Days after D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) disclosed that it made payments on dozens of high-dollar contracts without council approval, the school district said it has already disciplined staffers as its investigation continues.
DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee, however, would not say who made the payments, how they were punished or how high level their position is. The chancellor also would not say definitively that the punishment would prevent unauthorized payouts from happening again.
In the District, any school system contract over $1 million must have council approval. The D.C. Council discovered a few that didn’t and demanded to know how many more there were.
After weeks of looking, DCPS released a list of 36 deals covering school meals, special education, technology and more. In all, they represent more than $260 million worth of contracts.
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Some of them go back to fiscal year 2021, or three budget years ago. DCPS admitted that some of those older contracts are completely paid out–all without council approval.
On Monday, Ferebee told the I-Team that "preliminarily from our investigation, it appears that there was a priority to maintain continuity of services to students, critical services,” but added that nothing prevented DCPS from doing that and getting council approval as the law requires.
“Absolutely not. I want to be clear, I do not authorize staff to execute on contracts out of compliance with the process in terms of council approval," he said.
Investigations
Investigations by the News4 I-Team
Ferebee pointed out that some of the deals in question were paid at the height of the pandemic. He would not comment on the intent of those involved in paying contracts without approval.
He added that DCPS has taken “corrective action,” which legally, could be anything from re-training to termination.
Ferebee wouldn’t specifically confirm what action has been taken, but the I-Team learned that in addition to individual discipline, the agency is looking at its entire procurement process.
But, changes to that process may eventually be out of the school district's hands. D.C. Councilmember Brianne Nadeau will hold hearings on the issue later this month, as the council considers changes to the school district’s contracting process. According to Nadeau’s committee, that would “repeal the independent procurement authority of the District of Columbia Public Schools.”
The I-Team also repeatedly asked Ferebee if any of the staffers involved are still in a position to sign off on contracts today. He would not answer that direct question, but said several times his team is “still investigating.”
News4’s Mark Segraves contributed to this report.
