The administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA) resigned from her position on Monday, and two other officials were fired amid an investigation into excessive spending at a 2010 training conference that featured a clown, a comedian, and a mind-reader, according to Federal News Radio. The GSA administrator, Martha Johnson, submitted her resignation on Monday, citing a “significant mis-step” at the agency of more than $800,000. Stephen Leeds, Johnson’s senior counselor, and Robert Peck, the commissioner of the Public Buildings Service, also resigned, first reported by The Washington Post.
According to Jason Miller, the executive editor at Federal News Radio, Johnson will be replaced by Dan Tangherlini, an assistant secretary for the Treasury Department and former D.C. city administrator. Four other GSA employees who assisted in planning the 2010 conference are on administrative leave. In her resignation letter to the GSA, Johnson wrote, “Reports of an internal conference in which taxpayer dollars were squandered led me to launch internal reviews, take disciplinary personnel action, and institute tough new controls to ensure this incident is not repeated.” Johnson wrote that she must step aside so “the Agency can move forward at this time with a fresh leadership team.” It is reported that many of the expenditures at the 2011 conference, which the Johnson team lead, were excessive and wasteful.
