» Politics Ms Sparky

KBR’s contracts are classified? What is the DoD hiding?

September 1, 2010 — Ms Sparky

Army Secretary says KBR contract still classified

Published: Tuesday, September 01, 2010, 6:41 PM
Julie Sullivan, The Oregonian Julie Sullivan, The Oregonian

The Army’s combat mission in Iraq has ended, but details of the no-bid contract it signed with Kellogg, Brown and Root before the war started remain classified.

On Tuesday, Sec. of the Army John McHugh said he would not release the contract’s specifics that holds taxpayers — and not KBR — responsible for any harm to a soldier or civilian as it worked restoring Iraqi oil flows in 2003.

But in a two-page response to U. S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer’s demand for details, McHugh reveals how unusual the Army’s arrangement with the former Halliburton subsidiary was.

“Apart from the Restore Iraqi Oil contract with KBR, no other Army contracts awarded since 2001….contain indemnification provisions,” McHugh wrote. “The Army has made no payments as a result of indemnification provisions with contractors supporting contingency operations in Iraq. Afghanistan or anywhere else.”

In July, Blumenauer demanded the Army produce the contract after KBR’s claims of immunity emerged in a U.S. District Court case in Portland. Chris Heinrich, a KBR attorney, said in a sworn deposition that after KBR signed its Restore Iraqi Oil contract and as the March 2003 invasion was taking place, he went to the Pentagon himself to demand immunity for KBR.

He told Army officials that KBR refused to do the restoration without “broad coverage.” KBR required that taxpayers — not the war contractor — pay for any property damage, injury or death at any KBR site. That applies even if the harm resulted from KBR negligence. KBR eventually billed the government $2.5 billion for the work.

But it could cost taxpayers millions more. Dozens of National Guard soldiers from four states have sued KBR since 2008 claiming the contractor knowingly or negligently exposed them to a cancer-causing chemical at the Qarmat Ali water treatment plant. Among them: 26 Oregon Army National Guard soldiers who arrived at the Iraq plant in late May 2003. They claim breathing, stomach and skin issues result from their exposure to hexavalent chromium.

Blumenauer expressed disbelief that the specifics would remain classified — even after combat operations ceased.

“Who is it precisely we’re keeping information from?” he asked. “It appears the only reason to invoke this classification at this point is to keep information from the American public.”

Blumenauer said he is drafting a bill requiring such an arrangement be reported to Congress in the future. “There ought to be someone looking over their shoulders.”

Meanwhile, the National Guard soldiers’ case is moving forward in Portland. Monday, U.S. District Magistrate Judge Paul Papak denied a KBR motion to dismiss.

Spokeswoman Heather Browne said KRB disagrees with the judge and may appeal. She restated KBR’s stand that the Army was responsible for safety at the plant. (click HERE for original article)

Posted in CHEMICAL AND OTHER EXPOSURES, GOV. CONTRACTORS, KBR Contract, LAWSUITS, LOGCAP III - KBR, LOGCAP IV - KBR, Politics, Qarmat Ali Lawsuits, RIO-KBR, Sodium Dichromate @ Qarmat Ali. Tags: John McHugh, KBR Contract, Qarmat Ali, Rep. Earl Blumenauer. 11 Comments »

Contractors resist US disclosure effort

August 30, 2010 — Forseti

Database lists fraud and shoddy work

Bryan Bender, Globe Staff - August 30, 2010 – WASHINGTON — Defense companies and other major industries are hoping to block disclosure of their own fraudulent or substandard performance in federal contracts, despite a mandate this year by Congress that such potentially embarrassing information be released to the public.

Sensitive to concerns raised by the companies, the White House has delayed enacting the little-known disclosure provision while it studies the issue, officials said.

The controversy highlights the extent to which efforts to make the government more transparent often garner bipartisan support but then stall in the face of powerful interests seeking to limit public disclosure.

The White House, in a statement, acknowledged that “there will be legal and practical issues’’ that have to be addressed before the new law can be implemented.

“But we intend to do that as quickly as possible, in keeping with the administration’s commitment to increasing transparency in government contracting,’’ said Meg Reilly, a spokeswoman for the White House Office of Management and Budget.

At issue is a database that is currently kept secret, called the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System. Companies are required to fill the database with information about their failures on federal contracts, including civil, criminal, and administrative findings against them.

The database was established in 2008 for the private use of government officials who oversee contracts, but was not intended to be made public.

Contractors complain that disclosing all that information could lead to the unfair use of damaging information by watchdog groups, the media, and their rivals.

But Senator Bernard Sanders of Vermont, an independent who managed this summer to win a disclosure provision in a war spending bill that was signed by President Obama, said the public has a right to know when taxpayer dollars are improperly used or criminally misspent.

“We hand out over $500 billion a year to federal contractors, many of which have well-established histories of systemic illegal, fraudulent, and incompetent behavior,’’ Sanders said in a statement. “We cannot let these corporations continue to rip off American taxpayers. I strongly expect that this new public awareness will go a long way toward putting an end to handing out taxpayer-financed contracts to corporations with a history of fraud.’’

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Politics, Reports & Investigations, Senate & House Committee Hearings. Tags: FAPIIS, Professional Services Council, Project on Government Oversight, Senator Bernard Sanders. 1 Comment »

Rogue jurors, indictments, plea deals etc.. – the news

August 29, 2010 — Forseti

Employee of Federal Contractor Charged with Disclosing National Defense Information to National News Reporter
August 27, 2010 – WASHINGTON – A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia has returned an indictment charging Stephen Jin-Woo Kim with unlawfully disclosing national defense information to a reporter for a national news organization and making false statements to the FBI.

The indictment, which was unsealed today, was announced by David S. Kris, Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division; Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; and Shawn Henry, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office.

Kim, age 43, was an employee of a federal contractor who was on detail to the State Department at the time of the alleged disclosure. Kim made his initial appearance today in court in the District of Columbia. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison for the unlawful disclosure of national defense information and up to five years in prison for the making of false statements.

According to the indictment, in June 2009, Kim knowingly and willfully disclosed information contained in an intelligence report classified Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) to a reporter for a national news organization who was not entitled to receive it. The classified information related to the national defense, specifically, intelligence sources and methods and intelligence concerning the military capabilities and preparedness of a particular foreign nation. (Click HERE for article)

The Brooks trial: When jurors go rogue
Harnesslink -26-Aug-2010 – Andrew Cohen – It is by far the least surprising legal development of the year that there would be trouble inside the jury room in the corporate fraud trial of David H. Brooks, the titular head of the Perfect World Enterprises and Bulletproof Enterprises harness racing empire.

The white-collar case with the red-light tinge has been a circus, a freak show, and a mess since its inception. And I’m quite sure I’m not the only one who sees grand irony in the fact that Brooks’ jury might get hung up because one or more of its members may be cheating on the oath of service.

Brooks’ zany trial (involving two defendants, actually, allegations of hundreds of millions of dollars of fraud, and decades in prison as a potential sentence) was far too long. And long trials typically beget long deliberations. But it’s been three weeks or so and jurors should have been back with a verdict by now. Last week, the federal judge/zookeeper who presides over U.S. v. Brooks received a note from a juror who wrote that some colleague “sit there and read testimony that doesn’t relate to the charges we are discussing.” U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert gently reminded the panel that they all needed to stay focused upon deliberations.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests, Politics, Reports & Investigations. Tags: AEY Inc., Commission on Wartime Contracting, David H. Brooks, Derish Wolff, DHB Industries, Efraim Diveroli, FOB Shank, Louis Berger Group, Point Blank Solutions, Stephen Jin-Woo Kim, Stevan Nathan Ringo. No Comments »

Did KBR get what Halliburton wanted…Iraq’s oil!

August 25, 2010 — Ms Sparky

KBR wins two Iraq contracts
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Houston Business Journal

KBR has won two contracts by the Republic of Iraq Ministry of Oil through the South Refineries Co.

KBR will provide licensing and basic engineering services for the construction of fluid catalytic cracking and solvent deasphalting units at the planned grassroots Maissan Refinery in Maissan, Iraq. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Houston-based KBR (NSYE: KBR) plans to license its FCC Technology for an anticipated 47,500 barrels per day FCC unit and its “Rose” technology for a 45,000 barrels per day SDA unit.

KBR and ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Co. have formed a joint marketing alliance to work on the FCC unit.

“These awards mark the first wins for KBR’s technology business in Iraq and provide KBR the opportunity to introduce two of its leading refining technologies into an important, emerging market,” Tim Challand, president of KBR Technology, said in a statement. (click HERE for the original article)

Posted in KBR Contract, Politics, Rants. Tags: Halliburton, KBR Contract, Maissan Refinery, Tim Challand. 5 Comments »

Viktor Bout – Coming to America

August 20, 2010 — Forseti

I see the Viktor Bout aka “Merchant of Death” and the alleged owner of the charter airline(s) used to transport KBR personnel and cargo in and out of Baghdad is finally being extradited to the US. Doing business with Viktor Bout or any of his airlines has been illegal by way of Executive Order 13348 of President Bush and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1532 and has been since March 2004 if not earlier. But that didn’t seemed to bother KBR and they contracted either directly or indirectly with Viktor Bout to transport personnel and cargo in and out of Iraq.

I hope Bout gets the chance to experience the same luxury accommodations aboard the ‘Elvis’ plane, that so many of us enjoyed. For more information on Viktor Bout and his business in Iraq click HERE ~Forseti

Thailand decides to extradite accused Russian arms dealer to U.S.

By John Pomfret – Washington Post – August 20, 2010
A reputed Russian arms dealer will be extradited to the United States, an appeals court in Thailand decided Friday, overturning a lower court’s rejection of a U.S. extradition request and ending concern that the man dubbed the “merchant of death” would be set free.

The court set a three-month deadline to extradite Viktor Bout, who appeared in court shackled in leg irons, the Associated Press reported. He cried upon hearing the verdict and hugged his wife and daughter.

“This is the most unfair decision possible,” his wife told reporters, speaking in Russian through a translator. “It is known the world over that this is a political case.”

The decision followed stepped-up pressure on Thailand by the Obama administration and members of Congress amid worries that the Bangkok government might free Bout.

The State Department called in Thailand’s ambassador this week to tell him of U.S. concerns about the potential release. And six senior members of Congress, three Democrats and three Republicans, issued a letter to the Thai government Wednesday contending that if Bout is freed, he would sell arms to groups that seek to kill Americans.

“We find the potential release of a man responsible for countless deaths of innocents in Africa and elsewhere simply astounding,” wrote the lawmakers, who included Reps. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), the chairman and ranking Republican, respectively, on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Bout, 43, was indicted in federal court in 2008 for allegedly conspiring to provide weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC — which Washington has designated a foreign terrorist organization. The weapons were to be used, the indictment alleged, to kill Americans. Bout was subsequently indicted in January on separate charges of money laundering and sanctions busting in connection with gun-running activities to Afghanistan, Angola, Congo, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Sudan.

But Bout, through numerous transport companies he controlled, also worked for the United Nations in Sudan and at one point moved cargo for the United States into Iraq following the U.S. invasion of that country in 2003. (Read the rest of the story here…)