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July 22nd 04, 09:52 PM
DCF aides boosted company with ties to Regier
By Sally Kestin
Staff Writer
Posted July 22 2004
For more than a year, top aides to Florida's social services chief
Jerry Regier intervened to help a company whose vice president is a
former Regier associate win state business, state records show.
Last month, Upper Mohawk Inc., a Titusville-based company with no
experience in child welfare training, was awarded $1.7 million a year
to train new workers for the Department of Children & Families in
North Florida. Upper Mohawk vice president Ron Harp was an aide to
Regier when he ran Oklahoma's juvenile justice agency.
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A DCF attorney and another employee of the agency had raised questions
about the company's proposal, filed in partnership with the University
of Central Florida, the records show. At least two other DCF employees
brought concerns all the way to the secretary about Upper Mohawk's
access to him and key aides, and the DCF administrator in charge of
the training contract said Harp "threw Regier's name around like candy
at a parade," records say.
Harp declined to comment.
Regier "had no participation in the selection of the successful
bidders" and "recused himself" from the contract award after learning
of Upper Mohawk's plans to bid, said DCF spokesman Bill Spann.
State records show that Regier attended a meeting as late as May with
his staff in which the contract decision was discussed.
The agency is reviewing its contracting procedures "to ensure their
integrity and that they are in the best interests of the state," Spann
said. That review began last week as a result of a scathing report by
the governor's Office of the Chief Inspector General that found top
DCF officials had accepted gifts, concert tickets and trips from
lobbyists and contractors doing business with the agency.
Regier apologized and two of his administrators resigned.
On Wednesday, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said it will
review the Inspector General's findings to determine if a criminal
investigation is warranted. The Inspector General forwarded the report
to the FDLE with a letter saying its investigation did not "identify
any information related to specific criminal violations."
The Inspector General report focused narrowly on ethical improprieties
an unidentified whistleblower raised in March. Information about Upper
Mohawk is contained in the hundreds of pages of interviews, e-mails
and records investigators collected. In them, DCF employees painted a
picture of a group of favored lobbyists and businessmen who had direct
access to top administrators and won business from the agency.
Upper Mohawk, a training and business management company owned by a
Native American Indian, approached DCF through Harp, who joined the
company after retiring from Oklahoma's Office of Juvenile Affairs in
November 2001. The following year, his former boss, Regier, arrived to
take over DCF.
"In the last year or so there was some discussion about Upper Mohawk
and how they could get business," Walter Sachs, assistant director for
contract operations at DCF, told investigators.
He also said that Samara Kramer, chief of staff at DCF, was "concerned
that they were not qualified to do business." Other agency officials
did not think the company "really fit the needs of the department."
Kramer could not be reached for comment. Sachs referred questions to
Spann.
Amy Peloquin, director of education and training, told investigators
that her boss, Lynda Earls, "had her meet with Ron Harp several
times."
Regier and Harp "have a very close relationship," Peloquin told
investigators. Upper Mohawk "wanted to break into Florida to contract
for training. The secretary was going to give them a contract but it
was realized they were not on" a list of state contractors.
In July 2003, DCF administrators asked officials from the Department
of Management Services to expedite a request by Upper Mohawk to get on
the list, according to e-mails investigators found on Regier's
computer.
"We are interested in using them for a pilot training project," Amy
Karimipour, then DCF chief of staff, wrote to Pam Pfeifer, her
counterpart at DMS, on July 16, 2003.
Earls, director of external affairs at DCF, followed up with an e-mail
to DMS saying "any assistance you can offer would be greatly
appreciated."
Karimipour could not be reached.
"I did know that Ron Harp knew Secretary Regier, but I was very clear
about procedures and ... that everything had to be by the book and
competitively bid," Earls told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Wednesday. She said she had also helped a couple of other firms with
similar requests, but she could not recall which ones.
DCF considered Upper Mohawk for training of its supervisors. After one
meeting with company representatives, who discussed "loopholes in the
procurement law," Peloquin told them the agency "didn't have money to
contract with them," she told investigators.
Peloquin was out of the office Wednesday and could not be reached.
Even with all the help, DMS did not immediately add Upper Mohawk to
the contract list and DCF decided against hiring an outside firm to do
supervisor training.
Upper Mohawk got another training opportunity with DCF this year. In
February, the agency solicited bids to take over training of new child
welfare workers, a job other universities had done.
The University of Central Florida decided "to take a shot at it," Paul
Maiden, director of the school of social work, told the Sun-Sentinel.
Harp contacted UCF and suggested they submit a joint proposal, Maiden
said. The university was interested in Upper Mohawk in part, Maiden
said, because "you get more points if you have a minority contractor."
Harp mentioned that he knew Regier "from some years back," Maiden
said.
At least two DCF employees involved in the contract award questioned
whether the proposals met the criteria. Robert Fierro, a contracts
administrator, concluded the proposal "wasn't responsive," the
investigative records say. DCF attorney Karen Kugell agreed at first,
then reconsidered.
"Kugell has rewritten her opinion and now states that UCF is
responsive ... [and] they would be going forward with them," Peloquin
told investigators.
Kugell told the newspaper she is writing a memo to explain "why I went
one way and then the other."
The contract will bring $500,000 to UCF on top of the $1.7 million for
Upper Mohawk.
The Sun-Sentinel has asked for documents on the contract award,
including an e-mail Peloquin sent to Cathleen Newbanks, a deputy
secretary at DCF. The agency was still compiling the records
Wednesday, Spann said.
In a reply to Peloquin's e-mail, she told investigators, Newbanks
assured her that "Secretary Regier would never do anything improper."
Peloquin responded by saying it wasn't Secretary Regier she's worried
about.
"It was Harp, who threw Regier's name around like candy at a parade,"
Peloquin told investigators. "Upper Mohawk makes it very clear that
they have a special relationship with him and have let people know
that."
Spann said DCF gave no special treatment to Upper Mohawk.
"This contract was competitively bid," said Pat Barnes, Upper Mohawk's
executive vice president of training whose husband Kenneth owns the
company. "Everybody who won went on their own merits."
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-regier22jul22,0,4265937.story
Defend your civil liberties! Get information at http://www.aclu.org, become a member at http://www.aclu.org/join and get active at http://www.aclu.org/action.
By Sally Kestin
Staff Writer
Posted July 22 2004
For more than a year, top aides to Florida's social services chief
Jerry Regier intervened to help a company whose vice president is a
former Regier associate win state business, state records show.
Last month, Upper Mohawk Inc., a Titusville-based company with no
experience in child welfare training, was awarded $1.7 million a year
to train new workers for the Department of Children & Families in
North Florida. Upper Mohawk vice president Ron Harp was an aide to
Regier when he ran Oklahoma's juvenile justice agency.
advertisement
advertisement
A DCF attorney and another employee of the agency had raised questions
about the company's proposal, filed in partnership with the University
of Central Florida, the records show. At least two other DCF employees
brought concerns all the way to the secretary about Upper Mohawk's
access to him and key aides, and the DCF administrator in charge of
the training contract said Harp "threw Regier's name around like candy
at a parade," records say.
Harp declined to comment.
Regier "had no participation in the selection of the successful
bidders" and "recused himself" from the contract award after learning
of Upper Mohawk's plans to bid, said DCF spokesman Bill Spann.
State records show that Regier attended a meeting as late as May with
his staff in which the contract decision was discussed.
The agency is reviewing its contracting procedures "to ensure their
integrity and that they are in the best interests of the state," Spann
said. That review began last week as a result of a scathing report by
the governor's Office of the Chief Inspector General that found top
DCF officials had accepted gifts, concert tickets and trips from
lobbyists and contractors doing business with the agency.
Regier apologized and two of his administrators resigned.
On Wednesday, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said it will
review the Inspector General's findings to determine if a criminal
investigation is warranted. The Inspector General forwarded the report
to the FDLE with a letter saying its investigation did not "identify
any information related to specific criminal violations."
The Inspector General report focused narrowly on ethical improprieties
an unidentified whistleblower raised in March. Information about Upper
Mohawk is contained in the hundreds of pages of interviews, e-mails
and records investigators collected. In them, DCF employees painted a
picture of a group of favored lobbyists and businessmen who had direct
access to top administrators and won business from the agency.
Upper Mohawk, a training and business management company owned by a
Native American Indian, approached DCF through Harp, who joined the
company after retiring from Oklahoma's Office of Juvenile Affairs in
November 2001. The following year, his former boss, Regier, arrived to
take over DCF.
"In the last year or so there was some discussion about Upper Mohawk
and how they could get business," Walter Sachs, assistant director for
contract operations at DCF, told investigators.
He also said that Samara Kramer, chief of staff at DCF, was "concerned
that they were not qualified to do business." Other agency officials
did not think the company "really fit the needs of the department."
Kramer could not be reached for comment. Sachs referred questions to
Spann.
Amy Peloquin, director of education and training, told investigators
that her boss, Lynda Earls, "had her meet with Ron Harp several
times."
Regier and Harp "have a very close relationship," Peloquin told
investigators. Upper Mohawk "wanted to break into Florida to contract
for training. The secretary was going to give them a contract but it
was realized they were not on" a list of state contractors.
In July 2003, DCF administrators asked officials from the Department
of Management Services to expedite a request by Upper Mohawk to get on
the list, according to e-mails investigators found on Regier's
computer.
"We are interested in using them for a pilot training project," Amy
Karimipour, then DCF chief of staff, wrote to Pam Pfeifer, her
counterpart at DMS, on July 16, 2003.
Earls, director of external affairs at DCF, followed up with an e-mail
to DMS saying "any assistance you can offer would be greatly
appreciated."
Karimipour could not be reached.
"I did know that Ron Harp knew Secretary Regier, but I was very clear
about procedures and ... that everything had to be by the book and
competitively bid," Earls told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Wednesday. She said she had also helped a couple of other firms with
similar requests, but she could not recall which ones.
DCF considered Upper Mohawk for training of its supervisors. After one
meeting with company representatives, who discussed "loopholes in the
procurement law," Peloquin told them the agency "didn't have money to
contract with them," she told investigators.
Peloquin was out of the office Wednesday and could not be reached.
Even with all the help, DMS did not immediately add Upper Mohawk to
the contract list and DCF decided against hiring an outside firm to do
supervisor training.
Upper Mohawk got another training opportunity with DCF this year. In
February, the agency solicited bids to take over training of new child
welfare workers, a job other universities had done.
The University of Central Florida decided "to take a shot at it," Paul
Maiden, director of the school of social work, told the Sun-Sentinel.
Harp contacted UCF and suggested they submit a joint proposal, Maiden
said. The university was interested in Upper Mohawk in part, Maiden
said, because "you get more points if you have a minority contractor."
Harp mentioned that he knew Regier "from some years back," Maiden
said.
At least two DCF employees involved in the contract award questioned
whether the proposals met the criteria. Robert Fierro, a contracts
administrator, concluded the proposal "wasn't responsive," the
investigative records say. DCF attorney Karen Kugell agreed at first,
then reconsidered.
"Kugell has rewritten her opinion and now states that UCF is
responsive ... [and] they would be going forward with them," Peloquin
told investigators.
Kugell told the newspaper she is writing a memo to explain "why I went
one way and then the other."
The contract will bring $500,000 to UCF on top of the $1.7 million for
Upper Mohawk.
The Sun-Sentinel has asked for documents on the contract award,
including an e-mail Peloquin sent to Cathleen Newbanks, a deputy
secretary at DCF. The agency was still compiling the records
Wednesday, Spann said.
In a reply to Peloquin's e-mail, she told investigators, Newbanks
assured her that "Secretary Regier would never do anything improper."
Peloquin responded by saying it wasn't Secretary Regier she's worried
about.
"It was Harp, who threw Regier's name around like candy at a parade,"
Peloquin told investigators. "Upper Mohawk makes it very clear that
they have a special relationship with him and have let people know
that."
Spann said DCF gave no special treatment to Upper Mohawk.
"This contract was competitively bid," said Pat Barnes, Upper Mohawk's
executive vice president of training whose husband Kenneth owns the
company. "Everybody who won went on their own merits."
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-regier22jul22,0,4265937.story
Defend your civil liberties! Get information at http://www.aclu.org, become a member at http://www.aclu.org/join and get active at http://www.aclu.org/action.