Seybold: Many FirstNet contractors being selected by DOC/NTIA, not FirstNet management
What is in this article?
Seybold: FirstNet contractors being selected by DOC/NTIA, not FirstNet management
In addition, exactly what kind of entity FirstNet is—and whether its board members are federal employees—is part of ongoing litigation involving FirstNet board member Paul Fitzgerald, who is the elected sheriff of Story County, Iowa. Fitzgerald, who alleged multiple improprieties by FirstNet board members last April, used his Story County e-mail account to communicate about FirstNet-related topics with other board members and outside parties interested in FirstNet.
After receiving an open-records request last summer, the Story County board of supervisors decided to release 63 e-mails from Fitzgerald’s account that were related to FirstNet or communications vendors. Federal attorneys moved quickly to secure an injunction to prevent the immediate release of the e-mails. Federal attorneys since have requested that a federal court permanently stop the release of the e-mails by ruling that the e-mails are federal documents, because Fitzgerald is a federal employee who was conducting federal business while sending and receiving e-mails related to the FirstNet project.
Meanwhile, Story County’s position is that the Fitzgerald e-mails should be released, because he is the elected sheriff of Story County at all times, so his e-mails are subject to Iowa’s open-records law. Furthermore, Story County has noted that Fitzgerald legally cannot be a federal employee for FirstNet and an elected official for Story County simultaneously, because that would be a violation of the Hatch Act.
Oral arguments in the case involving Fitzgerald’s e-mails were heard in a federal court on Wednesday. In addition, the U.S. Department of Commerce Inspector General now is in charge of investigating Fitzgerald’s initial claims that some FirstNet board members had a conflict of interest during the board’s first year of operation.
Friends and family plan?
Friends and family plan?
Seems we have the makings of
Seems we have the makings of yet another fiasco regarding government contracting, involving clueless bureaucrats and greedy would-be contractors. There is nothing like the smell of money to generate this kind of stuff. Any kind of unified, consistent, ubiquitous and reliable national emergency communications infrastructure will probably NEVER happen, although zillions of dollars of public money will be spent to line the pockets of lobbyists, “consultants” and politicians before the public can even expect any results or benefits.
Another American tragedy.
Did it ever occur to you that
Did it ever occur to you that the work has been bid out to new contractors because of the astounding lack of accomplishments by the incumbent personnel? This sounds a lot more like sour grapes than the truth.
Oh, and how much is a zillion, btw?
Since Firstnet is exempt from
Since Firstnet is exempt from the FOIA does this mean we do not even get the opportunity to know what the contents of the two competitive solicitations were or who the three firms were that they were directed to or how the evaluations were done?