Asphalt contractor to pay nearly $1.3 million over falsified quality test results
In addition to payments to the state and federal government, Anderson Brothers enters compliance agreement with MNDOT
April 7, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) — Today, Attorney General Keith Ellison announced that a construction and paving company, Anderson Brothers Construction Company of Brainerd LLC, has agreed to pay $1,295,610 to resolve allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act and the Minnesota False Claims Act by routinely and knowingly falsifying test results to make its paving material appear higher quality than it was and submitting those false results to the government in seeking payments for road paving in Minnesota between 2017 and 2022.
The allegations were brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Kacie Dixon, a former Bituminous Mix Technician at Anderson Brothers. Under those provisions, a private party can file a lawsuit on behalf of the government and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned United States of America and State of Minnesota ex rel. Dixon v. Anderson Brothers Construction Company of Brainerd, LLC., Civil Action No. 22-sc-02078 (D. Minn.).
The United States and the State of Minnesota alleged that, as a condition of payment for state and federally funded road paving contracts, Anderson Brothers was required to perform certain quality tests of its paving material and submit the results to the government. The reported results of these quality tests determined whether Anderson Brothers earned financial incentives for superior quality or received financial deductions for poorer quality paving material. The United States and the State of Minnesota alleged, however, that rather than accurately report test results, Anderson Brothers falsified the results and submitted them to the government.
In addition, the United States and the State of Minnesota alleged that as a result of those false test results, the United States and the State of Minnesota paid Anderson Brothers more than they would have received had they submitted truthful test results. Of the $1,295,610 civil settlement, the United States will receive $660,761 and the State of Minnesota will receive $634,849. Further, as part of the resolution of this matter, Anderson Brothers agreed to permanent injunctive terms in its agreement with the State of Minnesota which, among other things, prohibit future test manipulation and require Anderson Brothers to provide employee training and implement a corporate code of ethics, a general corporate compliance program, and a quality assurance/quality control program overseen by a Corporate Compliance Officer. Anderson Brothers has also entered into a compliance monitoring agreement with the Minnesota Department of Transportation and will be closely monitored during the upcoming construction season.
“Minnesotans expect their hard-earned tax dollars to go to things like roads, bridges, schools, and public safety, not into the pockets of corrupt contractors,” Attorney General Ellison said. “My thanks go out to whistleblowers like Kacie Dixon who help us fight fraud and protect our public resources. Let this serve as yet another warning that I will not hesitate to civilly prosecute those who cheat the taxpayers of Minnesota.”
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, the Minnesota Department of Transportation, and federal partners including the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota with assistance from the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
If you have concerns about the misuse of government funding, please file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office via its online complaint form. The Office can also be contacted at (651) 296-3353 from within the Twin Cities or (800) 657-3787 from Greater Minnesota.
