(The following story by Christopher Conkey appeared on the Wall Street Journal website on June 29, 2009.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A House committee is investigating the recent resignation of Amtrak’s inspector general, citing concerns about oversight at the publicly funded corporation at a time when it is set to spend more than $1 billion in federal stimulus funds.
Reps. Edolphus Towns (D., N.Y.) and Darrell Issa (R., Calif.), the chairman and ranking member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, launched an investigation Monday following the resignation this month of Fred Weiderhold, Amtrak’s longtime inspector general.
Mr. Weiderhold stepped down June 18, around the time a report he commissioned concluded that the “independence and effectiveness” of the inspector general’s office was “being substantially impaired” by Amtrak managers. The report was prepared independently by a law firm.
In a statement, Amtrak said “there was no relationship between the timing of Mr. Weiderhold’s retirement” and the report critical of Amtrak management. “We would like to maintain an open line of communication and are looking forward to cooperating fully with the committee concerning its request for information,” said Amtrak Chairman Thomas Carper. Mr. Weiderhold couldn’t be reached for comment.
The investigation is the latest controversy surrounding the government’s inspectors general, who are charged with weeding out waste, fraud and other wrongdoing by federal employees and contractors.
Sen. Charles Grassley (R., Iowa) has been particularly critical of potential interference with inspector-general functions. In addition to examining the Amtrak resignation, Mr. Grassley’s staff is investigating Mr. Obama’s decision to replace the inspector general at AmeriCorps after he issued reports finding mismanagement. Mr. Obama has said he lost confidence in the AmeriCorps inspector general.
In a letter to Mr. Carper, Messrs. Towns and Issa cited two main concerns, including that Amtrak managers are requiring the inspector general’s office to get their approval before it makes personnel moves or spends any money provided by Congress under the stimulus package. The lawmakers also criticized Amtrak’s pick of Lorraine Green, formerly its vice president for human resources, to replace Mr. Weiderhold.