WASHINGTON (7News) — As Maryland officials celebrate the General Services Administration’s (GSA) decision to build the FBI’s new headquarters in Greenbelt near the subway station, the bureau’s leader is reportedly dissatisfied with what he describes as a potential “conflict of interest. “”In the process of variety.
In a letter, FBI Director Christopher Wray said the FBI is concerned about the fairness and transparency of alleged outside information.
On Friday morning, Maryland Governor Wes Moore and Maryland state and local leaders held a press conference, which you can watch in the media player below:
The Prince George’s County site is only thirteen miles from Washington D. C. and is selected in Springfield, Virginia, Wray wrote in an email to all staff and received it via ABC News.
“In our negotiations with the GSA, however, we found concerns about a potential clash of interests involving the diversity authority and whether the adjustments made by that user at the last level of the procedure met the diversity criteria,” Wray said. “Our engagement with the GSA over the past two months on those issues, our procedural considerations remain unresolved. “
7News spoke with Congressman Glenn Ivey, representing Maryland’s 4th District, and asked him if he thought the selection procedure was flawed.
“I’ve heard several court cases about Greenbelt winning this pick,” Ivey said. “What I haven’t noticed is that no one questions the fact that the Green Belt would save American taxpayers $1 billion to $1. 5 billion if they located it in Springfield. And in my book, I think the top electorate thinks it’s a big deal. »
MORE | Greenbelt, Maryland, was decided as the new site for the FBI’s headquarters; Virginia Delegation Denounces Variety Process
The GSA said Wray’s claims were wrong and stood by its decision, saying Greenbelt was the most productive site because it had the least impact on taxpayers and provided the most productive transportation access and fastest framing schedule.
Maryland political leaders see this as a historic resolution that will affect Prince George’s County’s economy for decades to come.
But now Virginia lawmakers are calling for an inspector general to investigate the variety process.
Director Wray also denounced a lack of impropriety on the part of a senior GSA official, given the executive’s previous association with the owner of the decided site, the Washington Metropolitan Transportation Authority, according to the FBI.
In the email sent to staff, Wray said “outside information” had been inserted into the proceeding “in a manner that gave the impression of disproportionately favoring Greenbelt, and that the justifications for the panel departures were diverse and inconsistent. “
Warner said the procedure could delay loans and construction.
“Of course there has to be an inspector general investigation. How is it possible, after all the political interference, to have all three of Virginia’s professional professionals and then have a political appointee to overturn that decision?” said Senator Warner.