This Week In Waste – November 6, 2026
Welcome to This Week in Waste, a series by Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) that highlights how taxpayer dollars are being wasted in the federal, state, and local levels of government and efforts to fight back against this spendthrift behavior.
Taxes on Wireless Bills Harm Consumers
US Telecom’s 2026 Broadband Pricing Index revealed that prices for the services at speeds most consumers use dropped by 6 percent between 2024-2025 and by 43.6 percent since 2014. At the same time download speeds have increased by 145 percent and upload speeds rose by about 95 percent. But the cost for wireless services could be lower if government taxes and fees were not so high. A Tax Foundation report found that a typical American household with four phones on a shared plan will pay about $345 per year in taxes, fees, and government surcharges in 2026, a $15 increase from $330 in 2025. State legislatures can help reduce these costs by lowering tax burdens on wireless services. Read more here.
Push for Proactive Fraud Prevention
An October 12, 2026, Washington Times article quoted CAGW Federal Government Affairs Associate Grigory Menshikov on how to reduce improper payments. He said, “If the government continues to focus on preventing fraud upfront instead of “paying and chasing,” […] taxpayers will benefit from less of this type of waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement.” Read more here.
California signs BEAD funding agreement while disputing restrictions on state net neutrality enforcement
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) signed its Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) funding award on November 2, 2026. However, the CPUC maintains that the state will not follow federal BEAD restrictions against the state enforcing its state net neutrality rules on broadband providers receiving federal funding from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration through the BEAD program. Read more here.
OPM Review Identifies $106.7 Million in Improper Payments in FEHBP
On November 2, 2026, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced that it identified approximately 50,000 deceased individuals who were still on the rolls for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). The OPM review identified $96.3 million in improper payments made after the date of death, including $70.6 million in government FEHB premium contributions and $25.7 million in retirement payments. Read more here.
