Agencies are collecting and warehousing more information than ever, but in many cases it’s inaccurate, incomplete or inconsistent, which leads to fraud, waste, abuse and other issues. This problem has gotten more dire in recent years, as governments gather more data points and increasingly rely on them for decision-making. This issue brief discusses how investing in the right data hygiene tools is crucial not only for attacking waste, fraud and abuse, but for paving the way for governments to continually improve citizen services for years to come.