LAist relies on reader support, not paywalls.
Freely accessible local news is vital. Please power our reporters and help keep us independent with a donation today.
City Workers Reporting More Instances Of Fraud, Abuse And Waste
Los Angeles City Hall is seen in this photo taken Nov. 30, 2011 (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images).
More than 33,000 L.A. city workers got some new training in the past year about how to report fraud, waste and abuse — and it seems to have worked. Complaints to an internal hotline jumped by 58%.
This year, city workers reported 543 instances of their colleagues not doing the right thing, 200 more than last year.
The most common complaint was employees’ theft of time, like falsifying time cards.
Other examples included a worker keeping some event tickets that were supposed to go to charity, and some workers, who'd quit their jobs, continuing to use their city-issued credit cards.
About half were outside the City Controller’s jurisdiction and were referred to other departments or agencies. Some employees resigned or were fired, and some face criminal charges.
READ THE AUDITOR'S REPORT:
On the Lookout: Fraud, Waste and Abuse Annual Report (L.A. Office of the Controller)