Federal lab managers settle claims with $4.8M payment

The managers of Sandia, one of the nation’s major federal laboratories, have agreed to pay nearly $4.8 million to settle allegations of improper use of taxpayer funds. They were accused of using the funds to influence people, including members of Congress, to extend the lab’s $2.4 billion management contract. The charges came after the U.S. Department of Energy found that Sandia’s use of taxpayer funds was a violation of both federal law and the terms of the lab’s management contract. The investigation was carried out by the Department of Energy Inspector General, Gregory Friedman, who worked with the Justice Department to gather information to support his claims. Sandia’s settlement will be paid for by its parent company, Lockheed Martin, out of the money it was granted for managing the lab. The lab is a part of the government’s nuclear weapons complex, and its main facilities are in Albequerque, New Mexico, and Livermore, California.