Uncovered: Wasteful Government Spending

Alongside President Donald Trump, I am committed to eliminating wasteful and fraudulent federal government spending. With over $36 trillion in national debt, reckless government overspending must end. I have put together a non-exhaustive list of taxpayer dollars spent under the Biden administration. This list has been identified through the incredible work of the White House, executive agencies, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and my colleagues in the U.S. Congress. I will be updating this tracker regularly to show how taxpayer dollars were poorly spent.

The list below includes taxpayer dollars channeled through agencies such as the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), U.S. Department of State (DOS), U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Inter-American Foundation (IAF), National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. African Development Foundation (USADF), and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Government Waste Tracker:

$50,300,000,000 (HHS) - The U.S. Government Accountability Office found $51.1 billion in improper payments—including overpayments, inaccurate recordkeeping, or fraud—in Medicaid during FY23
$50,000,000,000 (HHS) - Payments for alleged fraudulent overbilling of Medicare by insurance companies from 2019 to 2021
$43,600,000,000 (DOL) - The U.S. Government Accountability Office found $43.6 billion in improper payments—including overpayments, inaccurate recordkeeping, or fraud—in the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program during FY23
$22,600,000,000 (HHS) – Aiding illegal migrants through resettlement programs, home and car purchases, and loans
$21,900,000,000 (USDT) - The U.S. Government Accountability Office found $21.9 billion in improper payments—including overpayments, inaccurate recordkeeping, or fraud—in the Earned Income Tax Credit program during FY23
$18,700,000,000 (SBA) - The U.S. Government Accountability Office found $18.7 billion in improper payments—including overpayments, inaccurate recordkeeping, or fraud—in the Paycheck Protection Program Loan Forgiveness program during FY23
$14,600,000,000 (HHS) - Intended losses of allegedly fraudulent healthcare claims by 324 individuals, including 96 doctors, nurse practitioners, and pharmacists
$7,500,000,000 (DOT) – Funding a few dozen electric vehicle stations across the nation
$7,000,000,000 (EPA) – Funding green energy projects that reduce greenhouse gases and promoting the adoption of green alternatives nationwide
$5,000,000,000 (EPA) - Funding green energy projects that reduce gas emissions and supporting green banks
$4,300,000,000 (HHS) - Double-payments to health insurance companies for Medicaid patients enrolled in multiple states
$2,000,000,000 (EPA) – Funding projects to decarbonize American housing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
$1,700,000,000 (USDA) - Cost of repairs and operating expenses of a mostly vacant office building owned by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
$1,000,000,000 (HHS) - Payments for alleged fraudulent overbilling of Medicare Advantage plans by a health care company
$700,000,000 (GSA) - Cost of repairs and operating expenses of a mostly vacant office space that was owned by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
$550,000,000 (USAID) - Bribery scheme with a government contracting officer for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) involving at least 14 prime contracts worth over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars
$382,000,000 (DOL) – Issuing fraudulent unemployment payments to tens of thousands of individuals, including those with birthdates in the future, infants, and people listed as 115 years old
$312,000,000 (SBA) – Providing business loans for children 11 years old and under
$250,000,000 (USDA) - Fraud scheme in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in which Feeding Our Future allegedly stole $250 million in a COVID-19 federally-funded child nutrition program
$77,000,000 (HHS) - Payments for alleged fraudulent spending of federally-funded Temporary Assistance for Needy Families in Mississippi
$59,000,000 (FEMA) – Supplying services and housing for illegal immigrants in New York City
$46,500,000 (DOS) – Funding projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Brazil
$43,300,000 (USAID) – Supporting programs to build an inclusive and capable workforce, with a special emphasis on public health and climate change sectors in Egypt
$35,900,000 (USAID) – Funding positive youth experience in Gaza
$31,000,000 (USAID) – Supporting the transition to clean energy with energy supplies in Europe and Eurasia
$26,300,000 (USAID) – Supporting higher education in Egypt
$24,000,000 (USAID) – Promoting “resilient livelihoods” in Gaza
$17,500,000 (USAID) - Supporting male circumcision and condom programs
$17,300,000 (USAID) – Providing the Diversity and Inclusion Scholarship Program to students in Burma
$13,200,000 (USAID) – Supporting biodiversity programs in Liberia
$12,200,000 (DOL) – Promoting worker empowerment in South America
$11,000,000 (USAID) – Producing the Middle Eastern version of Sesame Street in Iraq
$10,300,000 (USAID) – Supporting male circumcision programs in Mozambique
$9,000,000 (USAID) – Stolen humanitarian aid by Al-Qaida-affiliated terrorists
$8,300,000 (USAID) – Building worker power for equity and justice
$8,300,000 (USAID) – Funding USAID education on equity and inclusion
$8,000,000 (EPA) – Funding an organization to address environmental and energy justice issues
$6,200,000 (NIH) – Studying the effects of asthma on transgender individuals in the U.S.
$6,000,000 (DOD) – Funding the University of Montana to “strengthen American democracy by bridging divides”
$6,000,000 (DOD) – Funding a grant to decarbonize emissions from Navy ships
$5,900,000 (NIH) – Funding for a TransHealthGUIDE for gender-diverse young adults
$5,700,000 (DOS) – Supporting programs for LGBTQ+ individuals in Latin America and the Caribbean
$5,200,000 (DOD) – Funding a grant to diversify the Navy
$5,100,000 (NIH) – Testing the effects of cross-sex hormone therapy on transgender individuals in the U.S.
$4,900,000 (USAID) – Funding youth programs with a focus on reproductive health and the intersection of youth and gender equity
$4,700,000 (DOL) – Promoting international labor standards in Ecuador
$4,000,000 (EPA) – Building a one-room museum inside the EPA
$3,500,000 (DOD) – Supporting DEI groups through the Defense Human Resources Activity
$3,300,000 (DOD) – Unionized health workers in the Department of Defense’s Defense Health Agency spent $3,300,000 and 87,000 hours doing union-related work instead of their federal jobs
$2,900,000 (NIH) – Studying HIV prevention for transgender women and their male partners
$2,700,000 (HHS) - Funding for allegedly fraudulent Medicaid payments to a company to provide housing stabilization services in Minneapolis, Minnesota
$2,500,000 (NIH) – Studying the impact of structural racism on the health of older gay men
$2,500,000 (USAID) – Supporting green energy businesses in Vietnam
$2,300,000 (HHS) - Funding for allegedly fraudulent Medicaid payments to a company to provide housing stabilization services in Minneapolis, Minnesota
$2,200,000 (HHS) - Funding for allegedly fraudulent Medicaid payments to a company to provide housing stabilization services in Minneapolis, Minnesota
$2,000,000 (USAID) – Supporting gender-affirming healthcare and LGBTQ+ advocacy in Guatemala
$1,900,000 (DOD) – Providing holistic diversity, equity, and inclusion transformation and training for the Air Force
$1,600,000 (NIH) – Testing the reproductive health of transgender individuals in the U.S.
$1,600,000 (DOD) – Funding a University of Florida study on the "social and institutional detriments of vulnerability and resilience to climate hazards in [the] African Sahel."
$1,500,000 (USAID) – Promoting DEI business policies and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurship in Serbia
$1,200,000 (HHS) - Funding for allegedly fraudulent Medicaid payments to a company to provide housing stabilization services in Minneapolis, Minnesota
$1,200,000 (USAID) – Funding choice, equity, and sustainability programs
$910,000 (NIH) – Testing the effects of “gender-affirming” hormone therapy on the immune system in the U.S.
$900,000 (IAF) – Supporting alpaca farming in Peru
$755,000 (NIH) – Testing the effects of “gender-affirming” hormone therapy on bone development in the U.S.
$731,000 (IAF) – Improving the commercial viability of mushroom and pea farming in Guatemala
$677,000 (IAF) – Promoting fruit and jam sales in Honduras
$600,000 (USDA) – Supporting a study on the menstrual cycles in transgender men
$599,000 (NIH) – Testing the risk of breast cancer for transgender men in the U.S.
$483,000 (IAF) – Supporting the production of artisanal salt in Ecuador
$400,000 (DOS) – Supporting LGBTQ+ sensitivity trainings for police forces in Nigeria
$374,000 (USDA) – Hiring a DEI onboarding specialist at the USDA
$325,000 (HHS) – Adapting LGB+ teen pregnancy prevention program for transgender boys
$323,000 (IAF) – Promoting cultural support for Venezuelan migrants in Brazil
$300,000 (DOS) – Promoting acceptance for LGBTQ+ people in Botswana
$298,000 (USDA) – Promoting international development for underrepresented communities
$246,000 (USADF) _ Funding mango drying facilities in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire
$239,000 (USADF) – Promoting pineapple juice in Benin
$229,000 (USDA) – Hiring a Brazilian forest and gender consultant at the USDA
$229,000 (USADF) – Funding the promotion of 100% organic shea butter in Burkina Faso
$209,000 (DOS) – Funding an international study trip on LGBTQ+ advocacy
$185,000 (DOS) – Promoting the empowerment of lesbian and bisexual women in Belize
$99,500 (USADF) – Supporting increased production of yogurt in Uganda
$84,000 (USADF) – Supporting a business incubator for spa and wellness entrepreneurs in Nigeria
$70,000 (DOS) – Producing a DEI music event in Ireland
$68,000 (DOS) – Funding dance class workshops in China
$32,000 (DOS) – Creating an LGBTQ+ comic book in Peru
$29,000 (USDA) – Hiring a Central American gender assessment consultant at the USDA
$25,000 (DOS) – Funding a transgender opera in Colombia

Updated April 21, 2026

Americans deserve responsible government spending, not reckless and wasteful spending of their tax dollars.