Washington, DC – Congressman John Tierney sent the following letter to Department of Commerce Secretary John Bryson urging him to freeze all expenditures from NOAA's Asset Forfeiture Fund, and to immediately review the troubling issues that the Inspector General continues to raise around the Department's ability to put proper controls in place.
The Honorable John Bryson
Secretary
Department of Commerce
1401 Constitution Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20230
Dear Secretary Bryson:
In response to my request, the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (OIG) provided me with a redacted copy of a July 1, 2011 report documenting outrageous violations by Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) personnel, the blatant misuse of a government vessel, and the inappropriate reimbursement of thousands of dollars. I write to bring your attention to the OIG's report, a copy of which is enclosed, and to request thorough and immediate answers about the troubling issues raised therein.
According to the report, OLE's primary justification for the purchase of the government property in question – a $300,000 luxury vessel – was that it needed an undercover vessel to function as an unmarked surveillance platform to observe and ensure that whale watching vessels did not get too close to whales. The OIG's report found, among other irregular conduct, that the government vessel—a 35-foot Boston Whaler Model 345 Conquest cabin—had been used for inappropriate personal purposes. These personal uses were simply "joy-rides," which occurred during work hours and which included family, friends, and other non-official guests and permitted the consumption of alcohol on the boat. These personal uses resulted in nearly $12,000 of inappropriate reimbursement, over $9000 of which came from the Asset Forfeiture Fund (AFF) itself – which is, in essence, directly from the pockets of our fishermen. Further, the vessel itself had "minimal operational use" with only 9 law enforcement patrol operations, according to the OIG report. The $300,000 spent on it – again from the AFF – must, too, be considered an inappropriate expenditure.
It is imperative that NOAA fully address the issues highlighted in the report, hold those responsible accountable, and immediately implement the proper controls recommend by the OIG in its most recent audit report. For years, I have supported bills that would reform and address the deficiencies with the AFF. I encourage you to consider these and other alternatives, including potentially eliminating the AFF in a responsible manner. In the meantime, and until such time that NOAA addresses the recommendations of the OIG's most recent audit report, I am calling on you to freeze all expenditures from the AFF.
Additionally, I am requesting answers to the following questions:
1. In its September 2011 response to the IG report, NOAA stated that it was its intent to disposition the vessel. What is the status of that action?
2. Have any OLE personnel, whether line-level or management, been held accountable for the improprieties highlighted in the IG report as recommended by the Justice Department? If so, please detail.
3. Have any headquarters or other Washington, DC-based employees or officials been held accountable for the improprieties highlighted in the IG report? If so, please detail.
4. Who is the NOAA manager or official responsible for making disciplinary decisions concerning this matter?
5. The report speaks of $12,000 in expenses that were reimbursed to an OLE employee as a result of his or her personal "pleasure-cruising." Has NOAA recovered these funds from that individual? If so, please detail. If not, what does NOAA intend to do with regard to recovery of those funds and how does it intend to do it?
6. In accordance with 31 U.S.C. § 1349(b), any officer or employee who willfully misuses a government motor vehicle (which includes boats) must be "suspended without pay . . . for at least one month, and when circumstances warrant, for a longer period or summarily removed from office." Has the personnel who misused this boat been disciplined as required by federal law? If not, please explain.
I would appreciate a response to the above-listed questions no later than Friday, March 2, 2012. I trust that your response will reflect the seriousness of this issue and detail the significant actions on the part of NOAA to rectify the problems identified in the report.
You will note that copied below are the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, on which I serve. The deeply troubling issues raised in the enclosed OIG report warrant congressional scrutiny so our constituents have the appropriate assurances that this kind of outrageous behavior does not repeat itself and that their hard-earned tax dollars are being well-spent.
Thank you for your attention to this letter and for anticipated response. If you have questions regarding this request, please contact me at (202) 225-8020.
Sincerely,
John F. Tierney
Member of Congress
CC: The Honorable Darrell E. Issa
Chairman
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings
Ranking Member
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform