February 6, 2008

Put More Auditors on Oil Royalties,
Watchdog Groups Urge Appropriators

In a letter to House and Senate appropriators a watchdog group urged them to set aside additional money to hire auditors to oversee the Department of Interior's troubled oil and gas royalty programs. The letter noted that the total number of audit staff had been significantly cut since 2000 despite some $600 million in Department of Justice settlements with oil and gas companies over royalty underpayment allegations: http://pogoarchives.org/m/ep/ep-letter-20080206.pdf.

Tomorrow, Department of Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne is scheduled to testify before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies.

Founded in 1981, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is an independent nonprofit that investigates and exposes corruption and other misconduct in order to achieve a more accountable federal government.

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