HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Office of State Inspector General announced it filed public assistance fraud charges against 43 individuals in June.
The restitution owed to the Commonwealth in these cases totals $202,064, OSIG said. Additional cost savings will be realized as the defendants will be temporarily disqualified from receiving public benefits in the programs they allegedly defrauded.
“The Office of State Inspector General works every day to uphold Pennsylvanians’ confidence in our public benefits programs,” State Inspector General Lucas M. Miller said in a press release. “Through our partnership with the Department of Human Services, we are able to uphold integrity and accountability in Pennsylvania’s public assistance programs while helping to ensure that funding is returned to be used by those who need it most.”
OSIG investigates and prosecutes public assistance fraud and conducts collection activities for the public benefits programs administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS).
During the month of June, OSIG filed felony charges of fraudulently receiving public assistance against a total of 41 individuals and misdemeanor charges against two separate individuals.
It is alleged that these individuals misrepresented themselves and fraudulently received taxpayer-funded public benefits to which they were not entitled, OSIG said.
If convicted, the maximum penalty defendants face for public assistance fraud is seven years in prison and a fine of $15,000.
In the case of SNAP, Cash Assistance or Subsidized Day Care fraud, defendants also face a mandatory disqualification period from the benefits program they allegedly defrauded, according to OSIG.
All persons charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
OSIG works in close coordination with DHS, which administers Pennsylvania’s public assistance programs, to investigate referrals made by DHS for potential fraud or abuse of programs. Referrals come through concerns flagged through applications and questionable use of benefits observed by DHS or from tips made by the public.
You can anonymously report suspected welfare fraud on the OSIG website or call the Welfare Fraud Tipline: 1-800-932-0582.
