This report provides estimates of the savings resulting from DSHS investigations of welfare fraud. The welfare fraud investigations are conducted by the department's Division of Fraud Investigations generally at the request of local DSHS welfare offices. In 1998, DFI completed about 19,010 welfare fraud investigations. Almost 40 percent of there cases (7,403) resulted in clear negative action by the referring Community Services Office. Most of the negative action cases were determined ineligible; some had their benefits reduced. This report estimates that over the subsequent 23 months those 7,403 negative-action cases completed in 1998 yielded about $22.9 million in welfare costs avoided (savings). The savings compares favorably with the cost of the entire DFI operation, which was about $4.6 million per year for the 1997-99 biennium's.
