by Deb Cupples | Apparently, getting a government contract wasn't enough for some of the folks working for division of AT&T -- inspiring them to generate evidence that the company might have over-billed and mis-billed our government for services (among other things).
It's hard to tell what really did happen, because often in False Claims Act cases, companies settle the claims on the condition that they don't have to admit guilt -- likely because an admission of guilt can get a company barred from getting future government contracts.
Last week, the U.S. Justice Department reported:
"AT&T Technical Services Corp. (AT&T-TSCO) has agreed to pay $8,266,414.33 as part of a civil settlement relating to allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act in connection with the Federal Communication Commission's E-Rate program, the Justice Department announced today."
"The E-Rate program, created by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, provides funding for needy schools and libraries to connect to and utilize the Internet. Under the E-Rate program, which is funded by monies collected from telephone users, schools apply for funds to pay for hardware and monthly connectivity service fees. The FCC oversees the E-Rate program.
"The United States contended that AT&T-TSCO engaged in non-competitive bidding practices for E-rate contracts. Additionally, the government alleged that AT&T-TSCO claimed and received E-rate funds for goods and services that were ineligible for the program’s discounts, overbilled the E-Rate program for services provided and facilitated a payment or profit to the applicant from E-Rate funds."
The Justice Department conspicuously failed to state the total dollar amount that the contractor had allegedly over-billed or mis-billed the government (as opposed to the mere amount that the contractor agreed to pay to settle the case). That would be useful information.
We at Buck Naked Politics have done more than 100 posts on government contractor waste, fraud, or abuse. Below are links to a small sampling of those posts -- which may give you some idea of why we at BNP keep harping on our politicians' and government officials' seemingly careless handling of private contractors.
Other Buck Naked Politics Posts:
* Investigators Look into Bribery by Senior Military Officers but Should Look Higher
* KBR to Pay $579 Million to Settle Bribery Charges
* High Cost of Private Contacting
* Inspector General Blocked Investigations into Waste & Fraud?
* Have U.S. Officials Protected Blackwater?
* Time to Get Really Serious about Contractor Fraud
* Billions over Baghdad: Poor Accounting Allowed Waste & Fraud
* Yet Another Contractor Bilks Taxpayers
* Contractor Fraud: Driving Up Healthcare Costs?
* How the Energy Dept. Incinerated Tax Dollars
* New Orleans Still Suffering after 2 Years and Billions of Tax Dollars
* How the Defense Dept. Flushes Dollars Down Latrine
* U.S. Embassies: Still More Examples of Contractor Problems
* Contractors Offering Bribes to Army Personnel?
* Taxpayers Losing Money to Engorged Contractors
* Audit Red-Flags Contractor in Iraq
* Defense Dept. Rewarding Bad Contractor Performance?
* Insurance Companies Get Away with Over-billing Medicare
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