Saturday, July 01, 2017 12:20:23 AM
By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Thursday, June 29, 2017
The controversial “Obamaphone” program, which pays for cellphones for the poor, is rife with fraud, according to a new government report released Thursday that found more than a third of enrollees may not even be qualified.
Known officially as the Lifeline Program, the phone giveaway became a symbol of government waste in the previous administration. Now a new report from the Government Accountability Office bears out those concerns.
The report, requested by Sen. Claire McCaskill, Missouri Democrat, also says the program has stashed some $9 billion in assets in private bank accounts rather than with the federal treasury, further increasing risks and depriving taxpayers of the full benefit of that money.
“A complete lack of oversight is causing this program to fail the American taxpayer — everything that could go wrong is going wrong,” said Mrs. McCaskill, ranking Democrat on the Senate’s chief oversight committee and who is a former state auditor in Missouri.
“We’re currently letting phone companies cash a government check every month with little more than the honor system to hold them accountable, and that simply can’t continue,” she said.
Recent SURG News
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/03/2024 08:42:40 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/03/2024 08:33:01 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/03/2024 07:50:44 PM
- SurgePays Announces Commencement of Share Repurchase Program • PR Newswire (US) • 08/22/2024 12:30:00 PM
- Form 10-Q - Quarterly report [Sections 13 or 15(d)] • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/13/2024 08:15:48 PM
- SurgePays Announces Second Quarter 2024 Financial Results • PR Newswire (US) • 08/13/2024 08:15:00 PM
- U.S. Futures Climb Before Inflation Data; Oil Slips on OPEC Demand Cut • IH Market News • 08/13/2024 09:45:01 AM
- SurgePays Announces Second Quarter 2024 Earnings Release and Conference Call • PR Newswire (US) • 08/08/2024 12:30:00 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/05/2024 12:48:03 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/05/2024 12:47:18 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/02/2024 08:22:49 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/01/2024 08:26:01 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 08/01/2024 08:16:35 PM
- ClearLine to Unveil its Innovative SaaS Retail Point-of-Sale Marketing Solutions at RSPA RetailNOW Conference • PR Newswire (US) • 07/24/2024 12:30:00 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 07/16/2024 07:53:47 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 07/15/2024 07:30:14 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 07/12/2024 06:13:42 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 07/11/2024 06:11:03 PM
- SurgePays Appoints Joseph Gomez as Vice President of MVNO Operations • PR Newswire (US) • 07/09/2024 01:00:00 PM
- SurgePays, Inc. Announces Launch of Prepaid Wireless Brand LinkUp Mobile • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 06/06/2024 12:30:00 PM
- SurgePays Announces First Quarter 2024 Financial Results • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 05/13/2024 08:15:00 PM
- SurgePays Announces First Quarter 2024 Earnings Release and Conference Call • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 05/06/2024 08:01:00 PM
- SurgePays to Participate in Water Tower Fireside Chat Series • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 04/18/2024 08:55:37 PM
- SurgePays Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Financial Results • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 03/12/2024 08:01:00 PM
- SurgePays Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Earnings Release and Conference Call • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 03/05/2024 09:01:00 PM
VHAI - Vocodia Partners with Leading Political Super PACs to Revolutionize Fundraising Efforts • VHAI • Sep 19, 2024 11:48 AM
Dear Cashmere Group Holding Co. AKA Swifty Global Signs Binding Letter of Intent to be Acquired by Signing Day Sports • DRCR • Sep 19, 2024 10:26 AM
HealthLynked Launches Virtual Urgent Care Through Partnership with Lyric Health. • HLYK • Sep 19, 2024 8:00 AM
Element79 Gold Corp. Appoints Kevin Arias as Advisor to the Board of Directors, Strengthening Strategic Leadership • ELMGF • Sep 18, 2024 10:29 AM
Mawson Finland Limited Further Expands the Known Mineralized Zones at Rajapalot: Palokas step-out drills 7 metres @ 9.1 g/t gold & 706 ppm cobalt • MFL • Sep 17, 2024 9:02 AM
PickleJar Announces Integration With OptCulture to Deliver Holistic Fan Experiences at Venue Point of Sale • PKLE • Sep 17, 2024 8:00 AM