Updated October 14, 1999

There have been 21 independent counsel investigations of high-level officials since the law was enacted in 1978, six of which are still open. The General Accounting Office reports the costs of the proves every six months. Also see The Price Tag: Counsel by Counsel.

Prosecutor	Primary Subject and Allegation	Start Date	Status	Cost as of 4/99
Ralph I. Lancaster Jr.	Alexis M. Herman, labor secretary: alleged influence-peddling and campaign fund-raising improprieties	May 1998	Counsel appointed (see key stories)	$1.4 million
Carol Elder Bruce	Bruce Babbitt, interior secretary: allegedly lied to Congress about role in casino proposal	March 1998	Babbitt cleared (see key stories)	$3.9 million
David M. Barrett	Henry G. Cisneros, former HUD secretary: charges of making false statements in background check	May 1995	Cisneros pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of lying to the FBI. (see key stories and a time line)	$10 million
Donald C. Smaltz	Mike Espy, agriculture secretary: charges of accepting improper gifts	September 1994	Espy acquitted (see key stories)	$21 million
Kenneth W. Starr	President and Hillary Rodham Clinton: alleged financial improprieties (Whitewater); perjury and obstruction charges (Lewinsky scandal)	August 1994	Investigation continuing (see Clinton Accused Special Report, Whitewater Special Report)	$47 million
Daniel Pearson	Ronald H. Brown, then-commerce secretary: alleged improper financial dealings	July 1995	Investigation closed after Brown died in plane crash	$3.3 million
Curtis Von Kann	Eli J. Segal, former head of Clinton's national service organization: alleged campaign finance improprieties	November 1996	Segal cleared; investigation closed	$244,822

Source: The Washington Post, General Accounting Office

Note: A sixth independent counsel's investigation remains open, though not actively. The Reagan HUD independent counsel, Larry D. Thompson, is awaiting the resentencing of former HUD official Deborah Gore Dean, who appealed her conviction all the way to the Supreme Court. He also has to write a report.