Hooky Playing Government Employee Kept on the Books… for 12 Years!

I’m sure at least a few of us thought about playing hooky today, with summer winding down and (at least here) the sun shining outside, but could you imagine playing hooky for 12 years? Well, an employee of the taxpayer funded “Community Services” Board in Norfolk, Virginia did exactly that. For 12 years the employee was paid, regardless of the fact that she had not shown up to work, at taxpayer expense. If there ever were a case for cutting government, this is it.

The employee was paid $25,000 to $40,000 a year, with raises and benefits for more than a decade, undetected. When questioned by the City Attorney, the employee “offered virtually no explanation” for her behavior.

The government spending nearly $400,000 for nothing?  Sounds too familiar. But that’s not even the kicker.

The Community Services Board, providing mental health and substance abuse assistance for low-income residents, is not only funded by the city of Norfolk ($4 million), but by the state of Virginia ($9.7), the federal government ($2.4 million) and even received $190,000 in stimulus funds.

Although the Board is taxpayer funded, it is self-governing. City Council members appoint a Trustees, but beyond that have no authority. The board completes an annual audit, but no red flags were raised until a new director spotted the error while going over the books.

For now, the City Council’s planned solution is to establish, by ordinance, a hotline for city workers to report fraud.