Minnesota's fraud problems stem back at least 50 years, according to the state’s director of program integrity.
An independent road map designed to prevent fraud in Minnesota was released Monday, Feb. 23.
Its author, Tim O’Malley, is a former investigator with the FBI and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. He said Gov. Tim Walz sought him out to examine the state’s fraud problem. O’Malley said he only agreed to the temporary position of program integrity director if his investigation was completely autonomous.
With his research, he found the state’s fraud problems go back to the 1970s, and each governor’s administration and legislative body since had been notified of vulnerabilities in the state’s social safety net.
“Stronger preventive measures should have been taken. Repeatedly, plans were put in place but not executed effectively," O'Malley said in a Monday press conference. “Criminals have exploited those vulnerabilities to defraud our state, erode public trust and impede the delivery of these services to Minnesota.”
O’Malley said a culture of compassion in the state’s social service programs was misplaced, and that state agencies have a duty to be responsible for taxpayer dollars through program compliance protocols.
“In the road map is a recommendation to appoint a skilled, independent monitor. Someone with subject matter expertise and the requisite gravitas to drive home accountability,” O’Malley said.
“Implementing deliberate, actionable steps to prevent fraud will only succeed through effective enforcement. Otherwise, well-intended plans will again not be executed, changes will not become embedded, and today's opportunity to get this right will be lost.”
The road map details several other steps to prevent fraud in the state, such as modernizing technology, legislative fixes and building resources and capacity to identify fraud.
In developing the roadmap, O’Malley and a small team reviewed documents and conducted interviews with current and former state employees and state agency leadership. They also met with whistleblowers, service providers and private citizens.
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