Virginia congressman warns Metro over its treatment of inspectors general

WASHINGTON (7News) — Monday afternoon, Northern Virginia Congressman Gerry Connolly (D – 11th District) warned Metro not to treat its newly named inspector general the same way it has treated previous inspectors general.

“The key here is independence,” Connolly said in an interview with 7News on Capitol Hill. “Public safety and reliability of the system absolutely depend on an independent auditor.”

The job of Metro’s inspector general is to hold the transit agency accountable on finances and safety-related matters. Last week Metro’s board of directors named Michelle Zamarin to be its fourth inspector general in fewer than eight years. Connolly said he wants to see her treated differently than previous inspectors general, including the last IG Rene Febles.

READ MORE | Metro names new inspector general after controversy over exits of previous 2 IGs

In an exclusive interview with 7News last week, Febles told 7News he resigned to avoid being fired one day after releasing a Congressionally-required report in which he said his office was not being given the full authority Congress had granted it.

“I could not hire anybody that I wanted, there had to be a Metro person who made the final decisionMetro decided who made the best-qualified list. I could go on and on and on, but that’s not independence, and I could not in good faith say [to Congress] that we were independent in those areas,” Febles told 7News.

A large infrastructure bill passed by Congress in 2021 included $150 million in annual funding for Metro for 10 years, but in order to get that money it requires Metro to spend $5 million a year specifically for the Office of the Inspector General. That $5 million matches the $5 million a year Congress is also spending for the Metro IG.

“Congress recognizes the importance of the Transit Authority having a strong and independent Office of Inspector General,” a portion of the law read.

The law also requires that the IG have a large degree of independence, including the ability to hire people. It also mandated the IG do the report that was released the day before Febles says he resigned to avoid being fired.

READ MORE | Metro board to increase fare cost, but overall avoids most cuts starting July 1

“An independent inspector general, I wrote that [part] myself. That’s the law in the infrastructure act,” Connolly said. “Firing IGs because you don’t like them, or what they’re saying, or their style, risks the very independence we’re concerned about. We don’t want an inspector general who feels he or she is beholden to the board that hired them. We want them to be an independent auditor who is throwing the flag down when he or she finds problems, and who is holding Metro accountable for the sake of the public.”

Connolly said he hopes to meet with the new inspector general Zamarin soon. He said from what he’s learned of her background, she appears well-prepared to hold Metro accountable. But he will be keeping a close eye on how she is treated by the Metro board of directors.

Last week Metro board chair Paul Smedberg – whom Connolly said he had a frank discussion with about what happened with Febles – told 7News Zamarin will not face being fired in the future just for doing something the board doesn’t like.

“That office has always acted independently,” Smedberg said after a board meeting last Thursday. “The board has never told them what to do, what they couldn’t do – ever.”