Space Force delays deal to ‘further evaluate’ contractor found to have acted fraudulently

WASHINGTON POST

A contract to oversee up to $12 billion in Space Force technology funds is being held up while the nascent military service evaluates fraud findings from an obscure Texas business dispute, casting fresh scrutiny on an emerging industry of nonprofit companies that handle acquisitions on the government’s behalf.

In early December, the Space and Missile Systems Center, a Los Angeles-based unit of the Space Force, announced it had selected a nonprofit called NSTXL to oversee billions of dollars in contracts over a 10-year period. Its role managing the consortium is similar to an outsourced procurement office, carrying out work that would otherwise be handled by seasoned bureaucrats while other companies receive the contracts themselves.

Such consortium managers have largely escaped the public eye despite their increasing power in military procurement. But the fraud findings are likely to start a more serious conversation regarding their role, and the case has already complicated NSTXL’s relationship with the military. read more »

Tyson Foods to pay $221.5 million to settle some chicken price-fixing claims

REUTERS

Tyson Foods Inc said on Wednesday it will pay $221.5 million to settle litigation by three groups of plaintiffs that accused it of illegally conspiring to inflate chicken prices.

The settlements with so-called “end-user” consumers, commercial purchasers, and purchasers that bought chickens directly from Tyson require approval by a federal judge in Chicago. read more »

Colonial Automotive Group to pay $1M for exploiting Mass. unemployment system during pandemic

BOSTON NEWS 7

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Friday that the Colonial Automotive Group has agreed to $1 million in penalties to settle claims that it took advantage of state unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The assurance of discontinuance, filed Thursday in Suffolk Superior Court, settles allegations that Colonial violated the Massachusetts False Claims Act when it furloughed the majority of its sales employees at its 16 car dealerships throughout the state, encouraged them to apply for unemployment benefits, and then asked them to perform certain aspects of their jobs despite being furloughed and despite collecting state benefits. read more »