Michael Caldwell, the Northeast Region director of the National Park Service, has been reassigned while Park Service Director Jon Jarvis reviews allegations that he committed fraud in filing travel vouchers/NPS
A regional director for the National Park Service, desiring "nicer" experiences on his travels, ran up nearly $11,500 in personal travel that he billed the Park Service for, and also collected nearly $6,000 in pay and per diem on some of these travels while not working, according to the Interior Department's Office of Inspector General.
Between 2011 and 2015, Michael A. Caldwell, the agency's Northeast Regional director, rented bigger vehicles than he should have to bring friends on some of his travels, covered lodging costs of personal guests, was reimbursed for mileage "that he never drove," rented an SUV for "an official trip two days before his official business was scheduled to start," and also "spent a day driving the SUV 450 miles out of the way for unofficial purposes," the OIG's report said.
"Caldwell admitted during his interviews that he had taken these trips and that he had knowingly violated federal travel regulations. He said that in doing so he had taken advantage of his official positions, first as a GS-15 deputy regional director and then as a member of the Senior Executive Service. He said he deserved, at minimum, a suspension," the OIG's report released Thursday said, adding that the case had been submitted to Park Service Director Jon Jarvis for disposition.
The case report didn't indicate whether Mr. Caldwell made restitution. But in the seven-page report (attached below) he was very forthcoming in admitting to the allegations made against him, stating that his travel vouchers had been "tainted and fraudulent.”
More so, he told the investigators that "he had arranged his official travel to suit his personal travel plans. He admitted that he was not trying to save the government money on his trips and was instead trying to have 'nicer' experiences. He said that if everyone in the government worked the way he did, 'we wouldn’t get anything done.'"
Park Service officials in Washington said Thursday evening that the matter was under review.
"The leadership of the National Park Service appreciates the Office of Inspector General for investigating this case and recognizes the importance of independent investigations in situations like this. The National Park Service is committed to creating a more accountable and responsible culture at all levels of the organization, particularly among its leaders," Tom Crosson, the agency's chief spokesman, wrote in an email.
"The OIG’s findings related to Mr. Caldwell’s actions are very serious and the National Park Service is in the process of considering disciplinary action against Mr. Caldwell that is consistent with due process," he added. "In the interim, the National Park Service determined that it would be in the best interest of the organization to temporarily reassign him to duties outside of the regional office, while disciplinary action is considered.
"It is unfortunate that these actions have called into question the judgment of a leader with an otherwise strong record of public service," Mr. Crosson said.
During his reassignment, Mr. Caldwell will work under the Park Service's deputy director, Mike Reynolds, said Mr. Crosson, although he didn't know specifically what the regional director would be doing. Pending his reassigment, the regional office will be run by its deputy directors, he said.
The Northeast Region encompasses more than 80 units of the National Park System, including Acadia National Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park, Shenandoah National Park, and Valley Forge National Historical Park, as well as 21 National Heritage Areas,
The investigation was launched in March after allegations were made that Mr. Caldwell had traveled to Cape Cod National Seashore "under the guise of official business when in fact he went there on vacation." The investigators also determined, and the regional director acknowledged, that he accepted free housing in a rental cottage owned by a Park Service employee, a violation of federal regulations that both prohibit supervisors from accepting gifts from subordinates and subordinates from giving their supervisors gifts.
Along with confirming the allegations against Mr. Caldwell, the OIG investigators concluded that the Park Service poorly monitors its employees' travel expenses. Peggy O'Dell, who was deputy director for operations before retiring from the agency this past summer, was supposed to approve travel vouchers of regional directors, the report said. However, she had an assistant handle that task on her behalf, the report said.
"O’Dell said she had taken it on faith that the travelers who submitted their authorizations and vouchers to her were being honest, and she acknowledged that the NPS process for reviewing these documents could be improved," the investigators wrote. "She said that one way to improve the process would be for the regional directors to post their leave information in a clearly visible location. She also said that NPS needed to address the practicality of making high-level managers such as herself responsible for reviewing every travel voucher for multiple direct reports."
The bottom line, Ms. O'Dell told the investigators, was that "that the entire process depended on travelers telling the truth when submitting their travel documents."
Comments
The damage is done and he has owned it. Sure, he should be appropriately disciplined but quite frankly, I'm rooting for him as he has otherwise, been an asset to the NPS.
No one is perfect. I believe the "good" he has done for NPS definitely outweighs this obvious lapse in judgment. People make mistakes everyday including all of you negative commenters. It appeared that he accepted responsibility when he was confronted. That's commendable. As a person in law enforcement, I'm not surprised the United States Attorneys Office decided that criminal prosecution was not appropriate in this case.
No, Bottom Line. The bottom line should be dismissal. This is exactly what got Trump elected, gibberish to the effect that any bureaucrat should get a pass. How is any bureaucrat "an asset" when he or she steals from the public trust? So he "owned" his stealing. What does that mean, if not that any bureaucrat is entitled to steal?
i said he should be appropriately disciplined. I disagree with dismissal. He has had a stellar career with no past disclinary issues. He also admitted wrongdoing. These things are always factored into final decisions when doling out discipline - no matter where you fall in the food chain.
Not sure who the commenters are who claim he is/was a great boss. Perhaps you are GS-12 and above. My experince was the opposite, he was the worst boss I ever had in 35 years of service. Everything done to advance his career to the detriment of the park and its employees, in particular to us grunts. This incident seems totally in keeping with his character rather than an aberration.
Bottom Line - don't forget the feeding frenzy of the Jarvis Haters. No shades of grey, only black/white, hate/love stuff.
Rick B., as you will recall, I wrote here in defense of Jarvis's right to author a book "without permission." This is different, and now, in the form of Michelle and Bottom Line, has taken on the character of a "campaign." Okay, I'll bite. The "defense" here rests on the premise that when confronted, Mr. Caldwell confessed. But what does that say about the integrity of our government, if not that the burden of proof rests on us? Unless you "catch us," we get to slide.
Years ago, in another life, I was denied tenure at the University of Washington. When I finally found out what had happened, the excuse was the one offered here. When confronted, we confessed, if not to any crime. Oh, no? Since when is file tampering not a crime? Well, to be a crime, the university responded, you have to catch us in the act. Since you didn't--and then the statute of limitations expired--you have no case.
That is how I read Michelle and Bottom Line. A "stellar" career, was it? "No one is perfect," they say. He accepted responsibility "when confronted." A "commendable" act that, too. No, the commendable act is to act with integrity. They instead defend "catch me if you can."
And you wonder why, in Peggy Noonan's words, your government today is despised? Not disliked, but yes, despised? For all the preaching about equality and diversity, this is what we get? Catch me if you can! If you cheat, we will openly condemn you, but if we do it, that's okay. We get to apologize and say we are commendable. After all, we run the show.
Over on Fox, Lou Dobbs is counting down the days to the inaugural. And believe me, so am I.
I'm not familiar with Mr. Caldwell or his long tenure with the National Park Service, and I don't take a black and white view of someone being all good or all bad. Even considering his work history and prior performance as a mitigating factor, there are so many aggravating factors. In his position, he is expected to be held to a higher standard. He is a senior leader with substantial public contacts and fiduciary duties. His position requires a high level of trust both from his superiors as well as subordinates. This misconduct was repeated over several years, and he was fully aware he was engaging in misconduct when it happened. This fraud was possible in part because he abused the trust of the people who were approving his travel. How can he be trusted in the future? How can he do his job without this trust?
It seems like I remember a travel freeze occurring during this timeframe. I'm sure it feels nice as one of the rank and file to learn that while your travel was cancelled, a regional director may have been funnelling travel resources off for his own personal gain.
He shouldn't be held to the same standard as a GS-5 secretary who would likely get a notice of proposed removal; he is expected by his position and the authority coming with it to be held to a higher standard, not the same or lower. His prior career accomplishments would have to be beyond stellar to outweigh the aggravating factors.