Audit leads to Calif. VTA terminating 23-year paratransit partnership

SAN JOSE, Calif. — After an audit found the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s paratransit provider may have charged as much as $7 million a year for services it couldn’t document, the agency’s board voted unanimously to end its 23-year partnership with the nonprofit organization Outreach & Escort Inc., The Mercury News reports.

That same audit also criticized the agency for a lack of oversight over the nonprofit, which failed to supply data supporting its ridership figures during the first audit ever conducted of its $20 million annual contract.

Despite the VTA’s vote, Outreach's contract will continue for a year under tighter scrutiny until a new provider takes over. No changes for riders are planned. For the full story, click here.