Forwarded from: Richard Forno <rforno@private> http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/20/politics/20security.html By ERIC LIPTON April 20, 2005 WASHINGTON, April 19 - The Transportation Security Administration wasted money on an operations office lavishly equipped with artwork, tens of thousands of dollars of silk flowers, expensive kitchen equipment and a state-of-the-art fitness center with towel service, according to a report by the inspector general of the Homeland Security Department that was released on Tuesday. Some of those supplies were improperly bought from a company owned by an acquaintance of the agency's project manager, according to the report. The spending occurred in 2003 while the agency was setting up a $19 million transportation security center in Herndon, Va., for 79 full-time employees. The site includes seven kitchens and a fitness center more than half the size of one that serves nearly 7,000 employees at the agency's headquarters, the report says. "Breakdowns in management controls left the project vulnerable to waste and abuse," says the report by Richard L. Skinner, the department's acting inspector general. The critique was released on the same day that Mr. Skinner published separate reports concluding that the Transportation Security Administration's airport screeners had made no progress since 2003 in detecting weapons or explosives and asserting that the agency was not taking enough steps to prevent its staff from stealing items from passengers' bags during inspections. "Three and a half years after those horrific terrorist attacks and there is still a vital need for security improvements," said Representative John L. Mica, the Florida Republican and chairman of a House aviation subcommittee who released the results of the audit related to weaknesses in weapons screening last Friday. "We have given them time to try to work out the kinks." Agency officials did not dispute that at least one employee who had managed the construction of the Transportation Security Operations Center in Herndon, appeared to have broken department rules, adding that they have referred the case to the Department of Justice for possible prosecution. But they rejected the inspector general's assertions that the inappropriate spending occurred because of management failures, saying that the agency was justified in rushing to open the center and that supervisors detected the wrongdoing long before the audit. "The report does not recognize the absolute criticality of achieving command and control over aviation security incidents as rapidly as possible," said a letter written by David M. Stone, the assistant secretary for the agency. Mr. Stone also defended much of the extra spending at the transportation security center, saying that it was designed to serve during emergencies and other major national security events to handle a larger number of employees. The inspector general disagreed. The agency project manager, who was not named in the report, asked the contractor to disguise $252,392 worth of artwork, $29,032 for an art consultant, $30,085 on silk plants and $13,861 on lamps and other items as "equipment and tools," instead of "enhancements" as they had been described on the first invoice, the report said. To avoid a $2,500 cap on purchases made with a special agency buying card, it said, the project manager and two other agency employees also routinely split up the transactions into as many as 22 pieces, hiding the purchase of leather briefcases, loveseats, armoires and coffee pots. The agency project manager also approved the installation of nine microwave ovens, four ice makers and 10 refrigerators, including two high-priced Sub-Zero models, for the center, the report said. It called the expenditures wasteful, even if the building was used by more people during emergencies. When some agency staff members objected to the spending practices, the audit says, they were told, "I'll give you the money, just do it," because "the culture at T.S.A. is the mission supersedes the process." The report on agency measures to prevent theft of jewelry or other valuables from airline passengers' baggage said that since January 2003, 37 baggage screeners had been fired for theft. The agency has also paid $736,000 to settle claims about missing items. The inspector general said he could not estimate how many times thefts had occurred or divide blame between agency screeners and other airport or airline employees who also have access to bags. He urged the agency to install video cameras to try to prevent such crimes. The third report, on the effectiveness of screening to detect weapons or explosives, found that there had been no major progress since a 2003 inspection in the rate at which agency workers caught undercover investigators carrying fake weapons or explosives. Hundreds of tests were conducted at 15 airports from November through February. Actual results were not disclosed, as they are classified, but Representative Mica said they were extremely disappointing. "The lack of improvements since our last audit indicates that significant improvement in performance may not be possible without greater use of technology," the report says. It was referring to machines that more thoroughly screen passengers for explosives before they enter a secure area, instead of a metal detector check, as is now most often done. Agency officials said they agreed with this conclusion, adding that until they can buy new equipment, "we will continue to seek incremental gains in screener performance through training, testing and management practices." _________________________________________ InfoSec News v2.0 - Coming Soon! http://www.infosecnews.org
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