Acts of fraud, waste or abuse impact the resources of City government and its agencies and may occur through an unintentional act or by a deliberate action. Regardless of the intent, fraud, waste and/or abuse should not be tolerated. To help you understand how these categories differ from each other the definitions for Abuse, Fraud and Waste are listed below.
| Abuse |
DEFINITION. The intentional, wrongful, or improper use or destruction of City resources, or seriously improper practice that does not involve prosecutable fraud. Abuse can include the excessive or improper use an employee or official's position in a manner other than its rightful or legal use.
EXAMPLES:
· Failure to report damage to City equipment or property.
· Using one's position in one City department to gain an advantage over another City resident when conducting personal business in another City department.
· Serious abuse of City time such as significant unauthorized time away from work or significant use of City time for personal business.
· Abusing the system of travel reimbursement.
· Receiving favors for awarding contracts to certain vendors.
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| Fraud |
DEFINITION. A dishonest and deliberate course of action that results in the obtaining of money, property or an advantage to which the City employee or official committing the action would not normally be entitled. Intentional misleading or deceitful conduct that deprives the City of its resources or rights.
EXAMPLES:
· Falsifying financial records to cover up theft.
· Theft or misuse of City & County of San Francisco (City) money, equipment, supplies and/or other materials.
· Intentionally misrepresenting the costs of goods and services provided.
· Falsifying payroll information.
· Use of City equipment or property for non-City business.
· Submitting false vouchers for reimbursement.
· Soliciting or accepting a bribe or kickback.
· Use of false weights or measures.
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| Waste |
DEFINITION. The needless, careless, or extravagant expenditure of City funds, incurring of unnecessary expenses or mismanagement of City resources or property. Waste does not necessarily involve private use or personal gain, but almost always signifies poor management decisions, practices or controls.
EXAMPLES:
· Purchase of unneeded supplies or equipment.
· Purchase of goods at inflated prices.
· Failure to reuse or recycle major resources or reduce waste generation.
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