Summary: healthcare.gov uses an open-source (choice of GPLv2 or BSDish) jQuery plguin named DataTables. They do distribute the source and include both the plugin name and version, but for unknown reasons removed the attribution and copyright notices.

Perhaps a contractor is defrauding the government, submitting an open source project as their own development work?

It also looks like someone made around 30 or so small changes from the standard 1.9.1. I wonder if the contractor may have negotiated a non open source license or maybe datatables was included with another piece of software.

The feds didn't negotiate anything, the article the company sponsoring Data Tables is planning to take action against the government.

Aren't normal people thrown in jail for years for copyright theft these days, e.g. some kid with a few dozen pirated CDs?

BTW Datatables are fab and the developer deserves lots of credit.