Disaster Officials Fight Fraud
Release Date: January 5, 2003
Release Number: 1498-059
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PASADENA, Calif. -- More than $150 Million dollars in federal and state assistance has been approved for residents affected by the October 2003 Southern California Wildfires, report disaster officials. Because there is such a large amount of taxpayer money involved, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the California’s Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES) are working to identify the small percentage of disaster assistance applicants who try to cash in on the misfortune of others.
"Managing a multi-million dollar disaster program always means walking a fine line between bringing speedy service to those who need it and ensuring that taxpayer dollars are not misused," said Dallas Jones, OES director and state coordinating officer for the wildfires.
“A number of methods are used to detect fraud,” said William Carwile, III, federal coordinating officer. “Our automated system cross-checks information with other agencies and insurance companies to weed out duplicate applications. Field inspections are conducted to verify losses and damages.”
Making false statements to a FEMA inspector is itself a prosecutable offense under Title 18 of the United States Code. Potential cases of fraud or misuse are referred to the U.S. Justice Department for prosecution. Penalties for felony offenses include severe criminal and civil penalties, including a fine of up to $250,000, imprisonment or both.
People who made a mistake when reporting damage or may have misrepresented their losses have the opportunity to correct or cancel their claim. Individuals may call the Helpline at 1-800-621-3362(TTY: 1-800-462-7585) to withdraw or correct an application and prevent prosecution. Anyone who knows of someone who has filed false damage claims or perpetrated any other disaster-related fraud, may report the incident to the Fraud Hotline at 1-800-323-8603.
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is the federal government’s primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private non-profit organizations fund repairs or rebuilding efforts, and cover the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover uninsured and uncompensated losses and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations.
The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services coordinates overall state agency response to major disasters in support of local government. The office is responsible for ensuring California’s readiness to respond to and recover from natural, manmade, and war-caused emergencies, and for assisting local governments in their emergency preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery efforts.
On March 1, 2003, FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA's continuing mission within the new department is to lead the effort to prepare the nation for all hazards and effectively manage federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates proactive mitigation activities, trains first responders, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration.
Last Modified: Thursday, 15-Jan-2004 16:01:44