March 8, 2007 | Read Time: 2 minutes
A leading Republican senator has asked the board of the Smithsonian Institution to explain why it authorized “lavish expenses” to support the “champagne lifestyle” of the institution’s chief executive, Lawrence M. Small, following a report by the Smithsonian’s inspector general that said nearly $90,000 in expenses Mr. Small submitted lacked documentation or violated Smithsonian policies.
Sen. Charles E. Grassley, of Iowa — the senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee — said the Smithsonian was paying expenses for Mr. Small, such as a chartered Lear jet and first-class airfare, that would not have been sanctioned by boards of other charities.
Other questionable expenses he cited included a club membership, gifts, personal lunches, and a $179,322 housing allowance in 2005 that included “mortgage interest” payments on an 8.3-percent loan, even though Mr. Small bought his home outright and had no mortgage, and the average rate for a mortgage at that time was 5.9 percent.
The senator, who has investigated nonprofit organizations, including the American Red Cross, American University, and the Nature Conservancy, said he was particularly troubled that when the board discovered that some of Mr. Small’s expenses violated existing policies, it voted to retroactively waive the policies.
“To be blunt, I have been conducting reviews of tax-exempt organizations for a number of years and the actions of the Smithsonian Board of Regents raise as many red flags as some of the worst boards I have investigated,” wrote Mr. Grassley.
He asked the Smithsonian’s board to respond to his letter within 30 days.
Roger W. Sant, chairman of the Smithsonian board’s executive committee, has denied any improper or unethical behavior by the board or Mr. Small.
In a separate letter to Congressional leaders, Mr. Grassley suggested that Congress set limits on Smithsonian spending.
He also suggested that Congress, which created the institution, review whether to make changes in its governance.
The Smithsonian, which has legal status as a tax-exempt entity, receives nearly 80 percent of its funds from federal sources. It will receive more than $700-million from the government this year.
Separately, a watchdog group asked the U.S. attorney general to investigate whether Mr. Small broke the law by using federal money to pay for some of his personal expenses.
The group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, also asked the Justice Department to look into whether the Smithsonian’s board broke the law by approving the expenses.
Linda St. Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Smithsonian, said that neither Mr. Small nor the board broke any laws.
“Any issue of something illegal has already been dismissed by the inspector general and the Board of Regents,” she said.
Copies of Mr. Grassley’s letters and other documents about the Smithsonian are available at http://finance.senate.gov/sitepages/grassley.htm.
A copy of the watchdog group’s letter is available online.
