Lawmakers target welfare fraud in Wisconsin
GREEN BAY - In 2012, Brown County sheriff's investigators spent thousands and used 30 officers to crack a welfare-fraud case that officials say saved taxpayers $1.3 million.
For their efforts, which sent three people to prison, the county received $0 in reimbursement.
State lawmakers from the Green Bay area are introducing a bill they hope will change that.
Rep. Andre Jacque, R-De Pere; and Sen. Robert Cowles, R-Allouez; are circulating a bill to allow local and tribal governments to keep up to 20 percent of the money they save the federal and state government when they stop fraud. The bill covers the FoodShare, Medicaid, and Wisconsin Works programs.
They plan to seek co-sponsors for the next two weeks. The bill would also:
» Limit the reissuance of FoodShare cards — a common tactic used by people who commit fraud — to four times,
» Freeze "carryover balances" that have gone unused for six or more months, and
» Wipe out balances on cards that have been unused for a year or more. Authorities have found unused balances in the thousands of dollars, including one of more than $14,000.
"Local government should be able to share in the savings they’re providing for the state and federal governments," Jacque said Tuesday.
Welfare fraud investigations have frustrated Wisconsin's local police, district attorneys and lawmakers for years.
It's a crime, so it must be investigated and prosecuted. But unlike other types of investigations, the police agency is prohibited by law from seizing proceeds, or otherwise profiting financially, when they take a bite out of crime. Federal law — welfare money originates in Washington — prohibits it.
The Jacque-Cowles bill would direct the state to work with the feds to change that, Jacque said.
Supporters, though, might face some hurdles. Efforts to pass similar legislation in a recent session, using three bills instead of one, failed. The Assembly approved a similar measure during the 2013 session, but the bill didn't clear the state Senate.
Jacque said he is more optimistic this time, however, because he believes a Republican administration in Washington will be more receptive to the idea that some saved money should stay in the state that saved it.
That would make a difference in places such as Brown County, where the sheriff's office spends about $100,000 annually for salaries and benefits for two full-time fraud investigators who together handle about 200 cases per year.
About 20 or 25 investigations become criminal cases each year, District Attorney David Lasee said, with dozens of others resulting in charges for ordinance violations. The caseload accounts for less than 20 percent of one prosecutor's time.
"It’s a rather small portion of our overall workload," Lasee said.
Sheriff's officials did not return calls Tuesday seeking comment.
Currently, local property taxes fund the two investigators' positions.
Thefts can mean that money is not there for some people who legitimately need it, County Executive Troy Streckenbach said when he pushed for a similar bill in the past.
Criminals can commit welfare fraud in several ways, officials said.
In one common method, thieves work with unscrupulous merchants to turn credits from the cards into cash, typically at the rate of 50 cents on the dollar. Freezing benefits that have gone unused for months, and limiting the number of times a card can be reissued, would help stop this, Jacque said.
A 2012 investigation into fraud at a Green Bay liquor store took months, yielded multiple arrests and sent a couple ring leaders to jail, while some recipients were kicked off the welfare rolls for a year. Criminals, officials said, stole more than $10,000 from the state's Quest program in one month alone, using a store that had very little food for sale.
About $3 million in Food Share benefits are issued to Brown County residents in a typical month, under a program that enables low-income people to get food for themselves and their families. Authorities say fewer than 1 percent of local recipients prompt allegations of fraud.
dschneid@greenbaypressgazette.com and follow him on Twitter at @PGDougSchneider
Fraud tip line
Call the Brown County Sheriff's Office at (920) 448-6378 or Green Bay Area Crime Stoppers at (920) 432-7867 to report welfare fraud.