Fraud, Waste, and Mismanagement Hotline

The Legislative Audit Bureau investigates allegations of fraud and other improper acts by state agencies, employees, and contractors. Persons contacting the hotline may remain anonymous, and state law specifically requires the Bureau to protect callers' identities even when other information related to calls is made public. The Bureau's hotline is staffed directly by the Bureau and is administered by a certified fraud examiner.

Who may report a concern to the Hotline?

• State employees.
• Contractors who do business with the State.
• Anyone else, including members of the public, job applicants, and persons obtaining services from the State.

Which state government entities can be investigated?

• Every office, department, division, bureau, board, and commission in the executive branch of state government, including the University of Wisconsin System and its institutions, the Wisconsin Technical College System Board and technical colleges, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, and authorities such as the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.
• Every entity in the judicial branch of state government that is created by the Legislature.

Which entities are not investigated?

• Federal government agencies and employees.
• Agencies and employees of other state governments.
• Legislative agencies and employees.
• Local government agencies and employees, including counties, cities, villages, towns, and school districts.
• Local taxing districts, such as tax increment financing (TIF) districts, and local special purpose districts created by or related to local governments, including sanitary districts, drainage districts, mosquito control districts, regional planning districts, and inland land protection and rehabilitation districts. 
• Private entities such as businesses.

What are some examples of state government concerns that may be investigated?

• Mismanagement of a state program. 
• Improper contracting.
• Misuse of state property.
• Conflicts of interest.
• Improper overtime.
• Improper expense reimbursements.
• False time and attendance reporting by state employees.

What are some examples of the types of concerns that will not be investigated?

• Matters that duplicate or replace other government hotlines or complaint resources that are available, such as those noted on the Other Resources page.
• Matters relating to ongoing appeals of or judicial proceedings about a specific individual’s case.
• Matters involved in pending litigation related to a specific individual’s case.
• Disagreements related to the decision of an administrative law judge in a specific individual’s case.
• Matters related to the termination of a specific individual’s parental rights.
• Matters for which insufficient cause or information has been presented.

May I submit a report anonymously?

You may submit a report without providing us with your name or any other information about who you are and how we may contact you. However, we may not be able to investigate your report if we cannot talk with you to confirm the information you provide or obtain additional information. Please remember that if you identify yourself to us we will not reveal your identity without your permission, except to appropriate law enforcement personnel who are conducting a criminal investigation. If we publish a report about our findings, your identity is kept confidential.

What should I include in my report?

If you choose not to contact the hotline by telephone, please either complete the online form or print the form and return it to us via US Mail. We will not undertake an investigation unless we have a basis for believing that your report has sufficient merit to warrant the expenditure of resources on an investigation. You should therefore include a clear statement of what you believe the improper activity to be, why you believe the activity is improper, who is involved, and what evidence we may examine to confirm that what you are alleging is true. Your report should therefore include the following:

• A clear and concise statement of what you are alleging to be improper activity and why you believe it is improper.
• The name or other information that clearly identifies the person whom you are alleging has acted improperly and the department where that person works.
• Identify reports, records, and other information that can confirm the truth of what you are saying.

What happens after I submit a report to the Hotline?

The Bureau evaluates all matters reported for investigation, but the Bureau will use auditor judgment to determine independently if, when, and how the Bureau will investigate an allegation. The act of reporting information to the Hotline does not itself initiate a full investigation by the Bureau, and the Bureau alone determines whether to initiate a full hotline investigation. 

In lieu of investigation, we may open an inquiry to attempt to resolve the matter without a full investigation, refer the matter to another state agency, or close the matter without taking further action.

If we launch an investigation in response to your report, we will perform the investigation confidentially. This means that we will not report to you or anyone else about the progress of the investigation or what the investigation has found. The investigation will remain confidential while it is in progress. If we need additional information from you, we will contact you. Investigations closed with findings may be highlighted in semi-annual Hotline reports, which are published by the Bureau each January and July.