Reports

The OIG investigated allegations that independent Government contractors colluded on bids for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) hay delivery contracts, that a BLM employee who was related to one of the contractors influenced the awards to benefit the relative, and that the contractors added weight to hay deliveries by watering the hay before delivering it to the BLM on contracts paid by the ton. We substantiated that one contractor assisted another contractor with bid packages for five separate contract solicitations from 2016 to 2019, but the evidence did not establish that they intended to

Unsubstantiated Allegations of Bid Rigging and Procurement Integrity Act Violations

We investigated an allegation that a senior USGS manager retaliated against a subordinate employee because the employee had participated in another investigation against him. We determined that the employee’s role in the other investigation against the senior manager constituted protected activity, but the evidence did not show that the senior manager knew of the employee’s involvement in that investigation. Accordingly, the evidence did not support a finding that the senior manager retaliated against the employee in violation of the Whistleblower Protection Act.

Unsubstantiated Allegation of Reprisal by a Senior U.S. Geological Survey Manager

We audited the costs claimed by the State of Minnesota, Department of Natural Resources (Department) under grants awarded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) through the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program. The audit included claims totaling approximately $153 million on 43 grants that were open during the State fiscal years that ended June 30, 2017, and June 30, 2018.