Contract Procurement Corruption: Minority and Women-Owned Business Fraud and Pass-Through Schemes 1996-2010 By: Paris Tsangaris

Contract Procurement Corruption: Minority and Women-Owned Business Fraud and Pass-Through Schemes 1996-2010

By: Paris Tsangaris

Edited and published within the University of Illinois-Chicago Anti-Corruption Report entitled "Patronage, Cronyism and Criminality within Chicago Government Agencies" on February 14, 2011. The entire 82 page report can be found using the link below.

http://www.uic.edu/depts/pols/ChicagoPolitics/AntiCorruptionReport_4_FINAL.pdf 

Since 1985 the city of Chicago has maintained an affirmative action construction program dedicated to Minority-owned Businesses Enterprises (MBE) and Woman-owned Businesses Enterprises (WBE) with a stated mission to “remedy ongoing discrimination and the effects of past discrimination against women and minority groups, so as not to be a passive participant in such discrimination"[1] The program’s goal is to set aside roughly 24% of city’s construction contracts for MBEs and another 4% for WBEs. Unfortunately, the 28% of Chicago’s roughly $1.4B construction budget has become a target for corrupt and fraudulent contractors eager to qualify for the set-aside contracts.

Contract procurement corruption was uncovered during Operation Silver Shovel, one of the deepest and most extensive corruption investigations in Chicago’s history. Upon the completion of the operation, 18 individuals were convicted on corruption charges, including six former aldermen, the former Chicago Water Commissioner, the former President of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation district, and two city inspectors.[2] The investigation exposed a scheme perpetrated by a city commissioner to place a sham MBE on the city’s snow removal work list in exchange for cash bribes. It also exposed an alderman’s acceptance of  $10,000 in campaign contributions from deceased persons in exchange for fictitious MBE snow removal contractor status for an undercover agent’s business. The undercover agent also received by way of bribes Woman-Owned status for his businessl. Operation Silver Shovel successfully revealed a plethora of corruption; including labor union corruption, drug trafficking and organized crime activity within Chicago city government.

Chicagoans essentially pay a “contract corruption tax” as a direct result of the lack of competition and misallocation of city resources. The costs of fraud and inefficiency are passed on to the taxpayers. A large source of contract fraud was perpetrated by a single family- the Duffs. The Duff family and their employees defrauded the Chicago City Government to qualify for over one hundred million dollars in MBE and WBE set-aside business.[3] The head of the Duff family, James M. Duff, used his elderly mother Patricia Green Duff to create a sham WBE front by claiming that his mother owned and controlled at least 51% of Windy City Maintenance. He also convinced an African American employee to pose as the majority owner and controller of Remedial Environment Manpower. His indictment brought 33 charges against him and he plead guilty to each count earning him a ten year prison sentence and the obligation to repay $22 million in fines and restitution for defrauding Chicago by illegally taking contracts meant for minorities and women.[4]

Evidence shows that the Duff family members have monetarily supported the campaigns of Richard M. Daley. Duff family members, family businesses, and the union which the family controls contributed roughly $32,000 to Daley's campaigns.[5] It has also been alleged that once elected to office in 1989 Mayor Richard M. Daley instructed a top aide to ensure the Duffs receive a city contract. Shortly after winning the election the Mayor’s Office of Special Events awarded Windy City Maintenance a no-bid contract to clean up after the Taste of Chicago, a duty which earns the firm an additional $500K of revenue.[6] Additional evidence of Daley-Duff collusion was brought forward by Bruce DuMont, president of the Museum of Broadcast Communications, who told the Tribune that Daley personally instructed DuMont's wife, then a top City Hall staffer, to make sure that the Duffs received a share of city work.[7]

The profit potential of MBE/WBE set-aside business is so lucrative that even Ronald Harper former Chicago Bear fullback and President of Rohar Trucking could not resist the temptation of free money to run a front business. Harper’s MBE trucking firm was used by Aidan Monahan the President of Castle Construction to fraudulently obtain and sub-contract MBE contracts. Monahan used Harper’s firm to obtain MBE Chicago Public school landscape contracts, then instructed his firm to entirely and independently perform the work, rather than sub-contracting a minimum of 50% of the work to Harper’s MBE Rohar Trucking to satisfy the conditions of the contract. Both Harper and Monahan plead guilty to mail fraud. Collins Maintenance allegedly owned and operated by Monahan’s girlfriend voluntarily disbarred itself from participating in CPS contract bidding for 20 months.

The most recent major investigation involving federal authorities and corruption within Chicago’s MBE/WBE set-aside program involves Azteca Supply Co the largest female-owned WBE subcontractor on Mayor Daley’s multibillion-dollar O’Hare Modernization Project. Federal authorities claim that Aurora Venegas, President of Azteca Supply falsely represented to the City of Chicago that she performed a commercially useful function with regard to contracted work. It is alleged that Azteca Supply Co, a certified minority- and woman-owned business hired to preform contracting work on runway and restroom projects at O’Hare, operated empty warehouses and illegally subcontracted to firms owned by white men. Gery Chico played a key role in perpetuating the city’s certification of Azteca as an MBE, WBE, as well as a DBE (Disadvantaged Business Enterprise). Chico’s involvement is ironic due to the fact that while Gery served as former CPS School Board President, he was credited with blowing the whistle on Tru-Lite Windows for setting up a sham MBE by the name of Quality Windows to obtain school maintenance contracts^[8]. According to lobbyist reports Chico filed, his firm received $10,000 from Azteca Supply Co, to continually urge city officials to renew all three MBE, WBE, and DBE certifications; qualities which make Azteca a very popular contractor and sub-contractor.

 [1]Blanchflower, David G. Report on the City of Chicago's MWBE Program. Rep. City Of Chicago Department of Procurement Services, 10 June 2009. Web.

[2]USA. FBI.Operation Silver Shovel.FBI.Web. Jan. 2010. <http://chicago.fbi.gov/silvershovel/silvershovel.htm>;.

[3]O'Connor, Matt, and Ray GIbson. "Duff Pleads Guilty--for 3 Hours." Chicago Tribune 11 Jan. 2005. Print.

[4]Korecki, Natasha. "Duff Gets Nearly 10 Years in Prison Minority-contract Scam Based on 'pure Greed': Judge." Chicago Sun-Times 19 May 2005. Print.

[5]O'Connor, Matt, Ray Gibson, and Laurie Cohen. "Duff Told Mom to Lie, U.S. Says." Chicago Tribune 23 Nov. 2004. Print.

[6]Tuohy, John W. "Cleaning Up With The Duffs." American Mafia. Sept. 2001. Web.<http://www.americanmafia.com/Feature_Articles_157.html>;.

[7]http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-0309260301sep26,1,6020781.story

[8]Hepp, Rick. "Chico Accuses Alsip Company Of Fraud In Minority Schools Contract." Tribune [Chicago] 25 Apr. 2000. Print.

Prescriptions to Mitigate Contract Procurement Corruption within the City of Chicago By: Paris Tsangaris

Prescriptions to Mitigate Contract Procurement Corruption within the City of Chicago

By: Paris Tsangaris

Chronicling the history of contract procurement corruption within the city of Chicago uncovers flawed practices as well inspires the creation of new processes and procedures to mitigate contract procurement corruption. Evolutionary politics whereby flawed practices are promptly amended or replaced with promising new processes and procedures should be the standard the world over when combating municipal fraud.

Chicago’s first step to increase transparency and accountability is to maintain a current listing of city contracts on the cityofchicago.org website. The website is fragmented and missing data spanning from December of 2009 through April of 2010. Once brought current, the website should be more coherent and intelligible to allow for easy access by all.

Lifelong bans from Chicago City Business competition should be the standard rather than the exception when penalizing fraudulent firms.

Establishment of a credit rating system to qualify participating contractors further incentivizes efficiency and productivity. Firms may receive initial ratings based upon employment statistics as well as operational history. Credit score reductions are necessary when contracts are completed behind schedule and over-budget. Firms receive credit score increases when contracts are completed on or ahead of schedule as well as on or under-budget.

The Inspector General’s Office would be best suited to oversee the relationships which exist between contractors and sub-contractors, determine whether firms are meeting their contractual obligations to qualify for credit increases and reductions, as well investigating the integrity of firm claims relating to MBE/WBE status. Additionally, an anonymous hotline offering monetary incentives and rewards to individuals volunteering information leading to the indictment of conviction of fraudulently operating contracting firms should be established within the Inspector General’s office.

A possible means to create a more competitive and transparent marketplace may be to allow for virtual competition online whereby competing firms bid openly on city contracts.

Despite the best efforts of the bureaucrats and politicians within the city of Chicago, fraud and corruption are persistent and not entirely abolishable. Therefore, the risk of misallocating city resources to fraudulent firms is omnipresent. Contracts dedicated to MBE/WBE as well as the corresponding risk of city misallocation of resources should be spread across as many firms as possible. More small businesses and communities may be supported as a result of the city spreading contracts across as many firms as practicable.

Today we remember Sava Basic, a fallen community hero, devoted husband, loving father, exceptional son, inspirational brother, and friend to all.

 I am thankful for the opportunity and privilege to have known such a fine gentleman, and would like to take the time to share memories of him with you to celebrate his life as well as cherish and memorialize his memory. 

Sava was born to a great family. His mother played an active role in serving the school children in her community by working at Neuqua Valley High School. His brother followed in Sava’s heroic footsteps by serving our country as an elite combatant in the Army’s Ranger division. He married the love of his life, my close family friend Megan Basic, whom he dated throughout middle and high school. He was truly devoted to Megan, and it showed.

He dedicated his life to serving and protecting the community as a Bolingbrook Police Officer #1183. He represented his station as a powerlifting champion with a 600lb bench press. Sava was a leader not only in the weight room, on the football field, or in his uniform; growing up he was courageous and compassionate enough to engage in conversation with, watch over, and protect my brother who suffers from Downs  Syndrome whenever possible at school.

These anecdotal stories could never completely encompass or define Sava, but I hope they serve to illuminate the characteristics that he embodied, particularly: valor, integrity, compassion, wisdom, and selflessness.

Today: 25th anniversary of the Challenger disaster and the initiation of the 5 month countdown until the termination of the NASA Shuttle Program.

Today marks the anniversary of the Challenger tragedy, but what most people fail to realize is that another tragedy relating to space flight and exploration looms on the horizon. Exactly five months from today on June 28^th 2011, STS-135 will mark the last planned Space Shuttle flight and usher in the end of the American era of manned flight in NASA’s Shuttle Program.

Manned Space flight is iconic and serves as an inspiration to us all to dream more and reach farther; particularly students interested in mathematics and science. Irony is best used to describe the remarks of President Obama during his State of the Union address on January 25, 2011 when he challenged our countrymen to innovate and compete in “our generation's sputnik moment”, considering he effectively canceled NASA’s Constellation program in his 2010 budget. Spacecraft and landing equipment were being developed for America to revisit the Moon via the Constellation program which was set to succeed the Space Shuttle Program.

Following the completion of STS-135, Russia and China will be the only countries actively continuing manned shuttle missions.

Who is at fault for college students not learning, students or institutions?

By: Paris Tsangaris

The underlying article purports to place the blame for sub-par scholastic growth upon the universities and by association the professors thereof. I for one can attest to the overwhelming competency and dedication of professors I have had the pleasure of coming into contact with; however the same cannot be said for a significant percentage of collegiate students I have met. Perhaps the burden of self-growth should be placed squarely upon one's own shoulders. Students should be bold enough to self-scrutinize and dedicate themselves to scholastic growth and not rely on the institution or members thereof for motivation. The owness is on the students, period.

Report: College students not learning much

Authors say critical thinking, complex reasoning skills develop little

By ERIC GORSKI

updated 1/18/2011 1:11:22 PM ET

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You are told that to make it in life, you must go to college. You work hard to get there. You or your parents drain savings or take out huge loans to pay for it all.

And you end up learning ... not much.

A study of more than 2,300 undergraduates found 45 percent of students show no significant improvement in the key measures of critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing by the end of their sophomore years.

Not much is asked of students, either. Half did not take a single course requiring 20 pages of writing during their prior semester, and one-third did not take a single course requiring even 40 pages of reading per week.

The findings are in a new book, "Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses," by sociologists Richard Arum of New York University and Josipa Roksa of the University of Virginia. An accompanying report argues against federal mandates holding schools accountable, a prospect long feared in American higher education.

"The great thing — if you can call it that — is that it's going to spark a dialogue and focus on the actual learning issue," said David Paris, president of the New Leadership Alliance for Student Learning and Accountability, which is pressing the cause in higher education. "What kind of intellectual growth are we seeing in college?"

The study, an unusually large-scale effort to track student learning over time, comes as the federal government, reformers and others argue that the U.S. must produce more college graduates to remain competitive globally. But if students aren't learning much, that calls into question whether boosting graduation rates will provide that edge.

"It's not the case that giving out more credentials is going to make the U.S. more economically competitive," Arum said in an interview. "It requires academic rigor ... You can't just get it through osmosis at these institutions."

The findings also will likely spark a debate over what helps and hurts students learn. To sum up, it's good to lead a monk's existence: Students who study alone and have heavier reading and writing loads do well.

The book is based on information from 24 schools, meant to be a representative sample, that provided Collegiate Learning Assessment data on students who took the standardized test in their first semester in fall 2005 and at the end of their sophomore years in spring 2007. The schools took part on the condition that their institutions not be identified.

The Collegiate Learning Assessment has its share of critics who say it doesn't capture learning in specialized majors or isn't a reliable measure of college performance because so many factors are beyond their control.

The research found an average-scoring student in fall 2005 scored seven percentage points higher in spring of 2007 on the assessment. In other words, those who entered college in the 50th percentile would rise to the equivalent of the 57th after their sophomore years.

Among the findings outlined in the book and report, which tracked students through four years of college:

• Overall, the picture doesn't brighten much over four years. After four years, 36 percent of students did not demonstrate significant improvement, compared to 45 percent after two.
• Students who studied alone, read and wrote more, attended more selective schools and majored in traditional arts and sciences majors posted greater learning gains.
• Social engagement generally does not help student performance. Students who spent more time studying with peers showed diminishing growth and students who spent more time in the Greek system had decreased rates of learning, while activities such as working off campus, participating in campus clubs and volunteering did not impact learning.
• Students from families with different levels of parental education enter college with different learning levels but learn at about the same rates while attending college. The racial gap between black and white students going in, however, widens: Black students improve their assessment scores at lower levels than whites.

Arum and Roksa spread the blame, pointing to students who don't study much and seek easy courses and a culture at colleges and universities that values research over good teaching.

Subsequent research found students one year out of college are not faring well: One-third moved back home, and 10 percent were unemployed. The findings are troubling news for an engaged citizenry, Arum said. Almost half of those surveyed said they rarely if ever discuss politics or public affairs with others either in person or online.

The report warns that federally mandated fixes similar to "No Child Left Behind" in K-12 education would be "counterproductive," in part because researchers are still learning how to measure learning. But it does make clear that accountability should be emphasized more at the institutional level, starting with college presidents.

Some colleges and universities do not need convincing. The University of Charleston, in West Virginia, has beefed up writing assignments in disciplines such as nursing and biology to improve learning.

President Edwin Welch is among more than 70 college and university presidents pledging to take steps to improve student learning, use evidence to improve instruction and publicize results.

"I think we do need more transparency," Welch said. "I think a student at a private institution who might go into debt for $40,000 or $50,000 has the right to know what he can learn at the institution."

5 Tips to Avoid Loopholes in the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act) Effective February 22, 2010

By Paris Tsangaris

The CARD Act of 2009 will go into full effect next month on February 22, 2011 and will usher in the most comprehensive consumer protections since the Truth in Lending Act of 1968. Despite sweeping reforms in the credit industry there are still creative ways for finance companies to nickel and dime you. The following article will steer you away from traps and pitfalls that lie within loopholes of the CARD Act.

This graph from credit.com which illustrates the increases of fees, interest rates, minimum payments and reductions of credit limits and rewards benefits which prompted the adoption of the CARD Act. The entire article can be found here.

The following article will expose weaknesses in the CARD Act and offer recommendations to avoid unnecessary fees. The entire article can be found here.
5 tips for the new credit card era

By Leslie McFadden • Bankrate.com


Consumers will face new realities under the provisions of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure, or CARD, Act, which was signed into law May 22, 2009. Two provisions went into effect that August, while most will take hold Feb. 22, 2010. A final phase rolls out next August.




Here are a few tips for navigating key loopholes and protections in the new law.

1. Beware the advance notification exceptions.

On Aug. 20, 2009, a provision that required 45 days' advance notification of "significant" terms changes took effect. It applies to fees and finance charges, as well as some rate increases. Loopholes in the law leave consumers unprotected in some situations.For instance, the law doesn't require 45 days' advance notification for credit limit decreases. Consumers must keep abreast of their card limits each month. A silver lining: As of Feb. 22, consumers can't be zapped with overlimit fees for breaching a new, lower limit unless they have opted in to allow overlimit transactions.



Issuers also don't have to provide 45 days' advance notice of rate hikes triggered by a 60-day late payment, expiration of a promotional rate, termination or completion of a workout agreement, or shifts in a variable-indexed interest rate. If you have a variable APR, for example, your rate can ride increases in the index to which it is tied, such as the prime rate as published in The Wall Street Journal. Consult your card agreement to find out how your rate is calculated.
Read notices from your issuers, and verify the rate and credit limit each month when you get your monthly statement, especially before making a large purchase. Going near your credit limit can hammer your credit score.
Required advance notices must include an opt-out clause. Consider whether it makes sense to opt out if you dislike the proposed change. Opting out will close the account but ensures a "beneficial" repayment plan.

2. Don't fall into retroactive rate-hike loopholes.

Come Feb. 22, existing balances will be protected in most circumstances from a rate increase. If you miss the due date by two months or more, however, the APR applied to that debt can skyrocket. Owe a balance after a promotional rate expires and your rate can increase up to the regular APR. If you hold variable-rate cards, your rate will inch up with upticks in the index. The prime rate is the index for most variable-rate credit cards.



You can't control the index if you have a variable-rate card, but you can make sure your payment arrives on time. Issuers now have to keep the same due date every month and send statements at least 21 days before the bill is due. They also can't charge a fee to pay by phone, Internet, mail or any other means, except to expedite a payment through a service representative. Use whatever method you find convenient to pay bills in a timely manner. Late fees ranged from $15 to $39 in a 2009 survey by Consumer Action, a San Francisco-based consumer advocacy group, which included 39 cards from 22 financial institutions.

Also make sure you know when a promotional rate ends, and plan monthly payments so that the debt is paid off before the regular APR applies. Promotional rates must last at least six months under the CARD Act.

3. Weigh the pros and cons of opting out.

Along with any required advance notice of a change in terms, issuers must include an opt-out disclosure. Opting out closes the account, but can't constitute a default of the account or require immediate repayment of the balance. In fact, issuers must provide a repayment method "no less beneficial" than either a payment plan that spans at least five years, or a new minimum payment percentage that is no more than twice the previous percentage.

Opt out if you can afford a possible score hit from the account closure, but not the new fee or interest rate. Learn how account closures can ding your credit score.

4. Permission needed to go overlimit.

Under the CARD Act, a purchase that exceeds the credit limit can't trigger an overlimit fee unless the cardholder has opted in to allow overlimit transactions. The consumer must be informed of the overlimit fee they will incur if they surpass their account limit. Consenting consumers can only incur one overlimit fee per billing cycle during which their balance breaches the limit.

The only reason to opt in to overlimit transactions is if you know your balance will exceed the limit and want to ensure that the charge goes through. The law doesn't prohibit approval of overlimit charges when the customer hasn't given permission for them, but does leave room for denial.

If you need to go overlimit for whatever reason, you can switch on your overlimit privileges at any time, by making the request in writing, orally or over the Internet.

5. Watch for annual fees.

As the law was debated and passed, some experts speculated that annual fees could return. So far, their reappearance has been slow. The volume of mailed credit card offers carrying annual fees increased to 28 percent in the second quarter of 2009, up 1 percentage point since the first three months of the year, according to Synovate Mail Monitor, a global market research firm.

In addition, only eight out of 39 credit cards in the Consumer Action study charged annual fees.

Consumers shouldn't take any comfort from the lack of annual fees. Issuers only have to provide 45 days' advance notice before implementing an annual fee.

When shopping for a new card, avoid annual fees if possible. For rewards cards with annual fees, first do the math to see if the benefits offset the fee, based on your typical monthly spending.