Faithful readers of POGO's weekly update know they’ve been following the saga of Regina Dugan, the director of the
). DARPA has awarded the company Dugan founded about $6 million in contracts, with $1.75 million coming since she took over the agency. Dugan’s dad is the company’s CEO and she has also disclosed that the company, RedXDefense, still owes her $250,000. But watching from the sidelines really isn’t their thing at POGO. Last week, they wrote the Department of Defense Inspector General (IG) and asked him to look into their concerns about weaknesses in DARPA’s ethical guidelines.
One of Washington’s leading good-government organizations formally asked the Pentagon to investigate financial conflicts of interest in the Defense Department’s best-known research branch.
The Project on Government Oversight (POGO) asked for the inquiry after news reports that Darpa handed out $1.75 million in contracts to a company owned in part by agency director Regina Dugan and her relatives. What’s more, Dugan is owed $250,000 by her family firm, RedXDefense. POGO wants to verify that Dugan had nothing to do with the contracts, and to determine if “any Darpa employee” dealing with the company knew of its connections to the woman at the top.
In a letter to the Pentagon inspector general written on Monday, Danielle Brian, POGO’s executive director, calls for an investigation that goes beyond Dugan, who recused herself from any dealings with RedXDefense upon becoming director.
Brian cites recent comments from Kaigham “Ken” Gabriel, Dugan’s deputy, calling financial conflicts “prevalent” at the agency, since Darpa’s highly technical work requires it to recruit talent from many of the firms and researchers who bid on its contracts.
“We urge the DoD IG to immediately pursue an audit to ensure that Darpa selects and awards grants and contracts with integrity,” Brian writes in the letter to Inspector General Gordon S. Heddell. Perhaps “more stringent measures” are needed to prevent potential conflicts of interest.
POGO also questions just how closely the Pentagon oversees Darpa. The Pentagon inspector general’s office hasn’t audited the agency’s contracting methods since 1997.
“Inappropriate decisions are more likely to occur when processes are circumvented and decisions are not based on documented and well-established reviews and justifications,” Brian writes. Further, Brian asks the Inspector General to examine whether there have been “any changes in the last three years in the interpretation of ethics rules” by Darpa’s leadership, and to determine if and how it impacted the selection of contracts.
Darpa insists Dugan did nothing wrong. Its spokesman, Eric Mazzacone, told Danger Room that Dugan “personally and substantially” has nothing to do with RedXDefense — Darpa’s program managers deal with contractors — and notes that the company has lost out on millions more in contract awards than it has won since Dugan took office.
Brian questions whether Dugan’s personal recusal is enough of a check against inappropriate awards. Just look at Darpa’s org chart, she writes: “We are especially concerned because there is only one layer of management between the Director and program manager.”
Other defense agencies require their leadership to “divest from all defense contractors” in which they hold a financial stake. Brian wants Heddell to evaluate whether Darpa should adopt a similar policy.
POGO’s word carries weight in executive agencies and on both sides of the aisle. The group was instrumental in getting the Department of Energy to tighten up security at its nuclear labs. Last year, in response to POGO inquiries, Congress opened a federal contracting database online and bolstered a consumer protection bill.
If Heddell takes up Brian’s case, don’t expect to hear much about it in the near future. The Pentagon inspector general’s office doesn’t formally confirm or deny investigations it conducts.
And if Heddell is unmoved by Brian’s letter, POGO might not have much more luck on Capitol Hill. Danger Room contacted several Congressmen responsible for overseeing Darpa. They were noncommittal about further investigation.
The most aggressive was Rep. Mac Thornberry, the Texas Republican who chairs the Emerging Threats and Capabilities panel within the House Armed Services Committee. And he wasn’t very aggressive at all. He tells Danger Room he’ll “continue to monitor the situation.” For now, “the subcommittee has been told that Dr. Dugan’s continuing ties to RedXDefense was thoroughly reviewed by Darpa’s General Counsel and that proper procedures were followed to ensure there was no conflict of interest.”
Photo: Virginia Tech
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