Military contractors are hard to fire

NF Reporter · 02-02-2008, 03:56 AM

AP - ITT Federal Services International, a defense contractor hired to maintain battle gear for U.S. troops in Iraq, repeatedly failed to do the job right.

Full Story...

waltky · 02-13-2008, 01:06 AM

Crackdown on contractor fraud exempts Iraq work...

Federal contract fraud crackdown has loophole
Feb. 12, 2008 WASHINGTON - Plan to make contractors report abuse exempts Iraq, other overseas work

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A Bush administration plan to crack down on contract fraud has a multibillion-dollar loophole: The proposal to force companies to report abuse of taxpayer money will not apply to work overseas, including projects to secure and rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan. For decades, contractors have been asked to report internal fraud or overpayment on government-funded projects. Compliance has been voluntary, and over the past 15 years the number of company-reported fraud cases has declined steadily.

Now, the Justice Department wants to force companies to notify the government if they find evidence of contract abuse of more than $5 million. Failure to comply could make a company ineligible for future government work. The proposed rules, which are in the final approval stages, specifically exempt "contracts to be performed outside the United States," according to a notice published last month in the Federal Register.

Critics including the watchdog group Taxpayers Against Fraud said the overseas exemption raises suspicions. "I hate to sound cynical, but what lobbyist working for a contractor in Iraq wanted this get-out-of-jail card?" asked Patrick Burns, spokesman for the government watchdog group.

"I'm not saying that's the way it went — I'm just suggesting that's the most logical line to draw," said Burns. "I think somebody's got some explaining to do." The Justice Department, which pushed for the self-reporting requirement, called the overseas exemption a mistake that should be fixed before the plan becomes final.

More Fed contract fraud crackdown has loophole - The White House - MSNBC.com

bizwiz · 02-13-2008, 10:47 AM

This loophole has to be fixed. Most military contractors are lobbying heavily to get these juicy and very profitable contracts which must be under heavy supervision.

sunken · 02-13-2008, 04:41 PM

Gee, they let the companies do their own internal investigations, only to find they did nothing wrong. What a shock. The government needs to crack down on all fraud, both domestic and foreign, as the American taxpayer is tired of paying for shoddy work that endangers our soldier's lives.

waltky · 03-01-2008, 01:52 AM

Army gonna have its own foxes watchin' the henhouse...

U.S. Army purchasing to be overhauled amid fraud claims
Saturday, March 1, 2008 - The U.S. Army is ordering a major overhaul of the way it buys supplies for troops in combat zones as the number of criminal investigations into wartime contract fraud nears triple figures.

Quote:

Chief among the moves is the formation of a new contracting command to better manage military purchasing in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, according to a memo written by Army Secretary Pete Geren and obtained by The Associated Press. To be run by generals, the post will control an enterprise stained by scandal and long unappreciated by other sectors of the Army. Geren's one-page memo, dated Jan. 30, directs the Army's existing contracting agency to be replaced by the new command, which is being designed to have broad authority over the acquisition of items ranging from bottled water to bullets. The Army Contracting Command will be headed initially by Jeffrey Parsons, a civilian official, an appointment that underscores how few senior Army officers there are with extensive credentials in defense contracting.

The position eventually will be filled by a two-star general who will have two one-star generals as deputies. One deputy will oversee contracting for "expeditionary" forces, which are the troops mobilized for action. The goal is to exercise more control over contracts awarded in places such as Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. Arifjan is a major gateway for U.S. troops as they move in and out of Iraq. Annual spending there has ballooned from US$150 million (euro99.2 million) before the start of the war to roughly US$1 billion (euro660 million), and along with the increases have come dozens of ongoing fraud cases. The second deputy will support contracting done by Army bases in the United States and overseas.

Parsons, a retired Air Force colonel, is director of contracting for the Army Materiel Command. Parsons and acting Army Undersecretary Nelson Ford were scheduled to announce on Friday the steps the Army is taking to improve its purchasing operations. The Army also plans to hire 1,400 additional contracting personnel in an effort to expand a workforce that was too small and poorly prepared to deal with the heavy demands of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The extra 400 military and 1,000 civilians will represent about a 25 percent increase. Currently, the Army has about 5,800 contracting employees.

Source

waltky · 04-27-2008, 09:08 PM

Gettin' to the bottom of contract fraud in Iraq...

Investigators: Millions in Iraq contracts never finished
WASHINGTON Apr 27, `08 - Millions of dollars of lucrative Iraq reconstruction contracts were never finished because of excessive delays, poor performance or other factors, including failed projects that are being falsely described by the U.S. government as complete, federal investigators say.

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The audit released Sunday by Stuart Bowen Jr., the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, provides the latest snapshot of an uneven reconstruction effort that has cost U.S. taxpayers more than $100 billion. It also comes as several lawmakers have said they want the Iraqis to pick up more of the cost of reconstruction.

The special IG's review of 47,321 reconstruction projects worth billions of dollars found that at least 855 contracts were terminated by U.S. officials before their completion, primarily because of unforeseen factors such as violence and excessive costs. About 112 of those agreements were ended specifically because of the contractors' actual or anticipated poor performance.

In addition, the audit said many reconstruction projects were being described as complete or otherwise successful when they were not. In one case, the U.S. Agency for International Development contracted with Bechtel Corp. in 2004 to construct a $50 million children's hospital in Basra, only to "essentially terminate" the project in 2006 because of monthslong delays.

But rather than terminate the project, U.S. officials modified the contract to change the scope of the work. As a result, a U.S. database of Iraq reconstruction contracts shows the project as complete "when in fact the hospital was only 35 percent complete when work was stopped," said investigators in describing the practice of "descoping" as frequent.

More My Way News - Investigators: Millions in Iraq contracts never finished

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Hundreds of Iraq schemes 'failed'
Monday, 28 April 2008 : An audit of US-funded reconstruction for Iraq finds millions of dollars were wasted on incomplete projects.

Quote:

The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction blamed delays, costs, poor performance and violence for failure to finish some 855 projects. Many other projects had been falsely described as complete, found the audit of 47,321 reconstruction projects.

Iraq reconstruction has cost US taxpayers more than $100bn so far. USAID, the body responsible for overseeing Iraqi reconstruction, has responded that the database used for the review was incomplete.

'Depressing picture'

The audit by Senator Stuart Bowen found US officials had terminated at least 855 projects before completion. Of this number, 112 were ended because of the contractors' poor performance.

Danielle Brian, executive director of the watchdog group Project on Government Oversight, said: "The report paints a depressing picture of money being poured into failed Iraq reconstruction projects.

"Contractors are killed, projects are blown up just before being completed, or the contractor just stops doing the work." Last year, congressional investigators said as much as $10bn (£5bn) charged by US contractors for Iraq reconstruction had been questionable.

BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Hundreds of Iraq schemes 'failed'

waltky · 05-22-2008, 12:41 AM

Granny says, "Hang `em from the yardarm"...

Civilian contractor faces US court martial in test case
20 May 2008 - US military general has referred a private contractor to a general court martial in Iraq

Quote:

In a crucial test of wartime contractor oversight, the US military is preparing to try a civilian before a court martial in Iraq. On 11 May Multi-National Corps - Iraq (MNC-I) said that MNC-I commander Lieutenant General Lloyd Austin had referred Alaa 'Alex' Mohammad Ali to a general court martial.

Ali, described in press reports as a dual Iraqi-Canadian citizen, was charged with aggravated assault in connection with an alleged 23 February incident involving the stabbing of another contractor at a combat outpost near Hit, Iraq. He has been held in confinement at a military base in Baghdad since late February; a pre-trial hearing was held at Camp Liberty, Iraq, in April.

A statement issued by the coalition said Ali would be "afforded all the same rights, protections and privileges service members receive in military court, including the right to counsel, right to speedy trial, protection against self-incrimination and presumption of innocence".

Civilian contractor faces US court martial in test case - Jane's Tri-Service News

waltky · 07-28-2008, 04:39 AM

Investigations into Iraq contracts...

State Department Probes Iraq Oil Contracts
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2008 - Democratic Senators' Claim Officials Pushed No-Bid Contracts With Western Companies

Quote:

The State Department's inspector general is investigating Iraqi oil contracts after four Democratic senators complained that department employees may have encouraged lucrative oil deals between Iraq and several Western companies. Any backstage meddling would have violated Bush administration policy, which has been to discourage such deals until Baghdad passes a law that will fairly divide the nation's oil resources among the various provinces.

A congressional official on Thursday confirmed the probe, speaking on condition of anonymity because it involved an investigation. It comes about a week after four Democratic senators called on Harold Geisel, the State Department's acting inspector general, to investigate the matter. "We are concerned that U.S. policy regarding these oil contracts has not been clearly defined, communicated or consistently implemented by the Iraqi government, the Kurdistan Regional Government and international oil companies seeking to do business in Iraq," Sens. Carl Levin of Michigan, Chuck Schumer of New York, John Kerry of Massachusetts and Claire McCaskill of Missouri said in their July 16 letter.

In response, Geisel wrote back on July 22 and told the lawmakers he had "initiated a review of the responses provided to the Congress recently on the issues surrounding oil contracts, oil field development and U.S. policy in Iraq." In early July, Levin asked Stephen Hadley, the president's national security adviser, to respond to news reports that State Department employees had advised Iraq on no-bid technical contracts.

More State Department Probes Iraq Oil Contracts, Democratic Senators' Claim Officials Pushed No-Bid Contracts With Western Companies - CBS News

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Audit finds millions wasted in Iraq reconstruction contract
28 July 2008 WASHINGTON : Millions of dollars were likely wasted on a 900 million dollar army contract to build courthouses, prisons, police and other security facilities in Iraq, an audit released Monday has found.

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The audit by the congressionally appointed Special Inspector General for Iraq, Stuart Bowen, found that the contractor, Parsons Delaware Inc., completed only about a third of 53 planned construction projects. "Although the failure to complete some of the work is understandable because of its complex nature and the unstable security environment in Iraq, millions of dollars in waste are likely associated with incomplete, terminated and abandoned projects under this contract," the audit report said. The contract was one of a dozen design-build construction contracts awarded by the army in 2004 to restore Iraq's infrastructure in broad areas such as security and justice, water, oil, electricity and transportation.

Parsons was supposed to build police and civil defence training areas, two prisons, two courthouses, fire stations, and border control facilities. The report said more than 142 million dollars, or nearly 43 percent of the funds disbursed so far, "were spent on projects that were either terminated or cancelled, although a number of the projects were subsequently completed." Repeated construction delays prompted the government to cancel the construction of two partially built prisons, one at Nasiriyah and the other at Khan Bani Saad, the audit said.

The Nasiriyah prison was later completed by another contractor, but the facility at Khan Bani Saad was turned over half finished to the Iraqi government which has no plans to use it, the audit said. It said about 40 million dollars has been spent on the Khan Bani Saad prison. "At this point the entire amount disbursed for this project may ultimately be wasted because the government of Iraq currently has no plans for completing or using this facility," the audit said. The audit said there were "significant weaknesses" in the government's oversight of the contract, which created "an environment that was conducive to waste and inefficiency."

Channelnewsasia.com

waltky · 10-06-2008, 03:32 AM

Granny says, "Dat's right - ya ain't s'posed to let the foxes guard the henhouse...

Govt. Uses Contractors to Probe Iraq Contractors
Oct. 3, 2008 - State Dept. Move to Let Contractors Probe Complaints Over Other Contractors May Be Illegal

Quote:

In an apparent violation of federal regulations, the State Department has outsourced to private contractors the responsibility to investigate possible crimes committed by security contractors in Iraq. Earlier this year, the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security hired the private firm U.S. Investigations Services (USIS) to fill positions in the newly created Force Investigation Unit (FIU) that investigates potential misuses of force against civilians by U.S. security contractors. The contract investigators have been in Iraq since this summer.

The FIU was created in the wake of last year's deadly shooting in Baghdad's Nisoor Square, when 17 Iraqi civilians allegedly were killed by security personnel employed by Blackwater Worldwide who were guarding a State Department convoy. The case sparked widespread outrage and prompted calls for greater oversight of security contractors in Iraq. According to a contract obtained by ABC News, the company was hired to supplement Diplomatic Security personnel. However, the eight USIS contractors hired for the team represent the majority of the full-time team, an apparent violation of federal regulations that prohibit such work by contractors.

According to Federal Acquisition Regulation part 7.5, it is not permissible to hire contractors for jobs "considered to be inherently governmental functions" including "the direct conduct of criminal investigations." The State Department did not respond to a list of questions submitted seeking comment, including the status of the contract and whether such a contract might possibly be illegal. "We received a contract [and] we've staffed it," USIS spokesman Michael John said. "Since it's a contract with the Department of State, we serve at the Department of State's request. "If it's determined that we can't hold a contract, we obviously won't be doing work on that contract," he added.

More ABC News: Govt. Uses Contractors to Probe Iraq Contractors

waltky · 10-18-2008, 03:03 AM

The economy and weapons procurement...

U.S. military looks to protect big arms programs
Fri Oct 17, 2008 WASHINGTON - The U.S. armed services are maneuvering to defend big-ticket weapon programs as the nation's economic woes mount and the government spends billions of dollars shoring up the financial system.

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Experts say the services have a good chance of succeeding -- to the benefit of contractors such as Lockheed Martin Corp, Boeing Co, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics Corp and Raytheon Co. To the extent there is budget pressure on the biggest programs, they are likely to be stretched out or scaled back slightly rather than scrapped, several experts said.

"It's very rare for programs to be actually canceled," said Steven Kosiak, vice president for budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.

Even such controversial efforts as missile defense, which has been receiving about $10 billion annually in recent years, was pruned less than three percent this year by lawmakers -- a measure of bipartisan support. The Air Force is seeking the abrupt retirement of 314 F-15 and F-16 fighter aircraft and nine A-10 close air support planes to save $3.4 billion in fiscal 2010, which begins next October 1.

More U.S. military looks to protect big arms programs | Special Coverage | Reuters