Amit writes: “Chris, I work for a tech firm that sells products to a federal agency under a contract requiring a 5 to 20% discount, depending on the product sold, off of the price the company charges private businesses for the same products. My company discounts its list prices if that is what it takes to make the sale to other businesses. This happens all the time. But the discount we give the government is based on solely on our list prices. This bothers me. What can I do about this?”
Amit, you are not alone. Over the past few years, many employees in the tech industry nationwide have stepped forward as whistleblowers because their companies defrauded federal agencies. Promising a federal agency a price discount compared to what private businesses are charged and then not providing the discount when charging for the item violates the False Claims Act.