bribeline u.s. report

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BUSINESSREGISTRYFORINTERNATIONALBRIBERYANDEXTORTION(BRIBEline)2011UNITEDSTATESREPORT

This report summarizes information about bribe demands made in the United States andreported to BRIBEline between July 11, 2007 and November 15, 2011. The objective of this

report is to identify patterns in reported bribe demands in the United States.

The 2011 BRIBEline United States Report is the seventh BRIBEline report published by TRACE.Please visitwww.BRIBEline.org to read BRIBEline country reports on Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine,Russia, India and China.

KeyFindings: Nearly 60% of all bribe demands reported to have occurred in the United States were

made by a person associated with the government, including government officials(16%), the police (14%), ruling party officials1 (8%), employees of stateowned entities

(7%), members of the military (5%), city officials (4%), state government officials (1%),or judges and judicial representatives (1%).

Conversely, 40% of bribe demands made in the United States were reported to havebeen made by a representative of a private company (21%) or by a bribe seeker whowas not readily identifiable by the reporter (19%).

With respect to the 16% of bribe demands reported to have originated from governmentofficials, the Office of the President or Vice President was cited in 60% of these reportsas being the source of a bribe demand. These bribe demands were reported to haveoccurred between 2002 and 2007.

Sixty percent of respondents reported that a bribe demand was recurring (that is, abribe was to be provided more than once). Of these recurring demands, over 40%reported being solicited for a bribe between two and five times in a given year, nearly30% reported being solicited between six and 20 times in a given year, and 18%reported being solicited more than 100 times in a given year.

Cash was demanded in over 70% of all reported bribe solicitations in the United States.On the other hand, noncash bribes were sought in nearly 30% of the reports. Thesebribe demands included being asked to assist with medical bills or tuition (10%),requests for gifts or other items of entertainment or hospitality (8%), a solicitation forsexual favors (7%), or a demand to provide travel (3%).

Nearly half of all reported bribe demands originating in the United States wereextortionate; that is, a bribe was sought in order to avoid damage to either personal orcommercial interests (27%), receive delivery of a product or service for which paymentwas already made (16%), or to receive payment for services already rendered (5%). Onthe other hand, nearly 35% of all reported bribe demands in the United States werepremised on obtaining an undue advantage, such as winning new business (25%),

1 The BRIBEline survey is available in 21 languages and is designed to elicit reports from all countries. As such,some of the terminology used is targeted to an international audience and is not tailored for a specific country.


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influencing a government official (5%), or receiving inappropriate favorable treatment(4%).

Over 25% of all reported bribe demands were for bribes valued at more than $50,000;44% of all reported bribe demands in the United States were valued at less than $5,000.

ComparativeAnalysisThe 2011 BRIBEline United States Report reveals distinct bribery patterns in the United Statesrelative to the other countries studied by BRIBEline. To date, BRIBEline has collected data onbribery patterns in Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine, Russia, India and China. In comparison to theseother countries, the United States has the lowest percentage (56%) of bribes demands reportedto have been made by all categories of government officials and, conversely, the highestpercentage of bribe demands reported to have been made by people associated with companies(21%), as opposed to government officials. In addition, the United States has the lowestpercentage (44%) of relatively small bribes, those valued at less than $5,000, but by far thehighest percentage (25%) of demands for bribes valued at more than $50,000. The rate ofrecurrence (repeated requests for a bribe payment in a given year) in the United States 60%

of all reported bribe demands falls in the middle of the other countries studied to date. Ofthese recurring bribe demands, however, the percentage of bribes made in the United Statesthat were to recur more than 100 times in a given year (18%) is second only to China at 19%.

The following chart compares key findings from the 2011United States BRIBEline Reportwith relevant data in the Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine, Russia, India and China BRIBEline Reports.

BRIBElineDimension UnitedStates Brazil Mexico Ukraine Russia India China

Bribedemandsmadebyindividualsassociatedwith

thegovernment

as

agroup

56% 81% 85% 92% 91% 91% 85%

Bribesoriginatingwitharepresentativeofaprivate

company21% 6% 3% 2% 3% 2% 3%

Bribedemandsfromasinglesourcemademore

thanonetimeinagivenyear(recurrence)60% 48% 57% 66% 56% 47% 73%

Ofrecurringbribedemands,percentofbribes

mademorethan100timesinagivenyear18% 15% 15% 7% 4% 9% 19%

Bribedemandsforcash 73% 73% 81% 87% 88% 92% 77%

Bribedemandsfornoncashitems 28% 28% 19% 14% 12% 8% 23%

Extortionatedemands 48% 41% 44% 58% 63% 77% 54%

Bribedemandsmadetogainanundueadvantage 34% 32% 28% 16% 16% 12% 32%

Bribedemandsforamountslessthan$5,001 44% 58% 65% 82% 87% 79% 51%

Bribedemandsforamountsmorethan$50,000 25% 8% 6% 4% 5% 5% 10%


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MethodologyBRIBEline, a project managed by TRACE, is an anonymous, online reporting tool that collectsdata about bribe solicitations made by official, quasiofficial and private sector individuals andentities. BRIBEline is a secure, multilingual website available in 21 languages. BRIBElinefocuses on demandside bribery only; no information is requested or collected about those whopay, or offer to pay, bribes.

The BRIBEline 2011 United States Report summarizes information about 73 incidents of bribedemands made in the United States and reported to BRIBEline in the period from July 11, 2007to November 15, 2011.

Full survey results from the 2011 United States BRIBEline Report follow.

Whorequestedthebribe?


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The largest percentage of bribe demands made in the United States and reported to BRIBElineoriginate with private company representatives (21% of all reported demands) or from anothersource (19%) that is not readily identifiable by the reporter as a government official, member ofthe military or police, or another specific category.

The majority of bribe demands in the United States 56% were requested by a personassociated with the government, including a government official (16%), a member of the police(14%), a ruling party official (8%), an employee of a stateowned entity (7%), a member of the

military (5%), a city official (4%), a provincial or state government official (1%) or a judge orrepresentative of the judiciary (1%).

With respect to the 16% of bribe demands originating from government officials, specificgovernment offices and agencies cited by survey respondents as being the source of a bribedemand include the Office of the President or Vice President (representing approximately 60%of all such bribe demands), as well as the various government agencies responsible forAgriculture (17%), Visas and Immigration (17%), and Taxation (9%).

1%

1%

1%

1%

4%

5%

7%

8%

14%

16%

19%

21%

Judge or Judiciary Representative

Non-Governmental Organization Official

Other International/Regional Organizations

Provincial or State Government Official

City Official

Military

Employee of State-Owned Entity

Ruling Party Official

Police

Government Official

Other

Private Company Representative

N=73


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Sixty percent of survey respondents reported that they received multiple bribe demands fromthe same source or that a bribe was to be provided more than once in a given year. Seventypercent of those who reported receiving recurring bribe demands were solicited between twoand twenty times in a given year. Nearly 20% of these reporters indicated they were solicitedfor a bribe more than 100 times in a given year.

Iftherequestforthebribewasrecurring(i.e.abribewastobeprovidedmorethanonce),approximatelyhowfrequentlydidtherequestrecurinagivenyear?

43%

27%

9%

2%

18%

5 times or fewer 6-20 times 21-50 times 51-100 times More than 100times

N=44


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Similar to all other countries studied to date by BRIBEline, cash (or its equivalent) is theoverwhelmingly preferred form of bribe in the United States. Nearly 30% of demands in theUnited States, however, were requests for noncash bribes, including a general Other benefit(for example, being asked to help expedite visas or secure medical care or scholarships) (10%),providing gifts, entertainment and hospitality (such as jewelry or tickets to sporting events)

(8%), granting sexual favors (7%), or financing personal travel expenses (3%).

Whichbestdescribestheprimaryformofthebriberequested?

3%

7%

8%

10%

73%

Travel

Sexual Favors

Gift, Entertainment or Hospitality

Other benefit (assistance with visas, medicalcare, scholarships for higher education, etc.)

Cash or Cash Equivalent

N=73


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Nearly half of survey respondents reported being the victim of extortionate demands, includingavoiding personal harm or harm to business interests (27%), receiving timely delivery of aservice to which the target of the bribe demand is already entitled (16%) or being asked for abribe in order to receive payment for services already rendered (5%).

In 34% of all bribe demands reported, an item of value was demanded in order to gain some

form of preferential treatment, such as the prospect of winning new business (25%), a promiseto exercise influence with or over a government official (5%) or the opportunity to receiveinappropriate favorable treatment (4%).

Pleaseindicatetheprimarynatureoftherequestedbribe:

4%

5%

5%

16%

16%

25%

27%

Receiving inappropriate favorable treatment

such as in a court ruling

Exercising influence with or over anothergovernment official

Receiving payments for services alreadyrendered

Other

Receiving timely delivery of a service to whichthe reporter is entitled

Winning new business

Avoiding harm to you or your business' interests

N=73


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Nearly half of all bribe demands made in the United States (49%) were valued at less than$10,000 and 25% were valued at greater than $50,000.

Valueoftherequestedbribe?

7%8%

19%

10%

5%

11%8%

5%

12% 14%

N=73


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Inwhatyearwasthebribereported?

14%

7%

1%

4%

16%

26%

4%

10%

12%

5%

Before2002

2002 2003 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

N=73

Nearly 75% of bribe demands made in the United States and reported to BRIBEline occurredbetween January 1, 2006 and November 15, 2011.

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