Iraq contractor KBR cited by oversight commission

An independent panel examining waste and fraud in wartime spending accused contracting giant KBR Inc. on Tuesday of resisting government oversight and failing to cut costs on support work in Iraq. During a hearing held by the Commission on Wartime Contracting, KBR's internal accounting and cost estimating systems have been inadequate since 2005, commissioners said, leading to questionable billings and drawn out arguments with federal auditors over hundreds of millions of dollars in charges. Commissioner Dov Zakheim said KBR's top managers meet regularly with the Defense Contract Audit Agency. Yet the company has been unable to come up with solutions that satisfy the agency. "Are you guys stonewalling?" asked Zakheim, a former Pentagon comptroller.