Business as Usual

The Pentagon's inspector general reports that Dick Cheney's Halliburton-owned subsidiary, Kellogg, Root & Brown, cheated the Pensacola Naval Air Station and other Gulf Coast Naval facilities out of nearly $10 million on hurricane-related repair contacts.

After Hurricane Ivan struck the Gulf Coast that September, and Hurricane Katrina a year later, KBR was given a number of tasks. They included removing water-damaged carpet and drywall; applying temporary roofing; removing debris; and building trailer parks for displaced families at naval air stations in Pensacola, Fla., and Gulfport, Miss., the Stennis Space Center in southern Mississippi and other facilities in the region.

The full inspector general report is here [pdf alert].

The contracts stupidly called for "cost-plus-percentage-of-cost." This, of course, "rewarded the company for 'inefficiency and non-economical performance.'" KBR also over-paid subcontractors for work and materials. It padded the bills with inexplicable and excessive "expenses." And, the end product was shoddy and, in some instances, so incompetent it had to be done again by someone else at twice the cost.

KBR says it "disagrees" with the inspector general but "will continue to work with the Navy to resolve any problems with the three contracts."

How much do you suppose that 'work' will cost us?