VAOIG Substantiates Abuse of Authority in OIT

Redacted Report
Report No. 09-01123-195
August 18, 2009
VA Office of Inspector General Washington, DC 20420

Summary
"We substantiated that Ms. Katherine Adair Martinez, Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Information Protection and Risk Management (IPRM), Office of Information and Technology (OI&T), misused her position, abused her authority, and engaged in prohibited personnel practices when she influenced a VA contractor and later her VA subordinates to employ Ms. Laura Nash, Executive Assistant, IPRM. Further, we substantiated that Ms. Martinez misused her position when she took advantage of an inappropriate personal relationship with the former Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology, Mr. Robert Howard, to move her duty station to Florida even though she spent almost 60 percent of her time at VA Central Office on official travel. We also substantiated that Ms. Martinez failed to provide proper contract oversight and did not properly fulfill her duties as a Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR). In addition, we substantiated that Ms. Kathryn Maginnis, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary (ADAS), IPRM, abused her authority and ________(b)(6) and __________, IPRM, engaged in prohibited personnel practices in the filling of four GS-15 positions."