About the Hotline | Legislative Audit Bureau (original) (raw)
Fraud, Waste, and Mismanagement Hotline
The Legislative Audit Bureau investigates allegations of fraud and other improper acts by state agencies, employees, and contractors. Persons contacting the hotline may remain anonymous, and state law specifically requires the Bureau to protect callers' identities even when other information related to calls is made public. The Bureau's hotline is staffed directly by the Bureau and is administered by a certified fraud examiner.
The Bureau investigates intentionally dishonest, misleading, or deceitful conduct that deprives the State of Wisconsin of its resources, as well as the needless, careless, or extravagant expenditure of funds, or mismanagement of a state program or property. These acts do not always relate to private use or personal gain, but usually signify poor management decisions, practices, or controls. The types of concerns may include:
- manipulation, falsification, or alteration of accounting records or supporting documents to conceal theft or an entity's true financial condition;
- submitting false vouchers for reimbursement;
- intentionally misrepresenting the costs of goods or services provided;
- falsifying payroll information;
- noncompliance with contracts or contracting requirements;
- failing to administer programs according to state or federal laws and regulations;
- purchasing unnecessary supplies or equipment;
- purchasing goods at inflated prices;
- permitting serious abuse of paid time, such as significant unauthorized time away from work, or significant use of paid time for personal business; and
- abuse of the travel reimbursement system.
The Bureau assesses all matters reported, but generally does not investigate those matters that duplicate or replace other government hotlines or complaint resources that are available, such as those noted on the Other Resources page. The Bureau will also not investigate matters that provide insufficient information or basis to conduct an investigation. Finally, the following matters are generally outside the Bureau’s scope of statutory authority:
- business disputes involving a private entity;
- employment and/or personnel decisions involving a private employer;
- local government matters such as decisions made by a town board; and
- issues pertaining to Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts.
Even if you identify yourself when reporting a concern, the Bureau cannot release your name without your express consent. Please consider providing your name and contact information, should additional information be needed. The Bureau will not initiate a review without adequate cause, and anonymous allegations that do not include sufficient information will not be pursued. If you do provide your name and phone number, state law requires your identity to be protected, even when information related to the Bureau's follow-up is made public. Understanding your relationship to the reported issue also helps us to protect your identity.