December 1, 2025
Celebrating the Restoration of CIGIE Funding
WASHINGTON—Government Accountability Project and other leaders from the non-partisan Make it Safe Coalition (MISC) are relieved to see that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has ensured the continued funding of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) through January 30, after which it would need to be renewed. In October, independent of the shutdown, OMB had illegally withdrawn CIGIE funding but reversed itself after receiving a letter opposing the cuts from Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins and Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Grassley.
This was a major victory for accountability, even if only temporary. CIGIE is an independent entity that is a vital resource to the Inspector General (IG) community. CIGIE funds Office of Inspector General (OIG) hotlines that are the primary source for whistleblowers to disclose evidence of government illegality. It also is the hub for OIG Whistleblower Coordinators who strengthen OIG work with whistleblowers.
MISC, which fights for whistleblower protections and legislation, had urged Senators Grassley and Collins as the original champions creating CIGIE to challenge the funding cuts and applaud their decision to do so. "Thanks to Senators Grassley and Collins' leadership, whistleblowers again have functioning government channels to expose fraud, waste and abuse. The senators not only raised the issue, but they...
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