Can and Cannot Investigate

Make sure you understand the types of complaints the Whistleblower can – and cannot – investigate.

We CAN investigate complaints where:

Someone who works for the County (such as an employee, vendor, advisory committee member, or volunteer) stole something from the County.

• Examples: An employee stole money, equipment, supplies, data, time, or something else.

Someone who works for the County cheated the County some other way.

• Examples: A vendor submitted a fake invoice, falsified a timesheet, or spent more time or money than they should have on something, even if it was unintentional.  

Someone who works for the County used the fact that they work for the County to give a friend or relative more help than they should have with a County matter.

• Examples: An employee helped their relative get a County job they weren’t qualified for and didn’t disclose they knew the person, or they made sure their friend got a County contract when they weren’t as well qualified as someone else.   

We CANNOT investigate situations where:

The problem was not related to County government.

• Examples: Someone stole your money on eBay or convinced you to get money out of your bank account for services you never received. Even if this happened within County limits, our staff do not have the power to investigate it.  We also cannot investigate issues under the control of other governments, such as the City of Bend or the State of Oregon.

You are unhappy with something the County did or did not do, but the problem does not involve fraud, waste, inefficiency, or abuse.

• Examples: Personnel matters (such as difficulties with a co-worker or supervisor), decisions made by Deschutes County Board of Commissioners, or reporting problems like a pothole, stolen bike, or abandoned vehicle.