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Montgomery County’s inspector general this week announced the start of a new 24-hour hotline for waste, fraud and abuse in county government activities.
Thomas Dagley told The Examiner the county is paying a third-party business $9,000 a year to run the toll-free hotline, which became operational Thursday.
The hotline is particularly geared toward Montgomery’s approximately 9,000 employees, giving them an easy way to anonymously report any improper or illegal goings-on they witness from within their posts in the government.
“Examples would be contract or procurement fraud, thefts of county funds or violations of the whistle-blower law,” Dagley said. “This [hotline] is not a result of a perceived problem with these things but an extension of means already in place to report fraud.”
Generally, he said, the Office of the Inspector General receives 50 to 60 complaints annually of waste and abuse in the Montgomery County government. The prediction is that this number will rise with the hotline in place.
Fraud hotlines are increasingly popular ways for counties to show their employees that leaders are committed to protecting public resources, Dagley said.
In Montgomery County, council members voted in September to spend up to $17,000 for a hotline. Dagley said the three months since have been spent selecting a third-party business to operate the toll-free line. The decision was ultimately made to hire The Network, a Norcross, Ga.-based company that has provided hotlines to more than 1,000 organizations nationwide.
Dagley said the hotline is set to be operational indefinitely, but over the course of the next six months, his office will carefully analyze the calls received to get a better sense of the abuses observed by county employees.
The hotline can be accessed by calling 800-971-6059. The general public can report problems by calling 240-777-2500.
dlevitz@dcexaminer.com



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Examiner Reader shanell said:
hello i'm a single parent with a three year old and i'm on disability he's father does not help me at all but i just do the best that i can he wants a yorkie puppy and toys but we need pots and pans dishes sheets and towels i would like to lose weight and i would like to have a trendmill to help me and he wnts atrain set you can call me at 410462-4462 shanell
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cindy martinez said:
hi my name is cindy i have 2 little girls and there dad walked out on them and i cant get anything for them for christmas if you can please help me please email me at cindy_jimenz@yahoo.com godbless
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Examiner Reader said:
I am a single mother of a 17 year old. I work as a temporary employee, for a large corporation. I just moved into a new smaller apartment to help with rent. After I moved I found out the my compnay is closing down for the week of Thanksgiving, the week of Christmas and the week of New Years. I do not get paid for those weeks. I see them as very critical weeks and find myself in a position of needing some help. If there is anything that can be done I would be grateful and would somehow return the favor to someone else. (207) 286-7987 angelicasheryl@yahoo.com
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Examiner Reader said:
Good morning, I would like to start out by saying thank god there is a program like yours. Well I would like to ask is there a program for single moms thats not homeless? But close, I am a single mom of 3 *one that is only 5 months old" all boys that my newborn baby's daddy passed away 12 days after he was born and when the daddy died so did the income . Christmas this year will be limited. I need help and I was told that there is a program that might adopt my family. Please help Jamey M. Kripps 817353565
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Examiner Reader said:
I am tha mom that jus sent thae last comment with christmas help and i forgot to leave my email address. It's camealthomas@yahoo.com
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Examiner Reader said:
i am in need of help i have 4 boys 1 girlwith foodtoys cloths. 2222upperhunters trace 6026146521ihave one 4 year old that can not here one 7 with heart trouble please help melissapack.packrenee@yahoo.com
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Examiner Reader said:
"you could board at Greenbelt and you could take it all the way to National Airport and Franconia-Springfield without transferring" That's pretty damn lazy since all those transfers are to trains on the exact same track... unless walking those three feet is a problem.
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