Massachusetts Construction Management Company, Owner, Pay $1.3M to Settle False Claims Act

[TexasTowelie]

Massachusetts Construction Management Company, Owner, Pay $1.3M to Settle False Claims Act Allegations


U.S. Attorney John H. Durham and officials from the U.S. Small Business Administration and U.S. General Services Administration today announced that CLASSIC SITE SOLUTIONS, INC. (“CSS”) and its owner, CHERYL SADY, have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the United States in which they will pay $1.3 million dollars to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act.

CSS is a Massachusetts corporation that performs construction management and general contracting services for various federal agencies. The government alleges that CSS and Sady made false statements to the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) to obtain certification as a Historically Underutilized Business Zone (“HUBZone”) company. One of the central purposes of the HUBZone program is to support small businesses that locate in geographic areas that have historically been unable to attract businesses and jobs. The government awards certain contracts only to HUBZone-certified businesses and applies a price preference to HUBZone contractors making bids on other contracts.

The government alleges that CSS and Sady falsely claimed to the SBA that CSS’s principal office was located in a designated HUBZone when, in fact, it was not. Using the fraudulently obtained HUBZone certification from the SBA, CSS bid on and was awarded government contracts worth millions of dollars that had been set aside for qualified HUBZone companies, as well as contracts for which a price preference was available to HUBZone companies. After CSS’s fraudulently procured HUBZone certification was discovered, CSS and Sady made further false statements to federal agents about CSS’s HUBZone eligibility and the location of its principal office.

To resolve the government’s allegations, CSS and Sady have agreed to pay $1.3 million for conduct occurring between 2009 and 2015.

Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/massachusetts-construction-management-company-owner-pay-13m-settle-false-claims-act