A company subcontracting for other primary contractors on the Hanford site will pay nearly $500,000 in restitution for fraudulently receiving Covid-19 relief funding, and its owner will pay $1.1 million to settle an affirmative civil fraud lawsuit. 

Federal justice officials announced the sentencing and settlement connected to BNL Technical Services LLC on March 11. 

BNL provided contract labor services to Hanford site prime contractors in 2020 and 2021. In April 2020, the company applied for and received a $493,865 loan as part of the Paycheck Protection Program created as part of Congress’ economic relief to businesses during the pandemic, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Washington. 

However, BNL’s labor costs and payroll continued to be paid by DOE and other sources, including the U.S. Veterans Administration, throughout the pandemic, including when BNL employees were not able to physically work at the site and instead were teleworking or simply home in “ready” status. Shortly after receiving the funds, BNL transferred and used more than $424,230 of the PPP proceeds on unauthorized expenditures. 

In August of 2021, BNL, through its sole owner Wilson Pershing Stevenson III, requested and was granted forgiveness of the $493,865 PPP loan, by falsely and fraudulently certifying the loan proceeds had been used for eligible uses and business expenses between April and October of 2020. 

The Department of Energy, Office of Inspector General, Richland Field Office, the Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General, and the VA Office of Inspector General investigated the case.