Every December, Washington does its ritual airing of grievances: a list of waste, weak controls, and outright fraud that taxpayers should not have to bankroll. New York deserves the same honesty.

This is not a “gotcha” list or a partisan hit piece. It is built from official audits and watchdog findings—the kinds of reports that usually disappear into PDFs while the public is told there is “no money” for smaller class sizes, special education supports, facility repairs, or safer, more reliable transportation.

So here is a New York version—state agencies, NYC, and local governments—followed by the real question: What could we buy for students if we stopped bleeding money through preventable waste and weak oversight?

1) The big leak: Medicaid spending New York can’t properly verify

According to Office of the New York State Comptroller: $1.2 billion in managed-care premiums were paid for Medicaid members who may have been living outside New York, according to an audit that found major weaknesses in residency checks and recovery efforts.

And that is not the only red flag. New York’s own statewide analytics work has flagged about $17.2 billion in improper Medicaid payments and “questionable transactions” (as identified through audit analytics) for the 12 months ending May 31, 2025.

Then there are the “smaller” leaks that still add up:

Nearly $10.2 million in Medicaid claims were paid after billing errors tied to cost-sharing codes; in a sample, every single claim reviewed had issues, producing $1.78 million in identified overpayments.

Another audit found $16.2 million in improper Medicaid claim payments over a six-month period starting in October 2023, driven by systems and control weaknesses (including claims that did not comply with Medicaid policies and cases where Medicaid was incorrectly treated as primary payer).

Why this matters for schools: These are not abstract accounting errors. These are dollars that could be stabilizing school budgets, funding student supports, and reducing the pressure for property-tax increases—especially in high-cost regions where districts are already squeezed.

2) NYC: “Paying for performance” that is not being monitored

New York City spends big money on services that directly affect students—yet watchdogs keep finding the basics are not being enforced.

DOE school bus oversight: poor accountability, weak data use, missed learning time

NYC’s Comptroller found the Department of Education does not adequately oversee school bus vendors, does not systematically use readily available GPS/complaint data to enforce contract terms, and lacks strong accountability tools (corrective action, penalties) even when performance is poor. Students missed school, services, and meals—and the audit noted special education students were disproportionately impacted by unreliable bus service.

Education angle: If you want a clearer “what this could buy for students” example than “kids actually getting to school on time,” it is hard to find.

NYCHA repair vendor oversight: weak proof-of-work and procurement practices

NYC’s Comptroller also reported serious problems at NYCHA, including a finding that a large share of sampled purchase orders lacked evidence work was performed, and warning signs that procurement controls were being circumvented. The report highlights that NYCHA paid $135.6 million in “smaller purchases” (<$50K) during 2022–2023 with far fewer controls—raising the risk of waste and repeat work.

Education angle: Housing stability and school success are inseparable. Wasteful spending in public housing maintenance does not just waste money—it compounds instability for families.

3) Local government and school-district “slow leaks” that hit taxpayers and classrooms

State Comptroller audits routinely show that, across New York, basic internal controls still fail—creating the exact conditions where waste and mismanagement thrive.

A few examples from late-2025 audit releases:

Seaford UFSD: auditors found assets totaling $42,314 were missing and could not be located, and $196,089 in assets were not inventoried, alongside incomplete/insufficient asset records.

Town of Hornellsville: auditors found the town inappropriately allocated $1.1 million in sales tax revenues to the wrong fund area over multiple years, plus chronic planning and fund balance problems.

City of Dunkirk: cited unreliable records and a $1.8 million unbudgeted payment for fire apparatus, with broader warning signs about inability to effectively monitor cash position/results of operations.

Town of Danby: the town failed to implement prior audit recommendations on competitive procurement and claims auditing—meaning the same vulnerabilities continued.

Not every example above is “fraud.” But collectively, they describe the environment where fraud becomes easy—and where taxpayers and students pay the price either way.

What this could buy for NY students

Let’s translate “audit language” into real outcomes. Even recapturing or preventing a fraction of these documented problems could fund:

Reliable transportation that protects learning time

• Better vendor accountability and real-time performance monitoring (GPS/route compliance) so students—especially students with IEPs—aren’t losing instructional time.

Student mental health and behavioral supports

• More social workers, psychologists, and counselors (the kind of staffing that reduces disciplinary crises, chronic absenteeism, and classroom disruption).

Special education capacity that actually meets legal mandates

• More related service providers, more timely evaluations, and fewer costly out-of-district placements caused by capacity shortages.

Facilities that are safe, functional, and modern

• HVAC fixes, roofs, bathroom repairs, secure entry upgrades, and—yes—playgrounds. (The basics districts too often postpone because budgets are brittle.)

Academic acceleration that doesn’t depend on family income

• High-dosage tutoring, evidence-based literacy intervention, and summer learning programs—so progress is not determined by a parent’s ability to pay privately.

Stronger financial controls (so this list shrinks next year)

• Modernized systems, better procurement compliance, required documentation standards, and enforcement that actually has consequences.

The point is not to “save money.” It is to stop wasting it. Invest in education.

New Yorkers already pay among the highest taxes in America. Families should not be told their schools must “do more with less” while audits keep documenting preventable leakage, weak oversight, and repeat failures.

A real “Festivus List” is not just grievances—it is a demand:

Stop the leaks. Enforce accountability. Redirect the savings into classrooms.