Government Accountability Project

10/14/2026

As foodborne illnesses like Cyclospora sweep across the country, why is USDA trying to shut down food safety programs?

Today, we submitted a protected whistleblower disclosure on behalf of multiple employees of USDA's Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC), revealing their reasonable belief that USDA’s decision to close BARC constitutes gross mismanagement, creates risks to public health and safety, and wastes substantial taxpayer investments.

For over 100 years, BARC has served as one of the federal government’s foremost agricultural research centers by advancing initiatives in food safety, plant and animal health, and breakthroughs in agricultural systems. BARC researchers have worked on Cyclospora detection, produce safety, agricultural-water quality, and methods for reducing foodborne pathogens. However, USDA leadership has halted research, reassigned research personnel, and pushed experienced scientists working on ongoing projects to leave the government.

Congress still has not been given the information it needs to understand what will be lost or whether these capabilities can actually be recreated elsewhere. While the closure raises serious concerns about public health and safety, it is also resulting in the loss of institutional knowledge and research that has been accumulated over decades.

Learn more now! ⬇️

October 14, 2026 Whistleblowers Warn USDA's BARC Closure Plan Threatens Food Safety BARC whistleblowers submit disclosure to Congress to halt BARC’s closure, demand USDA leadership provide detailed plan to Congress WASHINGTON—Today, Government Accountability Project submitted a protected whistle...

10/13/2026

The FTC’s ability to protect consumers and keep big businesses in check goes hand in hand with whistleblowers keeping Americans safe.

The FTC Whistleblower Act of 2026 would provide protections for whistleblowers which is essential to good governance.

WASHINGTON – As The Social Reckoning, a new film about Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, hits theaters nationwide, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03), and Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. (NJ-07) today introduced bipartisan legislation to protect whistleblowers w...

10/12/2026

Government Accountability Project was founded in 1977 in the wake of the Pentagon Papers, at a time when whistleblowers were often referred to as “turncoats” or “snitches.”

But in the 4+ decades we’ve spent representing whistleblowers, we’ve seen the cultural tide turn.

According to a 2025 Pew Research Center study, only 17% of Americans trust the federal government to do what is right always or most of the time. For context, that percentage sat at 22% of Americans in 2024 and 73% of Americans in 1958: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/12/04/public-trust-in-government-1958-2025/

Now, we’ve conducted a 2026 joint poll with National Whistleblower Center finding substantial American support for whistleblowers, including that 86% of American voters believe Congress should prioritize passing stronger laws protecting employees who report fraud (up from 81% in 2020): https://whistleblower.org/press/whistleblower-poll-results/

It’s been heartening to see public awareness and support for these truth-tellers build through the years, while legal whistleblower protections in the U.S. have room to grow.

No matter how culture shifts or the political pendulum swings, Government Accountability Project stands ready to defend whistleblowers in court and bolster protections for those who speak out for the public good.

Learn more: www.whistleblower.org 📣

10/07/2026

Our whistleblower client Jill Fields, former FBI analyst with nearly a decade of experience in the agency, put her career on the line to report FBI's investigations into protected First Amendment activity—because no administration has the right to target lawful protesters.

Learn more: https://whistleblower.org/press/congress-demands-answers-following-fbi-whistleblower/

A former FBI intelligence analyst has alleged that President Trump ordered the FBI to launch unconstitutional investigations into immigration enforcement protesters from the Los Angeles area.

10/07/2026

Just a quick heads up... We're blowing the whistle on the FBI! 🚨

Our whistleblower, former FBI analyst Jill Fields, is revealing how the FBI monitored and targeted ICE protesters in violation of the First Amendment, diverting resources from critical drug trafficking and organized crime investigations.

Fields faced retaliation after she raised concerns internally and refused to implement investigations she believed unconstitutional. Her disclosure detailed two incidents:

➡️ A directive from Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove instructing personnel to investigate ICE protesters in LA, despite lack of criminal activity evidence
➡️ After the President saw a video of civilians protesting ICE in Alhambra, CA, he directed they be investigated

"Ms. Fields put her career on the line to defend the Constitution and report what she reasonably believed was the misuse of FBI investigative authorities against individuals engaged in protected First Amendment activity," stated Jasmine Yunus, Counsel for Fields. "No administration should be permitted to direct investigations of Americans because they oppose government policies or participate in lawful protest.”

Learn more:

October 6, 2026 Congress Demands Answers of FBI in Response to Whistleblower Allegations About Illegal Investigations into ICE Protesters in California WASHINGTON—Today, Senator Alex Padilla sent a letter to Kash Patel, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Todd Blanche, Attor...

10/03/2026

Is East Palestine, Ohio still a safe town post-train derailment? It feels wiser to trust a whistleblower's word than the EPA these days.

Our latest whistleblower client, former CTEH scientist Peggy Dixon, just revealed how Norfolk Southern contractor CTEH committed negligent testing after the derailment.

"Peggy Dixon did what very few people in her position are willing to do. She was the one holding the instrument, in the creek and inside people's living rooms, and she has come forward about what she reports she was told to record and what she was told to leave out. That takes real courage," said Lesley Pacey, Senior Environmental Officer at Government Accountability Project.

"It matters enormously right now, as residents and response workers are reporting cancer diagnoses and other serious illnesses while being told that CTEH monitoring showed they were never exposed to anything harmful. Her disclosure demands hard scrutiny of a system in which EPA leans on contractors selected and paid by the responsible party to measure that party's own contamination."

Explore the evidence for yourself: https://whistleblower.org/press/norfolk-southern-contractor-whistleblower-reveals-concealed-evidence-of-environmental-harm-in-east-palestine/

10/02/2026

10/01/2026

🚊 We’ve been investigating the response to the East Palestine, OH train derailment for 3 years now. Since then, numerous whistleblowers have bravely come forward about data collection, inaccurate testing, premature decisions, and more.

After submitting FOIA requests, we uncovered previously hidden EPA documents in August revealing casualty estimates that were higher than those shared with the public, as reported by The Wall Street Journal: https://www.wsj.com/us-news/officials-played-down-risks-in-ohio-train-disaster-residents-now-say-6acaed72

Last week our whistleblower client and former CTEH scientist, Peggy Dixon, filed a complaint alleging CTEH committed negligent chemical testing following the derailment: https://whistleblower.org/in-the-news/wall-street-journal-exclusive-contractor-played-down-contamination-risks-after-ohio-train-disaster-worker-says/

Since our investigation began, we have been calling for not only truth and justice, but also investigations, federally funded healthcare, National Priorities List designation, and relocation assistance. It is a small price to pay for the years of uncertainty East Palestine has faced.

Read our blog to learn more: https://whistleblower.org/blog/three-years-of-investigating-east-palestine-uncovering-more/

Photo Credit: More Perfect Union

09/30/2026

Do Americans believe that those who speak truth to power deserve protection?

Government Accountability Project and National Whistleblower Center's joint poll drew insights into the country’s sentiment toward whistleblower protections in this historic moment. Findings include:

📊 86% of respondents believe Congress should prioritize passing stronger laws protecting employees who report fraud (up from 81% in 2020);

📊 68% of respondents support federal employee whistleblowers’ access to court and jury trials to defend against free-speech retaliation;

📊 64% of respondents say they’re more likely to vote for a Congressional candidate who supports laws that protect fraud-reporting whistleblowers (up from 44% in 2020).

Government Accountability Project and National Whistleblower Center hope the findings inform policymakers as they help shape the future of U.S. whistleblower protections.

"The public knows that whistleblowers are America's best defense against government fraud, waste and abuse," stated Maya Efrati, Director of Legislation and Congressional Affairs at Government Accountability Project. "It's time for the legislators to listen."

"These results demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that providing effective protections for whistleblowers is of urgent concern to the overwhelming majority of the American public," said Stephen Kohn, Founder of National Whistleblower Center. "This is an urgent message to hold corporations and the government accountable for corruption."

Learn more: https://whistleblower.org/press/whistleblower-poll-results/

09/28/2026

We're grateful for the courage of our whistleblower client to come forward with this disclosure, detailing how Kennedy Center leadership halted repairs that were later cited for its closure. We hope this truth-telling helps prevent the needless closure of a historic institution that belongs to the public—not the president.

Whistleblowers are alleging that Kennedy Center officials halted plans earlier this year to repair leaks in the building, which the Trump administration has highlighted as its reason to close the storied arts institution. https://cnn.it/4dWpNos