OTHER TYPES OF FRAUD

Although the majority of qui tam cases involve Medicare fraud and defense contractor fraud, there are many other types of fraud which occur. These other areas of fraud occur in programs in which the government spends hundreds of billions of dollars annually on goods and services. Contact the WARREN | BENSON LAW GROUP if you suspect these other types of fraud.

Some of these other types of fraud which can form the basis of a False Claims Act case are:

RESEARCH PROGRAMS:

The federal government allocates hundreds of millions of dollars to research universities and hospitals to perform research in specific areas ranging from cancer research, to genetics, to botany, to telecommunications, to Homeland Security protection and space technology. To receive the grant funds the recipient institutions must enter into a grant agreement which contains strict requirements that the funds are to be used only on the approved grant project and cannot be spent on some other project. Any excess funds are typically required to be returned if unspent. However, a number of institutions run over-budget on one project and so “rob Peter to pay Paul” by using funds from one grant and applying them to the costs incurred on an unrelated project that has run over-budget for its own grant. This improper allocation is known as grant fraud and is actionable under the False Claims Act.

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UNDERPAYMENT OF ROYALTIES ON GOVERNMENT LEASED LAND:

Large tracts of land are owned by the federal government and many more are overseen by the Interior Department involving Indian tribal lands. Oil and gas companies conduct exploration and production of the oil and gas resources underlying these lands and enter into royalty agreements to pay the federal government based on the quantities of oil and gas they extract from the underneath the land. This royalty arrangement also applies to the harvesting of timber and minerals from federal or Indian tribal lands.

Some unscrupulous companies have underreported the quantities of oil, gas, timber or minerals taken from these lands and have thus defrauded the Government by underpaying the true amount of royalties owed. This type of fraud can be a violation of the False Claims Act.

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FEDERAL CONSTRUCTION AND PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS:

The federal Government is the largest purchaser in the nation for public works construction and office buildings. Because the resources for overseeing the costs associated with the construction contracts, many contractors see the opportunity to cheat. These types of schemes are very similar to the Defense Contractor schemes and include violations of the Truth in Negotiations Act, Cross-Charging, bid rigging, product substitution, and false certification of compliance with specifications.

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS:

False Claims Act violations involving environmental programs typically occur where a contractor is required to clean up a hazardous or toxic site and falsely certifies its compliance with the required environmental regulations related to the project. Additionally, fraud can occur via a cross-charging scheme as discussed in the Defense Contractor Fraud section of this website, or by cost padding so that inflated invoices are submitted to the Government.

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CUSTOMS AND TRANSPORTATION:

Customs duties fraud occurs where an importer misclassifies the nature of the goods being imported in order to avoid higher tariffs or duties assessed on certain materials. This misclassification can result in cheating the Government on millions of dollars of tariffs and duties. Similarly, trucking and transportation companies pay tariffs to the United States for their use of the federal highways. These tariffs typically are based on the weight of the load being shipped. A common scheme is for transportation companies to under-report the weight of the goods being transported, so that the company can under-pay the required rates or tariffs. Each of these situations can result in False Claims Act liability.

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