Dr. Michael Harrington and his company Genoverde Bioscience, Inc., agreed on Apr. 6 to pay $152,500 to the United States to resolve allegations of submitting false payment claims under National Science Foundation grants and Payment Protection Program loans.
The case concerns accusations that Genoverde Bioscience made duplicative expense claims under government grants and improperly sought PPP loans and loan forgiveness. The grants involved research expenses related to harvesting industrial hemp and trees.
Megan E. Wallace, Acting Inspector General for the National Science Foundation (NSF), said, “Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards are highly competitive grants intended to fund American-owned small businesses to conduct research that will lead to the commercialization of innovative new products and services.” Wallace continued, “The NSF Office of Inspector General is committed to ensuring the integrity of NSF’s SBIR grant program by holding accountable those who choose to engage in false claims and misrepresentation schemes. We appreciate the efforts of the Department of Justice in pursuing this matter and will continue to vigorously pursue oversight of taxpayer funds devoted to scientific research.”
According to the release, the False Claims Act requires that the government recover three times any money falsely obtained as well as substantial penalties for each false claim submitted. Officials clarified that these civil claims were resolved through settlement only; there was no judicial determination or admission of liability.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina worked with NSF’s Office of Inspector General on this case, with Assistant United States Attorney Neal Fowler representing the government.
