The Commerce Department Inspector General has tracked multiple problem...

The Commerce Department Inspector General has tracked multiple problem activities, it said. It submitted its semiannual report to Congress in September and posted the report Monday (http://1.usa.gov/1iKMRWw). It included updates on an engineering consultant who pleaded guilty to stealing the bulk of a $322,000 grant for construction and operation of a New Mexico radio station. “OIG traced the stolen grant funds and seized over $130,000, which was returned to the U.S. Treasury,” the report said. “In April 2013, the engineering consultant was sentenced to time served and 3 years’ probation. He was also ordered to pay restitution of over $240,000 and forfeit the 2010 Infiniti G37 sedan he purchased with proceeds of the theft.” That consultant is barred from working with the government, it said. The report also cited a case begun in June 2012 against an Arizona recipient of a $39.3 million Broadband Technology Opportunities Program grant. “The alleged scheme involved using grant funds to pay for unauthorized and unreasonable expenses unrelated to the purposes of the grant, such as chartering a helicopter and private aircraft to fly to destination spots for personal purposes,” the report said. The Justice Department declined to take criminal or civil action against the recipient in April, the report said. “NTIA’s administrative action included suspending the award for nearly a year and declaring a portion of the award as unallowable costs under the grant,” it added. “Additionally, NTIA required the grantee to restructure its organization and make significant improvements to its grant oversight and internal control policies.” The report also provided updates about the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and what it called “several internal control weaknesses that could adversely affect the integrity of operations,” such as limited ethics training for certain patent examiners.