Reports

The COVID-19 pandemic drove the Office of the New York State Comptroller to move forward creatively and identify new ways to tap into and analyze data. Auditors and examiners pursued increased data analysis and used a wider variety of data sources in audit planning and risk assessment, including the Statewide Financial System, First New York data warehouse, New York Benefits Eligibility and Accounting System, CVS Health, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, as well as internal State agency data.

Based on our audit of the State’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, we reported internal control weaknesses and instances of noncompliance over financial reporting. For example, the Department of Economic Security did not put all critical identity-verification or other anti-fraud measures in place before paying federal CARES Act unemployment insurance benefits and reported it paid over $4 billion in fraudulent identity theft unemployment insurance benefits claims through September 4, 2021, when the benefits ended.

The objective of this report was to provide information on the unprecedented number of unemployment claims filed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the amount paid in fraudulent claims, and the causes for many fraudulent claims being paid. We found that WorkForce West Virginia Paid Nearly $83 Million in Fraudulent Unemployment Claims During the COVID-19 Pandemic.