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An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, amending Division 4 of the Allegheny County Code of Ordinances, entitled “Finances,” Chapter 485, entitled “False Claims,” to provide for clarity regarding the applicability of this Chapter to actions involving the misuse of County resources for political purposes.
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Whereas, in light of decreasing federal and state funding due to budgetary cuts at both levels of government, Allegheny County followed the example of numerous jurisdictions throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and United States, and enacted false claims legislation in 2011; and
Whereas, stated in brief, the County’s false claim ordinance authorizes the payment of a portion of any recovery against individuals or entities that defraud the County government to any individual(s) who discover the fraud and make it known to the County in a fashion that leads to the appropriate legal action(s) to recover the lost revenue can be commenced; and
Whereas, in 2011, it was the judgment of Council that the enactment of a false claims ordinance within Allegheny County constituted a measured and well-reasoned means of establishing an additional protection for the taxpayers of the County from the loss of revenues to unscrupulous individuals or other entities, making the County government both more efficient and effective; and
Whereas, it was further the judgment of Council that recovering a portion of revenues that would otherwise be lost entirely to fraudulent practices is a practice that will inure to the benefit of the County itself and its residents and taxpayers; and
Whereas, these determinations have become even more relevant as the County continues to endeavor to find efficiencies throughout its operations, and it is accordingly the desire of Council to amend the County’s false claims ordinance to expressly include additional provisions relating to the misuse of County resources for political purposes;
The Council o...
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