The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) Blog

DOJ IG's New Whistleblower Ombudsman Position: A Step in the Right Direction

On Wednesday, the Department of Justice Inspector General announced the creation of a new whistleblower ombudsman position -- and we think it’s a great idea. Although whistleblowers are on the front lines in the fight against government waste, fraud, and abuse, they aren’t always valued in the process of standing up for what’s right. (Just check out this recent clip from The Daily Show featuring whistleblower Thomas Drake’s story for evidence.)

Establishing this ombudsman position at Justice will make it easier for would-be whistleblowers to feel safe in coming forward and better ensure that when they do take that risk to tell the truth, their voices are actually heard.

The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, or WPEA (S. 743, H.R. 3289) (which the Project On Government Oversight strongly supports), would require each inspector general to designate a whistleblower protection ombudsman.  While we continue to wait for the House of Representatives to pass this important legislation (the Senate passed S.743 with unanimous consent in May), the Justice Department's inspector general's actions serve as an important reminder to other inspectors general that they can proactively designate their own whistleblower protection ombudsmen.

Under the WPEA, the ombudsman’s role would be to educate and communicate with whistleblowers about their rights. The Department of Justice's whistleblower ombudsman will do just that. He or she will help whistleblowers make protected disclosures and monitor investigations of retaliation claims. The ombudsman will also see to it that whistleblower complaints are handled promptly and that cases don’t fall through the cracks.

Watchdog Found: White House Fills SIGAR Vacancy with Veteran Investigator

Loose translation: the White House has appointed a swell pick to lead SIGAR.

By BRYAN RAHIJA

Good news for accountability fanatics: a leadership void at a key oversight position will soon be filled. 

The White House announced yesterday that President Obama will appoint John Sopko to lead the office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), the watchdog tasked with rooting out fraud, waste, and abuse in U.S. taxpayer-funded projects to rebuild the war-torn country. 

Sopko has exactly the kind of oversight pedigree that we like to see for this kind of watchdogging.

“This vacancy was among the most important positions to fill, and they have found an excellent person for the job,” said POGO Executive Director Danielle Brian, who also tweeted enthusiastically after hearing the news. “We look forward to seeing serious oversight of the tens of billions of dollars being spent on Afghanistan reconstruction under Sopko.”

Secret Service Prostitution Scandal Poses a Daunting Challenge for Homeland Security's Acting Inspector General

By JAKE WIENS

Following news that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)'s Office of Inspector General (OIG) plans to be more directly involved in investigating the Secret Service prostitution scandal, some have concluded that Members of Congress--several of whom did not trust the Secret Service to investigate itself--will now be satisfied that the inquiry will be independent and credible. But if recent history is any guide, the fact that the DHS OIG lacks permanent leadership may cause some lawmakers to question whether that office is fit to handle such a politically explosive investigation, especially if the inquiry drags on or does not turn up evidence of misconduct by high-level officials.  

Case in point: a recent probe by the DOJ OIG into allegations that agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) were directed to allow suspected straw buyers to purchase weapons, including AK-47s, and then subsequently lost track of those weapons, elicited congressional concerns about the independence of the DOJ OIG—which at the time was led by an acting official as the DHS OIG is now.

In a March 2011 letter to the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE), the body that oversees IGs, Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), requested that the ATF inquiry be handled by an outside OIG, citing the lack of a permanent IG at DOJ as one of the reasons:

Infographic: Four Watchdogs Vacant for More Than 1,000 Days

By JAKE WIENS

Over the holiday weekend, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (OIG) joined the IG community's 1,000 day vacancy club, increasing its inglorious membership from three offices to four.

The club's longest serving member is the State Department OIG, with a leadership vacancy streak of 1,546 days and counting. The Department of the Interior OIG trails by about 400 days, with a streak of 1,142. And the Corporation for National & Community Service OIG rounds out the club’s membership with a relatively modest streak of 1,033 days. As the only member with a nominee pending, the Corporation for National & Community Service OIG currently has the best shot at leaving the club.

Since February, POGO has been documenting IG vacancies on a webpage called “Where Are All the Watchdogs?” The webpage continually tracks the overall number of vacant IG positions, whose responsibility it is to fill the positions, and whether a nominee has been named or not. The webpage also describes the importance of permanent IG leadership:

OIGs are best positioned to be effective when led by a highly qualified permanent IG, rather than an acting official or no IG at all. Permanent IGs undergo significant vetting—especially the IGs that require Senate confirmation—before taking their position. That vetting process helps to instill confidence among OIG stakeholders—Congress, agency officials, whistleblowers, and the public—that the OIG is truly independent and that its investigations and audits are accurate and credible.     

In addition, a permanent IG has the ability to set a long-term strategic plan for the office, including setting investigative and audit priorities. An acting official, on the other hand, is known by all OIG staff to be temporary, which one former IG has argued “can have a debilitating effect on [an] OIG, particularly over a lengthy period.” Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) has echoed that sentiment, saying “Even the best acting inspector general lacks the standing to make lasting changes needed to improve his or her office.”

There is no good excuse for the White House to fail to nominate an IG for a position that has been vacant for years. You can help POGO reduce the club’s membership by telling President Obama to nominate a credible, independent IG for the State Department without delay.

Click here to view POGO's infographic on inspector general vacancies. 

Jake Wiens is a POGO investigator.

Senate Fills Two Key Watchdog Vacancies with DOJ IG, SIGTARP Confirmation

By JAKE WIENS

Oversight of the executive branch got just a bit stronger last week with the confirmation of nominees to two key federal watchdog positions. Last Thursday, on the eve of the SIGTARP's one-year anniversary of operating without permanent leadership, the Senate voted to confirm Christy Romero as the head of the federal government’s bailout watchdog. The Senate confirmed Michael Horowitz to lead the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General (DOJ IG) that same day.

Romero, who was nominated in February, had been serving as acting SIGTARP since the resignation last year of Neil Barofsky, who was renowned for leading aggressive and effective investigations of the $700 billion bank bailout program that frequently caused friction with the Obama administration. Romero has been on the SIGTARP staff since 2009, serving previously as chief of staff and acting deputy SIGTARP. 

Horowitz was nominated for the DOJ IG position last fall, but an ongoing congressional investigation into a controversial DOJ gun-tracking program called Fast and the Furious reportedly contributed to the delay of his confirmation vote. The DOJ OIG is in the midst of conducting a politically sensitive investigation into the program and has been repeatedly pressed by Congress to release its findings. Horowitz was most recently a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, but previously he served as a federal prosecutor in charge of the public corruption unit in the Southern District of New York.    

McCaskill, Webb Introduce Wartime Contracting Legislation that Could Save Taxpayers Billions

Senator Jim Webb and the Commission on Wartime Contracting.

By NEIL GORDON and JAKE WIENS

Senators Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Jim Webb (D-VA) have introduced the Comprehensive Contingency Contracting Reform Act of 2012 (S. 2139), a bill that will greatly enhance transparency, sustainability, and accountability in overseas contingency operation contracting by the Department of Defense (DoD), the State Department, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The bill is a response to the recommendations of the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan (CWC), which submitted its final contingency contracting report to Congress in August. 

Here’s a look at several of the good-government and contingency contracting reforms in the bill:

Inspector General Vacancies Worry Comptroller General, Rep. Calls Vacancies Unacceptable

By JAKE WIENS

Yesterday, the Comptroller General of the United States, Gene L. Dodaro, appeared before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to discuss a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on federal agencies and programs "which have duplicative goals or activities."

At the hearing, Dodaro was asked by Representative Jason E. Chaffetz (R-UT) about the alarming number of vacancies at inspectors general offices across the government, a topic POGO has been following closely.

"To have four of these major departments without an IG—one of them, the State Department, for more than three years—I think is totally unacceptable," Rep. Chaffetz said.

Watch the exchange below:    

Jake Wiens is a POGO investigator.

All Along the Watchtower: One Year Anniversary of DHS Inspector General Vacancy

ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER

In February, POGO launched "Where Are All the Watchdogs?"-- a webpage continually tracks Inspector General (IG) vacancies in the federal government, the length of those vacancies, and whose responsibility it is to fill the positions. IG vacancies begin and continue for a variety of reasons. To help explain those reasons, POGO’s “All Along the Watchtower” series will detail the context surrounding some of the more notable vacancies in our IG vacancy tracker.  Agency: Department of Homeland Security  Vacancy Date: 02/27/2011 Days Vacant: 365 days Who nominates/appoints the IG: The President, with Senate confirmation Nominee pending: Roslyn A. Mazer Days pending: 221 days Who needs to take action: It’s complicated...

By JAKE WIENS

As of today, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General (IG) has been vacant for exactly one year. The position became vacant when Richard Skinner retired after 42 years of service in the federal government. 

The Obama administration acted quickly to nominate Roslyn A. Mazer for the position in July 2011.

Mazer was thought by many to be a qualified candidate. An attorney by training, Mazer spent much of her career in the IG community. After serving for seven years in the Oversight & Review Division of the Department of Justice OIG, Mazer was appointed IG of the Office of the Director for National Intelligence (ODNI IG) in 2009. 

Mazer’s work outside of the IG context, as the first chair of the Interagency Security Classification Appeals, has drawn praise from the government oversight community. Steve Aftergood, the Director of the Federation of American Scientists’ Project on Government Secrecy, called the Panel one of the “most successful classification reform initiatives of the last half century.”

Speaking of Mazer’s nomination, he added: “At a time when agency Inspectors General may be asked to assume greater oversight over classification policy, she brings an exceptional depth of knowledge and experience to the subject.”

But despite Mazer’s apparent qualifications, her confirmation vote was delayed at the request of the White House after Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), the ranking Republican on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, announced she would oppose the nomination and that other GOP senators would as well, according to a December article in Congressional Quarterly.

Budget Breakdown: Throwing the Watchdogs a Bone

By JAKE WIENS

Our rolling analysis of President Obama's Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 budget request continues with another look at the watchdogs that save taxpayers money (directly and indirectly) by uncovering waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government and identifying opportunities for potential savings.

We focused previously on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). Today we’ll look at an Office of Inspector General (OIG) that is working to rebuild from crippling cuts it faced last year.

The Corporation for National and Community Service Office of Inspector General (CNCS OIG)

By the numbers:

• FY 2011 (enacted): $7,684,000
• FY 2012 (enacted): $3,992,000
• FY 2013 (request): $5,400,000

Analysis: Community service, by most accounts, is a good thing. But that doesn’t mean that the federal agency dedicated to supporting such a noble cause doesn’t need a watchdog.

Budget Breakdown: Rolling Analysis of Obama's FY 2013 Budget

POGO BUDGET COVERAGE Nuclear security:  Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement-Nuclear Facility Uranium Processing Facility B61 Life Extension Program Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility Weapons programs: V-22 Osprey Joint Strike Fighter Littoral Combat Ship M1 Abrams Aircraft carriers Ground-Based Midcourse Defense System Space Based Infrared Systems Other national security matters: Troops in Europe Service contractors Investing in oversight: Government Accountability Office (GAO) Office of Special Counsel Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commodity Futures Trading Commission

By POGO STAFF

Update (Tuesday, Feb. 14): POGO will continue to publish budget analysis on this post today.

Today, POGO will be offering rolling analysis of President Obama's Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 budget, which is available here. The budget is a blueprint for the initiatives the President would fund if he was unconstrained by Congress. Congress may use the budget as a starting point for appropriations, but also has the capacity to ignore Obama's suggestions and will likely change some of the levels of funding if it passes appropriations bills for FY 2013 (Congress has had trouble doing so on time in some years).

To kick things off, POGO has obtained an early copy of the Pentagon's FY2013 "Program Acquisition Costs by Weapon System" document.

POGO has extensively outlined areas for defense spending cuts in our Spending Less, Spending Smarter recommendations, jointly prepared with Taxpayers for Common Sense. A summary of the most important items we are looking for can be found here. We also have giant bull’s eyes on several nuclear weapons-related programs such as a massive new Energy Department project at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and some troubled weapons programs such as the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the Littoral Combat Ship.

We’ll also be looking for signs of a reduction in spending on service contractors. In our Bad Business report released last fall, we estimated that for 35 comparable job occupations examined, service contractors cost taxpayers on average nearly twice as much as in-house government workers (for a discussion of data and analytical limitations in our report, go here).

Finally, we think it’s vital that President Obama invest federal spending transparency and in the nation’s watchdogs: the Office of Special Counsel, the Government Accountability Office, and the Offices of Inspectors General—an analysis of these budget requests on these watchdogs will come later this week.

Check back for more on this page throughout the day!

 

New Keystone XL Pipeline Report: IG Vacancy Certain to Raise Credibility Questions

By JAKE WIENS

POGO has obtained the Special Review of the Keystone XL Pipeline conducted by the State Department Office of Inspector General, which is due to be made public tomorrow. An early report by Politico said the review found “no evidence of conflict of interest, bias or other wrongdoing in the State Department’s review of TransCanada’s proposed Keystone XL pipeline.”

The finding is sure to be heavily scrutinized by the Members of Congress who requested the review. The scrutiny will likely be amplified because the State Department has been without a permanent IG for a staggering 1485 days, as POGO showed in its “Where Are All the Watchdogs?” IG vacancy tracker released yesterday.

Speaking of the importance of permanent IGs, POGO told Corporate Counsel magazine yesterday that IG findings often lack credibility when released by an office run by an acting IG. “If Members of Congress or the public are going to push for an investigation into high-ranking officials committing misconduct, it only works if all sides think the investigation is independent and credible,” POGO said.

POGO has previously raised concerns about the independence of the State Department's acting inspector general.

Jake Wiens is a POGO Investigator.

New POGO Resource Tracks Inspector General Vacancies

By JAKE WIENS

The State Department Inspector General (IG) has been vacant without a nominee for 1,484 days. The Justice Department IG nominee has been awaiting Senate confirmation for 194 days. And the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) IG became vacant just 12 days ago. All of that and more can be viewed on a new web page created by POGO called “Where Are All the Watchdogs?”   

The page continually tracks the overall number of IG vacancies (currently there are 12), the length of those vacancies, and whose responsibility it is to fill the positions. It also provides background information on the necessity of IGs and why it is important to have a permanent IG, rather than an acting IG or no IG at all.

Tomorrow we will begin highlighting individual IG vacancies. The individual cases show that IG vacancies can exist for a variety of reasons. In some cases, they exist because the President has simply failed to nominate a candidate. In other cases, they exist because the Senate has rejected a candidate—sometimes on legitimate grounds and sometimes on more questionable grounds.

Find a POGO statement about the IG vacancies here. 

Jake Wiens is a POGO Investigator.

Image via Flickr user Curtis Gregory Perry.