Delaware General Assembly

PWB 6/27/22

The General Assembly has ended, the current status is the final status.

HB 405 -HA 1

6/27/22

Kowalko

Rep. Michael Smith

Under Chapter 29 of Title 29, the Auditor of Accounts (Auditor) “shall conduct postaudits of all the financial transactions of all state agencies” with a scope that provides "assurance that reasonable efforts have been made to collect all moneys due the State, that all moneys collected or received by any employee or official have been deposited to the credit of the State and that all expenditures have been legal and proper and made only for the purposes contemplated." Under this Act, the Inspector General must “investigate the management and operation of state agencies to determine if there has been fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, corruption, or any other conduct that harms the public interest", which is broader than the accounting duties of the Auditor. Some examples of conduct that have been identified in states where an Inspector General has responsibilities similar to those under this Act include the following: • In Georgia, an agency administrator who faked multiple pregnancies, receiving 265 hours of leave for which she was not otherwise eligible to receive. • Massachusetts has recovered more than $245,000 from 13 former troopers within the State Police for overtime pay they received for hours they did not actually work. • In Indiana, a Department of Child Services worker was found to have falsified case notes regarding child welfare assessments. This Amendment clarifies that the Inspector General should not duplicate the work of the Auditor and requires the Inspector General to work with the Auditor, Attorney General, and other investigative or law enforcement agencies for the purposes of efficiency, coordination, and avoiding duplication of work. This Amendment also delays the effective date of this Act until the funds necessary for its implementation have been appropriated.

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