Chief Pentagon Auditor Forced from Post

(AP)  The Pentagon's chief auditor was forced from her post Monday following sharp criticism from lawmakers over failures to hold defense contractors accountable for overcharges and poor performance.

April Stephenson, director of the Defense Contract Audit Agency since February 2008, has been reassigned to a new position inside the Pentagon and replaced by a senior civilian Army official, according to internal e-mail messages.

While the Defense Department cast the shift as a desire to bring a fresh perspective to an organization critical to stemming waste and fraud in military spending, mounting concern on Capitol Hill with the agency's management practices and independence was a major factor in the decision.

Among the problems were repeated failures to meet government auditing standards, a lack of planning and supervision, auditors being pressured to rush their work to meet productivity goals, and audit findings being changed to favor contractors without evidence to support the switch.

Many of the problems existed before Stephenson took over as director.

In an e-mail sent Monday to agency employees, Pentagon comptroller Robert Hale said the director of the Army Audit Agency, Patrick Fitzgerald, will replace Stephenson effective Nov. 9.

Hale said Fitzgerald has nearly 30 years of audit experience. Fitzgerald also has been heading an oversight committee created by Hale to monitor DCAA.

Hale doesn't give a specific reason for why Stephenson is being removed, but he does mention reports highly critical of the agency from the Government Accountability Office and the Pentagon inspector general.

The e-mail says Stephenson will take a senior position in Hale's office.

In an e-mail to her staff, Stephenson called 2009 a "challenging year" during which improvements were made in how the agency operates.

A report issued in September by the GAO said investigators reviewed 69 audits by DCAA and found 65 of them had serious deficiencies.

At a Sept. 23 hearing by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Democrats and Republicans said they were out of patience with the agency.

The committee chairman, Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., said Monday that replacing Stephenson "is an important first step, but that alone will not solve DCAA's deep-seated organizational problems."

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., chairwoman of the subcommittee on contracting oversight, said an overhaul is long overdue.

"There is a culture at DCAA and the Defense Department that has allowed the agency to go so far down this very wrong path," she said.

[stn_sage]

I, for one, DON'T want to be perceived as defending April Stephenson, because her reign over the DCAA, appears to have been terrible! But...

I'd point out, she was appointed/hired for the post in February 2008, under the Bush administration, obviously Congress 'signed off' on her appointment...or, at the very least, they didn't prevent it!

And, these same 'sly, old foxes'...Congressmen who approved it, are now the ones bashing her...when they KNEW what she was up against! How she would be 'set up, muscled, and rushed' by all these contractors...THEY
wanted her in the job for that VERY REASON!

So, it's EXTREMELY HYPOCRITICAL for them to come back on her and bash her for what's happened...they knew it would!

Hopefully, Mr. Fitzgerald won't experience the same problems!

[AOCGUY]

I have searched and been unable to find who has the authority to appoint the Director of the DCAA. I know the position falls under the supervision of the OUSD(Comptroller) but I don't know whether he (the comptrollerhas hire/fire authority or if it is someone else. I don't belive thought that this position is one confirmed by the congress. I bring this up because there has been allusion to the fact that she may have been a political appointment (re those pesky republicans) but I don't think that is true. Her bio indicate sthat she has been a career DCAA employee so it appears at least until her last appointment/promotion that she rose through the civil service ranks. Does anyone out three have a clue on how she got her job?

[kwest50]

We need some real penalties for these kinds of fraud. Real prison time for the business people who perpetrate them and banishment from government contracting for the companies. We lock up petty criminals and drug users but when these people steal millions it's just an unfortunate incident.

[babooph]

Kill the messenger-shut up the rotten news....

[dosssva]

nowhiningallowed, that was quite a bit of whining. I believe all that madicare and medicaid fraud you're whining about is exactly what they're trying to address now but don't trouble yourself with facts. It's just easier to repeat tired old lines. Where would we be without the postal service? Try having an original thought once in a while.

[dosssva]

They're called voters

[hungry1968-16]

by moonbeam91 October 27, 2009 8:31 AM EDT
Will somebody please remember that Chris Dodd (democrat) was chairman of the banking committee & Barney Frank (democrat) head of the finance committee? We as democrats also should take responsibility fore all the corruption! As well as electing a president who doesn't work & lays the responsibility on everyone else, except when things go well then he wants the credit.







You should note that Dodd and Frank didn't assume their senate and congressional banking committee posts until January 2007, while the whole house of cards began to come down.

It was Richard Shelby and Mike Oxley that sat on their hands, while in those committee positions, while the shifty and shady business practices were rampantly going on, that allowed all of the garbage mortgages and credit default swaps to happen, while regulators looked the other way.

[moonbeam91]

Will somebody please remember that Chris Dodd (democrat) was chairman of the banking committee & Barney Frank (democrat) head of the finance committee? We as democrats also should take responsibility fore all the corruption! As well as electing a president who doesn't work & lays the responsibility on everyone else, except when things go well then he wants the credit.

[fss2009]

The REAL reason the Bush administration started these wars was to grease the palms of the warmongers at Halliburton and steal oil.

Anyone who ever actually believed the invasion was about freedom or justice, or catching bin Laden, is far too ignorant to refer to themselves anything other than trash.

[nowhiningallowed]

The WH should really focus on eliminating waste and fraud by going after Medicare/Medicaid fraud that was recently exposed on "60 Minutes". But, that would be too logical. We all know that the government never makes these types of errors. Wonder why they're ignoring this type of waste and fraud? And the government actually wants to run the health care system? Their failures running the Post Office, Social Security, Medicare, FEMA, Homeland Security, etc. and now the failures of getting swine flu vaccine distributed (manufacturers used to distribute this and the Obama WH was adamant about taking charge) is proof of the government's inability to run or do anything efficiently and effectively. The problems at the Pentagon aren't new. The problem with the government is that it is too enamored with itself and its perceived power, versus intelligently doing anything for the good of the nation. The Obama WH is no different than any administrations before him and it's unlikely that it will improve at all; more likely that it will worsen.

[payasyougo]

"April Stephenson Relocated After Intense Pressure from Lawmaker's on Defense Contractor Accountability"
----
Oh good.

While $90B in Medicare Fraud goes unchecked.....