Government Whistle-Blower Bill Advances in Kentucky House

Whistleblowers in Kentucky could get financial incentives for reporting misuse of state tax dollars under a measure that passed the state House Monday.  Speaker Greg Stumbo sponsored the bill now heading to the Senate for consideration. Stumbo says the bill, dubbed the "False Claims Act," could root out fraud and reduce the state's budget deficit by millions of dollars.  Kentucky already has a whistle-blower law in place that applies to Medicaid programs. Stumbo's proposal expands that to the rest of state government.  Whistle-blowers would be eligible to receive anywhere from 15 to 30 percent of the money recovered as a reward for reporting government fraud.