Where is the Money Going?

Group Raises $622,000 to Cancel $14.7 Million in Medical Debt for 2,700 People

Members of Occupy Wall Street have shifted their activism from street protests to raising money to alleviate the medical debts of thousands of Americans. Rolling Jubilee, a creation of Occupy’s Strike Debt group, has purchased $14.7 million owed by individuals, largely as a result of medical expenses. Remarkably, the group managed to do this while spending only $400,000 of the more than $622,000 it has raised so far for the debt-relief cause. read more

30% Growth of 4 Biggest Banks is a Danger Sign, Warns Senator Warren

The four largest banks—JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo—today are 30% larger than five years ago. that the five largest banks “now hold more than half of the total banking assets in the country. One study earlier this year showed that the Too Big to Fail status is giving the 10 biggest U.S. banks an annual taxpayer subsidy of $83 billion.” read more

House Votes to Protect Citigroup if It Gambles and Loses

The bill would wipe out Section 716 (pdf) of Dodd-Frank that requires banks to use a non-bank entity for trading commodity, energy and other swaps. In other words, if the legislation becomes law, financial institutions could return to conducting high-risk trading with funds that are backed by the FDIC (i.e. the taxpayer). read more

Former Congresswoman Sets Revolving Door Speed Record

Wilson stepped down as a U.S. representative from New Mexico on January 3, 2009. She then set up a lucrative one-woman consulting firm (Heather Wilson and Company, LLC) the very next day, collecting thousands of dollars from a federally-run research laboratory for services that were never really explained. read more

Congress Overrules Pentagon to Fund Northrop Grumman Drones

In early 2011, the Pentagon’s director of operational test and evaluation said that Global Hawk “was not operationally effective for conducting near-continuous, persistent ISR [Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] operations.” in June 2011 Air Force officials certified the project as “essential to national security” in order to ensure continued Congressional funding. read more

Bureau of Prisons Employees Sue over Shutdown-Delayed Pay

The litigation began with five workers from the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) who said the government violated the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act when it made them stay on the job during the shutdown that lasted until October 17. The BOP workers seek compensation of $7.25 times the number of hours worked October 1-5, when paychecks were delayed. This amounts to $290 for those who worked eight hours a day, as well as any overtime due. read more

$11 Million in Farm Subsidies Paid to 50 Billionaires, as Food Stamp Program is Cut by $5 Billion

As many as 50 billionaires benefited from more than $11.3 million in agricultural subsidies either directly or indirectly (through farm businesses they invested in) between 1995 and 2012, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG). The billionaires who received the subsidies have a collective net worth of $316 billion, according to estimates made by the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans. read more

Firearms Injuries Lead to 31,000 Hospitalizations a Year at Annual Cost of $2.3 Billion

The cost of caring for these individuals was $18.9 billion over eight years, or about $2.3 billion per year. The average cost of medical treatment for each hospitalization was $75,884. • 89% of gunshot patients treated in hospitals were male • 48% were African-American • Nearly 40% of patients were aged 20-30 • More than 60% of injuries were caused by handgun “assault” read more

SAC Hedge Fund Agrees to Largest Ever Insider Trading Penalty

The Justice Department is not yet done with SAC, whose deal shields certain SAC corporate entities from further prosecution for insider trading between 1999 and December 2012. But the agreement provided no immunity to firm employees who could still face charges. So far criminal charges haven’t been filed against SAC founder Steven Cohen, although he is currently fighting civil charges that he failed to supervise employees accused of insider trading. read more

Is Privatized Health Care Driving the U.S. Budget Deficit?

• The U.S. government doesn’t exercise the kinds of cost controls that other countries do. As an example, the U.S. paid an average of $947 per person for prescription drugs in 2009, nearly double the $487 per person paid in the OECD as a whole. Yet “we don’t take twice as many pills,” said Holland. “We just let big pharma charge whatever it can get away with.” read more

IRS and Contractor Employees Owe Millions in Back Taxes, as do Thousands with Security Clearances

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found 8,400 individuals with security clearances between 2006 and 2012 who owed $85 million to the IRS. About half of the 8,400 had not arranged a repayment plan with the IRS). The average amount owed was $3,800. Some owed as much as $2 million. About half of them (4,700) were federal employees, while the rest were contractors. read more

Homeland Security Employees Claim Overtime for Doing Nothing

Overtime has become a form of entitlement at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with some employees padding their paychecks by 25% with extra pay for work they don’t necessarily perform. Workers refer to overtime pay as a “candy bowl,” according to seven whistleblowers who talked to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). read more

Should Keystone Pipeline be Renamed Koch Brothers Pipeline?

The brothers stand to make up $100 billion from KXL—1 million times more than the average KXL worker’s wages would be over the life of the project, according to the report. The Kochs expect KXL to generate profit for them based on the 4,000 miles of pipeline operated by Koch Pipeline Company, the lucrative dealings in oil derivatives by Koch Supply and Trading, and the ownership of at least 2 million acres in Alberta with tar sands by Koch Exploration Canada. read more

JPMorgan Could Pay All-Time Record Penalty of $13 Billion for Mortgage Fraud

JPMorgan Chase has negotiated a tentative agreement with the Obama administration that would require the Wall Street giant to pay a record amount of money for helping cause the 2008 financial crisis. Under the proposed settlement, JPMorgan would pay $13 billion in fines and compensation to homeowners who were wronged as part of the bank’s questionable mortgage practices that linked subprime loans with securities. read more

Campground and Timber Companies Sue U.S. Government over Shutdown

In the concessionaire case, plaintiffs argue that the services they provide, including general maintenance, emergency first aid, restrooms and clean drinking water, are essential to protecting the health and safety of campers, who were forced to recreate in undeveloped areas that lack any services. read more

Boeing Does It Again: Overcharges Army $16 Million for Old Helicopter Parts

The nation’s second largest defense contractor has been caught four times in the last five years overcharging the government for military equipment or parts. In the latest discovery, Boeing wrongly charged the Department of Defense $16 million by billing for new helicopters parts, but only delivering used ones. read more