SAN BENITO – San Benito CISD joins other school districts in offering employees a way to report potential fraud or financial abuse.

Administrators said the move is to encourage transparency. It also puts the district in line with what other independent school districts, such as Harlingen and Mercedes, are doing to prevent fraud.

"The hotline is considered a best practice for any organization and serves to improve the ethics of its culture, providing company employees with an avenue to report inappropriate actions anonymously and confidentially," read a press release from San Benito CISD.

The idea is simple, anyone in the community but especially employees can call the new fraud hotline to anonymously report fraud embezzlement, misuse of property, ethical violations and more. The board of trustees said ti's just good business.

"We're trying to root out corruption and as you know in the Valley there's a lot of that going on," said board president Michael Vargas. "Making sure we're falling in line with what the community wants in terms of transparency with the board."

San Benito spokesperson Celia Longoria said a company called Lighthouse is providing the services for the fraud hotline. The district will spend an annual cost of $1,305 for the service.

Each time a report is made, the superintendent and internal auditor are notified to review the complaint.

The hotline numbers are 1-833-310-0030 for English speakers and 1-800-216-1288 for Spanish.

This is a full list of what can be reported to the hotline:

• Illegal or fraudulent acts
• Theft of district or property funds
• Misuse of district property
• Embezzlement
• Violation of the law
• Vandalism and sabotage
• Violation of policy other than DGBA (local)
• Falsification of contract, reports or records
• Ethical violations
• Bribery and kickbacks
• Improper conduct