American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
ARRA Resources
- ARRA Fraud Reporting
- ARRA in Illinois at Recovery.gov
- ARRA Frequently Asked Questions for Educators
- Brief Description of Illinois and ARRA Funding
- Education Jobs Fund
- Federal Resources
- Illinois Application for Initial Funding under the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund Program
- ISBE PowerPoint on ARRA
- Learning and Performance Management System Proposed Design Requirements (12/09)
- National U.S. Secretary of Education Announces National Competition to Invest in Innovation
- Secretary Duncan Releases Application for $650 Million to Support Innovation
- Recovery Illinois
- USDE Approves $1.4 Billion in Recovery Funding for Illnois (April 20, 2009)
- USDE Releases Information on i3 Grants
ARRA Fraud Reporting Information
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) has requested the following information be distributed to all local education agencies, employees and contractors in relation to reporting fraud, waste, and abuse of funds made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
ARRA funds have provided an unprecedented opportunity to save jobs and advance reforms that improve student achievement. With this opportunity comes increased responsibility for all of us to conduct ourselves ethically and to mitigate the risk of waste, fraud, and abuse.
The Department, including the Office of Inspector General (OIG), works to ensure that education dollars reach intended recipients and serve intended purposes. ISBE will also work with the Department to ensure that these funds and programs funded by the Department are protected from fraud, waste, and abuse. As part of this important effort, the Department is providing several resources that describe fraud laws and how to report fraud at www.ed.gov/fraudprevention.
The OIG identifies and investigates individuals and groups who may have committed fraud with education funds or with respect to Department-funded programs. Each week, criminals are prosecuted and convicted, and receive sentences that include significant prison terms and monetary penalties. Cases have included school or college officials making false statements regarding grant eligibility and performance; creating false documents to obtain grants for students who do not attend the school or are enrolled in ineligible programs; setting up shell companies to which education dollars are funneled; embezzling money from school accounts; using school accounts and credit cards to make purchases for personal purposes; and accepting bribes and kickbacks from contractors.
Please help us put a stop to these crimes. In addition to reading and distributing this information, report any suspicion of fraud, waste, or abuse to the OIG Special Agent in Charge in your geographic area. Contact information is available at the following web site: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/oigaddress.html
You also may contact the OIG by e-mailing oig.hotline@ed.gov; calling 1-800-MISUSED (1-800-647-8733); or writing to: Inspector General’s Hotline, U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20202-1500.
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