DOC OIG Information Related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

Implementing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act)
The Department of Commerce received $7.946 billion under the Recovery Act. The Recovery Act provides for unprecedented levels of accountability and transparency so that taxpayers know where their tax dollars are being spent. Spearheaded by a new Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, the Act contains built-in measures to detect and prevent waste, fraud, or mismanagement of spending. As a member of the Recovery Board, and consistent with the OIG's ongoing mission, the Inspector General is committed to providing active oversight of Recovery Act spending throughout Department of Commerce programs, contracts, and grants. Commerce OIG will receive $16 million for this effort.

Report Fraud, Waste, and Abuse

The President has emphasized that every taxpayer dollar spent on economic recovery must be subject to transparency and accountability. If you feel Recovery Funds are being misused, or there are instances of fraud, waste, error, and/or abuse in the application and utilization of these funds by the Department of Commerce or by recipients of Recovery Funds from the Department of Commerce, you should report your allegations to the Commerce OIG Hotline.

Stimulus Scam Alert

The public should be on the lookout for scams involving proposed Recovery Act payments. The goals of the scams are to trick people into revealing personal and financial information, such as Social Security, bank account, or credit card numbers, obtained to commit identity theft and steal money. The Department of Commerce will never send emails or text messages or call you asking for personal or account information, such as passwords, Social Security Numbers, PINs, credit or check card numbers, or other confidential information.