What is the Fraud Hotline?
The City’s Fraud Hotline is the secure, confidential way to report fraud, waste, inefficiency, or abuse involving the City of Portland government, its employees, or vendors. It’s a reporting system administered by the elected, independent City Auditor.
Why should I report fraud, waste, inefficiency, or abuse?
The misuse of City resources impacts services we all rely on, including our police, fire, parks and transportation systems.
How can I make a report of fraud, waste, inefficiency, or abuse to the Fraud Hotline?
There are two ways you can make a report:
- File a report online.
- Leave a phone message (503-823-4006)
Can I file an anonymous complaint?
You may file an anonymous report or provide contact information.
What kinds of things should I report?
The Fraud Hotline is for reports of dishonest acts by or against the City (such as by City agencies, employees, vendors, volunteers, board members, etc.), or the improper use of City resources or positions.
Fraud involves an intentional deception or misrepresentation, by act or omission, which results or could result in a benefit for a person or entity to which they are not entitled. Examples of fraud can include but are not limited to theft, forgery, falsifying records, and bribery.
Waste involves the needless, careless, or extravagant expenditure of City funds, or the misuse or mismanagement of City resources or property. Waste does not have to involve a private use or personal gain and can be intentional or unintentional.
Inefficiency involves an inability to do something in a well-organized or competent way, or to the failure to implement processes as intended with minimal waste time or resources. "Inefficiency" may also occur when the design of a program or policy fails to produce desired outcomes, despite the resources invested.
Abuse involves the improper use of a City position or the improper use or destruction of City records or resources.
Please refer to Reportable Incidents and Examples for more information about what we can investigate.
What happens to a report made to the Fraud Hotline?
The City Auditor’s Audit Services Division is responsible for the Fraud Hotline and takes all reports seriously. For every report received that is within our power to investigate, Audit Services will do a preliminary fact-finding to decide how to proceed. We may conduct our own investigation or refer the report to another City bureau or the City Ombudsman. In some cases, we may notify and assist law enforcement. Some cases may be closed if they lack merit or we don’t receive enough information to investigate.