Mica & Denham Announce Witness List for GSA Waste Hearing
Washington, DC – Committee leaders today announced the slate of witnesses to be invited to testify at a Congressional oversight hearing next week on outrageous wasteful spending at the General Services Administration (GSA). Examples of the agency’s out-of-control waste of taxpayers’ money include more than $800,000 for a Las Vegas training conference in 2010 and an employee award program for bureaucrats that has handed out hundreds of thousands of dollars in iPods, electronics, gift cards and other prizes.
The Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, which has oversight jurisdiction of GSA, will hold a hearing at 8:30 a.m. next Tuesday, April 17th. Note: this hearing had originally been scheduled for a later date.
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-FL) and Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Denham (R-CA), who have been seeking detailed information about the agency’s budget since last year in light of unaccounted for budget increases, will lead Tuesday’s hearing. Last week, the GSA Inspector General revealed some of the rampant waste at GSA, and possible reasons for the agency’s delay in providing information about its budget.
“There must be accountability for the Vegas vacations, free iPods, and this blatant abuse of taxpayer dollars,” Mica said.
“More and more information is coming out about the total lack of accountability and outrageous spending habits of the General Services Administration,” said Denham. “The Obama Administration thinks it can treat hardworking taxpayer dollars like their own private slush fund. Not on my watch. There must be serious consequences for this type of blatant waste of taxpayer dollars.”
Mica and Denham announced they will invite current and former GSA officials, as well as the GSA Inspector General, to testify at Tuesday’s hearing.
Witnesses to be invited include:
- Former GSA Administrator Martha Johnson (resigned last week)
- Former Public Buildings Service (PBS) Commissioner Bob Peck (fired last week)
- Public Buildings Service Deputy Commissioner David Foley (placed on administrative leave today)
- Region 9 Public Building Regional Commissioner Jeff Neely (currently on administrative leave)
- GSA Inspector General Brian Miller
- Public Building Event Planner Lisa Daniels
- GSA Chief Financial Officer Alison Doone
- Acting GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini
- GSA Deputy Administrator Susan Brita
WHAT: Hearing of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, U.S. Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA), Chairman:
“GSA’s Squandering of Taxpayer Dollars: A Pattern of Mismanagement, Excess and Waste “
WHEN: Rescheduled for 8:30 A.M. TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2012
WHERE: 2167 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515
A live webcast of this hearing will be available at http://transportation.house.gov