Federal vendor with $50M in contracts leaves portal broken for a month
The Federal Records Shell Game: A $50M Portal in Ruins
By Al Shaw | August 11, 2026
Obtaining public records from the federal government used to be a straightforward, if sometimes slow, process. Today, however, it has devolved into what can only be described as a "shell game," characterized by dead-end email addresses and non-functional digital portals.
The Erosion of Transparency
For years, I have tracked thousands of federal political appointees across two Trump administrations to maintain searchable databases of their financial disclosures. Much of this critical data originates from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
However, the landscape shifted violently in early 2025. As Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) began slashing federal headcount, the OPM's FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) department descended into chaos.
"They just let the whole Privacy team go," a former OPM FOIA specialist revealed via email in February 2025.
The "Old Way" vs. The "New Way"
Previously, the workflow was simple:
- Compose a basic email.
- Describe the requested documents.
- Wait for a response (which was not always guaranteed or timely, but the process existed).
Now, that infrastructure has been dismantled.
By the Numbers: The OPM Collapse
The impact of the DOGE-led cuts is quantifiable. Across the federal government, over 600 information specialists—the professionals responsible for administering the Privacy Act and FOIA—have been terminated or resigned.
OPM Specific Impact:
- Staff Loss: 12 specialists departed (7 were laid off).
- New Hires: Only 1.
The resulting inefficiency is stark when comparing the end of fiscal year 2024 to 2025:
| Metric | FY 2024 | FY 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| FOIA Backlog | Increase | ||
| Avg. Processing Time | Days | Days | Increase |
The Digital Dead-End
In July 2026, while attempting to secure human resources data, I encountered the "shell game" firsthand. My attempt to use the OPM portal resulted in a system failure.
Something went wrong while processing your action. Please contact [email protected] for assistance if the problem persists.
When I attempted to email that address, the message bounced. It turns out the vendor, AINS, had rebranded as Opexus.
Who is Opexus?
Opexus is a massive federal contractor with a controversial track record:
- Financials: Over
$50,000,000in federal contracts. - Market Share: Claims to handle FOIA requests for of federal agencies.
- Legal Issues: Two employees were recently indicted for compromising and deleting government data (one pleaded guilty in April; the other was convicted in May).
Mapping the Maze
The process of simply trying to file a request became a recursive loop of failure.
My "To-Do" list for a single request:
- Attempt portal login (Failed)
- Email defunct AINS address (Bounced)
- Email former liaison (Auto-reply)
- Email secondary contact (Redirected)
- Use National FOIA Portal (Worked)
- Contact Opexus Support (Pending resolution)
The "Engineering" Void
Frustrated, I bypassed the agency and contacted Opexus support directly. I dealt with a representative named Stephen.
The Correspondence Log:
User: The OPM site isn't working for FOIA requesters.
Stephen: I have escalated this issue to our engineering team.
(Few days later)
Stephen: I have identified the root cause of the issue and am currently working with the OPM administrator to implement the necessary fix.
Despite these assurances, further inquiries into the ticket thread were met with total silence. As of July 23—thirteen days after the initial support ticket—the system remained a barrier to transparency.
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