Sandia National Laboratories officials improperly used government funds to lobby for an extension to the Lockheed Martin-run contractor’s management and operating contract, the Department of Energy’s Inspector General said in a
report released yesterday. The IG report detailed a Sandia plan to push for a contract extension that was hatched in 2009, relying heavily on influencing the Administration and Congress to push for a long-term deal without a competition. The IG said the plan was developed by lab officials and consultants paid with funds reimbursed by the government, including former New Mexico Congresswoman Heather Wilson (R), whose agreement with Sandia came under heavy criticism a year ago. Federal law prohibits the use of government funds for lobbying efforts. “We find that the position and actions taken by SNL to develop and execute the contract extension plan to be highly problematic,” the IG said. “Given the specific prohibitions against such activity, we believe that the use of Federal funds for the development of a plan to influence members of Congress and Federal officials to, in essence, prevent competition was inexplicable and unjustified.”
According to the report, Sandia said it believed it was OK to push for a contract extension “based on ‘the merits of the matter’ ” and it said the costs should be deemed allowable. Sandia was pushing for a seven-year extension with the possibility of five years of award-term extensions; its contract was extended in 2009 by two-and-a-half years with up to six months in extensions, and DOE extended the contract in April 2013 by another two years. Sandia spokeswoman Heather Clark said yesterday that the lab was reviewing the report. “Sandia takes these allegations seriously and has cooperated fully in the Inspector General’s review of the issue. Sandia has had a longstanding and close relationship with the DOE given the nature of our national security mission. Sandia is confident that the company and the DOE will be able to resolve these issues.”
In an Oct. 14 response published with the IG report, NNSA Administrator Frank Klotz said a review panel has been established to examine the extent of unallowable costs and he said the agency will determine whether any adjustment to the lab’s performance fee is warranted “based on the administration and management issues” raised by the IG. “We take this issue seriously and are committed to implementing corrective actions and taking preventive measures to ensure this does not occur,” Klotz said. In a statement provided to NS&D Monitor, Wilson denied lobbying for the lab. “I was not a lobbyist for Sandia and I did not contact any federal official—Congressional or Executive—to try to extend the Sandia contract. The findings in this report don’t specifically mention me and I wasn’t at the meetings to which the report refers.”
