Congressional Committee to Question Big Dig Overseers
By Amy Lamiaso for the State House News Service
       A congressional committee will hear from two panels of federal and state officials responsible for overseeing the $14.6 billion Big Dig project
during a Friday hearing billed as, “Digging Up the Facts: Inspecting the
Big Dig and the Performance of Federal and State Government in Providing
Oversight of Federal Funds.”
       According to the Government Reform Committee, which is holding the hearing, lawmakers hope to determine “where the project stands and what actions are being taken to address outstanding concerns and issues, both in terms of safety and of costs.”
       The first panel will consist of D.J. Gribbin, chief counsel for the Federal Highway Administration; Stanley Gee, administrator of the Massachusetts Division of the Federal Highway Administration; and Kenneth Mead, inspector general for the US Department of Transportation. The five members of the second panel are: State Attorney General Thomas Reilly; turnpike authority Chairman Matthew Amorello; John MacDonald, chairman of the Board of Control for lead contractor Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff; Morris Levy, senior vice president of Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc.; Keith Sibley, program manager for Bechtel; and George Tamaro, a partner with Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers and former consultant to the turnpike authority.
       The hearing begins at 2 pm on Friday at the John Joseph Moakley Federal Courthouse on the 7th floor.