DES MOINES – Auditor of State Rob Sand this week released a report on a special investigation of the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) into false reports on expenses filed by a case worker with that agency.
The report covered the period July 1, 2016 through March 31, 2019. The special investigation was requested by DHS officials as a result of alleged improprieties regarding travel claims submitted by Bobi Miller, a social worker assigned to the DHS Office located in Dallas County.
Sand reported the special investigation identified $7,261.41 of improper disbursements and $2,948.79 of unsupported disbursements. The $7,261.41 of improper disbursements identified includes:
- $3,182.01 of excess mileage claimed for destinations to which Ms. Miller traveled,
- $3,376.23 of mileage reimbursements with no supporting documentation of any tripstaken which would require reimbursement,
- $345.93 of mileage reimbursements claimed on days where Ms. Miller recorded a full day (8 hours) of vacation time, sick time, family sick leave, or a combination of these types of paid leave,
- $85.80 of mileage reimbursements claimed on a holiday or weekend days (Saturday or Sunday) for which Ms. Miller did not record any time worked on her time sheet, and
- $271.44 of mileage reimbursements in excess of the maximum allowed during a fiscal year.
The $2,948.79 of unsupported disbursements identified includes mileage reimbursements for which the propriety of the mileage claimed could not be determined based on review of available supporting documentation.
Sand also reported it was not possible to determine if additional amounts were improperly reimbursed to Ms. Miller because adequate documentation was not available. The report includes recommendations to ensure sufficient supporting documentation is maintained for all reimbursements.
Copies of the report have been filed with the Des Moines Police Department, the Division of Criminal Investigation, the Polk County Attorney’s Office, and the Attorney General’s Office. A copy of the report is available for review on the Auditor of State’s web site, here.
Gotta love those government workers. Milking the system for every penny they can.