SRS contractor to pay $3.8 million in settlement with feds over questionable charges at nuclear complex

A prime contractor at the Savannah River Site has agreed to pay the government $3.8 million to settle claims that it overcharged taxpayers for a project on the nuclear weapons complex near Aiken.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Wednesday that Parsons Government Services sought and received reimbursement for expenses in relocating employees to work at the SRS Salt Waste Processing Facility. But prosecutors said the company knew that some of the payments were not allowed under terms of its federal contract.

“Those who expect to do business with the government must do so fairly and honestly,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, who heads the Justice Department’s civil division. “Today’s settlement demonstrates that the Department of Justice will pursue contractors that knowingly seek taxpayer funds to which they are not entitled.”

Parsons, which is headquartered in Pasadena, Calif., disputed the allegations, but said it agreed to the settlement to resolve the government claims. The dispute between Parsons and the federal government covers a nine-year period, ending on July 15, 2011.

The “corporation has determined that the costs of continuing the dispute would far exceed the amount in dispute and would continue to divert valuable resources from its core mission of supporting its customers,’’ the company said. “The settlement agreement resolves the parties’ genuine contract dispute, and specifically states that it does not constitute an admission of liability on the part of Parsons.’’

Prosecutors said Parsons’ contract allowed the company to be reimbursed for payments it made to employees for moving-related expenses, meals, hotels and other costs. The issue also involved reimbursement for per diem paid to employees.

But to be reimbursed by the government, Parsons had to show that employees met certain conditions – and that did not occur, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Wednesday. Prosecutors said Parson’s “knowingly mischarged’’ the government.

Parsons is the primary construction contractor on the salt waste factory, a project to neutralize deadly atomic material now stored in nearly 50 aging tanks at SRS. The salt waste processing facility is a key cog in the SRS cleanup effort.

The salt project has proven more expensive than originally anticipated. Estimates for the government show that the project will cost $1.3 billion to more than $2 billion. It was projected in 2006 to cost about $440 million. A later estimate placed the cost at about $900 million.

Parson said the settlement is not related to the company’s performance on the salt waste project, but anti-nuclear activist Tom Clements said he’s not surprised by Wednesday’s announcement.

“This is an example that the contractors and DOE are not properly managing these high cost, complicated projects,’’ said Clements, who head the Savannah River Site Watch organization.

SRS is a 310-square mile atomic weapons complex that today is undergoing major cleanup initiatives. One of its prime missions is cleaning out tanks filled with highly radioactive waste, a leftover from Cold War weapons production at SRS.

This story was originally published September 2, 2015 at 5:06 PM with the headline "SRS contractor to pay $3.8 million in settlement with feds over questionable charges at nuclear complex."