Outside the Beltway

HALIBURTON OVERCHARGES

James Joyner · Thursday, December 11, 2003 · 2 comments

Not good: NYT reports,

A Pentagon investigation has found evidence of overcharging and other violations in billions of dollars worth of reconstruction contracts for Iraq that were awarded to Vice President Dick Cheney’s former company, military officials said today.

The violations by a Halliburton Company subsidiary, Kellogg, Brown and Root, could involve “potentially tens of millions of dollars” in overcharging for fuel that the company is trucking into Iraq under one of two contracts, said Michael Thibault, deputy director of the Defense Contract Audit Agency. In a draft report, Mr. Thibault said, the agency has recommended that the Army Corps of Engineers seek reimbursement from the company.

A second set of violations, in a second contract with the Army, involve unacceptable delays by the Halliburton subsidiary in providing cost estimates to the government for dozens of separate projects already under way in Iraq, Mr. Thibault said. These violations, for work that includes the construction of food, housing and other facilities for the military, could involve overcharging as well, Mr. Thibault said.