The airports authority in charge of the $6 billion Dulles Rail project paid an expert on “change” about $7,000 an hour to lead authority members’ discussions at annual board retreats, the Washington Examiner has learned.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, under fire from federal investigators for lax ethics rules and questionable contracting practices, awarded a trio of no-bid contracts worth $173,000 to Gregory Shea, a Pennsylvania consultant specializing in “organizational and individual change, group effectiveness and conflict resolution” to coordinate annual sessions that lasted about six to eight hours each.