Project Match

Project Match

Project Match was a 1979 attempt by the Federal government to find welfare fraud by cross-checking the names in computers with the Department of Health, Education and Welfare against lists of current Federal employees.

Relevance

In 1979, Reagan did one of his Radio Commentaries about the 1977 announcement of Project Match and a small-scale experiment (cross-referencing HEW employees in the D.C. area against the welfare recipients) that was run before doing a full check and the results of that experiment. This broadcast is labeled with production number 79-10-B6.

Reagan believed the experiment to be a bust, costing more than it was worth. 15 people were found and none served any kind of jail time. Only $2000 was recovered. One woman had her career destroyed.

Research

While attempting to learn more about this program, an [Inspector General annual report for 1979] was found. Unfortunately, this 89-page PDF is not text serachable. Here is its description of Project Match (pg. I-5, 6):

— Project Match conducted jointly by OIG with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and State agencies in cooperation with State and Federal investigative agencies. This title covers a series of related projects described in detail in Chapter IV, all using computer techniques to detect fraud and error in cash payment programs by matching Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) rolls and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) rolls against Federal employee rolls, and State AFDC rolls against other States AFDC rolls. The results to date have shown the techniques to be valuable— we believe more valuable as a systems front end check than as an after the fact check. We also endorse the conduct of such projects under strict guidelines to protect individual privacy. We plan to bring these projects to a point by mid- summer 1980 where we can make better cost/benefit statements.

It then goes on to provide descriptions for several similar efforts, including Project Integrity I, a similar project which examined similar lists of names to look for Medicaid fraud through the Health Care Financing Administration. (Project Integrity II operated at a state level, for those states interested in participating.)

Project Match eventually turn up about 33,000 names, which was later narrowed to 19,713 and by the end of January 1980, 234 had court actions in process at the state level. Other checks were run, with varying results.

In the end, the Inspector General came to a number of conclusions (pp. IV-8, 9, 10):

1. Computer technology is an effective technique for monitoring public assistance programs for fraud and error.
2. The Interjurisdictional Match has high appeal to the States and significant savings potential.
3. Periodic matching of Federal civilian rolls is desirable. Beginning in 1980, this should be conducted as a match against the SSA "Summary Earnings Record” (SER).
4. Prosecution of interjurisdictional welfare fraud needs Federal involvement.
5. The other key lessons learned from Project Match are the characteristics of Federal employee abusers.