PUBLISHED: APRIL 2018 By: Adam Andrzejewski – Founder and CEO of OpenTheBooks.com Thomas W. Smith – Chairman of OpenTheBooks.com “Open the Books is doing the work I envisioned when the Coburn-Obama bill became law. Their innovative app and other tools are putting sunlight through a magnifying glass.” March 11, 2014 Dr. Tom Coburn, Honorary Chairman of OpenTheBooks.com
OUR REPORT MADE POSSIBLE BY: The “Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006” Sponsors: Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) & Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) (Public Law 109-282, 109th Congress) “Is the spending in the public interest or the special interest?” – U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn “I know that restoring transparency is not only the surest way to achieve results, but also to earn back the trust in government…” – U.S. Sen. Barack Obama
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM – PUBLISHED APRIL 2018
Prologue In the private rooms on Capitol Hill, congressional leaders from both parties assure their colleagues there’s nowhere left to cut. They are convinced. Our OpenTheBooks Oversight Report – Where’s the Pork? proves them wrong. As the federal debt surpassed $21 trillion this year, our first annual waste book details 50 examples of wasteful federal grants, costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. For example, we uncovered a $183,750 grant funding a virtual reality platform to teach children in China how to cross the street. We found the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) granted $2.5 million to produce “Space Racers,” an animated children’s cartoon. Among the $421 billion in grants awarded by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): more than $200,000 for a new lubrication for condoms. All told, the federal government doled out 560,771 grants in fiscal year 2016, totaling $583 billion. On average, each grant exceeded more than $1 million. These grants flowed to all sorts of entities including state governments, higher education institutions, nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations, individuals, and more. Between fiscal years 2014 and 2016, asset-rich Fortune 100 companies received $3.2 billion in grants despite reporting hundreds of billions in revenues. Boeing can’t argue it needed $774 million in federal grants while reporting nearly $95 billion in 2016 annual revenue. In total, 33 Fortune 100 companies received federal grants including General Motors ($454 million) and Lockheed Martin Corporation ($277 million). Meanwhile, some nonprofits depend almost entirely on government money to stay afloat. In its most recent tax docu-
ments, Battelle Memorial Institute reported $4.8 billion in total revenue – and $4.5 billion of it came from government contracts and grants. Simultaneously, Battelle’s CEO pulled down $2.7 million in compensation. Our report provides micro and macro analysis, revealing numerous examples of wasteful grant making – all on the taxpayer dime. Our findings show pork-barrel spending is a bipartisan practice. The top 50 grant-receiving congressional districts are represented by 27 democrats and 23 republicans. Government waste has a long and checkered history. Between 2011 and 2014, our honorary chairman, former Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn, published an annual “Wastebook.” Coburn’s final edition quantified $30 billion in wasteful spending, including an $856,000 grant to train mountain lions to walk on treadmills. Between 1975 and 1988, former Wisconsin Senator William Proxmire presented monthly Golden Fleece Awards for “wasteful, ridiculous, or ironic use of taxpayers’ money.” Both Coburn and Proxmire exposed the $320-million “Bridge to Nowhere” in Alaska – an infamous example of wasteful spending, even today.
How can we rein in this insanity? Doing so will require vigilant, well-informed taxpayers to demand answers: With $21 trillion in national debt, how can congressional leaders argue there’s nowhere left to cut? Why is the federal government granting taxpayer dollars to asset-rich organizations that don’t need the funding? Why are leaders from both parties participating in these wasteful practices?
Who We Are
American Transparency is a public charity. We do not accept government money. Our oversight reports present hard data without policy recommendations. Our goal is to enhance public discourse with delineated facts. Search our raw data using our interactive map, click here.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM – PUBLISHED APRIL 2018
table of contents TOP 10 TAKEAWAYS......................................................................................................................................... 1-2 SCOPE & METHODOLOGY........................................................................................................................... 2 GRANTS ACROSS AMERICA...................................................................................................................... 3-4 Chart: Total Grants Received by State Per Capita (FY2016)....................................................................................................................... 3 Search by Zip Code – Mapping All FY2016 Federal Grants........................................................................................................................ 4
PART I: MICRO ANALYSIS....................................................................................................................................... 5-16
50 Examples of Wasteful Grants.............................................................................................................................................. 5-16 Video Games to Fight Obesity and Diabetes – $537,250....................................................................................................................... 5 Cigar Taste Test – $114,375.................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Sex Ed for Prostitutes in California – $1,486,376................................................................................................................................... 5 Using E-Diaries to Cope with Microaggressions – $173,089.................................................................................................................. 6 New Condom Design with More Lubrication - $200,601....................................................................................................................... 6 Meditation Breathing Mobile App – $687,989...................................................................................................................................... 6 Funding a Notorious Childcare Facility – $5,052,054............................................................................................................................. 6 Using Soap Operas to Reduce HIV in Urban Black Women – $567,529.................................................................................................. 7 How Facebook Affects Alcohol Use – $147,686.................................................................................................................................... 7 Space Racers: An Animated Children’s Cartoon – $2,500,000............................................................................................................... 7 Virtual Reality to Teach Children in China How to Cross the Street – $183,750..................................................................................... 7 How Alcohol Affects Men’s Attention and Sensitivity to Sexual Interest Cues – $180,921.....................................................................7 Historic Hobo Day – $11,987................................................................................................................................................................ 8 Sexual Behavior of Obese Girls – $418,579........................................................................................................................................... 8 Tai Chi for the Elderly – $696,723......................................................................................................................................................... 8 Video Game for Your Future-Self – $651,498........................................................................................................................................ 8 Taxpayer-Funded Celebrations – $1,564,070........................................................................................................................................ 8 Are Physician Trainees Racist? – $932,741............................................................................................................................................ 9 HIV Prevention for Young Female Sex Workers in Zimbabwe – $188,136.............................................................................................. 9 Studying Tweets About Heart Issues – $739,634.................................................................................................................................. 9 Listening to National Parks – $20,000................................................................................................................................................... 9 Preventing Teen Pregnancy Through Theater – $749,000..................................................................................................................... 9 The Effects of Discrimination on High Blood Pressure in African Americans – $762,614...................................................................... 10 Virtual Shoe-Fitting – $753,502.......................................................................................................................................................... 10 Hypnotizing Postmenopausal Women – $215,315.............................................................................................................................. 10 The Dictator Game – $56,118............................................................................................................................................................. 10 Video Game: The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis – $658,388.......................................................................................................... 11 Researching Stigmatization of Danish Smokers – $330,176................................................................................................................. 11 Kenya Prostitutes Testing Clients for HIV – $710,337.......................................................................................................................... 11 Taxpayer-Funded Yoga – $4,457,965.................................................................................................................................................. 11 Study of Effects of Alcohol in Risky Sexual Decisions Among Gay Men – $180,457.............................................................................. 11 Study of Disease Susceptibility of Translocating Tortoises – $350,773................................................................................................. 12 Mobile App for Sex Diary - $1,045,760............................................................................................................................................... 12 Convincing Mothers to Stop Teen Girls from Using Tanning Beds – $671,522...................................................................................... 12 Video Game to Encourage People to Quit Smoking – $399,116.......................................................................................................... 12
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM – PUBLISHED APRIL 2018
Measuring Blood Pressure at Black Barbershops – $2,149,298........................................................................................................... 13 Replacing a Floating Bathroom in Utah – $227,795............................................................................................................................ 13 Researching the Roles of Intoxication, Emotional Arousal, and Emotional Regulation in Sexual Aggression – $39,742........................ 13 Smart Walk: An Exercise Mobile App for African-America Women – $92,393..................................................................................... 13 Games for Change, Inc. – $200,000.................................................................................................................................................... 14 Researching the Relationship Between LGBT Adults and Tobacco Stigma – $564,176......................................................................... 14 Epidemic Simulation Game for High School Students – $350,236....................................................................................................... 14 How Air Pollution Affects Birth by Race – $788,664............................................................................................................................ 14 Mobile App for Obesity and Stress – $690,333................................................................................................................................... 14 Testing FDA Messaging on Tobacco Regulatory Authority – $4,000,000.............................................................................................. 15 Mobile Phone Game to Help Prevent HIV in Sub-Saharan African Youth – $222,531........................................................................... 15 New York Shakespeare Festival – $40,000.......................................................................................................................................... 15 Children’s Cybersecurity Card Game – $296,621................................................................................................................................. 15 Virtual Weight Loss - $228,830........................................................................................................................................................... 16 Smartphone App for Parking Your Car – $149,999.............................................................................................................................. 16
PART II: MACRO ANALYSIS......................................................................................................................................17-
For-Profit Entities....................................................................................................................................................................... 17-19 Case Study: Southern Company Services............................................................................................................................................ 17 Case Study: General Atomics............................................................................................................................................................. 17 Fortune 100 Companies..................................................................................................................................................................... 18 Chart: Fortune 100 Companies Receiving Federal Grants (FY2014-FY2016)..................................................................................... 18 Case Study: Boeing............................................................................................................................................................................ 18 Case Study: General Motors............................................................................................................................................................... 19 Case Study: Lockheed Martin............................................................................................................................................................. 19
Nonprofit Organizations........................................................................................................................................................... 20-23 Chart: Top 25 Grant-Receiving Nonprofit Organizations (FY2016)....................................................................................................... 20 Case Study: Battelle Memorial Institute........................................................................................................................................ 21-22 Chart: Batelle Memorial Institute Highly Compensated Employees (FY2015)............................................................................. 21-22 Case Study: Kaiser Family Foundation................................................................................................................................................ 22 Case Study: Research Triangle Institute.............................................................................................................................................. 23 Case Study: Texas Migrant Council..................................................................................................................................................... 23 Case Study: Experience Works........................................................................................................................................................... 23
Higher Education Institutions.....................................................................................................................................................24Chart: Top 25 Grant-Receiving Higher Education Institutions (FY2016)............................................................................................... 24 Case Study: Johns Hopkins University................................................................................................................................................ 25 Case Study: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill...................................................................................................................... 25 Case Study: Vanderbilt University...................................................................................................................................................... 26 Case Study: The Ivy League................................................................................................................................................................ 26 Chart: Ivy League Colleges Receiving Federal Grants (FY2016)........................................................................................................ 26
APPENDIX............................................................................................................................................................................ 27-28 CHART: TOP 50 GRANT-RECEIVING CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS (FY2016).................................................................................. 27-28
ABOUT AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY............................................................................................................. 29
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 1
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
top 10 takeaways 1. In fiscal year 2016, the federal government awarded 560,771 grants, totaling $583 billion. On average, each federal grant amounted to more than $1 million. 2. The 25 districts that received the most federal grant money accounted for 58 percent of all federal grant funding. Of the top 10 grant-receiving districts, Democrats represented five and Republicans five. Of the top 50 grantreceiving districts, Democrats represented 27 and Republicans 23. 3. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) distributed nearly 75 percent of 2016 federal grant funding, totaling more than $421 billion. Further, at 11 federal departments and independent agencies including HHS, grant making exceeded $1 billion. AGENCY
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
FY2016 GRANT MAKING
$421,079,856,670
AGENCY
FY2016 GRANT MAKING
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
$5,503,130,232
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
$47,649,544,391
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
$3,533,875,513
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
$44,271,868,054
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
$2,851,493,563
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
$33,677,035,554
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
$2,463,816,689 $1,282,809,313
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
$9,731,350,151
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
$7,864,585,123
SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.
4. While congressional leaders argue there’s nowhere left to cut, this report details 50 examples of wasteful grants costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. These grants funded video games, children’s cartoons, and numerous sex-centered studies. 5. Fortune 100 companies received $3.2 billion in federal grants between fiscal years 2014 and 2016. The top recipients included Boeing ($773.7 million); General Motors ($453.7 million); and Lockheed Martin Corporation ($277.2 million). 6. More than 3,000 for-profit institutions received $2.5 billion in grants. Southern Company Services, Inc., whose revenues totaled $23 billion in fiscal year 2016, received $162.5 million in federal grants. 7. Collectively, nonprofit organizations received $19.8 billion in grants. Some nonprofits depend almost entirely on government funds to stay afloat. For example, in its most recent tax documents, Battelle Memorial Institute disclosed $4.8 billion in revenue – and $4.5 billion of it came from government contracts and grants. Meanwhile, Battelle’s CEO pulled down $2.7 million in compensation. 8. Higher education institutions, according to the data, received 6 percent of federal grant funding, totaling $35.1 billion. Columbia University received the most grant funding ($816.3 million), followed by Johns Hopkins University ($768.1 million), and the University of Washington ($679.1 million). The top 25 grant-receiving universities included five Ivy League schools despite having $120 billion in collective endowment funds.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 2
9. Washington, D.C., received more than $7,500 in grant dollars per capita, followed by Alaska ($3,950 per capita); Vermont ($3,088 per capita); New York ($2,785 per capita); and Kentucky ($2,571 per capita). 10. This report divides the federal data into 12 recipient types. State governments received 87 percent of all federal grant funding while the second-largest category, “State-Controlled Institutions of Higher Learning,” received just 4 percent. RECIPIENT TYPE
STATE GOVERNMENT
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
$504,912,520,192
RECIPIENT TYPE
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
SMALL BUSINESS
$2,768,591,494
STATE CONTROLLED INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION
$24,358,023,774
PROFIT ORGANIZATION
$2,506,739,633
OTHER NONPROFIT
$19,758,109,141
INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT
$2,248,545,504
PRIVATE HIGHER EDUCATION
$10,776,669,259
INDIAN TRIBE
$2,194,443,927 $1,590,949,370
ALL OTHER
$4,712,863,581
SPECIAL DISTRICT GOVERNMENT
CITY OR TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT
$3,987,061,811
INDIVIDUAL
COUNTY GOVERNMENT
$3,110,856,287
SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.
$101,913,320
scope and Methodology Our OpenTheBooks.com federal oversight report – Where’s The Pork? provides micro and macro analysis of fiscal year 2016 federal grant making. This investigation, paired with our interactive map, allows taxpayers to see wasteful and corrupt federal grants paid out in their ZIP codes and all ZIP codes across America. Our organization acquired the federal checkbook data used for this report from the U.S. federal government via the Freedom of Information Act. (We did not scrutinize all 560,771 grants totaling $583 billion. Doing so would be impossible with our limited resources.) To begin the oversight process for this report, our team conducted a keyword search based on previous oversight findings. After further investigation, we filtered the data by department name and conducted segmented analysis for each category of departmental data. In the data, we found $12.4 billion in grant dollars – roughly 2 percent of the data – had been allocated to non-existent congressional districts. (This likely resulted from federal workers’ errors in entering the data.)
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 3
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
Grants Across America Total Grants Received by State Per Capita (FY2016) STATE
TOTAL GRANTS PER RECEIVED FY2016 POPULATION CAPITA
STATE
TOTAL GRANTS PER RECEIVED FY2016 POPULATION CAPITA
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA $5,190,133,017
681,170
$7,619
MISSOURI
$10,721,569,969 6,093,000
$1,760
ALASKA
$2,930,288,528
741,894
$3,950
PENNSYLVANIA
$22,370,766,076 12,784,227
$1,750
VERMONT
$1,928,757,499
624,594
$3,088
SOUTH DAKOTA
$1,468,371,892
865,454
$1,697
NEW YORK
$55,000,491,429 19,745,289
$2,785
IOWA
$5,301,488,681
3,134,693
$1,691
KENTUCKY
$11,405,858,301 4,436,974
$2,571
NEW JERSEY
$14,772,823,523 8,944,469
$1,652
RHODE ISLAND
$2,689,293,285
1,056,426
$2,546
COLORADO
$9,036,572,259
$1,631
MASSACHUSETTS
$17,202,719,487 6,811,779
$2,525
OHIO
$18,713,173,748 11,614,373
$1,611
NEW MEXICO
$5,199,759,076
2,081,015
$2,499
ALABAMA
$7,736,860,057
4,863,300
$1,591
NORTH DAKOTA
$1,835,345,325
757,952
$2,421
OKLAHOMA
$6,120,347,603
3,923,561
$1,560
MONTANA
$2,461,172,428
1,042,520
$2,361
ILLINOIS
$19,694,317,823 12,801,539
$1,538
LOUISIANA
$11,043,581,069 4,681,666
$2,359
NORTH CAROLINA
$15,437,977,624 10,146,788
$1,521
ARKANSAS
$6,842,319,761
$2,290
NEW HAMPSHIRE
$2,029,386,149
1,334,795
$1,520
CALIFORNIA
$88,028,383,981 39,250,017
$2,243
TENNESSEE
$10,076,638,211 6,651,194
$1,515
DELAWARE
$2,054,765,254
952,065
$2,158
SOUTH CAROLINA
$7,428,408,188
$1,497
CONNECTICUT
$7,677,729,384
3,576,452
$2,147
TEXAS
$40,855,010,537 27,862,596
$1,466
MISSISSIPPI
$6,377,049,399
2,988,726
$2,134
NEVADA
$4,260,647,129
2,940,058
$1,449
OREGON
$8,682,677,125
4,093,465
$2,121
IDAHO
$2,313,368,373
1,683,140
$1,374
WEST VIRGINIA
$3,882,792,208
1,831,102
$2,120
WISCONSIN
$7,575,665,526
5,778,708
$1,311
MAINE
$2,741,224,621
1,331,479
$2,059
GEORGIA
$13,467,770,141 10,310,371
$1,306
MICHIGAN
$20,155,100,251 9,928,300
$2,030
NEBRASKA
$2,473,297,465
1,907,116
$1,297
ARIZONA
$12,918,266,355 6,931,071
$1,864
UTAH
$3,518,772,525
3,051,217
$1,153
HAWAII
$2,637,020,302
1,428,557
$1,846
FLORIDA
$23,540,583,368 20,612,439
INDIANA
$12,041,151,588 6,633,053
$1,815
KANSAS
$2,880,757,380
2,907,289
$991
MARYLAND
$10,867,907,632 6,016,447
$1,806
VIRGINIA
$8,092,570,337
8,411,808
$962
WASHINGTON
$13,138,618,935 7,288,000
$1,803
PUERTO RICO
$2,936,991,521
3,411,307
$861
WYOMING
$1,042,434,088
$1,780
MINNESOTA
$3,578,109,187
5,519,952
$648
2,988,248
585,501
5,540,545
4,961,119
$1,142
SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT. POPULATION SOURCE: “ANNUAL ESTIMATES OF THE RESIDENT POPULATION FOR THE UNITED STATES, REGIONS, STATES, AND PUERTO RICO: APRIL 1, 2010 TO JULY 1, 2016” (XLSX). UNITED STATES CENSUS BUREAU. RETRIEVED 8 JUNE 2017.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 4
Search by Zip Code – Mapping All FY2016 Federal Grants We mapped the money at OpenTheBooks.com. Search the $583 billion in fiscal year 2016 federal grants by ZIP code. Simply click a pin and scroll down to see the results rendered in the chart beneath the map.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 5
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PART 1
MICRO ANALYSIS
VIDEO GAMES TO FIGHT OBESITY AND DIABETES – $537,250 AL GREEN | TEXAS-9 | DEMOCRAT
This $537,250 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to the Baylor College of Medicine funded the development of video games for diabetes and obesity prevention. These games, Escape from Diab and Nanoswarm: Invasion from Inner Space, are designed to encourage players to increase their intake of fruits, vegetables, and water while lowering the amount of sedentary time and increasing healthy activity. The study involved 36 adolescents ages of 13 to 17. Then, researchers tested and documented the teenagers’ results.
CIGAR TASTE TEST – $114,375
ROBERT SCOTT | VIRGINIA-3 | DEMOCRAT With $114,375 in funding from HHS, Virginia Commonwealth University researched the impact of various cigar flavors on abuse liability and addictiveness among young adults. The study involved 25 adults who smoked five flavored cigars – plain, original black and mild, apple, cream, and wine-flavored – then gauged whether the taste influenced their likelihood to begin smoking.
SEX ED FOR PROSTITUTES IN CALIFORNIA – $1,486,376 BARBARA LEE | CALIFORNIA-13 | DEMOCRAT
The California Prostitutes Education Project received $1.49 million from HHS in fiscal year 2016. The project describes itself as a “youth-centered initiative” that “works with street prostitutes” to teach “safer sex and needle use” in a way that’s respectful of their clients’ “lifestyle and choices,” despite the fact that prostitution is illegal in California and 48 other U.S. states.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 6
USING E-DIARIES TO COPE WITH MICROAGGRESSIONS – $173,089 ADAM KINZINGER | ILLINOIS-16 | REPUBLICAN
A $173,089 grant to Northern Illinois University from HHS supported a four-week study in which “racially diverse bisexual women” document their experience with microaggressions – defined as “minority stressors at the daily level – through a daily online diary. This study presumes that people fitting this specific demographic are more likely to be victims of microaggressions and, as a result, suffer more often from deteriorating mental health. Researchers relied on the diary, along with interviews, to assess how microaggression affects daily and lifetime mental health.
NEW CONDOM DESIGN WITH MORE LUBRICATION - $200,601 JOSEPH KENNEDY III | MASSACHUSETTS-4 | DEMOCRAT
A grant for more than $200,000 from HHS funded a new condom design to address a “lack of adequate lubrication,” currently a “universal drawback” in other condom designs. The grant recipient, Hydroglyde Coatings, claimed its innovative lubricated condom coating lowers the chance of condom breakage, reduces transmission of STDs, and increases “satisfaction between partners.”
MEDITATION BREATHING MOBILE APP – $687,989 JIM CLYBURN | SOUTH CAROLINA-6 | DEMOCRAT
In an effort to fight high blood pressure, the Medical University of South Carolina received a $687,989 grant from HHS to create a “smartphone breathing-awareness meditation program” called Tension Tamer. This study chose subjects ages 21 to 50 years in rural and urban areas, then measured their use of the app and its effects on hypertension.
FUNDING A NOTORIOUS CHILDCARE FACILITY – $5,052,054 PETE OLSON | TEXAS-22 | REPUBLICAN
Photo: Johnny Hanson, Houston Chronicle Staff
The Shiloh Treatment Center – operating out of a mobile home in Manvel, Texas – has a long media-chronicled history of alleged abuse and negligence. As reported by The Houston Chronicle, Shiloh and its affiliate entity, Daystar Treatment Center, are owned by the same individual and have been subject to local, state, and federal investigations. Reports from children and investigators at these facilities have alleged physical and verbal abuse, neglect, and, on three occasions, death. The reoccurring allegations led the U.S. Representative from a neighboring Texas district – Sheila Jackson Lee (TX18) – to publicly call on the center to close its doors. U.S. Representative Pete Olson said he wondered why this small facility in his district is so expensive and whether the children are safe, so he visited the center in the summer of 2014 but received no answers.
Troubling allegations have continued through 2016. Official Texas Health and Human Services Commission reports show four “deficiencies” over the past two years, three considered high risk and one medium high risk. These infractions included mold on the ceilings and supervisors falling asleep on the job. Yet, in fiscal year 2016 Shiloh Treatment Center received more than $5 million for its 44-person capacity facility, operated out of a mobile home. Over the course of three years (FY2014-FY2016), the Shiloh Treatment Center received $14.9 million in federal grants. Twice, we reached out to the Shiloh Treatment Center for comment and received no response. U.S. Representative Pete Olson said he wondered why this small facility in his district is so expensive and whether the children are safe, so he visited the center in the summer of 2014 but received no answers.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 7
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
USING SOAP OPERAS TO REDUCE HIV IN URBAN BLACK WOMEN – $567,529 MIKE CAPUANO | MASSACHUSETTS-7 | DEMOCRAT
Northeastern University received $567,529 from HHS to help reduce urban black women’s risk of contracting HIV by streaming soap operas to their mobile devices. The study involved a 12-episode soap opera video series called “The Guide [to] Enhance Love, Sex, and Choices” (GELSC). A video guide at the close of each “Love, Sex, and Choices” (LSC) episode discussed HIV concerns. The study streamed videos to participants with two aims: first, to compare the engagement of black women in high-risk sexual situations who watch GELSC versus LSC and, second, to compare the responses of women recruited online versus in person.
HOW FACEBOOK AFFECTS ALCOHOL USE – $147,686 JIM MCDERMOTT | WASHINGTON-7 | DEMOCRAT
This University of Washington study – funded by a $147,686 grant from HHS – examines the role of Facebook in alcohol use, whether participants intentionally moderate their responses, and whether the social influence of participants affects their responses. A sample group of 13 to 15 year olds were randomly assigned to view either alcohol or non-alcohol using profiles. They were then asked how willing they would use alcohol in the future. It was no surprise that those exposed to alcohol-positive profiles were more willing to use alcohol in the future compared to the non-alcohol profiles.
SPACE RACERS: AN ANIMATED CHILDREN’S CARTOON – $2,500,000 MO BROOKS | ALABAMA-5 | REPUBLICAN
This $2.5-million grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission supported the production of two seasons of Space Racers, an animated children’s cartoon in which the main characters embark on several space adventures.
VIRTUAL REALITY TO TEACH CHILDREN IN CHINA HOW TO CROSS THE STREET – $183,750 TERRI SEWELL | ALABAMA-7 | DEMOCRAT
The University of Alabama Birmingham received a $183,750 grant from HHS to develop a virtual reality platform designed to teach children in China how to cross the street. Delivered via the internet to tablets, phones, and computers, this training system serves as a precursor to similar platforms aimed at other potentially dangerous situations such as dog bites and drowning.
HOW ALCOHOL AFFECTS MEN’S ATTENTION AND SENSITIVITY TO SEXUAL INTEREST CUES – $180,921 DAVE LOEBSACK | IOWA-2 | DEMOCRAT
The University of Iowa used this $180,921 HHS grant to study the effects of alcohol on men’s visual attention and sensitivity to sexual interest cues. Men who average 6.6 standard alcoholic drinks 10.4 times per month viewed 142 full-body images of undergraduate women and asked to determine if the women in the picture were dressed provocatively or conservatively and whether the women appeared friendly or sexually interested.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 8
HISTORIC HOBO DAY – $11,987
KRISTI NOEM | SOUTH DAKOTA-1 | REPUBLICAN South Dakota State University received $11,987 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for the preservation of Historic Hobo Day in Brookings, South Dakota. On Hobo Day, the school’s homecoming celebration, students dress as “hobos” to march, ride floats, and drive the “Bum-mobile” in a parade through the campus and downtown Brookings. The federal funding supported the digitization of community-held Hobo Day artifacts.
SEXUAL BEHAVIOR OF OBESE GIRLS – $418,579 CHAKA FATTAH | PENNSYLVANIA-2 | DEMOCRAT
This Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia study, funded by $418,579 from HHS, addressed the claim that obese girls have fewer dating and sexual experiences, but take greater sexual risks by not using condoms. By comparing intimate relationships among obese and non-obese girls, this study sought to determine whether obese adolescent girls experience a delay in the development of intimate relationship skills and whether the effects of obesity change over time.
TAI CHI FOR THE ELDERLY – $696,723
MIKE CAPUANO | MASSACHUSETTS-7 | DEMOCRAT The Hebrew Rehabilitation Center for the Elderly received nearly $700,000 from HHS to instruct elderly individuals in Tai Chi. According to the proposal, the instructors hope to improve the “overall function” of these participants at this center in Boston, Massachusetts, by teaching them this Chinese martial art.
VIDEO GAME FOR YOUR FUTURE-SELF – $651,498 ROBERT WITTMAN | VIRGINIA-1 | REPUBLICAN
A $651,498 HHS grant to Research and Evaluation Solutions, Inc. was described in the federal data as “A Virtual Learning World for Tweens to Experience Possible Selves (ME GAMES).” Through games like “My World of Dreams,” “The Valley of Others,” “Disappointments Bridge,” and “The Sea of Hope,” the goal was to “make the future feel close,” allowing adolescents to explore their future selves.
TAXPAYER-FUNDED CELEBRATIONS – $1,564,070 In fiscal year 2016, the federal government awarded 58 grants to support various “celebrations,” spanning city and town anniversaries to jazz master performances. For example, the NEA granted $100,000 to the Los Angeles neighborhood Pacoima for a local arts celebration, $100,000 “to support a celebration of Buffalo’s diversity through public performance,” and $20,000 for a “print marathon” celebrating the 20th anniversary for a contemporary art printing shop in Cleveland, Ohio.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 9
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
ARE PHYSICIAN TRAINEES RACIST? – $932,741 TIM WALZ | MINNESOTA-1 | DEMOCRAT
A $781,691 grant from HHS supported the Mayo Clinic’s study of how “residency factors” affect biases among physician trainees, including racial and LGBT biases. Mayo Clinic conducted this research “despite evidence that physicians are motivated to provide high quality care to all of their patients.” The study involved more than 3,000 medical school graduates and taught them how to remain unbiased towards patients of different races.
HIV PREVENTION FOR YOUNG FEMALE SEX WORKERS IN ZIMBABWE – $188,136 DAVID PRICE | NORTH CAROLINA-4 | DEMOCRAT
This $188,136 grant from HHS to the Research Triangle Institute supported HIV-prevention efforts among female sex workers in Zimbabwe. The project pertained specifically to an HIV-prevention project that targets young sex workers with a high risk of contracting HIV. The funding will also implement a new evidence-based HIV-prevention project within Zimbabwe’s National Sex Worker Program.
STUDYING TWEETS ABOUT HEART ISSUES – $739,634
CHAKA FATTAH | PENNSYLVANIA-2 | DEMOCRAT Nearly three-quarters of a million dollars from HHS funded a study called “Twitter and Cardiovascular Health.” The University of Pennsylvania collected tweets regarding cardiovascular health in an effort to create a “a forecasting model to determine when and how to optimally disseminate CV high-impact health messages” and “predict cardiovascular epidemiology.”
LISTENING TO NATIONAL PARKS – $20,000 DAN BENISHEK | MICHIGAN-1 | REPUBLICAN
Michigan Technological University received $20,000 from the NEA for a project called “Listening to Parks.” In this project, researchers recorded ambient sounds at public parks to inspire composers to produce orchestral pieces. The recordings took place in Keweenaw National Historic Park, Isle Royale National Park, and the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. The project is part of the National Park Service’s “Imagine Your Parks” initiative.
PREVENTING TEEN PREGNANCY THROUGH THEATER – $749,000 CHAKA FATTAH | PENNSYLVANIA-2 | DEMOCRAT
A $749,000 HHS grant to the Public Health Management Corporation supported a “Theater-Based Pregnancy Intervention” for young black males in Philadelphia ages 15 to 22. This project incorporated games, role-playing, and a short play geared toward teen pregnancy prevention. Trained facilitators guided groups of 10 to 15 participants, using pop culture, over 2.5-hour sessions.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 10
THE EFFECTS OF DISCRIMINATION ON HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE IN AFRICAN AMERICANS – $762,614 MIKE COFFMAN | COLORADO-6 | REPUBLICAN
With $762,614 in funding from HHS, this study by the University of Colorado at Denver examined whether perceived discrimination is associated with prevalent hypertension in African-American communities. This study of 4,939 participants from the AfricanAmerican community estimated the prevalence of hypertension linked to perceived discrimination.
VIRTUAL SHOE-FITTING – $753,502 MORGAN GRIFFITH | VIRGINIA-9 | REPUBLICAN
This $753,502 grant from the NSF went to Eclo, Inc., a company dedicated to “virtual fitting” for shoes using smartphone technology. To use this service, users take a video of their foot, which is turned into a 3D model and plugged into an algorithm, matching the user with shoes in the database. This interface is free for users and seeks to provide a more pleasant online shoe-shopping experience as well as reduce the rate of return among online retail shoe purchases.
HYPNOTIZING POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN – $215,315 BILL FLORES | TEXAS-17 | REPUBLICAN
This $215,315 HHS grant to Baylor University supported research on methods of hypnosis to aid the sleep quality of postmenopausal women. The project sought to determine the optimal dosage and delivery of hypnosis and advocate for it as a way to improve sleep among participants. The study concluded that because hypnosis is labor intensive, it is limited in its ability to provide a positive health impact on the sleep of midlife women.
THE DICTATOR GAME – $56,118
CHARLIE RANGEL | NEW YORK-13 | DEMOCRAT This $56,118 HHS grant to Columbia University supported research on the development of “moral emotions” in children. As explained in the proposal, moral emotions are either negative or positive – correlating to feeling happy and proud, or bad and sad – and occur after actions that either violate or uphold moral norms. In the study, children played the “dictator game,” in which they received resources and decided whether to keep them all or share them with another child. Results were measured by the child’s allocation of resources in the game.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 11
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
VIDEO GAME: THE LOGICAL JOURNEY OF THE ZOOMBINIS – $658,388
KATHERINE CLARK | MASSACHUSSETS-5 | DEMOCRAT This $658,388 NSF grant to Technical Education Research Centers, Inc. sought to redevelop a 1990s computer game called The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. This educational game allows elementary and middle school students to create their own small blue creature, called a Zoombini, and face challenges based on computational thinking, such as “Pizza Pass”.
RESEARCHING STIGMATIZATION OF DANISH SMOKERS – $330,176 LOU BARLETTA | PENNSYLVANIA-11 | REPUBLICAN
This $330,176 grant from HHS went to Dickinson College to study the effects of stigmatization on Danish smokers and the role stigmatization plays in perceptions of the risks of smoking. Researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 30 smokers, half from Denmark and half from the United States. The study examined the reactions of smokers from the smoking-lenient Denmark to the more stringent United States to see which group reacted more strongly to stigmatization. Given this data, the research sought to analyze the impact of stigmatization on smoking reduction.
KENYA PROSTITUTES TESTING CLIENTS FOR HIV – $710,337 DAVID PRICE | NORTH CAROLINA-4 | DEMOCRAT
A $710,337 HHS grant to the University of North Carolina provided HIV testing kits to female sex workers in Kenya so they could administer tests to their potential sexual partners before engaging in unprotected intercourse. The grant covered the testing kits sex workers gave to their clients monthly for six months as well as vouchers for HIV testing of the sex workers at clinics. Researchers asked the sex workers to respond via text message to a survey about their experiences.
TAXPAYER-FUNDED YOGA – $4,457,965 The federal government spent nearly $4.5 million on yoga programs in fiscal year 2016. Federal departments awarded 21 yoga-centered grants to 11 different institutions. Yoga is often proposed as a medical cure to different ailments and illness. These federally funded yoga programs attempted to address health afflictions including depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, smoking addiction, breast cancer symptoms, and diabetes.
STUDY OF EFFECTS OF ALCOHOL IN RISKY SEXUAL DECISIONS AMONG GAY MEN – $180,457 DAVID CICILLINE | RHODE ISLAND-1 | DEMOCRAT
Brown University received $180,457 from HHS to study the effects of acute alcohol use on sexual minority men and the subsequent impact on risky sexual decisions. First, the study recruited 30 adult sexual-minority men into focus groups to discuss their experiences of sexual impulsivity. Researchers then placed 180 volunteers in the pilot study into groups that received alcohol, a placebo, or nothing at all. The study examined the effects on each group on risky sexual behavior.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 12
STUDY OF DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF TRANSLOCATING TORTOISES – $350,773 GLENN THOMPSON | PENNSYLVANIA-5 | REPUBLICAN
The NSF awarded Pennsylvania State University $350,773 to study migrating tortoises. Solar panel development in the eastern California desert has caused habitat loss for desert tortoises. As a result, these tortoises have been forced to translocate which researchers believe may have increased the risk of contracting disease. The tortoises were fixed with trackers to analyze their movement and assess how disease spreads among them. Funding for this last phase of the study brings to $2,303,899 total NSF grants for the project since 2012.
MOBILE APP FOR SEX DIARY – $1,045,760 GRACE NAPOLITANO | CALIFORNIA-32 | DEMOCRAT
HHS awarded more than $1 million to Public Health Foundation Enterprises, Inc. to develop a mobile app for sexual reminders and documentation, including a “daily sexual diary.” The app targets people who do not have HIV but whose frequent risky behavior makes them especially vulnerable to contracting the disease. Users document their sexual encounters on the app’s diary and receive daily reminders to take medications designed to prevent HIV.
CONVINCING MOTHERS TO STOP TEEN GIRLS FROM USING TANNING BEDS – $671,522 ED PERLMUTTER | COLORADO-7 | DEMOCRAT
This $671,522 grant from HHS used social media outlets “to reduce mothers’ permissiveness regarding their teenage daughters’ use of indoor tanning.” Using Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and YouTube, Klein Buendel, Inc. intended to persuade mothers to stop their daughters from going to indoor tanning beds and to garner support for legal bans of tanning bed use by minors.
VIDEO GAME TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO QUIT SMOKING – $399,116
MARK WALKER | NORTH CAROLINA-6 | REPUBLICAN Nearly $400,000 from HHS went to Playmatics – an award-winning company that creates games for real-world contexts – for the development of Breathe Free, a game designed to encourage players to quit smoking. The game replaces monetary incentives often used in video games with in-game virtual rewards and social reinforcement. The creator of the project said the grant provided validation for his project: “It’s very exciting. We’re really looking forward to seeing where we can take this project.”
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 13
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
MEASURING BLOOD PRESSURE AT BLACK BARBERSHOPS – $2,149,298 ADAM SCHIFF | CALIFORNIA-28 | DEMOCRAT
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, received an HHS grant for more than $2 million for “Blood Pressure Management in Black Men” in barbershops. Researchers said black barbers would be recruited to urge black customers to get blood pressure checks. Pharmacists, the study said, would conduct the checks at barbershops and follow up on the phone with the black men over the next six months.
REPLACING A FLOATING BATHROOM IN UTAH – $227,795 CHRIS STEWART | UTAH-2 | REPUBLICAN
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service footed the more than $200,000 bill to replace floating bathrooms in “Cabins on the Water” at the Lucerne Valley Marina, part of the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area in Manila, Utah. The agency funneled the money through the Utah Department of Natural Resources, which rents the cabins for up to $370 for a two-night stay. Another $25,000 from Fish and Wildlife paid for replacing a non-floating public restroom at the Lucerne Valley Marina. Flaming George, a reservoir, is known for “providing outstanding opportunity for boating, fishing, skiing, jet skiing, house boating and other water sports.”
RESEARCHING THE ROLES OF INTOXICATION, EMOTIONAL AROUSAL, AND EMOTIONAL REGULATION IN SEXUAL AGGRESSION – $39,742 JIM MCDERMOTT | WASHINGTON-7 | DEMOCRAT
HHS awarded the University of Washington a $39,742 grant to research roles of acute intoxication, emotional arousal, and emotional regulation on sexual aggression among college students. The study claimed 66 percent of sexual assaults occur after the perpetrator has consumed alcohol. For this project, 144 participants were served alcohol, a placebo, or no alcohol in a simulated bar. Then, participants were instructed to project themselves into audio-taped scenarios and respond accordingly. Participants’ responses were recorded and later transcribed for analysis.
SMART WALK: AN EXERCISE MOBILE APP FOR AFRICAN-AMERICA WOMEN – $92,393 KRYSTEN SINEMA | ARIZONA-9 | DEMOCRAT
Arizona State University created an app bankrolled by $92,393 from HHS called Smart Walk that advises African-American women on physical activity. By using the “deep structure cultural relevance of the theoretical mediators of self-regulation, self-efficacy, social support, behavioral capability, and outcome expectations,” Smart Walk sought to help the 82 percent of African-American women who are overweight or obese. For this study, 25 subjects used the smartphone app for six months to a year while administrators measured results.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 14
GAMES FOR CHANGE, INC. – $200,000 CAROLYN MALONEY | NEW YORK-12 | DEMOCRAT
According to its website, Games for Change is an annual event for participants to “discover how games can impact education, healthcare, research, civics, and social issues.” The event – funded by $200,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) – showcased new video games geared toward social change, highlighting and recognizing games such as “The Migrant Trail,” in which participants experience the danger of crossing the border illegally, discovering what it takes to survive, and “Syrian Journey,” in which players “choose [their] own escape route as a Syrian refugee.”
RESEARCHING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LGBT ADULTS AND TOBACCO STIGMA – $564,176 DONNA EDWARDS | MARYLAND-4 | DEMOCRAT
HHS awarded the Pacific Institute $563,176 to investigative links between LGBT adults and stigmatization of tobacco use. The study first analyzed various approaches to the “de-normalization” of tobacco and the stigmatization of tobacco among LGBT smokers and former smokers in California. Through online and in-person interviews, researchers scrutinized how the stigmatization of tobacco might intersect with sexual and gender identity stigmas.
EPIDEMIC SIMULATION GAME FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS – $350,236 DAVID MCKINLEY | WEST VIRGINIA-1 | REPUBLICAN
This $350,236 HHS grant to Wheeling Jesuit University funded the development of “Pandem-Sim,” a simulation game in which high school students pretend to be Center for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institutes of Health employees, tasked with investigating a new pandemic. By testing virtual tissue and blood, students develop the correct vaccination to stop an outbreak.
HOW AIR POLLUTION AFFECTS BIRTH BY RACE – $788,664 JERRY MCNERNEY | CALIFORNIA-9 | DEMOCRAT
The University of California at Berkeley received nearly $800,000 from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to study how air pollution affects the birth of black children in contrast to white children. According to its website, Berkley “used all live singleton births in California spanning 2005 to 2010 and estimated PTBs (preterm births) and other adverse birth outcomes for infants born by non-Hispanic black mothers and white mothers.” The study concluded that pollution has no greater effect on preterm births by race than any other “individual or neighborhood-level factor.”
MOBILE APP FOR OBESITY AND STRESS – $690,333 JAMES MCGOVERN | MASSACHUSETTS-2 | DEMOCRAT
With $625,150 in funding from HHS, the University of Massachusetts developed a mobile application called RELAX, “designed to help with stress management during weight loss.” By keeping track of food consumption and other health habits, RELAX aims to hold users more accountable. This grant covered the costs of testing the app’s feasibility, and more funding may be granted.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 15
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
TESTING FDA MESSAGING ON TOBACCO REGULATORY AUTHORITY – $4,000,000 DAVID PRICE | NORTH CAROLINA-4 | DEMOCRAT
A $4-million HHS grant to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill tested messaging tactics involving the Food and Drug Administration’s ant-smoking campaigns. UNC researchers said the study would help the “FDA in communicating effectively with diverse audiences,” including populations with high rates of smoking such as blacks, adolescents, young people and low-income people.
MOBILE PHONE GAME TO HELP PREVENT HIV IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN YOUTH – $222,531 JOHN LEWIS | GEORGIA-5 | DEMOCRAT
With $222,531 in funding from HHS, this mobile phone game was designed to educate Africans children ages 11 to 14 on sexual health to build skills that will reduce their risks of contracting HIV. Along with encouraging condom use, the game also challenged “harmful gender norms and HIV stigma and fosters dialogue with parents and guardians.” Emory University administered the pilot test game to 60 preadolescents in rural and urban western Kenya.
NEW YORK SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL – $40,000 CAROLYN MALONEY | NEW YORK-12 | DEMOCRAT
The New York Shakespeare Festival (NYSF) received $25,000 in 2016 and $630,000 from the NEA since 2009. The NYSF is the parent company of Shakespeare in the Park, which recently put on a controversial production of Julius Caesar. The play featured an on-stage assassination of a Trump-like Julius Caesar. “He looks like Donald Trump ... moves like Trump ... is knifed to death on stage, blood staining his white shirt,” according to NBC News.
BREAKOUT: At OpenTheBooks.com, we can go deep into the data, quantifying taxpayer money flowing from local, state, and federal levels of government. For example, the NYSF has received a grand total of $30 million in taxpayer grants since 2009. State and city agencies contributed the largest amounts. Since 2010, New York City gave NYSF $23.5 million to build and renovate its public theater and funded an additional $5 million as “payments to cultural institutions.” Council on the Arts – a New York state agency – chipped in $310,000 during the past three years.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 16
CHILDREN’S CYBERSECURITY CARD GAME – $296,621
DANNY DAVIS | ILLINOIS-7 | DEMOCRAT This $296,621 grant from the National Science Foundation to the University of Illinois at Chicago aimed to “cultivate American cybersecurity experts from a young age” by creating a collectible card game named CySec (compared to Pokémon). Focusing on two K-8 schools in Chicago, the project sought to make cyber security habits “second nature” for underrepresented youth. According to Chicago Tonight, 50 to 60 students met for 90 minutes after school, twice per week, to play this card game.
VIRTUAL WEIGHT LOSS – $228,830
HENRY JOHNSON, JR. | GEORGIA-4 | DEMOCRAT A $228,830 grant from HHS to Virtually Better, Inc. supported the development of a virtual interface designed to “allow users to experience learning, implementing, and mastering behavioral weight-control strategies in controlled virtual settings with the support of a culturally sensitive virtual coach.” This platform does not entice physical weight loss, but encourages proper habits to aid weight loss in conjunction with other commercial weight-loss platforms. Identified as “Virtual Reality Skills Training to Enhance e-Weight Loss” in the federal grants database, this program seeks to build user confidence, enabling participants to be more committed to their learned skills in the real world.
SMARTPHONE APP FOR PARKING YOUR CAR – $149,999
KRYSTEN SINEMA | ARIZONA-9 | DEMOCRAT This $149,999 NSF grant to Arizona State University (ASU) supported a “Living Lab for Smartphone-based Parking Management Services.” Despite privately owned parking apps serving the area, the ASU campus in Tempe, Arizona, served as the pilot test location for this federally funded Android app. The app, used in partnership with the ASU Parking and Transit Services, measures the parking data of drivers while intending to provide them with a more efficient parking experience.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 17
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PART 2
MACRO ANALYSIS For-Profit Entities More than 3,000 government-labeled “Profit Organizations” received a collective $2.5 billion in fiscal year 2016, accounting for less than 1 percent of all grant dollars.
case study
Southern Company Services FY2016:
$162.54 MILLION
FY2014–FY2016:
$242.50 MILLION
An American leader in gas and electric, Southern Company Services received the most federal grant money in FY2016 among all for-profit companies outside of the Fortune 100. With over $23 billion in annual revenue, Southern Company ranks 148th on the Fortune 500 list, banking over $10 billion in profit last year. Southern Company received a $137 million grant from the Department of Energy for the “demonstration of a coal-based transport gasifier,” a project that aligns with its core mission.
case study
General Atomics FY2016:
$72.79 MILLION
FY2014–FY2016:
$214.97 MILLION As one of the country’s largest defense contractors, General Atomics amassed $215 million in federal grants over a three-year period in addition to $5.3 billion in federal contracts. The Department of Energy supplied nearly all the federal grants General Atomics received in FY2016, including $63.5 million for “fusion program research and facility operations and advanced fusion technology research and development.” Simultaneously, General Atomics received more than $88 million in Department of Energy contracts for the research and development of fusion.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 18
Fortune 100 Companies In total, 33 “Fortune 100” companies received federal grants totaling $3.2 billion between fiscal years 2014 and 2016.
Fortune 100 Companies Receiving Federal Grants (FY2014-FY2016) FORTUNE 100 COMPANY
TOTAL GRANT FUNDING FY2014-FY2016
BOEING CO.
$773,680,947.00
GENERAL MOTORS
$453,656,822.37
LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION
$277,145,467.70
IBM
$267,907,499.00
DOW CHEMICAL
$266,364,247.00
HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL, INC.
$204,329,249.34
FORD MOTOR CO.
$188,518,055.65
ARCHER DANIELS MIDLAND CO.
$175,528,783.00
GENERAL ELECTRIC
$149,160,121.00
3M COMPANY
$113,516,806.00
CATERPILLAR, INC.
$104,924,830.00
UNITED TECHNOLOGIES
$62,804,648.00
CHEVRON USA, INC.
$43,898,239.00
GENERAL DYNAMICS
$31,488,407.00
HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY
$22,607,998.00
INTEL CORPORATION
$21,499,214.00
VALERO ENERGY CORPORATION
$8,972,395.00
PROCTER & GAMBLE
$3,989,167.00
BANK OF AMERICA N.A.
$2,523,000.00
UNITED PARCEL SERVICE, INC.
$2,485,011.00
METLIFE, INC.
$2,196,000.00
EXELON GENERATION CO.
$2,177,357.00
ORACLE
$1,549,655.00
MERCK & COMPANY, INC.
$1,540,926.00
FEDEX
$1,360,573.00
SYSCO, INC.
$1,201,918.00
JPMORGAN CHASE BANK N.A.
$828,492.00
DELTA AIRLINES, INC.
$807,759.00
CHARLES PFIZER, INC
$571,988.00
AMERICAN AIRLINES
$383,990.00
MICROSOFT CHARITABLE TRUST
$120,000.00
AETNA HEALTH, INC.
$100,000.00
HUMANA INSURANCE COMPANY
$100,000.00
case study
Boeing FY2016:
$195.63 MILLION
FY2014–FY2016:
$773.68 MILLION
Ranked 24th on the Fortune 100 list, Boeing has received more federal grant funding than any other Fortune 100 company over a three-year period. Amounting to more than three-quarters of a billion dollars, these federal grants largely supported standard programs within Boeing’s core mission:
$231.04 MILLION
Integrated vehicle energy technology development program.
$43.39 MILLION
Rapid high-performance manufacturing for small parts.
$38.93 MILLION
Rotorcraft durability and damage tolerance.
SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 19
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
case study
General Motors FY2016:
$27.45 MILLION
FY2014–FY2016:
$453.66 MILLION
Ranked eighth on the Fortune 100 list, General Motors (GM) received the second-most federal grant funding. Famous for its dependency on the federal government, GM has also collected $917 million in federal contracts between 2014 and 2016. Despite its revenues exceeding $166 billion last year, GM still uses federal grant funding to support programs close to its mission:
$3.79 MILLION
Highly integrated, wide-bandgap power module for next generation plug-in vehicles.
$1.9 MILLION
A high-specific-output gasoline low temperature combustion engine.
$1.47 MILLION
High-fidelity, fast running, multiscale, multi-physics battery pack software.
case study
Lockheed Martin FY2016:
$6.97 MILLION
FY2014–FY2016:
$277.14 MILLION
This well-known defense contractor, ranked 56th in the Fortune 100, received $277 million in federal grants over a three-year period, over $250 million of which coming in 2014. In the last year alone, Lockheed Martin banked over $5.5 billion in profit – Lockheed Martin’s handouts represent just five percent of this sum.
$11.54 MILLION
Scalable L-band phased array technology demonstration.
$696,217
Joint Multi-Role technology demonstrator architecture implementation process demonstrations.
$140,000
The maturation of four large strategic mission concept studies prior to the 2020 astrophysics decadal survey.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 20
Nonprofit Organizations In fiscal year 2016, nonprofit organizations collectively received $19.8 billion in grants, representing 3 percent of all grant funding issued. The top 100 nonprofits are primarily health care centers, research institutes, and community development organizations. The largest grant to a nonprofit organization ($80.2 million) went to a network of nonprofits sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) called Baptist Child and Family Services Health to support its infrastructure. Overall, HHS awarded 80 percent ($15.8 billion) of all federal grant dollars to nonprofits.
Top 25 Grant-Receiving Nonprofit Organizations (FY2016) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION NAME
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
TOTAL REVENUE
MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL
$375,308,194
$11,654,648
$20,218,771
FRED HUTCHINSON CANCER RESEARCH CENTER
$228,160,113
$485,870,813
$950,132,932
MAYO CLINIC
$220,660,761
$4,716,398,592
SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE
$212,834,210
$362,462,868
SOUTHWEST KEY PROGRAMS, INC.
$210,701,664
NA
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER
$201,164,781
$3,507,764,725
BCFS Health and Human Services
$200,388,766
NA
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL CORPORATION
$189,018,178
$1,569,063,479
$4,627,706,004
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA
$136,789,719
$1,952,909,086
$3,546,987,890
BETH ISRAEL HOSPITAL
$133,979,410
$1,640,857,901
$1,630,757,944
SLOAN KETTERING INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH
$133,591,179
$786,702,714
$5,250,565,000
DANA-FARBER CANCER INSTITUTE
$129,165,959
$1,203,290,144
$2,014,332,365
ELIZABETH GLASER PEDIATRIC AIDS FOUNDATION
$117,559,846
$120,699,012
NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE ASSOCIATION
$105,842,003
NA
BATTELLE MEMORIAL INSTITUTE
$99,800,333
$4,774,717,370
EXPERIENCE WORKS, INC.
$96,040,957
$104,418,145
WORLD FOOD PROGRAM
$92,062,843
NA
NA
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL SERVICES, INC.
$82,250,040
NA
NA
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE HEAD START
$80,318,711
$140,238,474
$8,017,857
TEXAS MIGRANT COUNCIL
$68,887,997
$71,452,280
$27,588,067
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL, CHILDREN'S RESEARCH
$65,708,138
$629,848,993
$2,518,986,311
KAISER FOUNDATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE
$64,987,224
$149,414,782
$684,605,430
RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR MENTAL HYGIENE, INC.
$64,182,991
$124,472,683
$56,786,476
NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
$63,245,094
$320,703,469
$1,291,793,976
RESEARCH TRIANGLE INSTITUTE
$62,716,185
$852,772,614
$588,448,204
TOTAL ASSETS
$10,051,482,283 $803,333,192 NA $4,906,811,451 NA
$29,216,175 NA $1,125,324,072 $6,969,447
NA=NOT AVAILABLE SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT. REVENUE AND ASSETS DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM USING MOST RECENT IRS 990 DOCUMENTS.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 21
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
case study
Battelle Memorial Institute FY2016 GRANTS:
$99.80 MILLION REVENUE:
$4.77 BILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$171.65 MILLION ASSETS:
$1.12 BILLION
LOBBYING:
$769,343
This Columbus, Ohio, science and technology nonprofit does a great deal of business with the federal government, reaping $181.6 million in grants and $8.1 billion in contracts between 2014 and 2016. Nearly all of Battelle’s grant funding came from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support the “National Ecological Observatory Network,” a continental facility dedicated to collecting and analyzing data to solve ecological problems. The NSF sponsors this endeavor and chose Battelle to operate the facility. In its most recent tax documents, Battelle disclosed total revenue of $4.8 billion, with more than $4.5 billion coming from government grants and contracts. The nonprofit also documented seven employees earning more than $1 million a year, including the CEO, who received $2.7 million in total compensation. When considering all compensation, benefits, and pension liability, Battelle has $2.4 billion a year in employee compensation expenses.
Batelle Memorial Institute Highly Compensated Employees (FY2015) NAME
TITLE
BONUS & OTHER RETIREMENT & BASE TOTAL REPORTABLE OTHER DEFERRED NONTAXABLE COMPENSATION COMPENSATION INCENTIVE COMPENSATION COMPENSATION COMPENSATION BENEFITS
Jeffrey Wadswroth
President & CEO
$1,059,113
David Evans
$1,142,725
$37,629
$398,787
$15,699
$2,653,953
Executive VP $514,564
$557,760
$9,668
$30,921
$20,201
$1,133,114
Ronald Townsend
Executive VP $563,688
$614,477
$16,264
$426,758
$13,768
$1,634,955
Russell Austin
Senior VP
$374,521
$195,929
$1,439
$194,717
$19,135
$785,741
Patrick Jarvis
Senior VP
$266,573
$116,274
$960
$31,871
$20,157
$435,835
John Grossenbacher Senior VP
$388,257
$195,785
$10,436
$114,886
$13,008
$722,372
Stephen Kelly
Senior VP
$387,215
$253,595
$6,760
$325,892
$15,855
$989,317
Michael Kluse
Senior VP
$351,630
$200,305
$98,294
$443,698
$14,205
$1,108,132
Steven Ashby
Senior VP
$274,342
$95,509
$41,592
$91,761
$20,086
$523,290
Thomas Mason Senior VP
$402,931
$194,676
$8,088
$427,710
$29,451
$1,062,856
Martin Toomajian
Senior VP
$306,336
$202,627
$2,806
$141,059
$21,582
$674,410
Gwendolyn Vonholten
VP of Finance $246,464
$43,391
$2,661
$241,066
$15,031
$548,613
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 22
NAME
TITLE
BONUS & OTHER RETIREMENT & BASE TOTAL REPORTABLE OTHER DEFERRED NONTAXABLE COMPENSATION COMPENSATION INCENTIVE COMPENSATION COMPENSATION COMPENSATION BENEFITS
Brian Smith
Treasurer
$172,277
$22,421
$253
$36,433
$6,291
$237,675
Thomas Sharpe Assistant Treasurer
$212,962
$37,973
$783
$89,128
$21,130
$361,976
Laurence Doon Gibbs
Laboratory Director
$359,625
$183,750
$13,284
$26,000
$38,975
$621,634
Jeffrey Smith
Deputy of Operations
$326,931
$139,813
$8,017
$332,144
$20,156
$827,061
Jospeh Fitch
Laboratory Director
$310,652
$309,140
$1,179
$66,195
$19,694
$706,860
Bobi Garrett
Deputy Programs
$286,615
$102,071
$80,101
$557,810
$18,482
$1,045,079
Daniel Taylor
VP of Strategy $215,132 & Execution VP & Laboratory $249,897 Director Former Executive VP $381,874
$485,280
$793
$108,320
$19,908
$829,433
$263,919
$4,763
$54,479
$15,062
$588,120
$385,452
$46,874
$406,456
$3,180
$1,223,836
Former Senior VP Former Assistant Treasurer
$206,035
$-
$20,291
$160,087
$9,671
$396,084
$178,537
$29,540
$1,188
$125,376
$13,539
$348,180
$150,302
$-
$3,384
$15,300
$13,435
$182,421
Reza Karimi Martin Inglis Thomas D Snowberger Judith Mobley
Samuel Aronson Lab Director
SOURCE: INFORMATION COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM USING BATTELLE MEMORIAL INSTITUTE’S MOST RECENT IRS 990 DOCUMENTS (2015).
case study
Kaiser Family Foundation FY2016 GRANTS:
$64.98 MILLION REVENUE:
$138.58 MILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$169.77 MILLION ASSETS:
$650.23 MILLION
The Kaiser Family foundation is a healthcare-oriented nonprofit based in Menlo Park, California, with revenues exceeding $130 million annually. Over three years, the Kaiser Foundation collected nearly $170 million in federal grants and another $60 million in federal contracts. In 2016 alone, the Kaiser Family Foundation received 93 federal grants and 80 federal contracts.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 23
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
case study
Research Triangle Institute FY2016 GRANTS:
$62.72 MILLION REVENUE:
$852.77 MILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$270.71 MILLION ASSETS:
$588.45 MILLION
LOBBYING:
$302,008
Providing research and technical services out of North Carolina, Research Triangle Institute (RTI International) documented $852 million in revenue on its last tax filing. However, over a three-year span, this nonprofit received nearly 3,000 federal contracts for $1.3 billion and more than $270 million in grants. RTI is an official government vendor through the General Services Administration – making it a priority contract for federal agencies. Meanwhile, $14.6 million of the grants RTI received in 2016 supported back-end infrastructure.
case study
Texas Migrant Council FY2016 GRANTS:
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$68.89 MILLION
$218.49 MILLION
REVENUE:
ASSETS:
$71.45 MILLION
$27.59 MILLION
According to the Texas Migrant Council (TMC), its full mission is to “impact early education needs of eligible children and strengthen families.” The federal government picks up almost the entire tab in pursing those lofty goals as 96 percent of TMC’s $71 million in annual revenue comes from federal grants. Of the nearly $70 million in taxpayer-funded grants, TMC spends $49.3 on employee compensation. In September 2017, HHS terminated funding for TMC’s Head Start program, a move TMC is fighting. Also, the federal government rebuked the nonprofit over an ill-advised relocation of its headquarters, for which it did no research and did not consult key stakeholders.
case study
Experience Works FY2016 GRANTS:
$96.04 MILLION REVENUE:
$104.42 MILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$211.28 MILLION ASSETS:
$6.97 MILLION
LOBBYING:
$28,979
This nonprofit, based in Arlington, Virginia, works to “improve the lives of older people through training, community service, and employment.” Experience Works derives 92 percent of its revenue from federal grants, and another estimated 7 percent from state and local funding. It spends almost all of its revenues – more than $98 million – on employee compensation.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 24
Higher Education Institutions
Public and private institutions of higher education received $35.13 billion in federal grants in fiscal year 2016, representing 6 percent of federal grant funding. The largest grant to a higher education institution ($62 million) went to Columbia University for “HIV Impact Assessments” while Howard University received the second and third-largest grants, both listed vaguely as “Academic,” for $105.3 million collectively. Overall, the top 25 recipients received 35 percent of all grant dollars flowing into higher education.
Top 25 Grant-Receiving Higher Education Institutions (FY2016) UNIVERSITY NAME
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
TOTAL REVENUE
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
$816,284,470
$4,708,225,588
$16,672,598,896
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
$768,053,595
$5,797,614,000
$9,020,955,000
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
$679,069,375
$11,340,019,000
$4,893,488,000
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN FRANCISCO
$668,711,111
$8,718,633,000
$5,736,978,000
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
$656,399,284
$20,503,288,000
$7,079,679,000
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN DIEGO
$549,465,943
NA
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
$548,892,678
$6,286,195,000
$17,580,872,000
UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH
$534,309,005
$2,330,235,794
$6,229,558,895
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
$529,220,723
$6,965,956,577
$37,767,407,673
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
$522,634,193
$7,820,587,000
$1,789,128,000
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM
$514,554,856
$8,649,053,416
$3,702,777,772
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL
$510,988,053
$9,792,714,154
$2,124,202,667
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES
$500,227,875
$12,839,793,000
$5,895,441,000
YALE UNIVERSITY
$472,182,804
$4,807,997,730
$34,103,002,387
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
$470,192,906
$6,609,236,543
$73,518,242,000
DUKE UNIVERSITY
$469,704,096
$2,786,082,190
$12,594,506,113
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
$447,317,124
$1,446,333,000
$3,841,937,000
WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
$447,303,866
$3,185,323,683
$11,081,059,000
NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
$374,662,784
$2,833,160,505
$13,658,756,847
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
$349,333,807
$3,758,080,000
$12,525,886,000
EMORY UNIVERSITY
$325,457,759
$3,589,561,177
$12,265,793,650
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
$299,173,479
$6,083,799,000
$1,931,553,000
ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI
$291,700,685
$2,094,255,559
$2,312,466,209
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
$280,382,600
$4,895,423,051
$10,268,789,127
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS
$278,827,884
$6,954,305,000
$2,442,980,000
TOTAL ASSETS
NA
NA=NOT AVAILABLE SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT. REVENUE AND ASSETS DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM USING MOST RECENT IRS 990 DOCUMENTS OR ANNUAL REPORT.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 25
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
case study
Johns Hopkins University FY2016 GRANTS:
$770.80 MILLION REVENUE:
$5.79 BILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$2.69 BILLION
ASSETS:
$9.02 BILLION
LOBBYING:
$1.15 MILLION
Johns Hopkins University, as the second largest recipient of federal grants among higher education institutions, received 92 percent of its funding from HHS. The university itself boasts of its reliance on federal dollars, calling itself “the nation’s leading university recipient of federal research dollars.”
$29.98 MILLION
The largest grant Johns Hopkins University received in 2016 went toward strengthening the health system in Mozambique.
$5.22 MILLION
Six separate grants supported male circumcision in 14 African countries.
$1.25 MILLION
This money covered research to advance the design and efficiency of wind farms.
case study
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill FY2016 GRANTS:
$511.55 MILLION REVENUE:
$2.12 BILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$1.51 BILLION
ASSETS:
$856.57 MILLION
LOBBYING:
$225,000
Ranked 12th among institutions of higher education receiving federal grants in 2016, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill received more than $1.5 billion in grants and $63 million in federal government contracts between 2014 and 2016. Of the 1,389 grants to the university in 2016, four grants worth $1.9 million collectively went to the UNC Environmental Finance Center to channel funds to other organizations dedicated to solving environmental issues.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 26
case study
Vanderbilt University FY2016 GRANTS:
$365.35 MILLION REVENUE:
$4.50 BILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$1.29 BILLION
ASSETS:
$8.26 BILLION
LOBBYING:
$357,019
Having received $365 million in federal grants in 2016, Vanderbilt University’s largest grant ($13.7 million) went toward the Research Support Center, which works to “assist investigators in navigating the complex human research process at Vanderbilt University.” In addition to receiving nearly $1.3 billion in federal grants over a three-year span, Vanderbilt also received $60 million through 448 federal contracts. Overall, 86 percent of Vanderbilt’s federal funding flowed from HHS. For example, HHS granted $434,266 to support “Breathing Interventions for Relaxation,” a study of slow-breathing techniques.
case study
The Ivy League FY2016 GRANTS:
$3.02 BILLION REVENUE:
$31.62 BILLION
FY2014-FY2016 GRANTS:
$8.86 BILLION ASSETS:
$194.40 BILLION
LOBBYING:
$3.26 MILLION
When combined, the eight Ivy League schools received more than $3 billion in federal grants in fiscal year 2016 and nearly $9 billion over three years (fiscal years 2014 to 2016). Five of these eight schools are among the top 25 largest higher education grant recipients. The Ivy League schools have combined revenue figures larger than that of 29 state budgets, yet pull in federal funding that translates to $120,000 per each undergraduate student. For more information on federal funding of the Ivy League, see our oversight report: Ivy League, Inc.
Ivy League Colleges Receiving Federal Grants (FY2016) UNIVERSITY NAME
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
TOTAL REVENUE
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
$816,284,470
$4,708,225,588
$16,672,598,896
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
$548,892,678
$6,286,195,000
$17,580,872,000
YALE UNIVERSITY
$472,182,804
$4,807,997,730
$34,103,002,387
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
$470,192,906
$6,609,236,543
$73,518,242,000
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
$349,333,807
$3,758,080,000
$12,525,886,000
DARTMOUTH COLLEGE
$127,565,804
$1,394,170,409
$7,265,439,165
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
$124,015,056
$2,978,563,000
$27,631,907,000
BROWN UNIVERSITY
$109,771,451
$1,080,375,719
$5,103,251,337
TOTAL ASSETS
SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT. REVENUE AND ASSETS DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM USING MOST RECENT IRS 990 DOCUMENTS OR ANNUAL REPORT.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 27
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
appendix Top 50 Grant-Receiving Congressional Districts (FY2016) DISTRICT
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
REPRESENTATIVE NAME
PARTY AFFILIATION
CA-5
$63,268,421,236
MIKE THOMPSON
DEMOCRAT
NY-22
$35,985,776,799
RICHARD HANNA
REPUBLICAN
TX-21
$27,332,994,691
LAMAR SMITH
REPUBLICAN
FL-2
$16,566,703,283
GWEN GRAHAM
MI-8
$15,386,759,773
MIKE BISHOP
PA-17
$14,380,534,173
MATTHEW CARTWRIGHT
IL-18
$13,062,158,802
DARIN LAHOOD
REPUBLICAN
OH-12
$11,946,422,998
PAT TIBERI
REPUBLICAN
NC-4
$11,531,798,899
DAVID PRICE
DEMOCRAT
MA-8
$11,373,908,225
STEPHEN LYNCH
DEMOCRAT
NJ-4
$10,256,854,262
CHRIS SMITH
GA-5
$9,789,474,940
JOHN LEWIS
DEMOCRAT
AZ-4
$9,674,981,098
PAUL GOSAR
REPUBLICAN
IN-7
$9,623,236,058
ANDRE CARSON
KY-6
$9,399,136,310
ANDY BARR
REPUBLICAN
WA-3
$8,563,818,311
JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER
REPUBLICAN
MD-7
$8,393,369,728
ELIJAH CUMMINGS
DEMOCRAT
TN-5
$7,680,908,137
JIM COOPER
DEMOCRAT
MO-4
$7,478,256,967
VICKY HARTZLER
REPUBLICAN
LA-6
$6,650,754,036
GARRET GRAVES
REPUBLICAN
OR-5
$6,613,593,534
KURTH SCHRADER
DEMOCRAT
CO-1
$6,360,342,447
DIANA DEGETTE
DEMOCRAT
CT-1
$5,803,352,785
JOHN LARSON
DEMOCRAT
SC-6
$5,692,685,784
JIM CLYBURN
DEMOCRAT
AR-2
$5,678,617,115
FRENCH HILL
REPUBLICAN
NY-21
$5,605,890,152
ELISE STEFANIK
REPUBLICAN
WI-2
$5,445,024,619
MARK POCAN
DEMOCRAT
AL-2
$5,035,761,691
MARTHA ROBY
REPUBLICAN
VA-3
$4,652,182,491
ROBERT SCOTT
DEMOCRAT
MS-2
$4,622,501,551
BENNIE THOMPSON
DEMOCRAT
IA-3
$4,093,246,315
DAVID YOUNG
NM-3
$3,905,028,756
BEN R LUJAN
NV-2
$3,697,555,333
MARK AMODEI
REPUBLICAN
CA-6
$3,298,389,963
DORIS MATSUI
DEMOCRAT
DC-0
$3,286,050,703
ELENOR NORTON
DEMOCRAT
WV-2
$3,045,192,611
ALEX MOONEY
REPUBLICAN
MT-0
$2,543,402,927
RYAN ZINKE
REPUBLICAN
MA-7
$2,372,272,417
MIKE CAPUANO
AK-0
$2,338,719,374
DON YOUNG
DEMOCRAT REPUBLICAN DEMOCRAT
REPUBLICAN
DEMOCRAT
REPUBLICAN DEMOCRAT
DEMOCRAT REPUBLICAN
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
PAGE 28
DISTRICT
TOTAL GRANTS RECEIVED FY2016
REPRESENTATIVE NAME
PARTY AFFILIATION
HI-1
$2,240,210,471
MARK TAKAI
DEMOCRAT REPUBLICAN
UT-1
$2,189,002,987
ROB BISHOP
ME-1
$2,154,847,302
CHELLIE PINGREE
RI-2
$2,042,232,758
JAMES LANGEVIN
DEMOCRAT
TX-25
$2,007,497,961
ROGER WILLIAMS
REPUBLICAN
NY-20
$1,919,147,871
PAUL TONKO
DEMOCRAT
KS-2
$1,872,973,003
LYNN JENKINS
REPUBLICAN
NJ-12
$1,732,339,082
BONNIE WATSON COLEMAN
ID-2
$1,725,851,719
MICHAEL SIMPSON
DE-0
$1,717,526,620
JOHN CARNEY, JR.
DEMOCRAT
NH-2
$1,698,853,884
ANN KUSTER
DEMOCRAT
DEMOCRAT
DEMOCRAT REPUBLICAN
HIGHLIGHTED = THIS REPRESENTATIVE NO LONGER REPRESENTS THIS CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT. SOURCE: FEDERAL CHECKBOOK DATA COMPILED BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM VIA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
PAGE 29
WHERE’S THE PORK? – AN OVERSIGHT REPORT BY OPENTHEBOOKS.COM
about american transparency EVERY DIME. ONLINE. IN REAL TIME.
Today, OpenTheBooks.com is the largest private repository of U.S. public-sector spending. With Honorary Chairman Dr. Tom Coburn, our organization has one ultimate goal: post “every dime, online, in real time.” To date, OpenTheBooks.com has captured 4 billion government-spending records, including 16 million public employee salary and pension records across America; nearly all disclosed federal government spending since 2000; and 47 of 50 state checkbooks. OpenTheBooks.com exposed the $20 million luxury-art procurement program at the Department of Veterans Affairs, which forced a public apology from the V.A. Secretary and the adoption of new rules to stop the abuse (2016). The group found 63,000 highly compensated Illinois public employees earned $100,000+ costing taxpayers $10 billion (2017). Recently, OpenTheBooks launched Mapping the Swamp – an interactive mapping platform displaying 2 million federal bureaucrats by employer ZIP code across America. OpenTheBooks.com is harnessing three powerful forces in the internet age: the power of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); the latest in big data technology; and the ability to follow the money using forensic auditing techniques. The group’s oversight model has led to the assembly of grand juries, indictments, successful prosecutions, congressional briefings and hearings, subpoenas, and Government Accountability Office (GAO) audits, administrative policy changes, federal legislation, and much more.”
Download the OpenTheBooks app here: http://www.openthebooks.com/mobileapp/
Recent investigations include: Mapping the Swamp (FY2016), A Study of the Administrative State (FY2016, Federal & State Government’s Gender Hiring Gap, National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities; Ivy League, Inc.; Federal Funding of America’s Sanctuary Cities; The Militarization of America; Veterans Affairs - The VA Scandal Two Years Later; Truth in Lending - the U.S. Small Business Administration’s $24.2 Billion Failed Loan Portfolio; The Department
of Self-Promotion - Quantifying $4.4 Billion in Federal Public Relations; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Lawyered Up - 25,000 Federal Lawyers Cost $26.2 Billion Since 2007; U.S. Export - Import Bank; Federal Funding of the Fortune 100; U.S. Small Business Administration’s Lending to the Wealthy Lifestyle; and Farm Subsidies in America’s Urban Areas. Visit OpenTheBooks.com to learn more and read these reports.
The Board of Directors at American Transparency (OpenTheBooks.com) thanks our team:
Adam Andrzejewski, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, authored this report. Matthew Tyrmand, Deputy Director, disseminated this report to national media. Craig Mijares, Chief Operating Officer at American Transparency, assembled and organized datasets. Frank Bruno, Director of Government Oversight managed our data investigation and oversight teams. Jessie Fox, Communications Specialist, helped draft and edit the report.
Research Interns included:
Lauren Renslow, Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Michigan, Moaz Al Nouri, Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas; Patrick Farrell, Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Michigan; Alec Mena, Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Michigan; Madalen Strumpf, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana; John Zachariah Shuster, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia; Daniel Sutkowski, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois. This report quantifies federal transactions compiled at www. OpenTheBooks.com as a result of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006. To the extent the government makes mistakes in reporting inaccurate or incomplete data, our report will reflect these same mistakes.
OPENTHEBOOKS.COM | 200 S. FRONTAGE RD, SUITE 106, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 | AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY
© 2018 OpenTheBooks.com | A project of American Transparency 501(c)(3) All Rights Reserved. 200 S. Frontage Rd, Suite 106, Burr Ridge, IL 60527 | www.openthebooks.com Graphic Design powered by PDR Designs