mr. berger in superior -- mr. bourbon. we are currently in contract to purchase a piece of property. it is an extremely complex interaction that requires your service to be extremely involved and have a working relationship with us. i do not often find a department that is so professional. i can only say it is my personal experience, and my concern is continuing to work for you during your -- work for you. my experience is extremely positive. >> if any additional speakers would like to come off during go -- come up. >> on this subject. >> i am representing hanson. we have four leases since 1978, and they are still ongoing. we are opposed to the changes suggested in the real-estate department. one of the things i would like to do is make a statement that supports our company's position, and i would like to make a few points that to me point to an internal audit that is trying to frame this real estate group that i feel is doing an outstanding job in complex transactions we have. we are very disappointed by the office, and we are taken aback by the sensationalist it manar it was report

mr. berger for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman.e line of ki president obama administration statements regarding the columbia trade promotion agreement. unfortunately, i won't have time to go through all of this in my five minutes. however, i would like to have included in the record, and i would just touch on some highlights. ambassador kirk, the president's 2009 trade policy agenda release tiffin to -- of the race to, quote, we are in the process of developing a plan of action to address the pending agreements in consultation with congress. we plan to establish benchmarks for progress on the columbia fta, end of quote. in april of 2011, during a speech at georgetown university school all, you stated, quote, we are looking for new solutions to the issues that have dragged on and existing free trade agreement at the summit of the americas president obama instructed me to lead a review of the columbia agreement to deal with outstanding issues, in dolph quote. now lets us get to about a year later in march of 2010. and your testimony

responsibility for the problems with the kajaki dam because you certainly berger handled that part of a joint contract? >> it's a long question, mr. tiefer. let me clarify one thing. 6% of the total cost of the kandahar project is the kajaki dam. 6% of the major part of the work that has to be done in kandahar -- excuse me, kajaki dam, nobody else has done that were. i told you at the beginning, we've done an extensive study of the power demands, to aid the projects necessary in the south. there are 11 separate projects in the recently awarded contract. we did not do the work on the dam that was done prior, but we do to hydropower work. we are a power company. >> i think you did not do the work that was done prior? >> that's correct. >> you are not uniquely positioned to follow up that were. my time is almost expired. >> mr. van dyke, he referred to a later review. what is the date of that? >> it's the one we received -- i told you we received it in me. it's 2008-nine. >> can you make that available to our staff? was there anything in that review that was not couple of entry? >> they acknowledge that early on in the project we ha

responsibility for the problems with the kajaki dam because you certainly berger handled that part of a joint contract? >> it's a long question, mr. tiefer. let me clarify one thing. 6% of the total cost of the kandahar project is the kajaki dam. 6% of the major part of the work that has to be done in kandahar -- excuse me, kajaki dam, nobody else has done that were. i told you at the beginning, we've done an extensive study of the power demands, to aid the projects necessary in the south. there are 11 separate projects in the recently awarded contract. we did not do the work on the dam that was done prior, but we do to hydropower work. we are a power company. >> i think you did not do the work that was done prior? >> that's correct. >> you are not uniquely positioned to follow up that were. my time is almost expired. >> mr. van dyke, he referred to a later review. what is the date of that? >> it's the one we received -- i told you we received it in me. it's 2008-nine. >> can you make that available to our staff? was there anything in that review that was not couple of entry? >> they acknowledge that early on in the project we ha

responsibility for the problems with the kajaki dam because you certainly berger handled that part of a joint contract? >> it's a long question, mr. let me clarify one thing. 6% of the total cost of the kandahar project is the kajaki dam. 6% of the major part of the work that has to be done in kandahar -- excuse me, kajaki dam, nobody else has done that were. i told you at the beginning, we've done an extensive study of the power demands, to aid the projects necessary in the south. there are 11 separate projects in the recently awarded contract. we did not do the work on the dam that was done prior, but we do to hydropower work. we are a power company. >> i think you did not do the work that was done prior? >> that's correct. >> you are not uniquely positioned to follow up that were. my time is almost expired. >> mr. van dyke, he referred to a later review. what is the date of that? >> it's the one we received -- i told you we received it in me. it's 2008-nine. >> can you make that available to our staff? was there anything in that review that was not couple of entry? >> they acknowledge that early on in the project we had diffic

mr. fiore of the systems -- the suspension of the debarrment systems says about administrative agreements and you have one with louis berger that this is entered -- agency can enter into administrative agreement, et cetera, et cetera when the contractor can demonstrate that notwithstanding the potential basis for suspension or debarrment, so forth and so on. my question is, did a.i.d. have a potential basis for suspension or debarrment of louis berger? >> well, thank you very much for the opportunity to address louis berger and the issues. i understand the outrage you must have behind your questions and i just want to assure you that i, too, share that outrage when i heard what louis berger had been doing for a period of years through the falsification of the cost rates. by the time i became aware of this -- and i will say, quite frankly, that our relationship with our inspector generals office due to timely information has been much improved since that time. however, by the time that i became aware of the issues, through the department of justice, when we met with louis berger, they had already taken substantial remedies

responsibility for the problems with the kajaki dam because you certainly berger handled that part of a joint contract? >> it's a long question, mr. tiefer. let me clarify one thing. 6% of the total cost of the kandahar project is the kajaki dam. 6% of the major part of the work that has to be done in kandahar -- excuse me, kajaki dam, nobody else has done that were. i told you at the beginning, we've done an extensive study of the power demands, to aid the projects necessary in the south. there are 11 separate projects in the recently awarded contract. we did not do the work on the dam that was done prior, but we do to hydropower work. we are a power company. >> i think you did not do the work that was done prior? >> that's correct. >> you are not uniquely positioned to follow up that were. my time is almost expired. >> mr. van dyke, he referred to a later review. what is the date of that? >> it's the one we received -- i told you we received it in me. it's 2008-nine. >> can you make that available to our staff? was there anything in that review that was not couple of entry? >> they acknowledge that early on in the project we ha

responsibility for the problems with the kajaki dam because you certainly berger handled that part of a joint contract? >> it's a long question, mr. tiefer. let me clarify one thing. 6% of the total cost of the kandahar project is the kajaki dam. 6% of the major part of the work that has to be done in kandahar -- excuse me, kajaki dam, nobody else has done that were. i told you at the beginning, we've done an extensive study of the power demands, to aid the projects necessary in the south. there are 11 separate projects in the recently awarded contract. we did not do the work on the dam that was done prior, but we do to hydropower work. we are a power company. >> i think you did not do the work that was done prior? >> that's correct. >> you are not uniquely positioned to follow up that were. my time is almost expired. >> mr. van dyke, he referred to a later review. what is the date of that? >> it's the one we received -- i told you we received it in me. it's 2008-nine. >> can you make that available to our staff? was there anything in that review that was not couple of entry? >> they acknowledge that early on in the project we ha

mr. carroll, your statement explained that you could build the case that a.i.d. ig had built case on louis berger to which they later pled guilty, and i've no criticism, only praise for the case that you bill. is an impressive accomplishment. i want to know, could earlier on, not at the end when louis berger had taken a lot of measures and looking to make a plea agreement, but early on could you have made a recommendation for a.i.d. to consider suspension and debarment? >> i'm not sure that we could have because the fraud was so complex and so difficult to prove, it took us an extraordinary long time to conduct the investigation and then to write the affidavit alleges the indictment, that led to the civil settlement. so in retrospect, it wasn't nearly as easy as it was with add, where we had clear fraud early on and we present that to the agency. so would we have liked to have seen something more punitive with lpg from a law-enforcement perspective? i think i could probably say inherently yes. but -- >> my time has expired. that's okay. >> i thank you, mr. tiefer. commissioner henke. >> thank you