Report: National Weather Service misappropriated $43 million

msnbc.com ^ | 5/27/2012 | Isolde Raftery

[Hunton Peck]

Jack Hayes, the director of the National Weather Service, stepped down Friday in response to an investigation that top officials at the weather service had misappropriated $43.8 million by giving bonuses and extensions to contractors without proper justification.

The Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Commerce, which oversees NOAA, released the report on May 18, detailing an audit of nine contracts that include incentive pay for good work. The contracts have a maximum potential value of $1.6 billion.

The investigators said there may be other contracts that provide additional awards from 2008, 2009 and 2010 but that NOAA was unable to “provide a complete and reliable list when requested by the Office of Inspector General.” Advertise | AdChoices

Sen. Olympia Snowe, the ranking member of Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard subcommittee, released a statement Friday, the same day Hayes that stepped down and a week after the report had been released.

“The deeply troubling revelation that senior staff at the National Weather Service, which provides indispensable storm and weather forecasting, have been conducting improper and potentially illegal transfers of taxpayers’ money is unacceptable,” Snowe said.

“I am further alarmed that the investigative report raises fundamental concerns that the core operations of the National Weather Service are underfunded, and that the current process in the Department of Commerce is broken, as it ‘did not encourage questioning or provide independent channels for reporting dubious...

[Hunton Peck]

Full report at http://www.oig.doc.gov/Pages/NOAA-Cost-Plus-Award-Fee-and-Award-Term-Processes-Need-to-Support-Fees-and-Extensions.aspx

[Dogbert41]

Is there any area at all in the federal government that Obama’s people have not pillaged?

[JSteff]

Just more proof that any money given to a government employee is wasted. They are all crooks and criminals.

It is this type of waste that makes the public rightly not trust ANY government employee. They are all cut from the same pattern.

[Clintonfatigued]

Big Government strikes again ping

[microgood]

It probably cost them $100 million to find this.

[Hunton Peck]

I’m not sure this was particularly an 0bama issue. Jack Hayes was appointed in 2007 after some earlier service with NOAA. Here’s the announcement of his appointment: http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2007/s2871.htm . He sounds like a careerist, not a political appointee.

[Republican1795.]

Did they “misappropriate” it? Or perhaps they stole it & claim they now cannot find where it went.

[Incorrigible]

Does this include the misappropriation of funds towards global warming hoo-ha?

[tdscpa]

Career success path:

1. Get government job.
2. Steal money.

[FoxInSocks]

“The deeply troubling revelation that senior staff at the National Weather Service . . . have been conducting improper and potentially illegal transfers of taxpayers’ money is unacceptable,” Snowe said.

So the problem isn't the giveaway, it's the "revelation" of it. Another instance of a politician sorry that someone got caught.

I wouldnt be at all surprised to hear a "revelation" that Snowe herself received millions of that money.

[re_nortex]

Why is there a government-run weather service at all? Private enterprise provides much more accurate forecasts without the liberal agenda that's the foundation of outfits NOAA and the NWS. In particular, WeatherBELL, where Joe Bastardi is the Chief Forecaster, runs circles around the corrupt, crony-filled, socialist National Weather Service.

[Safetgiver]

Snowe stated there is no evidence that anyone profited from these transactions....Apparently, Ms. Snowe, all this money was flushed down a toilet? How could NOT somebody, somewhere profit from that much money? Or did you parse this from “any ONE”?

[equaviator]

“Did they “misappropriate” it? Or perhaps they stole it & claim they now cannot find where it went.”

Maybe they just meant to “err on the side of caution”.

[Vaduz]

Government workers don’t call it stealing they call it misappropriated,kind of like Obama and his investments.
Or as we call it freezer money.

[equaviator]

The shit rolls uphill.