Whitehouse Expands Investigation into Alleged Mismanagement of Federal Funding by Kennedy Center Leadership Amid Reports of Shoddy Work on Center’s Reflecting Pool and Other[...]

Whistleblower disclosures received by EPW Committee reveal Kennedy Center management consulted closely with the Trump White House to dole out no-bid contracts and wasted taxpayer money on the President's vanity projects

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) sent a letter to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to investigate the Kennedy Center leadership's potential mismanagement of federal funding and disregard of federal contracting standards in an attempt to please the personal tastes of the Center's Chairman President Donald Trump. The letter expands upon Ranking Member Whitehouse's investigation into mismanagement at the Center that began in November 2025.

"I write regarding allegations that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (the 'Center') has mismanaged federally appropriated funds to the detriment of the building. Specifically, we have received allegations that the Kennedy Center has conducted rushed renovation and maintenance work with disregard to its commitments to Congress and the federal contracting standards the Center has long applied to its own procurements. . . . Public funds ought to be spent lawfully, prudently, and in service of the institution, not on the stylistic whims of the current President," wrote Ranking Member Whitehouse in a new letter to Kennedy Center Executive Director Matt Floca.

Ranking Member Whitehouse, an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees of the Kennedy Center, received a whistleblower disclosure from the Government Accountability Project that raises serious questions about the Center's leadership and the Board's financial management of the Kennedy Center and whether the Center's representations to Congress were made in good faith. The whistleblower disclosure includes detailed allegations that:

• A cosmetic and rushed revamp of the Center's Reflecting Pool is already rusting and peeling, and will need to be fully rebuilt;
• President Trump's preferred contractor cut corners when repainting the Center's columns, sticking taxpayers with the repair bill;
• An $8 million no-bid flooring contract went to a firm with no apparent concert-hall experience;
• The Kennedy Center tore out a brand-new bathroom floor because President Trump didn't like the color;
• Kennedy Center management set aside contracting rules to hit the President's deadline to receive the new "FIFA Peace Prize," telling staff "we'll deal with the lawsuits later"; and
• The Kennedy Center rewrote its own contracting rules in a post hoc effort to justify the no-bid contracts awarded to facilitate the rushed renovations.

"Instead of pursuing renovations tailored to the building's actual needs, the Center rushed a series of renovations driven by the President's aesthetic whims and his desire to star in a series of televised events in December. The Center's subservience to the President's desires and its corner-cutting contracting practices have resulted in steel columns that are rusting through fresh paint, a reflecting pool that may have to be torn out and rebuilt, and a brand-new bathroom floor torn out over an offending tile color. This is waste, and it treats a national memorial to President Kennedy as if it were a private renovation project," wrote Ranking Member Whitehouse.

The Ranking Member requested documents and answers to a series of questions from Executive Director Floca by July 23, 2026, and reiterated his demand for substantive responses to questions and document requests raised in the initial investigation letter, which have gone unanswered.

During President Trump's tenure as Chairman, the Kennedy Center has taken several actions contrary to law and custom. First, President Trump dismissed all Trustees appointed by Democratic presidents and replaced them with loyalists. Then, at a May 2025 meeting, the Kennedy Center's Board stripped all ex officio Trustees of their right to vote, in violation of the relevant statute. And at its December 2025 meeting, the Board voted to affix President Trump's own name to the Kennedy Center, in direct contravention of law.

In December 2025, Representative Joyce Beatty (D-OH), also an ex officio member of the Board, filed a lawsuit against the Kennedy Center, asking the court to declare the Board's decision to strip ex officio members of their right to vote illegal, similarly declare the renaming vote unlawful and without legal effect, order removal of the physical and digital signage and branding changes, restore the Kennedy Center's lawful name, and prevent further attempts to rename it without congressional authorization. On May 29, 2026, the Court ruled in Beatty's favor on all claims, finding that (i) the organic statute permitted the Center to be named only after President Kennedy, requiring President Trump's name to be removed; (ii) the statute did not distinguish between ex officio and general members, and ex officio members could vote; and (iii) the closure could not proceed as planned because the Board did not reach its decision to close in a way that met its fiduciary obligations.

Ranking Member Whitehouse previously launched an investigation into the Center's financial management and operations after documents obtained by EPW Democrats showed millions in lost revenue, luxury spending, and preferential treatment for Trump allies under Ambassador Ric Grenell, whose departure from the Center was announced by President Trump on March 13, 2026. Despite Grenell's public promises to "open up our books," the Center has not provided substantive answers or financial information to the Committee.

Earlier this year, whistleblowers first approached the Senate EPW Committee with information concerning certain renovation and construction projects at the Kennedy Center. As counsel for the whistleblowers, the Government Accountability Project (GAP) ultimately provided Ranking Member Whitehouse and other relevant congressional committee leadership with a whistleblower declaration. Following additional consultation with GAP, Ranking Member Whitehouse was able to obtain previously unseen original documents, contained in an appendix released today.

Anyone with information relevant to Ranking Member Whitehouse's inquiries may contact the Senate EPW Committee Democratic whistleblower tip line. Whistleblowers play a critical role in helping Congress root out fraud, waste, and abuse in the federal government. Your right to share information is protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and applicable laws. U.S. law also prohibits retaliation for providing information to Congress. The Senate EPW Committee will ensure that your identity is kept confidential.

The text of the Ranking Member's letter is available here. A PDF of the appendix containing the whistleblower declaration and supporting documents is available here.