NCJ Number
133262
Journal
American Criminal Law Review Volume: 28 Issue: 3 Dated: special issue (1991) Pages: 559-590
Date Published
1991
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Congress passed the Major Fraud Act of 1988 in an effort to address the problem of fraud in government procurement.
Abstract
The Fraud Act created a new offense of "procurement fraud" for any government contract fraud in excess of $1 million; extended the statute of limitations for bringing a procurement fraud action to 7 years; and provided limited protection for individuals who come forward with information about waste, fraud, or abuse. Following a review of the offenses of defective pricing; mischarging; bid collusion; product substitution; and bribes, gratuities, and conflicts of interest, focus turns to the variety of statutes under which the Federal government prosecutes cases of procurement fraud, procedural developments, and industry self-governance as an approach to prevention. Recognition of the need for self-governance is an important step in reducing procurement fraud. Also needed is a determined effort to ensure that employees are familiar with these standards and are aware of their importance and that effective systems of internal auditing and compliance reviews are implemented. 263 footnotes