What is the purpose of the fraud hotline?

The hotline is set up to allow City residents, City employees or any other concerned individual to report fraud, waste or abuse of City resources to the Internal Audit Division.

Who operates the hotline?

The hotline is managed by the City Auditor as well as staff of the Internal Audit Division.

When should you report your concern?

A report should be submitted through the fraud hotline as soon as possible after you believe a reportable offense has occurred. 

What are some examples of a reportable offense?

• Theft of City resources
• Conflicts of interest
• Fictitious claims
• Contract or procurement violations
• Misuse of City property
• Ethical violations
• Embezzlement of finances
• Bribes, kickbacks
• Abuse of work hours
• City policy violations

Once the Internal Audit Division receives a tip, what happens next?

Each report is given a unique case number and is logged by staff members of the Internal Audit Division into a secure database.  Subsequently, each report will be assessed for merit and disposition and will be prioritized for investigation or dissolution. 

If a report is deemed to have merit, the Internal Audit Division will schedule an investigation of the reported activities into our Audit Plan and will issue a report at the conclusion of our investigation.  In some instances, the investigation may take place immediately following the report or it may take place months later, depending on the materiality of the activity to the City.   

When a report is determined to have merit but is outside the scope of the Internal Audit Division’s purview, it will be referred to the appropriate party for follow-up action.  Such parties may include another city department, federal agency, or local law enforcement agency. 

Reports that are deemed to be immaterial, vague or baseless will receive no further follow-up.

If you elect to disclose your contact information, you may be contacted by a staff member in the Internal Audit Division during the course of our investigation.

How can I find out the status of my hotline case?

Disposition information will only be communicated at the direction of the City Auditor.  The Internal Audit Division will contact only those individuals who filed a report and provided contact information.