Three Different Types of Government Contracting Fraud
Defense contracting fraud, procurement fraud and falsification of progress reports called for in a government contract are three common types of fraud whistleblowers often discover.
What is defense contracting fraud?
The federal government spends money for the national defense. Actually, it was expenses related to supplying the Union Army in the Civil War that gave rise to the False Claims Act more than 150 years ago. Defense contracting fraud refers to fraud that happens in all the contracts related to that national defense. Of course the federal government is buying a lot fewer muskets and mules than it did in the Civil War. But it does still buy uniforms, munitions and a wide array of goods and services for defense. When there's fraud in the provision of those goods and services, that would be defense contracting fraud.
What is government procurement fraud?
Technically speaking, anytime there's fraud in providing the government a good or service it's government procurement fraud because the government is procuring or buying a good or service in every one of its contracts. But with the volume of healthcare fraud and defense contracting fraud out there, those kinds of fraud have gotten their own names and left Government Procurement Fraud as more of a catch-all reference for all the other frauds on the government. This could be fraud in providing the government office supplies or computers, for example. It could involve a fraud in a building project for a road or a bridge. Fraud happens most commonly in these kinds of contracts where the contractor fails to adhere to the contract specifications, including requirements to provide the government the best available price, to use American-made materials and to pay prevailing wages. These are just a few examples. There are a variety of specifications that are provided in every procurement contract. If the contractor cuts corners and violates these contract parameters, it may lead to False Claims Act liability.
What should I do if my employer is falsifying progress reports for a government contract?
Falsifying records that are related to getting paid by the government under a government contract may be evidence of a fraud on the government. If an employee thinks this is happening at the workplace and it involves a government contract, that person should contact an experienced whistleblower lawyer to help evaluate exactly what is being falsified. Frauds vary from case to case and contract to contract so there is no single answer for what to do when someone sees this happening. That's why it's so important to have the actual facts of what an employee has witnessed vetted by someone with experience in this area of the law.
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