October 16th, 2017 by WCBC Radio
Today U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) led a letter with Senate Banking Committee Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) asking the Department of the Treasury’s Office of the Inspector General initiate an investigation into the misapplication of Special Government Employee (SGE) status with regard to Acting Comptroller of the Currency Keith Noreika.
“We’ve expressed repeated concerns to the OCC about Secretary Mnuchin’s decision to bypass the Senate confirmation process and install Mr. Noreika into the position – but we are now facing a more immediate issue. On September 12, 2017, Mr. Noreika served his 130th day in office – as of today, he has served 164 days. Unlike most SGEs, Mr. Noreika serves as the head of a major agency and has obligations outside of normal business hours. We believe that Treasury’s interpretation counting only business days towards his service limit is in violation of the law governing SGEs,” the Senators wrote. “Under a plain-text reading of 18 U.S.C. § 202, Mr. Noreika was required to become a permanent federal employee or step down from his position at the OCC.”
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