U.S. lawmakers want to keep Iraq watchdog alive
Source: Reuters
(Adds detail on Skelton bill) By Andrea Shalal-Esa WASHINGTON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Congress is likely to pass legislation to keep alive the federal agency set up to monitor waste and corruption in the reconstruction of Iraq, Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan said on Monday. "I think that's going to happen. There's such bipartisan support for doing it," Levin, who is in line to become chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters. He predicted the legislation to extend the work of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction would be passed before the Democrats take over Congress in January. The move would nullify a Republican-backed provision included in a military authorization bill that called for the agency to end its work at the end of 2007. The agency, known by its acronym SIGIR and led by Inspector General Stuart Bowen, began work in January 2004 to track $18 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars initially allocated for rebuilding Iraq. Sens. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, and Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat, introduced the legislation to extend the term of Bowen's office until late 2008. "The work of the SIGIR's office ... is critical and has effectively rooted out millions of dollars of waste, fraud, and abuse, and therefore must be continued," the two senators said in a statement. "We must keep the watchdog on the job," Collins said. "It is inconceivable that we would remove this aggressive oversight while the American taxpayer is still spending billions of dollars on Iraq reconstruction projects." Rep. Ike Skelton, a Missouri Democrat, due to become chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, introduced similar legislation in the House. It would also give SIGIR oversight of a $1.7 billion U.S. fund set to train, equip and provide infrastructure for Iraqi security forces. SIGIR has issued 73 audit reports and 65 project assessments, resulting in the arrest of five people and the convictions of four for fraudulent use of taxpayer money. In its latest quarterly report, the agency said it had 92 open investigations in Iraq, including 25 led by the Justice Department. It said its audits had resulted in a net potential economic impact of $405.1 million and its recommendations could boost Iraq's annual oil revenues by $1.3 billion. Levin said increased oversight of reconstruction efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan would be a big priority for Congress under Democratic control. "There has been inadequate oversight in this Republican Congress," Levin said. "They have too often been a rubber stamp for administration policies and too often been unwilling to probe the inadequacies, the shortfalls and the failures of administration practices and policies."
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