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Paul K. Martin was terminated from his position as IG of USAID on February 11, 2025 a day after releasing an Advisory Notice detailing how $489 million worth of food assistance was at risk of diversion and spoilage as a result of the suspension of USAID programs in response to Presidential Executive Order 14169. Among other things, the Advisory Notice brought to light that the halt of funding to USAID would jeopardize lucrative, taxpayer funded, government contracts provided to farmers across the country that supply harvested crops that are sent overseas to feed the hungry.
As Inspector General of USAID, Martin said on February 10, 2025 that the dismantling of USAID had left oversight of $8.2 billion in unspent humanitarian aid "largely nonoperational", also noting the impact of USAID's shutdown on its "capacity to disburse and safeguard its humanitarian assistance programming”. He was fired the next day, with no official reason given. The Inspector General Act of 1978 requires that Congress be given 30 days of notice before inspectors general are fired; the law was amended in 2022 to further require a "substantive rationale, including detailed and case-specific reasons".
Paul K. Martin was terminated from his position as IG of USAID on February 11, 2025 a day after releasing an Advisory Notice detailing how $489 million worth of food assistance was at risk of diversion and spoilage as a result of the suspension of USAID programs in response to Presidential Executive Order 14169. Among other things, the Advisory Notice brought to light that the halt of funding to USAID would jeopardize lucrative, taxpayer funded, government contracts provided to farmers across the country that supply harvested crops that are sent overseas to feed the hungry.
As Inspector General of USAID, Martin said on February 10, 2025 that the dismantling of USAID had left oversight of $8.2 billion in unspent humanitarian aid "largely nonoperational", also noting the impact of USAID's shutdown on its "capacity to disburse and safeguard its humanitarian assistance programming”. He was fired the next day, with no official reason given. The Inspector General Act of 1978 requires that Congress be given 30 days of notice before inspectors general are fired; the law was amended in 2022 to further require a "substantive rationale, including detailed and case-specific reasons".