Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • O I G C B: Investigative Report Synopsis

    Uploaded by

    Chris Berinato
    1K views5 pages
    The Office of the Inspector General investigated a complaint regarding a Baltimore City vendor. The investigation found that the vendor overbilled the city by over $129,000 and did not meet its minority business participation goals. Despite these findings, a city department requested the vendor continue work without an active contract. The mayor responded that the relevant departments have been working to solicit a new contract and used the current vendor temporarily to ensure continuity of operations for city agencies. A new bid is expected to be advertised to address issues identified in the investigation.

    Original Description:

    IG Report - 1/12/21

    Original Title

    IG Report - 1/12/21

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Report this Document
    The Office of the Inspector General investigated a complaint regarding a Baltimore City vendor. The investigation found that the vendor overbilled the city by over $129,000 and did not meet its minority business participation goals. Despite these findings, a city department requested the vendor continue work without an active contract. The mayor responded that the relevant departments have been working to solicit a new contract and used the current vendor temporarily to ensure continuity of operations for city agencies. A new bid is expected to be advertised to address issues identified in the investigation.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf or txt
    1K views5 pages

    O I G C B: Investigative Report Synopsis

    Uploaded by

    Chris Berinato
    The Office of the Inspector General investigated a complaint regarding a Baltimore City vendor. The investigation found that the vendor overbilled the city by over $129,000 and did not meet its minority business participation goals. Despite these findings, a city department requested the vendor continue work without an active contract. The mayor responded that the relevant departments have been working to solicit a new contract and used the current vendor temporarily to ensure continuity of operations for city agencies. A new bid is expected to be advertised to address issues identified in the investigation.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 5

    OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL

    CITY OF BALTIMORE

    Isabel Mercedes Cumming


    Inspector General

    Investigative
    Report Synopsis

    OIG Case # 21-0028-I


    Issued: January 12, 2021
    OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL
    Isabel Mercedes Cumming, Inspector General
    City Hall, Suite 635
    100 N. Holliday Street
    Baltimore, MD 21202

    January 12, 2021

    Dear Citizens of Baltimore City,


    The Mission of the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is to promote accountability, efficiency and
    integrity in City government, as well as to investigate complaints of fraud, financial waste and abuse. At
    times the lack of appropriate policies and procedures, effective communication, transparency and
    accountability lead to fraud, financial waste and abuse that could have been avoided. This public synopsis
    is a follow-up to OIG public synopsis 20-0017-I, released September 2020.

    Vendor Contractual Issues

    On November 30, 2020, the OIG received a complaint alleging a Baltimore City Vendor (Vendor) was
    being used for out-of-contract work despite the OIG and the Law Department previously finding the
    Vendor overcharged the City by over $129,000 and was non-compliant with the Minority and Women’s
    Business Opportunity Office (MWBOO). After the Vendor’s contract expired on March 31, 2020, the
    Bureau of Procurement (BOP) failed to rebid a new towing contract. Instead, the Department of General
    Services (DGS) Fleet Management Division requested the Vendor perform work out-of-contract. 1

    On December 2014, the Board of Estimates awarded a towing contract (the Contract) at the request of
    DGS. The Vendor was determined to be the lowest bidder and selected as the City’s first call option for
    tow service requests. The Contract award performance period was for two years, with two one-year
    renewal options. On July 12, 2019 DGS submitted a requisition in CitiBuy to request BOP to solicit a new
    towing contract. Subsequently, on October 19, 2019, BOP created a new solicitation for the Contract but
    failed to put it out for bid. The Contract was set to expire on December 31, 2019, but the City extended it
    via a change order to March 31, 2020. The change order advised that new service requests should not be
    billed to the original purchase order.

    Under the Contract, the Vendor’s participation goal for the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) was set
    at 10% and the Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) participation goal was set at 3%. These goals are
    applied to the gross revenue of the towing companies. The Vendor was required to provide the City with
    documentary evidence to support payments made to subcontractors with revenue generated from the
    Contract. On September 2020, the MWBOO compliance review for April 15, 2015 to January 20, 2020
    found the Vendor non-compliant due to not meeting the Contract’s MBE and WBE goals.

    1
    At the time of this Management Alert, the OIG has discovered five purchase orders for out-of-contract work since the
    Contract expired in March 2020
    REPORT FRAUD, WASTE AND ABUSE
    HOTLINE: 443-984-3476/800-417-0430 EMAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: OIG.BALTIMORECITY.GOV
    The OIG initiated an investigation into the Vendor's billing practices and released its findings to the public
    September 2020. The OIG's analysis of invoices revealed that the Vendor overcharged the City for items
    and services not authorized under the Contract or disclosed on the Vendor's bid price sheet. In total, the
    OIG calculated that the Vendor overbilled the City $129,521.95 over a five-year period. The OIG referred
    its findings to the Baltimore City Law Department for further action. As of the date of this report the Law
    Department is finalizing the amount for civil recovery.

    Despite the Vendor overbilling the City and being found non-compliant by MWBOO, on November 11,
    2020, the DGS submitted an Unauthorized Justification Procurement form to the BOP requesting that the
    Vendor be paid a total of $96,096.56 to continue providing towing services without an active contract.

    Sin�erely,

    Isabel Mercedes Cumming, Inspector eneral


    Office of the Inspector General

    Cc: Hon. Brandon Scott, Mayor of Baltimore City


    Hon. Nick Mosby, President, City Council
    Hon. Bill Henry, Baltimore City Comptroller
    Honorable Members of the Baltimore City Council
    Hon. Dana P. Moore, Acting City Solicitor

    REPORT FRAUD, WASTEANDABUSE


    HOTLINE: 443-984-3476/800-417-0430 EMAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: OIG.BALTIMORECITY.GOV
    Mayor's Response
    Case # 21-0028-I
    CITY OF BALTIMORE OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
    BRANDON M. SCOTT, Mayor 100 Holliday Street, Rm 250
    Baltimore, Maryland 21202

    December 21, 2020

    Ms. Isabel Mercedes Cumming


    Inspector General, Baltimore City
    100 North Holliday Street, Suite 635
    Baltimore, MD 21202

    Dear Inspector General Cumming,

    I am responding to a Management Alert (case number 21-0028-I) from your office regarding a
    towing operator, , on behalf of Mayor Brandon Scott.

    In regard to the use of a vendor whose contract has expired, I have spoken with the Director of
    the Department of General Services (DGS) and it is my understanding that DGS has been working with
    the Bureau of Procurement (BOP) over the past several months to initiate the solicitation of a new
    contract. In the meantime, however, DGS made an operational decision to continue using the services of
    the current vendor to ensure the continuity of operations on behalf of City agencies. The City lacks the
    resources (equipment and personnel) to be able to perform all the towing services provided by contracted
    vendors and without these services not only would the operations of agencies such as Fire, Police, DPW
    and DOT be significantly hampered, the risk to equipment being damaged due to not being quickly
    retrieved from break-down locations also had to be weighed.

    DGS and BOP have finalized the crafting of a new bid solicitation and that is anticipated to be
    advertised within the next few weeks. The scope of the solicitation has been revised to remedy issues
    identified over the course of the OIG’s investigation and to better allow for the City’s flexibility in
    selection of vendors and in the towing operations.

    Sincerely,

    Daniel Ramos
    Deputy Chief Administrative Officer
    Baltimore City

    You might also like