WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY | Tipline for fraud in city government faces hurdles

Tipline for fraud in city government faces hurdles

By Scott Harvey - bio | email
Posted By Mike Dever - email

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - Controversy continues to follow a recent audit of Metro Government's Health and Family Services Department. The state auditor found the department had gross mismanagement of funds under the direction of former Executive Director Kimberly Bunton.

Some Metro Council members say the city needs an anonymous tip-line giving city employees the ability to file ethics complaints. They say if the administration won't start one, they will force them to.

Kentucky State Auditor Crit Luallen found Metro Government's Housing and Family Service Department employees were too afraid to come forward fearing retaliation, after her recent audit.

Luallen told Metro Government's Oversight Committee plain and simple, start a tipline so city employees can report fraud, abuse, and unethical treatment.

"I mean we lost several hundred thousand dollars in grants," said Oversight Committee Chair and 16th District Councilman Kelly Downard. "These things all would have come out had somebody had a place to go."

But according to an article in the newest LEO Weekly, this isn't the first time the recommendation has been made. The LEO reported Louisville Metro Auditor, Mike Norman, has recommended an anonymous tipline since 2005, but the mayor's office consistently denied it.

In the article, Norman was quoted as saying, "Yeah, to me the decision was made. We weren't going to move or do it.

Norman wouldn't go on camera, but told WAVE 3 News that he was misquoted in the article. The editor of LEO Weekly told me he stands by the article 100 percent. So we put the question to Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson.

"We are for anything that can be done in a legal manner for ethics," said Abramson said. He told us his office hasn't blocked anything. In fact, the Mayor says he is completely for a tipline - but said there are hurdles in the way.

"We've not been able to find a way, thus far, that the Freedom of Information act, requested by you all - the media - wouldn't literally have to require the person who is tipping us off about a problem and the person who may be wrongfully charged or complained about," Abramson explained. "It's that confidentiality in a personnel issue that we are trying to work with."

"I think we will push, probably the administration into doing it," Downard said. He told us that council members both sides of the fence want a tipline and will do everything possible to get one.

"I would hope that we will have an ordinance ready to be filed before next Monday's deadline," said Downard.

There are many cities around the country that already have an anonymous ethics tip-line, like Atlanta, San Diego, Tulsa, and Chicago to name just a few. Kentucky's State Government also has one.