Federal Workders Enjoy Spending Your Money

[The Rev]

Federal Workers Used Gov't Charge Cards to Buy Girls Gone Wild Videos, $13,000 Steak Dinner, and New Orleans Saints Season Tickets
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
By Eric Scheiner (CNSNews.com) -- In an anti-fraud and investigative training program last August, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) listed multiple abuses in the federal purchase card program used by federal employees. These abuses included a $13,000 taxpayer-funded steak house dinner, use of Internet dating services, purchase of erotica products, Girls Gone Wild Videos, and five season tickets to the New Orleans Saints.
The information was included in a Power Point presentation by Cindy Barnes, with the Forensic Audits and Special Investigations team. The presentation was called “Purchase Cards - Audits and Investigations”.

An example of a federal purchase card.


In the presentation, one example states, “Data mining revealed inappropriate debit card charges:
- Erotica Products (‘Condoms to Go’, ‘Pleasure Zone’)
- Girls Gone Wild videos (‘GGW Videos’)
- 1- week Caribbean vacation (‘Vacation Express’)
- Five season football tickets (‘New Orleans Saints’)”
While the actual price of these items is not listed in the training presentation, a search of the GAO reports on debit card abuse by federal employees estimates the total cost of the items listed at $5,350.
The reports also reveal additional federal debit card use for $600 at a Texas gentlemen’s club, $3,700 worth of purchases at a jewelry store, $400 at a massage parlor and $450 dollars for an arm tattoo.
The U.S. General Services Administration has been contracting the charge card services since 1984. According to the training presentation, the federal purchase card program budget grew to just under $1 billion in 1994 and went over $19 billion in 2009.

[The Rev]

I guess this is what it takes to attract individuals that have to suffer so much dedicating their lives to our service. We want to attract the brightest and the best, they should be allowed a few perks now and them.. We are lucky to have them!

[homers brother]

In my last assignment, I was a "Billing Official" who certified IMPAC card charges prior to payment. Because of the extensive review regimen (management control) that we applied, and because of the way the statements would be itemized, you'd have to be willfully negligent to not identify fraudulent charges. Charges like these would've stuck out like a sore thumb.

In turn, that makes me wonder if the audit identified cases simply of the cards being misused, or if it went any deeper to determine if the management control applied truly failed and the charges weren't caught by the agency first? I suspect the former.

I'd also be interested as to whether the individuals involved were disciplined? I think there should be more to this story and the audit than the limited scope it defines.