Director Daniel Glad Delivers Welcome Remarks at the Procurement Collusion Strike Force’s Fifth Anniversary Event

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

Good afternoon. My name is Daniel Glad, and I have the honor of serving as the Director of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF). I say honor because it truly has been one, to work alongside fellow enforcers to combat collusion in government procurement. I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve, and I’m grateful that the PCSF is celebrating its fifth anniversary today in the Great Hall of the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building in Washington.

I want to acknowledge that the PCSF is only able to celebrate its fifth anniversary, and gather here today, due to a lot of work, from far too many people to name. In a season of giving thanks, I am thankful for all of your contributions. I am particularly thankful today for the team that helped plan this event, including PCSF paralegals Mark Burklund, Kaitlyn Colyer and Hillary Phan, Deputy Director Sandra Talbott and Assistant Deputy Directors Michael Sawers and Bryan Serino. I also want to specially recognize PCSF Program Manager Jamie Collins, whose work on this event, and on so many of our initiatives, has truly been extraordinary.

I am also grateful for the work of those who are now alumni of the Justice Department, but whose work and vision while in public service are instrumental in our reaching this milestone. Some of them are here today, including the PCSF’s former acting director, Eyitayo “Tee” St. Matthew-Daniel, and the PCSF’s first employee, predating even me, Anna Bieganowska. I also want to recognize the vision that former Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Andrew Finch, and Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Criminal Enforcement Richard Powers showed in standing up the Strike Force five years ago. They did so in recognition that, by bringing together a core group of enforcers whose sights are trained on a very specific target, more could be done for the public. Deterrence would be enhanced, detection amplified, investigations and prosecutions increased and public funds better put to their intended use.

Their vision proved true, and the group they brought together has grown. Today, in this Great Hall, we have many leaders from across the PCSF, including prosecutors, law enforcement officers, data scientists, economists, analysts and other members of the oversight community. Your presence today, and, more importantly, your presence in the trenches — on investigations and at trial — represents the best of our inter-agency, collaborative model. That model is inherent and foundational in the DNA of the PCSF. It captures one of the most satisfying aspects of my job as a federal prosecutor — working alongside attorneys and federal agents, analysts and other professionals, each bringing expertise and strengths, to enforce the law and protect the public fisc.

A milestone anniversary is a time for reflection. As I think about the PCSF’s first five years, one clear lesson emerges: we are meeting an unmistakable demand for enforcement that focuses on criminal schemes targeting government procurement. Whether measured by the number of people trained or investigations opened, or the amount of taxpayer funds at stake in our convictions, the PCSF is meeting a clear need. From asphalt to concrete, from IT systems to weapons systems and from fuel to fight wildfires to fuel to power U.S. military equipment, we are finding and stopping these schemes. In local areas, regional, national, and even overseas, there has been no shortage of good work for the prosecutors, agents, analysts, and other enforcers in the PCSF. Indeed, it’s fitting that we are celebrating our fifth anniversary during International Fraud Awareness Week, a time when hundreds of organizations, enforcers, and businesses turn the spotlight on anti-fraud awareness and education.[1]

We have a lot to cover today and an exciting program. We will hear from the Chair of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, Inspector General Mark Greenblatt, about the Inspector General perspective. Following those remarks, my colleagues will moderate panel discussions on three different topics: present and near-future threats, featuring the heads of the Commerce and U.S. Postal Service Offices of Inspector General; global and international considerations, featuring leaders from Department of Defense and U.S. Agency for International Development Office of Inspector Generals (OIG); and a look to the future with data, analytics, and collaboration, with experts and leaders from the OIGs for the General Services Administration, the Department of Transportation, and the Environmental Protection Agency.

But first, we will hear from the Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division, Jonathan Kanter. Jonathan, who on Saturday celebrated his third anniversary as Assistant Attorney General, is a proud son of New York, and an even prouder son of two New York City teachers. He has long been an advocate for effective antitrust enforcement and increased competition affecting taxpayer dollars and he has supported the work of the PCSF since assuming this role. Jonathan, the floor is yours.