The Office of Special Counsel spent the fall of 2026 filing and settling Hatch Act cases against career federal employees while a stack of complaints against senior Trump officials sat open. As of Oct. 28, 2026, Government Executive and other outlets had reported no published OSC finding on any of those senior-level complaints. Here is how the agency works, which officials it can actually discipline, and how its posture has shifted since early 2025.
Where it stands: On Sept. 30, 2026, OSC announced five settlements with rank-and-file employees and a new disciplinary complaint. Complaints against cabinet-level officials remain unresolved; OSC would not discuss them when The New York Times asked for its Oct. 28 report.
Those complaints are allegations from advocacy groups, not findings. The White House and federal agencies, according to the Times, describe them as “politically motivated to hurt Republicans” and say officials’ conduct is lawful. For the full list of filings and each response, see our Hatch Act complaints tracker.
What is the Office of Special Counsel?
The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is a small, independent federal agency that investigates and prosecutes Hatch Act cases. It is not the same office as a Justice Department special counsel such as the one who investigated Mr. Trump. According to OSC’s fiscal 2025 annual report, the Civil Service Reform Act created it, effective January 1, 1979, and the Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 made it an independent agency inside the executive branch.
Its Hatch Act Unit does three jobs. It investigates complaints, it takes cases to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), and it issues advisory opinions to anyone who asks whether a planned activity is allowed. The report’s fiscal 2025 tally: 777 advisory opinions written, 94 warning letters sent and 13 disciplinary actions secured, some negotiated and some ordered by the board.
How does an Office of Special Counsel Hatch Act case work?
A case starts with a complaint, which anyone can file through OSC’s online portal or on its Form 14. Investigators then gather statements and records. From there the path splits by rank.
For most employees, OSC acts as prosecutor. A Senate committee report on the 2012 Hatch Act Modernization Act described the next step plainly: “A Hatch Act case is then adjudicated before the MSPB, which decides whether a violation occurred and, if so, determines the penalty.” The employee is entitled to a hearing before the board or one of its administrative law judges. Many cases end earlier, in a settlement the employee signs.
Senate-confirmed policy officials, the tier that includes cabinet secretaries, take a different route. Under 5 U.S.C. 1215(b), OSC’s complaint and the official’s response “shall be presented to the President for appropriate action” instead of going to the board. OSC can investigate and write a report; the president decides whether anything happens. That is why the 2026 complaints against cabinet members turn on what OSC chooses to publish, and then on what the White House chooses to do.
| Who is accused | Who decides | Possible outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Career or rank-and-file employee | MSPB, after OSC files | Penalty, settlement or dismissal |
| Senate-confirmed official | The president, on OSC’s report | Whatever the president orders, or nothing |
| White House commissioned officer | The president (OSC practice since April 2025) | Same as above |
| Anyone, before acting | OSC advisory opinion | Advice that shields a person who follows it |
What has OSC done to lower-level employees in 2026?
OSC has kept prosecuting rank-and-file cases. On Aug. 20, 2026, it filed MSPB complaints against a Postal Service worker and a Veterans Affairs worker. “Political candidacy violations are black letter law under the Hatch Act,” Special Counsel Charles Baldis said in the release. The complaints allege the two ran for partisan office and solicited contributions despite warnings from OSC.
The Sept. 30 announcement listed outcomes that show the range of discipline in practice. One VA employee agreed to retire and stay out of federal jobs for at least four years. Others accepted unpaid suspensions, the longest of them a 10-day suspension for an IRS employee who also agreed to more training. Government Executive also reported that OSC determined in 2025 that a FEMA supervisor broke the law by telling Hurricane Milton relief workers in Florida to skip homes displaying Trump signs.
Why are complaints against senior officials still open?
OSC does not explain open cases. When Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a watchdog group, wrote to the agency on Aug. 20, 2026, it said OSC had opened investigations into six senior officials, “five of which have been pending for more than 10 months.” OSC’s only reply, per Government Executive, was that it “doesn’t comment on open cases.” The count of six is CREW’s own figure; OSC has not confirmed it.
CREW argued the gap is about rank. Its letter said ethics compliance “cannot thrive” if powerful officials “are allowed to skirt the law while their subordinates are punished for similar activity.” Administration officials reject the premise that the senior officials did anything wrong: the White House position, as the Times reported, is that officials’ activities comply with the law.
One senior complaint has been closed. The Times reported that OSC closed a Kentucky complaint by The Steady State, which the Times describes as a group of former national security officials, against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and that the group is challenging the closure; that challenge had been reported only by the Times as of Oct. 28. The details are in our Hegseth complaints explainer.
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What changed at the Office of Special Counsel in Trump’s second term?
The agency’s leadership and several of its policies changed within months. Government Executive notes that in 2025 the president removed Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger, a Biden appointee, before his five-year term ended. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was then named acting special counsel, and Charles Baldis, an OSC lawyer, ran the agency day to day as his designee until the Senate confirmed Baldis in August 2026. The court fight over the removal is covered in our Dellinger explainer.
Policy moved too. In an April 25, 2025 advisory opinion, OSC withdrew two 2024 opinions and said it would “return to its traditional practice” of sending violations by White House commissioned officers to the president rather than to the board. The same opinion paused new complaints against people who had left federal service. OSC lifted that pause in December 2025, after, as Government Executive reported, an MSPB administrative law judge ruled that the board does have jurisdiction over former employees.
The biggest test came from the fall 2025 shutdown. Over a thousand complaints poured in about agency posts and emails faulting Democrats; in September 2026, OSC declined to discipline anyone, while issuing revised guidance. That decision has its own explainer: what OSC’s shutdown report said.
Can OSC punish a cabinet secretary?
Not on its own. OSC’s tools against a Senate-confirmed official are an investigation, a public report and a referral to the president. Past presidents of both parties received such reports and chose not to discipline the official named; that history is laid out in our review of Hatch Act cases across administrations. Mid-level employees, by contrast, face the board and the full range of statutory penalties.
That split means the practical stakes of the 2026 complaints are a published OSC report, a referral to Mr. Trump and the political cost of either, not a fine or firing ordered by OSC. As of Oct. 28, 2026, with Election Day on Nov. 3, OSC had not announced a report on any of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Office of Special Counsel do?
It is an independent federal agency that protects whistleblowers, investigates prohibited personnel practices and enforces the Hatch Act. Its Hatch Act Unit investigates complaints, prosecutes cases before the Merit Systems Protection Board and gives advisory opinions.
Is the Office of Special Counsel the same as a Justice Department special counsel?
No. OSC is a permanent independent agency created in 1979. A Justice Department special counsel is a prosecutor appointed for a specific criminal investigation.
Who can discipline a cabinet secretary for a Hatch Act violation?
Only the president. Under 5 U.S.C. 1215(b), OSC sends its findings on Senate-confirmed policy officials to the president for appropriate action rather than to the Merit Systems Protection Board.
How do you file a Hatch Act complaint?
Through OSC’s online filing portal or by submitting OSC Form 14, according to the agency’s fiscal 2025 annual report.
Has OSC ruled on any 2026 complaint against a Trump cabinet member?
As of Oct. 28, 2026, no published OSC finding had been reported on those complaints. The New York Times reported that OSC closed a complaint over Pete Hegseth’s May appearance in Kentucky, a closure the filing group is challenging.
Sources
- Annual Report to Congress for Fiscal Year 2025 — U.S. Office of Special Counsel, May 1, 2026
- 5 U.S. Code § 1215 – Disciplinary action — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, accessed October 28, 2026
- Senate Report 112-211, Hatch Act Modernization Act of 2012 — U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, September 13, 2012
- OSC Files Disciplinary Action Complaints Against Two Federal Employees for Serious Hatch Act Violations — U.S. Office of Special Counsel, August 20, 2026
- OSC Announces Settlements in Five Hatch Act Cases and Files Complaint Against Another Federal Employee — U.S. Office of Special Counsel, September 30, 2026
- ‘Glaring violations’ of the Hatch Act by senior Trump officials have gone unpunished for months, good government group alleges — Government Executive, August 21, 2026
- Hatch Act complaints against Trump officials continue to pile up as investigations go on for nearly a year — Government Executive, September 14, 2026
- Hatch Act Advisory Opinion Rescinding Advisory Opinions Dated May 20 and October 15, 2024 — U.S. Office of Special Counsel, April 25, 2025
- Office of Special Counsel resumes Hatch Act enforcement against former feds for violations during their service — Government Executive, December 29, 2025
- Cabinet Officials on the Campaign Trail? Ethics Experts Say Some Are Breaking the Law. — The New York Times, October 28, 2026
This article is news reporting and analysis based on the public sources listed above, as they stood on the dates shown. Where officials, lawmakers or analysts disagree, including on whether an action is lawful, their positions are attributed to them; Donald Trump Class Action is not a court and nothing here is legal advice. Facts in a developing story can change.