Letter to the Hon. Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States - Grassley, Hassan Call On Biden To Appoint Qualified And Untainted Acting FHFA Inspector General

Letter

Dear Mr. President:

We write today to encourage you to promptly appoint a qualified individual as the Acting
Inspector General to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and swiftly nominate a
qualified individual with extensive leadership experience to permanently fill the role. As you are
well aware, on June 29, 2021, the current FHFA Inspector General (IG), Laura Wertheimer
announced her resignation, effective July 30, 2021.

1 This followed the publication of a Council of Inspector General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) Integrity Committee (IC) report which confirmed allegations that Wertheimer committed significant abuses of her position and obstructed the IC investigation into these and other allegations.

Though the IG herself is leaving, whistleblowers have contacted our offices and are
concerned that individuals who were complicit in her malfeasance will not only remain at FHFA
OIG, but also enter leadership roles. The current FHFA OIG succession plan, if unaltered, would
name the FHFA OIG Chief Counsel as the Acting IG. The Chief Counsel role is currently held by
Leonard DePasquale, who was found to have obstructed the IC investigation and subsequently
recommended for disciplinary action in the IC report. Individuals found to have acted
inappropriately in the IC report, including Mr. DePasquale, should not be placed in leadership
positions at FHFA OIG or elsewhere.

Three prominent not-for-profit groups committed to government oversight wrote to you on
this matter asking you to intercede. In that letter they state, "[i]f one of the individuals the IC
recommended for discipline instead receives a promotion to acting IG … [it] would send a chilling
message to the whistleblowers who reported the IG's misconduct that the culture of staff abuse and retaliation is acceptable in your administration." We agree, and ask that you rectify that
situation by appointing a qualified Acting Inspector General and successively nominating a
qualified individual with the leadership expertise to stabilize the FHFA OIG.

Source