Sen. Coleman leads efforts to root out waste, fraud and abuse in government

Al Franken Claims….

“First of all, (Norm Coleman) did not expose $12 billion in waste, fraud and abuse anymore - except that I did before him. So what he did is made a list of waste, fraud and abuse that had been exposed by journalists and by other people…He did zero hearings on the contracting in Iraq and when he came on your show.” – Al Franken on “The Chad Hartman Show,” KFAN 1130 AM, August 27, 2007

Al Franken needs to get his facts straight….

Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
“… the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has a long history of comity and has barely missed a beat because of the turnover in party control…

‘We work hand in glove’, Elise Bean, the subcommittee’s Democratic staff director, said at March 8 discussion of congressional oversight sponsored by Holland and Knight. Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., and ranking member Norm Coleman, R-Minn., head the panel like partners...”

Brien Friel, The National Journal, 3/24/07

Senator Coleman has a proven record of accomplishment in rooting out waste, fraud and abuse during his time as Chairman of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, one of the most bipartisan committees in Congress.

As former Chairman, and current Ranking Member, Senator Coleman has aggressively launched investigations and hearings into important national issues, including nuclear terrorism and dirty bombs, port security vulnerabilities, price gouging in the natural gas market, illegal tax shelters, abusive credit counseling practices, and mismanagement at the Department of Defense.

On Government Waste, Fraud and Abuse…

As a direct result of his bipartisan leadership with Senator Carl Levin, Senator Coleman has uncovered more than $12 billion in waste, fraud, and abuse within the federal government.

THE FACTS: PSI Produces Real Results for
the American Taxpayer
 

ACTION: Oversight of Nuclear/Radiological Security Programs-- PSI conducted 2 oversight investigations (comprising 2 GAO stings, 2 Senate hearings and staff report with detailed recommendations) to expose certain vulnerabilities in the government’s licensing, control, and detection of nuclear and radiological material.

RESULT: In response to these efforts, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission established a 24-hour hotline link with US Customs and Border Protection to facilitate on-the-spot license/carrier verification.

ACTION: Oversight of Port Security and Cargo Security Programs-- PSI conducted a multi-year oversight investigation into the federal government’s port security and supply chain security programs, specifically looking at the Container Security Initiative, the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, the Megaports initiative, and the use and deployment of radiation portal monitors.

RESULT: The investigation led to numerous improvements to port security and supply chain security apparatus, including reform procedures passed in the SAFE Port Act
ACTION: Oversight of Defense Department Travel Procedures-- PSI conducted hearings on inefficiencies and waste related to Defense Travel System, program of the Department of Defense.

RESULT: Department of Defense has had to make substantial improvements to its system, and to establish a viable plan for further improvements.
ACTION: Exposing Defense Department Contractors who Cheat on their Taxes-- PSI investigation into rampant fraud and abuse among Defense Department contractors

RESULT: Revelation of more than 27,000 Department of Defense contractors owing $3 billion in unpaid taxes. Department of Defense has dramatically improved collection of unpaid taxes, resulting in collections from tax-cheating contractors going from only $1 million per year in Fiscal Year 2003 to $26 million each year in only three years.
ACTION: Exposing Government Contractors who Cheat on their Taxes-- PSI followed-up on Department of Defense investigation, PSI expanded the investigation to other areas of government.

RESULT: Found that more than 3,800 GSA contractors owed $1.4 billion in unpaid taxes; more than 33,000 civilian contractors owed $3.3 billion in unpaid taxes; more than 21,000 Medicare providers owed $1 billion in unpaid taxes. In Fiscal Year 2003, federal government’s collection program recovered only $89 million; in Fiscal Year 2006, just three years later, the amount of collected unpaid taxes rose to more than $303 each year and is projected to increase to more than $550 million each year by Fiscal Year 2009.

ACTION: Revealing Worldwide Abuses in the United Nations Oil-for-Food Program-- PSI conducted a two-year investigation into high-level corruption in the U.N., foreign governments and international companies, holding 4 hearings and issuing 4 reports to prevent evidence of misconduct.

RESULT: Investigation helped establish the need for reform of the U.N. to make it a more accountable and transparent organization. Investigation led to introduction of Coleman-sponsored legislation calling for reform at the U.N. as well as referral of misconduct to prosecutors to pursue criminal investigations.
ACTION: Addressing the Dangers of Imported Drugs and Unregulated Internet Pharmacies-- PSI led a two-year investigation into imported drugs and internet pharmacies and examined the federal government’s policies regarding these entities and preventing importation of illegally controlled substances.

RESULT: Led to introduction of legislation to combat illegal importation of certain pharmaceuticals and monitoring of internet pharmacies, as well as establishment of several changes to government’s procedures to expedite seizure and processing of controlled substances.
ACTION: Rooting Out Waste and Abuse in Defense Department Travel-- PSI investigation into Defense Department employees violating travel rules by buying first or business class airline tickets.

RESULT: Revealed that 73% of DOD premium-class travel was improper, according to GAO, and amounting to roughly $45 million per year in waste and abuse. Investigation led to significant revamping of DOD procedures regarding travel, resulting in an estimated savings of over $165 million in just two years. While total volume of travel by DOD has doubled, rate of premium-class travel has dropped to only $23 million per year.

ACTION: Rooting Out Waste and Abuse in Government Travel-- PSI followed up on DOD travel investigation with a federal government-wide investigation.

RESULT: Revealed that 67% of premium-class travel was improper, according to GAO, amounting to $146 million of waste and abuse each year. A number of federal agencies have already changed and tightened their policies. GSA has now expanded government-wide reporting requirements, mandating disclosure of all premium-class travel.
ACTION: Exposing Predatory Practices in the Credit Counseling Industry-- PSI investigation into abuses in credit counseling industry including predatory practices and the federal government’s regulation of the industry.

RESULT: Revelation of widespread predatory practices and top-to-bottom reorganization and overhaul of one of the most predatory counseling agencies in the country. Investigation also promoted the use of Best Practices throughout the credit counseling industry and strengthened efforts by the IRS and FTC to eliminate predatory practices.
ACTION: Addressing Abuses in Refund Anticipation Loans-- PSI investigation into predatory lending practices of some tax preparers.

RESULT: Led to public hearing held exposing certain practices, as well as one major nationwide tax preparer agreeing to eliminate a surcharge on certain refund anticipation loans, resulting in annual savings of $5 million for the most low income taxpayers.
 

On Iraq Oversight…

Senator Coleman, along with Democratic Senator Russ Feingold and Republican Senator Susan Collins worked in bipartisan fashion to save the office of the Special Inspector General for Iraqi Reconstruction (SIGIR) – an office created by Congress SPECIFICALLY to conduct Iraq oversight. Without the leadership of Senators Coleman, Feingold and Collins, this office was slated to be closed.

At the beginning of October 2007, Senator Coleman successfully included an amendment in the 2008 Defense Authorization bill that would expand and extend SIGIR’s oversight in Iraq. On the same legislation, Senator Coleman supported a Senate-passed amendment to create an Iraq contracting commission to investigate contracting during wartime.

Recognizing the oversight role of SIGIR, and the mission charged to the 12 government entities assigned the responsibility for overseeing U.S. involvement in Iraq, PSI, under current Democrat Chairman Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) has held only one hearing on Iraq reconstruction out of 100 total hearings in the past year.


THE FACTS: Ongoing Iraq Oversight is Making a Difference

Number of Oversight Hearings Held: more than 50
Number of Government Accountability Office investigations completed at the request of Congress: more than 110 on Iraq-related activities, including over 50 on Iraq contracting specifically
Number of quarterly State Department Sec. 2207 reports submitted, as required by Congress: 12

Oversight hearings on Iraq reconstruction have been conducted by the following Congressional Committees: Senate and House Armed Services, Senate and House Appropriations, Senate Foreign Relations, House Foreign Affairs, Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs, Senate Banking; Senate and House Judiciary; House Oversight and Government Reform; House Budget, and House Agriculture.

SIGIR Is Working: According to SIGIR’s latest quarterly report, they have opened 332 cases, of which 275 have been closed or referred to law enforcement. 5 people have been convicted, 13 have been arrested and 8 will be tried in 2008. SIGIR’s investigations have resulted in $17 million in court-ordered restitution, forfeitures, and recoveries and $57.8 million saved and recovered through audits.
Statistics taken from www.sigir.mil

12 DIFFERENT ENTITIES OVERSEE US GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND EXPENDITURES RELATED TO IRAQ: SIGIR; Government Accountability Office; Department of Defense Inspector General; Department of State Inspector General; US Army Audit Agency; Defense Contract Management Agency; Defense Contract Audit Agency; Defense Intelligence Agency Inspector General; Central Intelligence Agency Inspector General; US Agency for International Development Inspector General; Department of Commerce Inspector General; and Department of Treasury Inspector General.

On Halliburton:

On February 7, 2006, Senator Coleman directed PSI to investigate allegations that Halliburton subsidiary KBR provided contaminated water to US troops at a base in Iraq. Senator Coleman requested in-depth documents from the Department of Defense and Halliburton, conducted extensive briefings and interviews into the matter. Because of this investigation, Senator Coleman directed both KBR and the Pentagon to take corrective measures, resulting in new standard operating procedures for the testing and treatment of water for their theater-wide operations in Iraq.

Under Senator Coleman’s leadership, PSI has focused on fraudulent military contractors, leading to the revelation that more than 27,000 military contractors owed roughly $3 billion in unpaid taxes.