Tax fraud estimate: Federal auditors estimated annual tax-fraud losses at up to $304 billion, then asked the IRS to produce its plan for stopping it.
Maryland legal bills: Two law firms collected nearly $1.3 million from the attorney general's office, and both have written checks to his campaign.
California detention bills: One of the 21 bills Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Tuesday would take 50 cents of every dollar private detention operators collect in the state.
Louisiana voting machines: The state has a $100 million price tag for new voting machines and no paperwork showing where that number came from.
Gas tax relief: Three states moved on fuel costs this week, but one governor cannot touch his state's gas tax at all.
Auditors find no IRS plan for up to $304 billion in annual tax fraud
What we found: The Government Accountability Office estimated that tax fraud costs the federal government $116 billion to $304 billion a year, the first comprehensive federal estimate of those losses, and found the Internal Revenue Service has no agency-wide strategy to stop it. The Center Square calculated that the losses run from about $318 million to $833 million a day. Auditors found antifraud work has been left to individual divisions, which have no strategies of their own.
The stakes: Applied to tax year 2022, the range equals roughly 2% to 6% of the $4.6 trillion Americans actually owed. Auditors said the lost revenue could fund national security operations and health care for veterans.
The backstory: The report cites a Marietta, Georgia, man who filed two tax returns in 2021 using different Social Security numbers, claimed bogus losses from a purported gold mining business in Ghana, and collected a refund of more than $3.3 million. He spent it, along with the proceeds of a fraudulent pandemic loan, on a $333,000 Lamborghini and a down payment on a 72-foot yacht, according to the Justice Department.
Where it stands: The IRS partially agreed with both recommendations, saying it would consider developing an agency-wide antifraud strategy and identifying its chief tax compliance officer as responsible for coordinating antifraud work. IRS chief executive officer Frank J. Bisignano disputed the report’s distinction between fraud and broader taxpayer noncompliance. Spokesperson John Fuld referred The Center Square to the agency’s written response but did not answer whether it would develop an antifraud strategy.
3 States
Maryland: The Center Square found that Attorney General Anthony Brown's office paid nearly $1.3 million to two law firms that have donated to his campaign committee. Billing records, covering January 2023 through May 20, 2026, show payments of $985,000 to Ballard Spahr and $302,000 to Saul Ewing. Spokeswoman Jennifer Donelan said the prior administration selected both firms through a competitive process and Brown's office had no role. Richard Painter, chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said the arrangement raises concerns about the politicization of state attorneys general’s offices.
California: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 21 bills Tuesday aimed at federal immigration enforcement and private detention. One, by Sen. Maria Durazo, D-Los Angeles, makes permanent a requirement that the state attorney general review private detention facilities, where a California Department of Justice report found six detainees died in custody between September 2025 and March 2026. Another bars law enforcement officers from wearing masks, a step The Center Square has reported cities and states elsewhere have taken. A third taxes private detention operators 50% of their gross receipts.
Louisiana: Secretary of State Nancy Landry told lawmakers in February that replacing Louisiana’s roughly 35-year-old voting system would cost about $100 million, requiring another $25 million beyond the $75 million already set aside. In response to a public records request, Landry’s office said it had no records showing how the estimate was developed. Legislative fiscal analysts say the final cost remains unknown and will depend on the system selected and its security features. The replacement system is expected to produce a paper record of each vote, allowing post-election audits.
2 Issues
Fuel prices: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp suspended the state's fuel taxes, about 33 cents a gallon on gasoline and 37 cents on diesel, after the state average reached $4.19. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott declared a statewide disaster over a diesel shortage, letting farmers and truckers run untaxed dyed diesel on public roads, though the Texas Constitution bars him from suspending the fuel tax. Ohio lawmakers passed a 90-day suspension of gasoline and diesel taxes Wednesday. Gov. Mike DeWine intends to sign the bill, which would take effect upon his signature and cost the state about $725 million, according to lawmakers. On Monday, AAA’s national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $4.47.
Financial regulation: Attorneys general from 22 states accused Moody’s, Fitch and S&P Global of downgrading fossil-fuel companies based on speculative environmental, social and governance predictions that conflict with the firms’ stated methods. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led the letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission, recommending that the agencies explain or reverse those downgrades and withdraw from ESG commitments or disclose them as material conflicts of interest. The Center Square reported in April that 23 attorneys general made a similar demand directly to the ratings agencies.
1 Number
$1.2 trillion
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that building and operating a missile defense system consistent with the administration’s Golden Dome goals could cost $1.2 trillion over 20 years, roughly $9,300 per U.S. household. The Pentagon told The Center Square the shield would protect the entire homeland for $185 billion, covering its planned architecture through 2035. The estimates cover different time frames and may include different costs.
Supreme Court allows states to use federal data to check voter rolls
A divided Supreme Court allowed the Department of Homeland Security to share data from its Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database with state and local officials checking voter rolls for noncitizens. The League of Women Voters and other groups challenged the sharing under federal privacy law. Access is voluntary. The States explains what Friday’s decision means heading into November.
Abdul El-Sayed, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan
Seventeen Michigan Democratic leaders joined a coalition this week pressing El-Sayed to sign five commitments on Jewish safety and political participation. Rabbi Josh Whinston, who helped write them, told The Center Square in an exclusive interview that he acted after hearing El-Sayed use "anti-Semitic language and dog whistles." The coalition says El-Sayed has not publicly affirmed the commitments, and his campaign has not responded to The Center Square’s requests for comment.
Can you guess what a Detroit pastor was paid last year for a half-time job at a taxpayer-funded nonprofit?
The Center Square reviewed federal tax filings for a taxpayer-funded nonprofit led by Detroit pastor Marvin Winans Sr., who drew criticism for his response to a parishioner’s donation. Read more about his pay and the nonprofit’s state grant.
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