the "Position Paper: Reform of the Federal Civil False Claims Act," 1994. POGO Investigative Report - Children's Ears & Antibiotics: Gold Mine For Pharmaceutical Companies, Land Mine for Children. This report was first released in June 1994, and was updated in August 1994 to reflect the information published in the final version of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Guidelines, "Otitis Media with Effusion in Young Children." August 1994, Revised Edition. POGO Investigative Report - Aerosols Give Business and Public Big Boom: Where is the Protection in the EPA? May 1994.1993 POGO Investigative Report - The Superconducting Super Collider's Super Excesses. 1993.1992 POGO Investigative Report - High Tech Weapons In Desert Storm: Hype or Reality? July 1992.1991 POGO Investigative Report - Cleaning Up Nuclear Waste: Why Is DOE Five Years Behind and Billions Over Budget? 1991.1990 POGO Investigative Report - The Army's M1 Tank: Has It Lived Up To Expectations? 1990.
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