Inspector General: High-Speed Rail Authority misused funds on journey, leisure

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (FOX26) — More than half 1,000,000 {dollars} in journey bills paid by California’s High-Speed Rail Authority are being questioned following an investigation by the State Inspector General’s Office.

The investigation examined journey spending tied to 4 consulting contracts overlaying providers starting from monetary and authorized work to program help and design.

Over a two-year interval, the High-Speed Rail Authority paid greater than $2 million in journey prices for the 4 consulting corporations. The Inspector General reviewed roughly half of that spending and flagged greater than $624,000 as questionable.

Of that quantity, about $81,000 appeared to violate state journey guidelines, whereas one other $543,000 was decided to be unallowable beneath the consultants’ contracts.

Among the bills flagged within the report had been rides to gyms, nightclubs, escape rooms, sushi bars, tiki bars and cigar lounges.

In one instance, the report discovered that $40 was spent on an Uber Black journey overlaying lower than one mile in downtown Sacramento.

The report additionally recognized situations through which consultants paid considerably extra for journey than what state coverage would usually permit.

One guide incessantly booked flights on the identical day of journey. The report stated one such ticket price as a lot as $588, in contrast with an estimated $188 fare had the flight been booked three weeks prematurely.

State journey coverage requires state staff to e-book home airfare at the least seven days prematurely.

U.S. Representative Kevin Kiley criticized the spending, saying taxpayer-funded tasks shouldn’t be paying for bills related to locations similar to bars and nightclubs.

“And for taxpayer dollars to be going towards the consultants for this project to go to cigar bars and tiki bars and nightclubs, I mean, it’s bad enough that we’re seeing billions and billions of dollars spent without any discernible public benefit,” Kiley stated.

The Inspector General additionally raised questions on whether or not required approvals had been obtained earlier than the journey occurred.

According to the report, contract managers had been presupposed to approve guide journey prematurely. However, investigators discovered quite a few situations through which there was no documented approval earlier than journeys had been taken.

In some instances, the journey appeared to have been undertaken primarily based on the path or assumption that the Authority’s CEO or one other government needed the journey to happen.

The report additionally discovered that explanations for some journey had been imprecise or didn’t clearly set up why the journeys had been essential. Some justifications included phrases similar to “Typical trip” and “TBD – digital engineering team meetings.”

Eric Goldwyn, a professor at New York University, stated tasks involving taxpayer cash require cautious documentation and oversight.

“With projects like this where, you know, taxpayer money is involved, you just want to make sure that you’re following all the standard procedures, you’re papering everything clearly and that, you know, everything is by the book,” Goldwyn stated.

Kiley stated the questionable bills signify cash that might have been used elsewhere.

“That’s real money that could do a lot of good,” Kiley stated. “But it’s also emblematic of the way that they approach their stewardship of taxpayer funds.”

The Inspector General’s findings prompted questions on who was chargeable for approving the improper funds and what penalties, if any, these people might face.

In response to an accountability query, an Authority spokesperson stated the company takes the findings severely, plans to strengthen oversight and can work to get well improper prices.

The Inspector General’s report contains seven suggestions for the High-Speed Rail Authority.

Among them are updating the Authority’s journey coverage and imposing necessities in state laws and its contracts governing allowable journey bills.

The Authority stated it could implement among the suggestions by March of subsequent yr.

The Inspector General’s Office stated it would consider the Authority’s corrective actions by March of subsequent yr.

The findings add one other layer of scrutiny to the state’s multibillion-dollar high-speed rail challenge, whereas the Authority works to strengthen controls over guide spending and guarantee journey bills adjust to state guidelines and contractual necessities.

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The report additionally cited rideshare journeys to eating places in Folsom, California, a cigar lounge in Washington, D.C., and varied non-public residences in Sacramento, Folsom, and Walnut Creek in California, in addition to Washington, D.C.

Assemblywoman Macedo says the report recognized $624,400 in journey funds that appeared to have been improper or avoidable.

That whole included $81,000 that was probably unallowable beneath state journey guidelines and $543,400 that was not allowable beneath the consultants’ contracts.

FOX26 News reached out to the HSRA for touch upon the IG’s report:

The Authority appreciates the Office of the Inspector General’s oversight and stays dedicated to transparency and steady enhancements as we construct the nation’s first high-speed rail system. We take these findings severely. In response, the Authority will strengthen inside controls round guide journey, implement extra rigorous documentation and approval necessities, and get well any improper prices recognized. We are additionally working intently with the OIG to make sure corrective motion that’s each correct and truthful.