Newly inaugurated President Donald Trump announced Monday his intention to nominate Heather Wilson for the position of Air Force secretary.
“Her distinguished military service, high level of knowledge, and success in so many different fields gives me great confidence that she will lead our nation’s Air Force with the greatest competence and integrity,” Trump said in a statement.
Wilson, currently president of the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, previously served as a member of Congress representing New Mexico. She offered several national laboratories consulting services after leaving Congress in 2009, which led to investigations into the allowability of the federal funds she received.
Wilson began contracting with the Sandia, Los Alamos, and Oak Ridge national laboratories, as well as the Nevada National Security Site, after leaving Congress. The National Nuclear Security Administration asked the DOE Inspector General’s Office to review whether her consulting agreement was appropriately administered and managed, Defense Daily reported — specifically whether deliverables were produced in return for monthly payments of $10,000 and whether invoices included itemized charges, as required.
She was paid roughly $450,000 in total, but the IG’s Office found minimal documentation of services she provided for these payments – money the labs repaid to DOE.
Sandia Corp., the contractor managing the Sandia National Laboratories, paid the government $4.8 million in 2015 to settle claims that it used federal funding to lobby federal agencies and Congress to secure an extension of its management contract at the DOE site. The settlement followed an IG investigation that identified Wilson as one of three consultants providing lobbying guidance to Sandia.
Sandia Corp.’s contract expires on April 30. The National Nuclear Security Administration last month awarded a new management and operations contract to a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International.
“Heather Wilson is an excellent choice for Secretary of the Air Force,” Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) said in a Monday statement. “Having served with her on the House Armed Services and Intelligence Committees and worked with her on many issues, I know her to be a serious and thoughtful leader who is well-equipped to meet the challenges we face in national security. I look forward to working with her in this new role.”
Meanwhile, NNSA Administrator Frank Klotz has reportedly been asked to stay on as the new administration settles in until a replacement is confirmed, following concerns raised last week over a lack of discussion between the transition team and top NNSA officials on extending their service beyond Inauguration Day. Principal Deputy Administrator Madelyn Creedon, however, has left the agency.
Trump signed the nomination of now-Secretary of Defense James Mattis on Friday, following the Senate’s 98-1 vote to confirm the nomination. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 11-10 Monday to advance the nomination of Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State, sending the nomination to the full Senate for consideration.
