Fraud & Waste Program

City's Fraud and Waste Program

The Program

Ottawa’s Office of the Auditor General (OAG) administers the City’s Fraud and Waste Program, established in 2005.  The Program allows employees and the public to confidentially and anonymously report suspected instances of fraud, waste or serious wrongdoing involving City personnel, resources, operations, or vendors.  The automated reporting system operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Program is governed by the City’s Fraud and Waste Policy, which sets out the responsibilities of the Auditor General, and of all City staff including managers.

The Program and Policy do not apply to the following:

  • The Mayor
  • City Councillors
  • employees of the Ottawa Police Service and its Board
  • employees of the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) and its Board
  • employees of Ottawa Public Health (OPH) and its Board
  • employees of Ottawa Community Housing Corporation (OCHC) and its Board.

While this Policy does not apply to OPH and OPL employees, reports concerning these entities can be submitted through the Fraud and Waste Hotline. Such reports will be directed to the respective entity for their review, investigation and reporting. Other reports may be redirected to the appropriate reporting entity at the discretion of the Auditor General, or their designate.

Should the Auditor General receive reports related to Elected Officials, the Auditor General shall refer the complainant to the Integrity Commissioner, who shall determine the appropriate course of action.

Strengthening the City’s commitment to integrity

The Fraud and Waste Program empowers all City of Ottawa employees and members of the public to support our municipal government in ensuring high levels of honesty and integrity in its operations. It is just one component of the City of Ottawa’s ongoing efforts to ensure all City employees and the public have a mechanism to express ethical concerns. The Fraud and Waste Program, Policy, and Hotline help strengthen the City’s commitment to honesty and integrity.

Respectful Communication

The OAG is committed to corresponding in a respectful and professional manner. Similarly, it is expected that those who report fraud, waste or wrongdoing will do the same. Staff within the OAG will not tolerate profane language, threatening, discriminatory or harassing behaviour.  Repeated behaviour of this kind will result in our Office restricting communications.

What are Fraud, Waste and Serious Wrongdoing?

Fraud

Fraud includes any intentional misuse or attempt to misuse a City asset for personal gain, or unauthorized purposes which are unrelated to City business. Examples of fraud include, but are not limited to:

  • Forgery or alteration of cheques, drafts, promissory notes or securities
  • Any misappropriation, embezzlement or theft of funds, securities, supplies or any other asset
  • Any intentional mishandling or misreporting of money transactions
  • Any computer-related activity involving the alteration, forgery or manipulation of data for fraudulent purposes
  • Any intentional claim for reimbursement of expenses that are fictious or not eligible under the applicable expense and reimbursements guidelines

Waste

Waste means the inefficient use of City resources in any operation, process or activity where City resources are used without due regard for the value of money and/or opportunities to save money. Examples of waste include, but are not limited to:

  • Significant misuse of time for non-City related tasks
  • Excess use of time due to significantly inefficient business processes
  • Use of public funds to purchase resources that exceed what would be reasonably expected to be required to perform said service(s)
  • Use of public funds to purchase excess or unnecessary resources

Serious Wrongdoing

Serious wrongdoing is any actions or behaviour that have a significant impact on the quality and delivery of government services, or its reputation. The actions or behaviours may be the result of gross misconduct and/or create a breach of public trust. Examples of serious wrongdoing include, but are not limited to:

  • Serious violations of the Employee Code of Conduct
  • Violation of the Ethical Purchasing Policy
  • Destruction or mishandling of data in violation of the Records Management Policy
  • Releasing confidential information to the media
  • Conflict of interest between a position held at the City and other responsibilities/roles
  • Abuse of power, position, or title for personal gain
  • Seeking or accepting anything of material value outside of the established rules set out in the City of Ottawa Employee Code of Conduct from vendors, consultants, or contractors doing business with the City
  • Organizing or engaging in schemes or agreements, with corrupt intent, that could influence decision making (e.g., bribes and/or kickbacks)

Submitting a Report

Prior to submitting a report, please review the City's Fraud and Waste Policy to understand whether the concern meets the definition of Fraud, Waste or Serious Wrongdoing.

Ethical concerns related to suspected fraud, waste or serious wrongdoing can be reported by:

The City has separate channels where service requests, complaints and feedback may be submitted. Should you want to provide feedback regarding a City service, policy, program or staff member, you can submit a complaint to the department or branch responsible for that service.

You can also make a formal report or request to the City to obtain specific information or to request a service.

When submitting a Fraud and Waste report, please include as much information as possible in your report. The more details you provide relating to:

  • when (date and time);
  • what (incident);
  • where (location);
  • who (individuals involved or have witnessed the event, or are aware of the incident); and
  • how (tools, equipment, policy breach, etc.), the easier it will be for us to investigate.

While users can choose to remain anonymous, the Fraud and Waste Hotline has the functionality to facilitate anonymous and confidential two-way communication that allows reporters to access their report after submitting the initial report.  This feature allows the reporter to submit additional information, track the progress of the case, respond to any follow-up questions, as well as receive the outcome of their report.  We encourage reporters to check the status of their report regularly as the Office may reach out to request additional information.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) – Fraud and Waste

In addition to the information provided about the City’s Fraud and Waste Program and How to Submit a Report, below are answers to some frequently asked questions relating to the Fraud and Waste Hotline and the reporting process. 

The Hotline is intended to be used by members of the public and all City of Ottawa employees. This Hotline does not apply to issues relating to:

  • the Mayor
  • City Councillors
  • employees of the Ottawa Police Service and its Board
  • employees of the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) and its Board
  • employees of Ottawa Public Health (OPH) and its Board
  • employees of Ottawa Community Housing Corporation (OCHC) and its Board.

While the Fraud and Waste Policy does not apply to OPH and OPL employees, reports concerning these entities can be submitted through the Fraud and Waste Hotline. Such reports will be directed to the respective entity for their review, investigation and reporting.  Other reports may be redirected to the appropriate reporting entity at the discretion of the Auditor General, or their designate.

Should the Auditor General receive reports related to Elected Officials, the Auditor General shall refer the complainant to the Integrity Commissioner, who shall determine the appropriate course of action.

Yes, the FWHL is a confidential and anonymous service that allows you to report incidents 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Hotline is independently operated by a third party and is accessible by phone or Internet. When you make a report, the OAG will not be able to identify you. Individuals making a report are not required to provide their name or any other personal information when submitting a report. Every report is given a unique tracking number and a password, so users can follow the progress of their case, provide additional information, and see what action has been taken.

This service is administered by the OAG, which reports directly to Council and is independent of the City’s administration.

When a case is received, the following steps are taken:

  • The OAG conducts an objective and impartial assessment to determine if the matter reported constitutes a potential fraud, waste or serious wrongdoing.
  • If the case is deemed to be a fraud, waste or serious wrongdoing matter under the City’s Fraud and Waste Policy, the OAG then determines if sufficient information was provided to undertake a fulsome investigation or if more details are needed.
    • As required, the OAG will request, through the FWHL system, clarification, or additional information to be provided by you.
    • If you provided an email address when you submitted your report, you will receive an automated email alerting you each time a new message is posted to your case (communication through the FWHL system does not compromise your anonymity).
  • Once there is sufficient information to undertake an investigation, the Auditor General determines whether the OAG or Management is best suited to investigate the matter. An investigation typically takes 9 weeks. However, for complex cases, an investigation could take up to a year.  Once the matter has been investigated, the OAG will provide an update to the reporter through the FWHL system.  If you provided an email, you will be alerted that you can review the results of the investigations. 

The Auditor General may refuse to investigate allegations, or may terminate an investigation, if the Auditor General is of the opinion that:

  • there are no grounds or insufficient grounds for an investigation;
  • the complaint appears to be frivolous or vexatious;
  • an investigation, or continuation of an investigation, would serve no useful purpose; or
  • the allegation(s) have been, are currently being, or would be more appropriately reviewed under another process.

Often, the OAG can only share limited information and details from an investigation with you, as disclosure of specific information on progress, actions taken, and/or outcomes is governed by the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA).

No detail is too small.  Please include as much information as you can to help us effectively investigate.  Examples of key information include:

  • details of incident, date(s), time(s) and location(s) of the incident(s);
  • individual(s) or tool(s) involved in the incident; and
  • any law(s) or policy(ies) that may have been breached as a result of the reported incident(s).

The automated reporting system will guide you through the process of capturing these details and give you the opportunity to include text, documents, images or anything else that you think may be relevant.

The FWHL is operated independently by a third-party vendor (Whistleblower Security Inc.) using the IntegrityCounts ethics reporting tool and case management system. Any information submitted through this website and over the phone which is collected through the IntegrityCounts portal is provided directly and securely to the City of Ottawa’s OAG.

To ensure your anonymity and confidentiality, there is no way for the OAG or the third-party vendor to reset your password for you to regain access to your report. The FWHL functionality allows you to select your own password. We recommend that you create a strong but memorable password to avoid such a situation.

No, the FWHL is only to report activities performed by or under the responsibility of the City of Ottawa.  If a situation did not involve a City employee or service, deemed applicable under the Fraud and Waste Policy, the Hotline would not be the appropriate mechanism to report your issue.