Reports

This report contains the results of our investigation of the illegitimate unemployment claims and payments at the Department from January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. The purpose of our investigation was to determine if a misappropriation had occurred and to provide the Department with recommendations to improve internal controls.

The novel coronavirus quickly became a global pandemic in 2020. In March 2020, Congress passed the CARES Act to help provide support for those affected by the pandemic. Washington’s Employment Security Department administers the state’s unemployment compensation program. From early in the pandemic, news organizations reported on customer service delays and fraud in Washington’s Unemployment Insurance program. Th is audit examines the scope of and reasons behind substantial fraud and customer service delays in the state’s unemployment benefits program during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on our risk assessment for the years ended June 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, the areas examined were those representing the highest risk of fraud, loss, abuse, or noncompliance. We examined the following areas during this audit period. Accounts payable – general disbursements and electronic funds transfers, Payroll – gross wages and overtime, Paid family and medical leave – billing and compliance with eligibility, Procurement – information technology contracts and change orders.

SAN JUAN, P.R. – On April 7 and 8, 2021, the Federal Grand Jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned eleven separate indictments charging twelve (12) individuals with fraud against the Unemployment Insurance and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. These cases were investigated by various federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (USDOL-OIG), the Social Security Office...

The primary objective of this report is to show Missouri's spending of federal assistance in the month of February 2021 for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency and the cumulative financial activity since the state began receiving funding in April 2020.

A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty today for his role in fraudulently obtaining over $600,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

TULSA, Okla. - A Tulsa couple who fraudulently applied for Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act pleaded guilty in federal court, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

The OIG conducted a nationally representative survey to understand the ways the COVID-19 pandemic may have altered customer perceptions of the Postal Service and their habits around mail and other postal-related activities. The OIG found that Americans continued to hold favorable views of the Postal Service during the pandemic, underscoring the important role USPS plays for the nation. During the pandemic, the core ways customers interacted with the Postal Service were through mail receipt, post office visits, and delivery of online orders. Nearly 70 percent of survey respondents reported...

Federal authorities this week arrested three Inland Empire residents on fraud charges alleging they used information belonging to California state prison inmates to file for pandemic-related unemployment benefits, with each causing at least $345,000 in losses.