The National Nuclear Security Administration downplayed a report by the Project on Government Oversight yesterday that raised concerns about an ethics waiver granted to Administrator Frank Klotz allowing him to make decisions involving former client Bechtel, noting that Klotz followed government guidelines in disclosing his previous work and saying his decision-making has been unaffected by his relationship with Bechtel. Klotz retired from the Air Force in 2011 as a lieutenant general, and performed 12 days of work in support of Bechtel’s Y-12/Pantex bid in 2012. He was nominated as the NNSA’s administrator in August of 2013 and confirmed by the Senate in April of 2014. The day after he was confirmed, he was granted a limited waiver from the Department of Energy’s Designated Agency Ethics Official for dealings with Bechtel.
An NNSA spokesperson emphasized that Klotz had nothing to do with DOE’s decision to award a Bechtel-led team the Y-12/Pantex contract, which came before he was confirmed by the Senate. POGO raised questions about Klotz’s decisionmaking on Bechtel-related issues, including the Uranium Processing Facility. “The limited waiver was granted after careful review to ensure that the highest standards for government operations were met, and does not affect General Klotz’s obligations to comply with all other applicable government ethics rules,” the spokesperson said.
In a statement, Bechtel spokesman Fred de Sousa confirmed that Klotz was a consultant to Bechtel in 2012, and he said no ethics rules were violated. “It is normal industry practice to engage subject matter consultants to help with project matters,” de Sousa said. “We did engage Gen. Klotz as a consultant in 2012. Gen. Klotz completed his services on our behalf before his nomination in August of 2013. We believe that both Gen. Klotz and Bechtel met all of our respective legal and ethical requirements regarding these services.”