U.S. Attorney Sets Up School Corruption Hotline to Report School Fraud Tips

The U.S. Attorney's  in Pittsburgh has set up a telephone hotline for citizens who wish to report suspected corruption in public education districts and entities.

Potential abuses include misuse of federal funds, spending irregularities, corruption in contract or bidding processes, theft or embezzlement of district funds and bribery, kickbacks or other forms of collusion with outside vendors, U.S. Attorney  J.Hickton said.

The phone line number is 412-894-7515. Callers may make anonymous reports.

Once reported, the U.S. Attorney's office and appropriate law enforcement agencies will investigate potential abuses.

“Uncovering and eliminating school fraud is a priority of the Department of Justice and of our office because it is fundamental to maintaining confidence in educational funding,” Hickton said. “Most fraud is exposed as a result of tips and  from other school employees and citizens. 

"We look forward to working with the citizens of Western Pennsylvania to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse of public education funds.”

 already has mechanisms in place to prevent fraud. The district has its own fraud policy and a general hotline that can be used to make reports. 

Martha Smith, district spokeswoman, said there are annual audits, state audits and internal controls that ensure a separation of duties. Someone responsible for depositing money, for example, does not record in the accounting records.  

In addition, Quaker Valley has a purchase order system with levels of authorization so multiple people examine purchases.

"Most everything that is purchased is on a purchase order so more than one person examines the expenditures," Smith said.

The few items that do not have purchase orders, such as mortgage payments, still have multiple people who check what was paid.