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Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Workforce Protections Subcommittee Chairman Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) today requested the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Inspector General (OIG) conduct an additional audit to determine whether the Biden-Harris DOL’s improper information sharing practices extended beyond the three agencies already reviewed.
 
The request follows the OIG's June 30, 2026, audit—requested by the Education and Workforce Committee—that found the Biden-Harris DOL shared sensitive information gathered during federal investigations with trial lawyers and advocacy groups. 
 
In the letter, Walberg and Mackenzie write: “[DOL] failed to establish adequate controls, oversight, coordination procedures, and tracking mechanisms governing the sharing of confidential investigative information with non-governmental entities through common interest agreements. These deficiencies created an unacceptable risk that DOL improperly disclosed privileged or non-public investigative information, potentially providing outside parties with an unfair advantage in civil litigation.”
 
The letter continues: “Other agencies across DOL routinely obtain confidential business records, witness statements, investigative materials, and other sensitive information through the exercise of federal investigative authority. Employers and workers alike reasonably expect that this information will be used solely for legitimate governmental purposes and will not be shared in a manner that advantages private litigants or otherwise undermines confidence in DOL’s impartiality. With these concerns in mind, and understanding that future administrations can revoke the reforms that the OIG recommended and the Trump administration is implementing, it is important to have a comprehensive understanding of what occurred throughout DOL.”

The letter concludes: “The OIG’s audit concluded that DOL lacked consistent controls and the offices in question followed informal and unstructured processes. If those conditions existed elsewhere within DOL, Congress should fully understand the scope of the problem so that it may consider whether legislative reforms should be adopted.”

BACKGROUND
The OIG's June 30, 2026, audit reviewed the Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Wage and Hour Division, and the Office of the Solicitor. While recommending stronger Department-wide safeguards for handling confidential investigative information, the audit did not examine several other major enforcement agencies within DOL.
 
Walberg and Mackenzie are requesting an additional audit to determine whether the problems identified by the OIG extended beyond the three agencies it reviewed.

Read the full letter here.