Press Release

Big Tech Buried the Laptop Story, Now It’s Burying the Film About It

WASHINGTON – Empower Oversight is sounding the alarm about Big Tech’s suppression of its campaign to fund a documentary regarding the Hunter Biden laptop story, appearing to be just another round of restricted coverage of the story. The documentary, Shielded by Power: The Whistleblowers vs. The Big Guy, tells the story of IRS Special Agents

Documented California Hospice Fraud Prompts Broad Ranging Inquiry from National Oversight and Accountability Organization

Washington, D.C. — Empower Oversight today pressed for comprehensive records from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) related to hospice fraud and oversight failures across California — with a particular focus on Los Angeles County.  The records request targets widespread regulatory failures in the county. The letter request spans five broad categories asking for:

FBI Sends Nearly $4 Million in Back Pay to Empower Oversight Whistleblower Clients

WASHINGTON – Nearly $4 million in gross back pay promised to FBI whistleblowers has now been paid to Empower Oversight clients, resolving a group of nine cases settled in August 2025 after years of retaliation. The FBI still has yet to resolve one additional whistleblower case not in the original group of nine. That client—a

Empower Oversight Presses Minnesota State Agency for Records on Child Care Assistance Program Amid Fraud Concerns

Washington, D.C. — Empower Oversight has requested from the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) records related to the oversight and administration of the state’s Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), the subject of numerous reports of waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars. The request, filed pursuant to the Minnesota Data Practices Act,

HSGAC Document Release Shows Baseless Surveillance of Empower Oversight Client

Empower Oversight president Tristan Leavitt made the following statement after Senator Rand Paul, Chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, released documents detailing the federal government’s investigation into Christine Crowder. Empower Oversight represents Christine and her husband Mark Crowder, a Senior Federal Air Marshal. “In 2022 Empower Oversight helped Mark and Christine

IRS Whistleblowers Reach Settlements with DOJ, IRS on Illegal Retaliation Case; Issue Statement on Dismissal of Lowell Defamation Suit

WASHINGTON, D.C. – IRS whistleblowers former Supervisory Special Agent Gary Shapley and Special Agent Joe Ziegler reached settlements with the IRS and Justice Department (DOJ) for illegal retaliation against them. The settlements included significant compensation for damages and a requirement for new training for federal prosecutors to deter future whistleblower retaliation. Shapley and Ziegler’s 84-page

Leavitt Statement at Senate Committee on Weaponization of the Quiet Skies Program

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS EXAMINING THE WEAPONIZATION OF THE QUIET SKIES PROGRAM SEPTEMBER 30, 2025  TESTIMONY OF TRISTAN LEAVITT PRESIDENT EMPOWER OVERSIGHT  Chairman Paul, Ranking Member Peters, and Members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify today. I was last before this Committee in 2021 when it considered my nomination to the

Empower Oversight: Education Department Stalls on Title IX Report Regarding Court Orders Ignored by Biden Administration

Washington, D.C. – Empower Oversight is urging the U.S. Department of Education (DOEd) to finalize and release the investigative report required by a referral from the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC), which forwarded information from a whistleblower disclosing DOEd’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) had been violating federal court injunctions that limited the enforcement of

HHS Fails to Meet FOIA Deadline, Empower Oversight Sues to Obtain Records Related to Administration of the National Human Trafficking Hotline

WASHINGTON – Empower Oversight has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit against the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) seeking records related to the administration of the National Human Trafficking Hotline, a critical public safety resource for victims of trafficking. The request includes records about an alleged conflict of interest involving Katherine