Welcome to the May 17, 2005, issue of BullsEye, the On Point Technology newsletter. Our goal is to keep you up-to-date on the latest unemployment insurance news and developments at On Point Technology.

In this issue:

• DOL/ETA ANNOUNCES 2005 GRANTS
• Alaska decides to upgrade Barts
• On Point Technology to exhibit at NASWA 2005 UI Technology Connection Conference
• Industry News: DOL manager in on fraud scheme
• Did You Know? Barts' Fast Path feature

DOL/ETA ANNOUNCES 2005 GRANTS

On May 12, 2005, the US Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (DOL/ETA) announced two funding opportunities of vital interest to state workforce agencies.

Field Memorandum 12-05 is a call for states to submit supplemental budget requests (SBRs) for an "Unemployment Insurance Integrity Crossmatch Systems Funding Opportunity." The grant would provide funding to implement or improve systems for matching unemployment insurance data with other state and federal agency data in order to detect fraud and non-fraud overpayments. Up to $100,000 is available for each data source with which a crossmatch will be implemented or improved. Funding can cover software, hardware and one-time personnel costs. ETA regional offices will set due dates for state workforce agencies to submit proposals, while final SBR submissions are due to the national office by July 2, 2005.

Field Memorandum 13-05 is a call for state workforce agencies to submit proposals for an "Unemployment Insurance FY 2005 Supplemental Funding Opportunity." The grant would provide one-time funding for six purposes:

• Combat identity theft (up to $500,000)
• Access National New Hire Directory (up to $200,000)
• Improve performance, including detection of overpayments (up to $500,000)
• Acquire AutoCoder (up to $250,000)
• Reduce postage costs (up to $50,000)
• Obtain an independent verification that the state unemployment insurance data validation systems meet federal requirements (up to $100,000)

ETA regional offices will set due dates for state workforce agencies to submit proposals, while final SBR submissions are due to the national office by June 24, 2005.

These are excellent opportunities for state workforce agencies to obtain funding to procure On Point Technology's Barts and Aware software, which detect overpayments and identity theft, and automatically manage the discovered cases. On Point Technology is preparing to distribute a package of information for states that wish to pursue these grants. For more information on Barts and Aware, contact Bob Yokavonus at 908-526-0426 or robert.yokavonus@onpointtech.com.

Alaska decides to upgrade Barts

Alaska's Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOLWD), a long-time On Point Technology customer, has elected to upgrade to the new release of Barts, which includes all new Enhanced Adjudication capabilities. "We are delighted Alaska has decided to take advantage of the new features available in Barts," said Michael Lorsbach, President of On Point Technology. "This will ensure Alaska's DOLWD will maintain its status as a leader in detecting overpayments, investigating fraud and efficiently managing its unemployment insurance trust fund."

On Point Technology to exhibit at NASWA 2005 UI Technology Connection Conference

On Point Technology will showcase its suite of software at the 2005 UI Technology Connection Conference, sponsored by the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) June 12-16 in Wilmington, NC. The conference focuses exclusively on the application of technology in unemployment insurance program administration. It attracts a national group of program practitioners and information technology specialists from nearly every state workforce agency, as well as the private sector.

On Point Technology representatives Ron Burkhart, Michael Lorsbach, Michael Marshman and Bob Yokavonus will conduct software demos at the company's booth, and will also be available for more in-depth demonstrations upon participant request.

Industry News

"DOL manager charged in fraud scheme" - A manager in the Jersey City office of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOLWD) has been charged with official misconduct, conspiracy and disclosing data, according to Hackensack, New Jersey, Police Chief Charles Zisa. If convicted, the manager faces up to 30 years in jail.

Is he accused of stealing checks? No. Supplies? No. Equipment? No.

He is accused of stealing the Labor Department's client information—such as occupations, salaries and places of employment— and selling it to a man posing as a collections expert and private detective, who then resold the information to law firms and collection agencies. This pilfering of Labor Department data is part of a larger scheme that currently involves data theft from four banks across northern New Jersey. Seven bank employees, including managers and financial specialists, have been charged in addition to the scheme's ringleader and the Labor Department manager. This scheme, which may have compromised as many as 500,000 personal accounts, is the largest breach of banking security in the nation, according to a US Treasury Department official.

Specific details regarding the Labor Department data theft have not been made available to the public, so it is unknown whether the data was taken from wage records, unemployment insurance claims or job service applications, or some combination thereof. Regardless of what was stolen, this case demonstrates the urgent need for state workforce agencies to deploy transaction analysis or other audit trail techniques in order to monitor who is accessing, querying and altering agency records. In the hands of criminals, stolen data can be even more valuable than fraudulently obtained unemployment insurance checks, and is just as illegal.

On Point Technology's Aware software enables you to perform analyses of such data files in order to identify instances of unauthorized data access and use. If you would like more information on how Aware can improve data analysis and fraud detection for your organization, contact Bob Yokavonus at 908-526-0426 or robert.yokavonus@onpointtech.com.

Read the full story on the New Jersey data theft: "Inside ring is charged in financial data scheme."

Do you have a fraud story you'd like to share?
Let us know.

Did You Know?

Are your staff overwhelmed by the time-consuming task of processing fraud and non-fraud overpayments? Are you missing your timelines and quality targets? If so, you need to look at the "fast path" functionality provided in On Point Technology's Barts software.

The Barts Fast Path feature automates the process based on your state's unemployment insurance laws and rules and regulations. As a result, 50 percent of cases can be processed with no staff involvement, while 35 percent can be resolved with a simple 10-15 minute effort. Just a few remaining cases require some sort of investigation. Once configured with your business rules, Barts does the work and frees up your staff to use their time more effectively and on more critical job assignments. Overall, your organization will experience more consistent decisions, faster processing, less paper handling and increased worker satisfaction.

New to Barts? Fast Path is just one of the software's many features helping state workforce agencies provide more timely and accurate services while operating more efficiently and economically. Want to find out why so many states have already installed Barts and why more are on the fast path to do so? To schedule a Barts presentation at your office, contact Bob Yokavonus at 908-526-0426 or robert.yokavonus@onpointtech.com.

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