Luke Rosiak
Articles by Luke Rosiak
Md. couple indicted in scheme to cheat SBA on minority contracts
A federal grand jury indicted a Maryland couple Wednesday on charges of obtaining more than $50 million in government contracts by abusing the minority contracting system. Published June 19, 2013
As federal agencies trim fat, contracts feed billions in profits to 59 companies
As lawmakers take up austerity measures and the Defense Department and other agencies grapple with difficult budget choices, some contracting companies that derive their income entirely from the federal government have grown increasingly fat. Published June 19, 2013
Conflict of interest in $4 billion government minority program
A $4 billion minority contracting program that places advocates for minority businesses in charge of regulating them is a clear conflict of interest, federal and state audits found, but one state has announced plans to expand its version to one of the most aggressive in the nation Published June 9, 2013
$4 billion program for disadvantaged businesses lacks oversight
The U.S. Department of Transportation distributes some $4 billion a year in contracts reserved for minority-owned and other "disadvantaged" businesses, but conducts virtually no oversight and has no idea if the program is accomplishing any of its goals, a new inspector general's report found. Published June 3, 2013
Maryland’s minority-contracting program gets failing grade on ‘graduation’
Corporations given millions of dollars in contracts under Maryland's minority-contracting program virtually never grow into thriving businesses that are profitable in the private sector — a primary goal of the program, records show. Published June 2, 2013
Self-financing candidates can’t buy love; wealthy challengers rarely win the elections
With the cost of campaigns ballooning, political parties, and Republicans in particular, are increasingly turning to wealthy candidates who can fund their own bids. The only problem is that those self-funders generally lose. Published May 30, 2013
In time of sequesters, federal government posts 27,000 job openings
The budget cuts known as sequestration were supposed to wreak havoc, forcing the shrinking of critical workforces including airport security officers and food inspectors. But since sequestration kicked in March 4, the government is in the market for 27,000 new employees. Published May 27, 2013
Medical suppliers’ ‘no cost to you’ marketing on hot seat in Senate
Representatives of "durable medical equipment" companies accused of badgering senior citizens into obtaining scooters and other equipment "at little or no cost to you" — with the rest picked up by taxpayers — hid from scrutiny by a Senate oversight committee Wednesday. Published May 22, 2013
Voter fraud is easy with 13,000 in Maryland still on D.C. records
Washington, D.C., has failed to remove from its voting rolls as many as 13,000 former residents who years ago moved to Prince George's County and cast ballots there, making fraud by voting in two jurisdictions as easy as going to the polls in their old neighborhoods, The Washington Times found in a review of records. Published May 19, 2013
Discrimination suits for disabilities could rise with new list of psychiatric disorders
As a new edition of the manual of mental disorders used to diagnose psychiatric conditions hits publishers, employers are concerned that the expansion of definitions for some types of disabilities will open them to more lawsuits and complaints of disability discrimination. Published May 19, 2013
Blacks’ voting rate higher than whites’ for first time in 2012: Census
Blacks voted at a higher rate than whites in the 2012 election, the first time on record that has occurred, the Census Bureau said Thursday. Published May 8, 2013
Congressman wants oversight of food stamp program
Responding to complaints that food stamps are widely spent on junk food and that the Agriculture Department makes no attempt to even track, much less restrict, what kind of food is being purchased, a Pennsylvania Republican will introduce legislation Friday called the SNAP Transparency Act to create an online, searchable database that uses bar codes to break down how many taxpayer dollars in food stamps are spent on each individual product, from Kit Kat bars to whole milk. Published April 25, 2013
Coca-Cola’s food-stamp lobbying effort falls flat, conservative group says
A conservative group called out the Coca-Cola Co. on Wednesday for lobbying to keep soda and candy eligible for purchase with food stamps, asking why the company expects taxpayers to pay for poor Americans' unhealthy purchases from the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program. Published April 24, 2013
Executive pay balloons for federal contractors; small businesses add up to big gap
Red River Computer Co., which resells Cisco, Apple and Dell computers to the government, is a company with only 68 employees, yet it paid its top executives more than $5 million in 2011, including $1.2 million to its CEO, Richard Bolduc. Published April 22, 2013
Obama inauguration fueled by corporations, unions
Chevron, Boeing and other companies whose fortunes are heavily dependent on government action or inaction were among the companies that gave $23 million to President Obama for his inauguration party, with the politician who ordinarily demonizes corporate money relying primarily on such sources, rather than individuals, for the $44 million gala in January. Published April 21, 2013
D.C. can’t account for $1 billion for development
Despite a booming commercial real estate industry that is the envy of almost every U.S. city, the District of Columbia is unable to account for more than $1 billion of public/private funding in fiscal 2012 intended for local, small- and minority-owned businesses, according to a city report. Published April 17, 2013
The Scooter Store files for bankruptcy while under investigation for overbilling Medicare, Medicaid
The Scooter Store, which ran late-night commercials implying that many people could get "free" motorized wheelchairs paid for by taxpayers and profiting the company has filed for bankruptcy after a federal investigation found the company overbilled Medicare and Medicaid by between $47 million and $88 million from 2009 to 2011. Published April 17, 2013
Republican mega-donor Bob Perry dies at age 80
Bob Perry, a Texas homebuilder and philanthropist who also had an immense influence on politics through his contributions to Republican candidates, has died at his home near Houston, the Texas Tribune reports. He was 80. Published April 15, 2013
Hamstrung by corporate-money reversal, Obama group raises $4.8M
President Obama's presidential campaign's newest incarnation, a nonprofit intended to mobilize volunteers and use their donations to prop up his bully pulpit, raised a paltry $4.8 million, constrained by its reversal under criticism of its intention to collect money from corporations. Published April 12, 2013
CBE haven also a home base for Ward 8 politico
A three-bedroom Colonial on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue in Southeast that houses a dozen businesses and received $3.5 million from the District government since 2010 also serves as a home base for a longtime Ward 8 politico with a history of debt and dubious financial dealings with the city, records show. Published April 11, 2013
