Federal officials are probing scathing allegations that the Romney administration falsely claimed to conduct safety inspections in the Big Dig tunnel that collapsed and killed a woman in July.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is zeroing in on state financial documents from 2005 - cited in a new report by state Inspector General Gregory Sullivan - indicating that Gov. Mitt Romney was reviewing the safety of the Big Dig, when in fact the administration was only checking leaks in the Interstate 93 tunnel.
“Despite repeated assurances to bondholders, (MassHighway and Romney’s Executive Office of Transportation) . . . did not inspect the I-90 connector tunnel section where the July 10, 2006, collapse occurred,” Sullivan’s report states. “It is clear that casual disregard for the truth was grossly inappropriate."
The federal probe threatens to undercut Romney’s efforts to portray himself as a white knight for taxpayers on the problem-plagued $15 billion project as he lays the groundwork for a presidential run.
The SEC drafted a letter to several state agencies Aug. 23 requesting documents pertaining to safety reviews allegedly conducted in Big Dig tunnels between 2004 and the present. Sullivan’s report said Romney administration officials repeatedly declined requests from the state’s bond counsel to change language in financial documents about the Big Dig inspections. Romney finally said he would change the language in late July, after the fatal collapse and before the SEC probe.
--MORE---
No comments:
Post a Comment