Investigation of Alleged Misconduct During NASA's Procurement of Space Communications Network Services. Investigative Summary

摘要

This report summarizes a NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigation into allegations of misconduct raised by Honeywell Technology Solutions, Inc. (Honeywell) relating to NASA's award of a $1.26 billion contract to provide space communications services. Honeywell, which lost the contract to ITT Corporation, Advanced Engineering and Sciences Division (ITT), claims that Robert Spearing, a former NASA employee, violated federal laws by assisting ITT with its bid and that ITT suffered from an organizational conflict of interest that should have disqualified the company from participating in the procurement. The backdrop for our investigation is NASA's 2008 solicitation for the Space Communications Network Services (SCNS) contract. The winning bidder for the SCNS contract will be responsible for supporting a wide range of communications with NASA's Earth-orbiting spacecraft, including the International Space Station (ISS), the Space Shuttle, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Earth Observing System satellites. For three decades, NASA has contracted with Honeywell for related but not identical space and near Earth network communications services. The most recent such contract - known as the Near Earth Network Services or NENS contract - was awarded to Honeywell in 2003. Under NENS, Honeywell was responsible for operating NASA's Space Network consisting of a fleet of tracking and data relay satellites in orbit around the Earth and associated ground network sites. While there are differences between the two contracts, NASA officials describe SCNS as the successor contract to NENS.