Gov. Dannel Malloy
Photo by Steve Kotchko
Posted 12/12/11
In a rare Sunday afternoon news conference outside his State Capitol office on Dec. 4, Democratic Gov. Dannel Malloy revealed that his administration had launched an investigation into alleged fraud involving a food stamp program designed to help victims of Tropical Storm Irene. The culprits? State employees, according to the Governor, who falsified information to get the aid.
As the week wore on, Malloy’s anger grew over the apparent scam by individuals who work for the state as he tried to explain it to the media and the public. “I will not tolerate fraud in any form, especially if the fraud is perpetrated against a public program by a public employee,” Malloy said.
The program involved is called D-SNAP, that is the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Though it is administered by the State Department of Social Services, it is funded by the federal government. That means allegations could turn into criminal charges levied by state and federal prosecutors.
As information trickled out, media reports indicated some of the state employees who scammed their way to benefits they didn’t deserve were making more than $100,000 on the job. Malloy confirmed that some of those accused were “relatively high wage earners. The Governor added: “To say this is an outrage is an understatement.”
There were 15 state employees identified in the first batch of workers suspected of the aid fraud. The administration did not reveal their names, or even the agencies they work for. The Governor promised more information would come out as time goes on, but for now details would be under wraps while state agency heads begin the process of notification and discipline for the workers involved. Malloy made it clear more state employees likely will be tied to the aid fraud as time goes by.
Republican State Sen. Andrew Roraback (R-Goshen) said if state employees had figured out how to scam the system and get the food stamp aid, others, members of the public, may be involved as well. Asked about that, Malloy said: “Right now, we’re concentrating on state employees, because it’s not only having broken the law, but it’s this violation of the (public) trust.”
Malloy indicated the probe was triggered when the names of some highly-paid state employees were seen among the applications for storm aid, alerting state reviewers that fraud might be involved.
“The behavior included not fully disclosing one’s income and probably did include claiming of dependents or people living in homes that did not live in them at the time,” said the Governor.
Still experiencing his first year in office, it was clear that Malloy, who’s had to deal with a deficit crisis, a tropical storm, an October snowstorm and massive power outages, is in no mood to see a fraud scandal undermine his administration.
“We will take steps earnestly, swiftly, and severely,” to discipline state employees who took part in the storm aid scam Malloy affirmed. That could include firings and/or pension revocations on the administrative side, and Malloy said that the names of those involved would be sent to state and federal prosecutors for possible criminal action.
Still, it’s likely that critics of the Governor will pounce on the revelations of fraud, as examples of an inexperienced administration unable to get a handle on all its shortcomings, or unable to focus on more than one problem at a time.
To deflect some of that heat, Malloy said again that past administrations did nothing to modernize the state’s aging computer systems that often cannot communicate from one agency to another. The Governor said the antiquated computer structure at the Department of Social Services “has an effective date of 1989” and which cannot properly “discern, pick up and identify corruption and fraud.”
Malloy also put out a call to all state employees for information and evidence of fraud in state government, not just the storm aid scandal, but any other misdeeds—in the current or past administrations.
“If anyone in state government is aware of any fraud I want to know about it immediately, please bring it to my attention,” said the Governor. “If someone comes forward with information, they have nothing to fear, we do have a whistleblower (protection) statute in place.”
Malloy vowed to create an atmosphere in his administration that would encourage all state employees to provide information about fraud or other misdeeds for the good of the state, and “to feel comfortable in bringing their concerns to us”, without the understandable fear that their jobs could be at risk for speaking up.
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