WASHINGTON (Feb. 27, 2002) — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is paying the audit firm Andersen $52,000 to assess the effectiveness of NHTSA's new software information management system for identifying auto and tire defect trends.
Andersen—which operates the Arthur Andersen LLP subsidiary—won the contract after competitive bidding and interviews with agency officials, a spokesman said. Transportation Department Inspector General Kenneth Mead recommended that a third-party auditor be called in because of concerns over the planning and management of the new system.
Andersen made the news recently because of its admission that some of its employees destroyed documents relating to audits of its client, Enron Corp., whose bankruptcy, the largest in the nation's history, has spurred a number of congressional investigations.