COMMONWEALTH OF
PENNSYLVANIA
OFFICE OF
INSPECTOR GENERAL
OIG-14-0369-I-DOT
Pennsylvania
Department of Transportation
Acceptance of
Gifts by Driver License Center
2014 General
Investigation Report Summary
Approved for Public Release
In July 2014, the Pennsylvania
Department of Transportation (PennDOT) received a complaint alleging gifts were
provided to employees of a Driver License Center by an unnamed entity (Contractor)
contracting with PennDOT to provide vehicle registration and related services
to the public and that, as a result, PennDOT employees directed business to the
Contractor. PennDOT referred the
complaint to the Pennsylvania Office of Inspector General (OIG), which
conducted an investigation of the allegations.
In January 2015, OIG completed its investigation and provided
information to PennDOT.
Background
PennDOT contracts with entities (including
the Contractor) which provide vehicle registration and related services that
may not be provided by a local Driver License Center. The complaint alleged the Contractor provided
unspecified “gifts” to PennDOT employees at a Driver License Center and, as a
result, the employees referred PennDOT customers exclusively to the Contractor for
vehicle registration and related services not provided by the local Driver
License Center. PennDOT referred the
complaint to OIG for an independent investigation.
OIG’s investigation included: interviews
of the complainant, the owner of the Contractor, and of PennDOT employees
working at the Driver License Center; an examination of PennDOT records,
including agreements with the Contractor and other similar entities and
informational documents provided to the Driver License Center’s customers; and,
a review of the Commonwealth’s and PennDOT’s policies regarding the acceptance
of gifts, which were applicable at the time the gifts were alleged to have been
provided, i.e. prior to July 2014.
Investigation
OIG initially investigated to
successfully learn the name of the Contractor and identities of any other
witnesses. With this information, OIG
was able to conduct interviews of the owner of the Contractor and PennDOT employees
who may have received “gifts” from the Contractor.
OIG discovered the Contractor had a
tradition of delivering cookies to PennDOT Driver License Centers during the
holidays. The tradition was started by
the father of the current owner of the Contractor when the individual’s father
operated the business. The cookies were
homemade (not purchased from a store or dessert delivery business) and were of
nominal value. The cookies were
presented on an ordinary tray and not a basket or other decorative container
and were for everyone at the Center and not any specific employee(s).
PennDOT’s written policies prohibit
employees from accepting loans, offers, gratuities, favors, services, or other
proffered arrangements for personal benefit from persons doing
business with PennDOT, and PennDOT employees are also required to sign a “Gifts
and Favors Policy,” which lists prohibited and permitted activities. Finally, the agreement between PennDOT and
the Contractor prohibits the Contractor from offering PennDOT employees “money,
gifts, or other items of substantial value . . . .”
OIG found no evidence that PennDOT
employees violated the Commonwealth’s or PennDOT’s policies or that the
Contractor violated the agreement with PennDOT, as existing at the time the
cookies were provided – prior to July 2014.
The cookies were of nominal (not substantial) value, were provided for
consumption by all employees, and were not intended to encourage PennDOT
employees to favor the Contractor. The
PennDOT employees interviewed by OIG confirmed the cookies did not persuade them
to refer PennDOT customers to any specific entity contracted with PennDOT,
including the Contractor. OIG discovered
that on at least one occasion a PennDOT employee initially refused to accept
the cookies on behalf of the Driver License Center, but then agreed to accept
them and removed the Contractor’s business card from the tray before placing
them in a common area for consumption by all employees at the Center.
OIG also reviewed informational
documents used by PennDOT employees at various Driver License Centers in
referring customers to entities for vehicle registration and related
services. OIG found the lists did not
accurately include all entities contracted with PennDOT for the services; however,
none of the inaccuracies indicated any improper behavior, but instead appeared
to have been a result of outdated information.
Conclusion
OIG’s investigation of the allegation that
PennDOT employees received “gifts” – cookies – from the Contractor resulted in
no finding of violations of policies or agreements applicable to such
activities that were in force at the time the cookies were provided.
However, on January 20, 2015, Governor Tom
Wolf signed Executive Order 2015-1, Executive
Branch Employee Gift Ban (Gift Ban), which prohibits all employees in executive agencies under the jurisdiction
of the Governor from accepting any
“gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, hospitality, loan or any other thing of
monetary value, including in-kind gifts,” from entities in relationships with
the Commonwealth, including the Contractor.
The Gift Ban supersedes former Commonwealth and PennDOT policies, and
provisions of agreements, that are inconsistent with the Gift Ban. OIG reminded PennDOT of the change in
policies and recommended PennDOT update its written policies and the agreement
with the Contractor and other similar entities, and provide training to
employees on the new Gift Ban.
OIG’s investigation also found the
documents PennDOT employees used to refer PennDOT customers to entities for
vehicle registration and related services were not accurate. OIG recommended that PennDOT review all
similar documents and online postings and create user-friendly, updated
versions.
Recommendations
Based on its findings, OIG recommend
ed:
·
PennDOT
should review and update its written policies and the agreements with the
Contractor and other similar entities to be consistent with Executive Order
2015-1, Executive Branch Employee Gift
Ba
n.
·
PennDOT
should provide training to employees on Executive Order 2015-1, Executive Branch Employee Gif
t B
an.
·
PennDOT
should review all documents and online postings used to refer PennDOT customers
to entities for vehicle registration and related services, and create
user-friendly, updated versions.
Department/Agency Response
PennDOT
expressed it supports training and education of PennDOT employees and business
partners on the provisions of Executive Order 2015-01. PennDOT delivered
multiple training communications to PennDOT employees on Executive Order
2015-01, and the department notified employees that PennDOT’s Gifts and Favors
policy was rescinded in light of the issuance of the Executive Order. Additionally, PennDOT will issue notifications
to business partners about Executive Order 2015-01 and include emphasis on the
new requirements in agent training courses. Finally, PennDOT noted its current
contracts require compliance with Contractor Integrity Provisions, which would
include the requirement to observe all applicable directives relating to
PennDOT employees. The department’s contracts will also be reviewed to identify
potential additional modifications to ensure alignment with Executive Order
2015-01.
PennDOT also
informed OIG that its list of business partners changes regularly. The
department already instructed Driver License Centers to discontinue providing
lists to customers and, instead, the Centers now refer customers to the
internet, which allows customers to identify and select PennDOT business
partners independently.