Two Dems Ask DHS IG To Probe ‘Serious Concerns’ With Whitefish Contract

In this Friday, Sept. 22, 2017 photo provided by the Virginia Task Force 1, crew members ultilize a hot stick to assess electrical lines in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in eastern Puerto Rico. Days after Maria r... In this Friday, Sept. 22, 2017 photo provided by the Virginia Task Force 1, crew members ultilize a hot stick to assess electrical lines in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in eastern Puerto Rico. Days after Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, flooding towns, crushing homes, millions on the island face the dispiriting prospect of weeks and perhaps months without electricity. (Virginia Task Force 1 via AP) MORE LESS
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Two top congressional Democrats want to know why a small power company, from a Trump administration official’s hometown with Trump campaign-friendly financiers, is in charge of restoring power to hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.

The ranking Democrats on the House Committee on Natural Resources and House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, which oversee FEMA, sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general Friday. They requested a probe into whether the $300 million contract Whitefish Energy Holdings reached with the Puerto Rico Electric and Power Authority (PREPA) is an “appropriate use of taxpayer dollars.”

“Normally, after a disaster that affects the electrical grid, the owner of the grid relies on mutual aid agreements to restore electricity. … In this instance, instead of activating mutual aid agreements, PREPA chose to contract with an intermediary to hire workers to restore electricity to the island,” Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Peter DeFazio (D-OR) wrote in the letter to Inspector General John Roth.

Among several things, the representatives want to know why a private company — which is only two years old and only had two full-time employees at the time the contract was awarded — was hired instead of a mutual aid group.

“Given that funding for this contract is envisioned to come from FEMA’s Public Assistance program, the American taxpayer must be assured that costs associated with this contract are eligible, fair and reasonable, especially given the availability of workers through a mutual aid agreement,” the letter said.

The two Democrats claimed threats made by a Whitefish spokesperson on Twitter,  after the San Juan mayor criticized the contract, were “inappropriate conduct” and the comments were “insensitive to the citizens of San Juan and all of Puerto Rico, many of whom are still suffering without electricity, drinking water and other necessities.” The company later apologized on Twitter for its remarks.

Grijalva and DeFazio also asked the IG to look into whether there was any “political impetus” behind the agreement. Not only is Whitefish located in Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke’s hometown, Zinke’s son worked for Whitefish at one point. The financial backers of the power company are also major donors to the Republican National Committee and Trump’s campaign.

The two Democrats aren’t the only public officials who have raised concerns over the agreement.

Earlier this week, both the governor of Puerto Rico and the mayor of the U.S. territory’s capitol city spoke out about the contract. Friday morning, FEMA issued a statement saying it had “significant concerns” about the deal and said it would review how the contract was procured.

Read the letter below:

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