Yellow Jacket Initiativehttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/ Independent, primary-source research on U.S. federal institutions: what the documents say, checked against the source. en-usFri, 06 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400 Common Cause v. DOJ: a federal judge set aside the Justice Department's voter-list policy on Oct. 9, and the department has asked the appeals court to pause that rulinghttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/common-cause-v-doj-judge-sets-aside-doj-voter-list-policy/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/common-cause-v-doj-judge-sets-aside-doj-voter-list-policy/Fri, 06 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400The policy: collect state voter files, share them with DHS for SAVE checks, ask states to remove flagged voters. A stay was denied Nov. 2; DOJ's D.C. Circuit motion is pending as of Nov. 4.Elections and voter rolls League of Women Voters v. DHS: a federal judge bars DOJ and DHS from sending more suspected-noncitizen voter lists to election officials in any statehttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/league-of-women-voters-v-dhs-judge-bars-further-noncitizen-voter-list-transmissions/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/league-of-women-voters-v-dhs-judge-bars-further-noncitizen-voter-list-transmissions/Wed, 04 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400Judge Chutkan's Nov. 2 order is preliminary and nationwide. SAVE citizenship checks and prosecutions are carved out. The government says it is complying; no appeal is on the docket as of Nov. 4.Elections and voter rolls The Justice Department says it sent election monitors to all 50 states: what its release says, and what it leaves outhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/doj-says-it-sent-election-monitors-to-all-50-states/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/doj-says-it-sent-election-monitors-to-all-50-states/Wed, 04 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400DOJ's Nov. 3 release lists 126 places in all 50 states, against 86 in 27 states in 2024 and 64 in 24 in 2022. It does not say where OPM federal observers went, or on what authority.The federal workforce SEIU v. DOJ: four Ninth Circuit orders in 24 hours, and the stay of the order barring DOJ prosecution warnings standshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/seiu-v-doj-four-ninth-circuit-orders-in-24-hours-the-stay-stands/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/seiu-v-doj-four-ninth-circuit-orders-in-24-hours-the-stay-stands/Wed, 04 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400A panel stayed the Oct. 30 order on Nov. 2; the court vacated that stay, an 11-judge panel reinstated it on Election Day, and the full court declined to rehear. A Nov. 13 hearing is still set. The Justice Department announces election-crime charges against 63 people: what the release says, and what it leaves outhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/justice-department-announces-election-crime-charges-against-63-people/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/justice-department-announces-election-crime-charges-against-63-people/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400The Nov. 2 release names 20 districts but cites no statute and links no charging papers. Two Texas informations we read charge voting by an alien under 18 U.S.C. 611(a). All are presumed innocent. United States v. California: the Supreme Court declines to order California to set aside listed voters' mail ballotshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-supreme-court-denies-application-to-set-aside-listed-voters-mail-ballots/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-supreme-court-denies-application-to-set-aside-listed-voters-mail-ballots/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400On Nov. 2 the Court denied the Justice Department's emergency application in one line, with no reasons and no noted dissent. A D.C. judge separately barred demands to segregate ballots.United States v. California SSA re-issues its master Social Security number file notice without the routine use that gave DHS citizenship data under 8 U.S.C. 1373(a)https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ssa-reissues-its-master-ssn-file-notice-without-the-dhs-1373a-routine-use/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ssa-reissues-its-master-ssn-file-notice-without-the-dhs-1373a-routine-use/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400SSA's Nov. 3 notice for its master SSN file (60-0058) omits the Nov. 2025 DHS routine use. A court vacated that 2025 notice in June; the Supreme Court stayed that order. Comments due Dec. 3. Washington groups sue to stop a federal demand to hold about 405 ballotshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/washington-groups-sue-to-stop-a-federal-demand-to-hold-about-405-ballots/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/washington-groups-sue-to-stop-a-federal-demand-to-hold-about-405-ballots/Mon, 02 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400In OneAmerica Votes v. Trump, filed Oct. 30 in Seattle, three groups say a DOJ letter built on a federal voter list, and prosecution warnings, coerce election officials. The State is not a party.Elections and voter rolls United States v. California: the Ninth Circuit, 2-1, declines to make California set aside listed voters' mail ballotshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-ninth-circuit-denies-request-to-set-aside-listed-voters-mail-ballots/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-ninth-circuit-denies-request-to-set-aside-listed-voters-mail-ballots/Mon, 02 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400An Oct. 30 order says section 611 does not preempt California's ballot rules and the government should "take that suggestion to Congress." Judge Bumatay dissented. No Supreme Court application yet.United States v. California ICE extends the Hagerstown detention order a second time: the money is still movinghttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ice-extends-the-hagerstown-detention-order-a-second-time-the-money-is-still-moving/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ice-extends-the-hagerstown-detention-order-a-second-time-the-money-is-still-moving/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400Modification P00005, signed Oct. 29, moves the Maryland order's end date to Jan. 15, 2027 and adds no money. Across four tracked ICE orders, $506.8 million is obligated and $32.3 million paid out.Detention money Naturalized-citizen groups sue DHS and USCIS to end the 'Unlawful Voter Initiative' and erase its recordshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/naturalized-citizen-groups-sue-dhs-and-uscis-to-end-the-unlawful-voter-initiative/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/naturalized-citizen-groups-sue-dhs-and-uscis-to-end-the-unlawful-voter-initiative/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 12:00:00 -0400In OCA v. DHS, filed Oct. 28 in federal court in California, the plaintiffs ask a court to stop the investigations nationwide and expunge the TECS records. No emergency motion has been filed. A federal judge temporarily bars DOJ and DHS from threatening to prosecute election workers who count listed voters' ballotshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-judge-temporarily-bars-doj-and-dhs-from-threatening-to-prosecute-election-workers/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-judge-temporarily-bars-doj-and-dhs-from-threatening-to-prosecute-election-workers/Sat, 31 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400In SEIU v. DOJ, filed Oct. 29, Judge Trina Thompson granted a restraining order the next day under Voting Rights Act section 11(b). It runs to Nov. 16. The government says it will seek relief.Elections and voter rolls Social Security puts each number holder's identity and citizenship fields in one new systemhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/social-security-puts-identity-and-citizenship-fields-in-one-new-system/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/social-security-puts-identity-and-citizenship-fields-in-one-new-system/Fri, 30 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400A new SSA system of records, published Oct. 30, carries an existing routine use to DHS "to identify and locate aliens." New routine uses take effect, and comments are due, Nov. 30.Elections and voter rolls ICE adds $11.44 million to keep the Aurora detention order running, and raises rates at the South Texas processing centerhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ice-adds-11-44-million-to-keep-the-aurora-detention-order-running-and-raises-rates-at-pearsall/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/ice-adds-11-44-million-to-keep-the-aurora-detention-order-running-and-raises-rates-at-pearsall/Fri, 30 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400An Oct. 27 modification runs GEO's Aurora, Colo. order to Dec. 15. The same day, ICE updated rates and authorized back pay at Pearsall, Texas, under a wage-law adjustment recorded at $0.00.Detention money OPM tells agencies that reporting misconduct is protected, and that some responses to it belong in the suitability processhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/opm-tells-agencies-reporting-misconduct-is-protected-and-some-responses-belong-in-suitability/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/opm-tells-agencies-reporting-misconduct-is-protected-and-some-responses-belong-in-suitability/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400An Oct. 28 OPM memo restates whistleblower and witness protections, and tells agencies to meet "knowingly false counter-accusations" with discipline or an OPM suitability referral.The federal workforce United States v. California: the judge denies the restraining order, the government appeals, and a special master will examine the listhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-judge-denies-restraining-order-government-appeals-special-master-appointed/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-judge-denies-restraining-order-government-appeals-special-master-appointed/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400Judge Carter found the United States unlikely to succeed and said he "cannot conclude" its list process is credible. The government appealed the same day. A hearing on the list is set for Nov. 13.United States v. California OPM puts agency hiring oversight in regulation, and lowers the floor on what the public sees from the employee surveyhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/opm-puts-agency-hiring-oversight-in-regulation-and-lowers-the-floor-on-employee-survey-disclosure/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/opm-puts-agency-hiring-oversight-in-regulation-and-lowers-the-floor-on-employee-survey-disclosure/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400A final rule effective Nov. 30 writes each agency's Strategic Hiring Committee into 5 CFR part 250, adds the agency head's chief of staff without comment, and cuts the required survey questions to 10.The federal workforce A federal judge vacated FEMA's grant conditions that tied counterterrorism money to SAVE checks of every registered voterhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-judge-vacated-femas-grant-conditions-tying-counterterrorism-money-to-save-checks/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-judge-vacated-femas-grant-conditions-tying-counterterrorism-money-to-save-checks/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400In Nashville v. DHS, a court set aside a 20% holdback of FY2026 homeland-security grants tied to SAVE checks of voter rolls and poll workers. It reaches nonparties; an appeal is open.Elections and voter rolls A short-term tent facility, used for longer stays: what the DHS Inspector General found in El Pasohttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-short-term-tent-facility-used-for-longer-stays-what-the-dhs-inspector-general-found-in-el-paso/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-short-term-tent-facility-used-for-longer-stays-what-the-dhs-inspector-general-found-in-el-paso/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400At ICE's El Paso tent site, since closed, the average booking lasted 108 hours under a 72-hour standard, and 44% of 15,975 bookings ran longer, per DHS inspector general report OIG-27-01 (Oct. 26).Detention money A federal court bars DHS 'elections-related field operations' involving likely citizens in nine states through Election Dayhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-court-bars-dhs-elections-related-field-operations-involving-likely-citizens-in-nine-states/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/a-federal-court-bars-dhs-elections-related-field-operations-involving-likely-citizens-in-nine-states/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400An injunction in California Nurses Association v. Mullin runs until polls close Nov. 3 and rests on one Voting Rights Act claim. The Ninth Circuit hears the government's stay request Oct. 29. CMS Proposes Holding Back Marketplace Subsidies Until Citizenship and Other Data Checks Clearhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/cms-proposes-holding-back-marketplace-subsidies-until-data-checks-clear/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/cms-proposes-holding-back-marketplace-subsidies-until-data-checks-clear/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400A proposed rule would hold back premium subsidies while a citizenship, immigration-status, income or other data mismatch is open, starting with plan year 2028. Comments close Nov. 27. United States v. California: the government names the data product behind its voter listhttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-the-government-names-the-data-product-behind-its-voter-list/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/us-v-california-the-government-names-the-data-product-behind-its-voter-list/Tue, 27 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400New sworn declarations say USCIS built its list outside SAVE, adding Social Security numbers through LexisNexis's Accurint, and that HSI got California's voter roll from "a DHS senior counselor." A re-check of the County's sample found four people who "might have a claim to U.S. citizenship."United States v. California Letters to California counties, and the Justice Department's last brief before Tuesday's hearinghttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/letters-to-california-counties-and-the-justice-departments-last-brief-before-tuesdays-hearing/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/letters-to-california-counties-and-the-justice-departments-last-brief-before-tuesdays-hearing/Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400U.S. Attorney letters asked California counties to commit within 48 hours to sharing voters' Social Security and driver's license data, and warned that officials who count listed ballots "risk becoming aiders and abettors." On Sunday the Justice Department's reply told the district court it "lacks jurisdiction" over the emergency request, then argued it anyway.United States v. California The Turnout Bethttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/the-turnout-bet/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/the-turnout-bet/Sun, 25 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400Both parties have said on the record how they plan to win on November 3. Before the vote, we wrote down what each plan predicts and what would show it failed. Seven tests, scored after. Passport Records, "Verification Platforms," and Voter Eligibility: What State's New Notice Sayshttps://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/passport-records-verification-platforms-and-voter-eligibility/https://yellowjacketinitiative.com/notes/passport-records-verification-platforms-and-voter-eligibility/Sun, 25 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0400A State Department Privacy Act notice published Friday, Oct. 23, 2026, proposes a new routine use that would let government agencies and non-profit organizations "utilizing federal government verification platforms" use passport records to verify citizenship for purposes that include "voter eligibility." Comments are due Monday, Nov. 23, 2026.Elections and voter rolls