Leveraging data and interdepartmental collaboration for positive impact
City of Chicago Office of Inspector General
Promoting economy, efficiency, and integrity by identifying corruption, waste, and mismanagement in Chicago government.
In September, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) concluded a busy summer of community outreach. You may have seen us at farmers' markets, budget forums, the recent City of Chicago 2024 Senior Fest, and other events. Our public presence is crucial in ensuring people know who we are, what we do, and where to find us. Thanks to in-person and digital outreach, we have seen increased intakes and expect to see more.
Meanwhile, in addition to our reactive work in response to those intakes, we are building new, proactive processes to drive accountability in City government. By leveraging our access to City data and our in-house subject matter expertise, we are generating investigative leads and informing our investigative work through proactive data analysis.
One example of this proactive approach is our analysis of over 350,000 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) issued in the Chicago area. By comparing these loans to employee data, OIG identified over 1,000 loans disbursed to individuals within our jurisdiction, a substantial number show some indicia of potential fraud.
We have begun to report on the outcomes of PPP loan-related investigations in recent quarters and will continue to do so as those investigations are closed.
We are also investing in proactive data analysis to enhance enforcement of the City’s campaign finance rules. Current rules impose certain restrictions on contributions to candidates for City offices from City contractors, subcontractors, lobbyists, or City employees. Through data automation, OIG uses City data sources alongside public data on campaign contributions to identify possible violations for further investigation.
These projects highlight our efforts to leverage our capacities and enhance our capabilities in pursuit of rigorous, purpose-driven oversight. We are building new tools to help us hold City actors accountable when they break the rules – to help us pay down the deficit of legitimacy at which the City of Chicago operates with its residents.
Respectfully,
Deborah Witzburg
Inspector General, City of Chicago