Federal contractors paid former Rep.
Heather Wilson
, R-N.M., $464,203 from 2009 to 2011 and then improperly billed the government. The
Inspector General of the Department of Energy
questioned the payments and has recovered $442,877 from contractors.

The report of the Inspector General stated, “Our inspection identified serious concerns with the administration and management of the agreements with HWC [Heather Wilson & Company LLC] for advice and consultation provided to senior managers at four Department contractor-operated sites. In fact, our testing revealed that the four facility contractors paid approximately $450,000 to HWC even though they did not receive evidence that work performed under the agreements had been completed.”

The payments related to Sandia National Laboratories, run by Sandia Corporation, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin; Los Alamos National Security LLC; Nevada national laboratory; and Oak Ridge national laboratory.