Reuters: Regulatory News: CORRECTED-Grassley eyes status of firm that won SEC security contract

Reuters: Regulatory News Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

CORRECTED-Grassley eyes status of firm that won SEC security contract Sep 8th 2012, 17:33 Sat Sep 8, 2012 1:33pm EDT (Corrects headline and first paragraph to make clear Grassley questioning small-business status of firm; removes first bullet point) * SEC awarded security contract to AT-RISK * Grassley: company may have misused "small business" status By Aruna Viswanatha WASHINGTON, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Senator Charles Grassley is raising new questions about a company that won a security contract from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, asking about the company's status as a "small business" under government contracting rules. As part of his investigation into the SEC's watchdog, Grassley said in a letter dated Sept. 6 that he had uncovered evidence that a company the SEC had contracted with to conduct a threat assessment may be improperly using "small business" status to win government contracts. In a letter to the Small Business Administration, Grassley asked that agency to review whether the company, AT-RISK International, could be considered a small business even though it is part of a larger group called the Sanctuary Alliance Group. That group has its own chief executive and is marketed as a one-stop-shop for security services, Grassley said. The company has received a $2 million sub-contract from the Defense Department and "appears to be actively pursuing government contracts" under terms reserved for small businesses, he said. An AT-RISK representative did not respond to several requests for comment. Small Business Administration spokeswoman Emily Cain said small businesses are generally considered small if any affiliates also meet the required size standards. An SEC spokesman declined comment. Grassley has been investigating complaints about the SEC's inspector general office after the agency put its lead investigator on administrative leave in May. The investigator, David Weber, was placed on leave after he talked openly about wanting to carry a concealed firearm at work and some employees complained he was a physical threat, Reuters reported in May. Grassley said when opening his investigation he had received allegations the SEC had hired AT-RISK to investigate the complaints about Weber while the company was also being investigated by the inspector general's office over contracting concerns. (Reporting by Aruna Viswanatha; Additional reporting by Emily Stephenson; Editing by Tim Dobbyn) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions