| Peter Nickles’ Memorandum | Letter from Councilmembers Mendelson and Cheh to CFO Gandhi |
| Letter from Councilmembers Mendelson and Cheh to IG Willoughby | Dorothy Brizill’s articles in themail, March 29, 2009 and April 1, 2009 |
OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia
From: Peter Nickles, Attorney General
Date: April 3, 2009
RE: Fire Truck and Ambulance Statement
The Mayor has asked me to look into the issues surrounding
the provision of a surplus District of Columbia fire truck and ambulance
to the City of Sosua in the Dominican Republic. I have conducted a
thorough review of this matter and I am fully satisfied that the
disposition was legal and totally proper. This disposition was in the
service of important and legitimate public purposes, and I have found no
impropriety.
This matter has, however, caused significant public
comment and discussion. Out of an abundance of caution and to assure that
this transaction raises no further public concerns, I have directed that
the truck and ambulance be returned to the District. They are now back in
the District.
Facts:
1. The fire truck, a 1998 Seagrave Pumper (S-104), was
purchased for $240.895. The ambulance, a 2002 Ford E-450 (S-671), was
purchased for $75,132. Both vehicles had reached the end of their useful
life and, although no formal appraisal was conducted, 1 am assured that
their market value at the time they were declared surplus was minimal.
2. The District regularly provides surplus equipment to
District nonprofit organizations for use within the District. In Fiscal
Year 2008, for example, seven District organizations received material
such as old furniture and out-of-date computer equipment.
3. The District has provided surplus equipment to
District nonprofit organizations for use in foreign countries before. For
example, in 2005, the District, with the assistance of a local nonprofit
organization, provided surplus property to the citizens of Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia.
4. There was no attempt to hide this disposition. The
transaction was facilitated through formal rulemaking which was publicly
noticed in the District Register.
5. All District rules and procedures appear to have been
followed.
History:
Several local nonprofit organizations, including
Peaceoholics, Inc., have initiated and involved themselves with
programs to take at-risk District youth to the Dominican Republic. While
there, the youth engage in sports-based and cross-cultural activities,
including such things as boxing matches. The City of Sosua, a largely
impoverished community in the Dominican Republic, has been very supportive
of these programs. The District Council has been supportive of these
activities as well, providing a Ceremonial Resolution last year praising
another local nonprofit organization, Faith Productions, for their boxing
program in the Dominican Republic. It is in that context that the Mayor of
Sosua and his city government requested assistance from the District.
Sosua’s fire truck is over 40 years old and incapable of providing any
protection over three stories, and they have no modern municipal
ambulance.
Late in 2007, a delegation from Sosua, including the Mayor of Sosua,
traveled to Washington and formally asked the District for a surplus fire
truck and ambulance. A truck and ambulance which had been declared surplus
were identified, and, following a due diligence trip to Sosua by a
District Fire and Emergency Medical Services employee to confirm their
need and assess their infrastructure and capabilities, the transfer
process commenced. The surplus vehicles left the District’s possession at
the end of March, with all shipping and transportation costs borne by the
recipients, and they were returned to the District on April 1.
Surplus Property
Process:
The first step of the process by which equipment is disposed of is an
agency declaring the property "excess." That involves a formal
determination that the property is no longer of use or value to the
agency. For FEMS fleet management purposes, fire vehicles are generally
excessed after approximately eight years. The pumper truck in questions is
ten and a half years old and the ambulance is almost eight years old. Once
declared excess, FEMS removes all usable equipment from the vehicles.
strips all decals and works with the Office of Contracting and Procurement
on the second step in the process. During this second step, OCP offers the
equipment to other District agencies (which is rarely an option for FEMS
vehicles) and, if there are no willing agency takers, and following a
determination that the property is of no further use or value to the
District, OCP may declare the property "surplus." The property
is then either sold at auction, presented to a District-based nonprofit
organization, stored and used for spare parts, or destroyed. Prior to
presentation to a local nonprofit, OCP must vet the organization to
confirm its tax-exempt status, that it is District-based, and that it is
capable of managing the property.
In the case of the fire truck and ambulance in question,
the property was first declared excess and then declared surplus, and it
was, as our rules contemplate, provided to a District-based nonprofit
organization properly vetted by OCP, Peaceoholics. Under those rules,
however, the property must remain in the District for a period of time. In
order to facilitate the more immediate transfer of the property in
question to the City of Sosua, and in accordance with past practice,
emergency rulemaking was promulgated and publicly published in the D.C.
Register.
Conclusion:
I am convinced that those who worked to send the surplus fire truck and
ambulance to the Dominican Republic, both Ronald Moten, of Peaceoholics,
and his colleagues in the nonprofit community, and those in the District
government, including FEMS, were operating with the very best of
intentions and with the interests of not only the District but also of
those in need in Sosua in mind. It is a shame that this humanitarian
gesture was not able to be timely completed. Nonetheless, to assure full
transparency, accountability, and to remove any possible concerns members
of the public may have regarding this matter, the vehicles are back in the
District’s possession.
COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
WASHINGTON,
D.C. 20004
April 3, 2009
Dr. Natwar M. Gandhi
Chief Financial Officer
1350 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Suite 209
Washington, D.C. 20004
RE: Travel by
Executive Agencies
Dear Dr. Gandhi:
You are aware of the recent news stories about a
delegation of District government employees who have traveled to Sosua,
Dominican Republic, regarding donation of surplus fire apparatus. We
know for a fact that FEMS Deputy Chief Ronald Gill, Jr. traveled January
26-February 4, 2009 regarding this matter. We also know from testimony
at an April 1st Council
hearing that there were employees from other agencies involved.
Accordingly, we request from your office a detailed
accounting of every travel expenditure incurred by the Executive Office
of the Mayor and every subordinate agency during the months of December
2008, January 2009, and February 2009. The information should include
the name of the employee, the cost to the government, the destination,
and the purpose of the travel.
Please provide this information by Monday April 13, 2009.
Thank you very much for your cooperation.
Sincerely,
Mary Cheh, Chairman
Committee on Government Operations
Phil Mendelson,
Chairman
Committee on Public
Safety and the Judiciary and the Environment
COUNCIL
OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004
April 3, 2009
Mr. Charles J. Willoughby
Inspector General
717 14th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
RE: Donation of
Surplus "Supplies" to Peaceoholics, Inc.
Dear Mr. Willoughby:
We are writing to request your immediate investigation into the
donation of suplus “supplies” to Peaceoholics, Inc., and into all
related issues including the emergency rulemaking published in the March
20, 2009 D.C. Register authorizing the donation. The “supplies”
include a used fire engine and ambulance. We know from FEMS Chief
Rubin’s April 1st testimony before the Council that a delegation of
District government employees traveled at least one to Sosua Dominican
Republic, and that the donation had been contemplated since before June
2008. Further, a Sosua newspaper states that “The Americans will also
send instructors to train paramedics and personnel from the fire
department on how to use such modern equipment.’
Chief Rubin testified that Attorney General Peter Nickles is
investigating this matter. However, it appears from a March 27th D.C.
Examiner article that Mr. Nickles may have been collaborating with
Peaceoholics co-founder Ron Moten, and from April 1st testimony that Mr.
Nickles may have been the one who directed the return of the surplus
apparatus to the District, and it is clear that the Office of the Attorney
General was involved in the March 20th emergency rulemaking. Thus, there
will be an appearance that Mr. Nickles’ investigation will not be at
arms-length.
We are greatly concerned about this matter and request your prompt
investigation, as it will be independent and thorough.
Sincerely,
Mary Cheh, Chairman
Committee on Government Operations and The Environment
Phil Mendelson, Chairman
Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary
enc.