Home › Bicentennial Blueprint › Archived Discussions › Discussion with Texans for Fiscal Responsibility President and CEO Michael Quinn Sullivan › Welfare abuse

Welfare abuse

This topic contains 2 replies, has 2 voices, and was last updated by  Mike Sher 11 years, 8 months ago.

  • Welfare abuse

    Started by Mike Sher

    How about taking a page from the old West and offer people a reward for turning in those who defraud the system by faking illnesses or lying about their financial conditions.

    The forum ‘Discussion with Texans for Fiscal Responsibility President and CEO Michael Quinn Sullivan’ is closed to new topics and replies.

    2
    Replies

    Margo Cardwell, 12 years ago

    Mr. Sher,

    Thank you for commenting! As Attorney General, Greg Abbott has worked to prevent the fraudulent abuse of government programs: https://www.oag.state.tx.us/oagNews/release.php?id=4554

    Under your proposal, how would you suggest that indivuals reporting abuses be rewarded?

    Mike Sher, 12 years ago

    Counsel,

    Thank you for replying! It would follow keep it simple principle. It would be the greater of a flat fee or a percentage of the amount of money recovered or potentially saved to the state. A flat fee would be set in the amount that would provide sufficient motivation to report and yet small enough to avoid overzealousness and false reports or attempts to extort the fraud suspect.
    This idea comes from my posting a complaint on a local TV station discussion board that they no longer provide descriptions or sketches of suspects in violent crimes. I have received a reply from a retired police investigator. He said that overwhelming majority of solved cases happen not because of sketches being posted, since they tend to look somewhat similar. He said that most cases are solved because criminals are stupid. When they commit a crime they go to their friends and brag about what they have done. But their friends, instead of being impressed or intimidated, cannot run to the phone fast enough to call Crime Stoppers and collect their reward. If it works in one case, it would be logical to conclude that it would be effective in the other case as well.

The forum ‘Discussion with Texans for Fiscal Responsibility President and CEO Michael Quinn Sullivan’ is closed to new topics and replies.

Be sure to read the Forum Rules.