Section 605.5  Definitions

 

                        "Act" means the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act [5 ILCS 430].

 

"Employee" means any person employed full-time, part-time, or pursuant to a contract and whose employment duties are subject to the direction and control of an employer with regard to the material details of how the work is to be performed, or any appointee, other than the Inspector General appointed by the Auditor General pursuant to Section 30-5 of the Act.

 

"Ethics Officer" means the person appointed by the Auditor General pursuant to Section 30-10 of the Act who shall act as liaison to the Inspector General.

 

"Inspector General" means the person appointed by the Auditor General pursuant to Article 30 of the Act.

 

"Ultimate jurisdictional authority" means, for employees of the Auditor General, the Auditor General.

 

Section 605.10  Jurisdiction

 

a)         The jurisdiction of the Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, misconduct, nonfeasance, misfeasance, malfeasance, or violations of the Act or violations of other related laws or rules involving employees of the Office of the Auditor General. 

 

b)         The Inspector General will decline to investigate the following types of complaints:

 

           

1)         complaints relating to conduct the most recent act of which occurred more than a year before the complaint is filed, except when there is reasonable cause to believe that fraudulent concealment has occurred.  To constitute fraudulent concealment sufficient to toll this limitations period, there must be an affirmative act or representation calculated to prevent discovery of the fact that a violation has occurred;

 

2)         complaints involving vendors of the Office of the Auditor General, unless the complaint also specifically alleges improper conduct by an employee of the Office of the Auditor General relating to that vendor;

 

3)         anything that has been fully adjudicated (administratively or in a court) or is pending before an agency or pending in civil or criminal court; and

 

4)         disagreements of legal interpretations relating to or arising out of the audit and examination process or decisions by the Office of the Auditor General relating to audits or examinations.

 

c)         The Inspector General may also decline to investigate the following types of complaints:

 

1)         complaints in which a person is dissatisfied with the Office of the Auditor General's administrative or personnel policies or procedures, such as the identity of one's supervisor or a work assignment; and

 

2)         complaints that are currently pending before another federal, State or local entity.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)

 

Section 605.15  Complaint Form

 

The Inspector General shall prescribe and make available a complaint form.

 

Section 605.20  Referral to the Appropriate Entity

 

If the Inspector General receives a complaint form or other information that alleges misconduct of an officer or employee outside his or her jurisdiction, and referral to another agency is agreed to in writing by the person filing the complaint, then the Inspector General shall forward the complaint form or information to the appropriate Inspector General,  appropriate ethics commission or other appropriate body and shall keep a record of this referral and its recipients.

 

Section 605.25  Referral to Law Enforcement Agencies 

 

When it appears that a case may warrant criminal investigation, the Inspector General may immediately refer the allegation to an appropriate federal, State or local law enforcement agency or State Attorney General.  Cases eligible for immediate referral for criminal investigation include complaints alleging criminal violations of the health or safety of an individual or the public.

 

Section 605.30  Opening an Investigative File

 

a)         An investigative file shall be opened upon receipt of a complaint form meeting the requirements of this Part.  Multiple complaint forms that relate to the same alleged acts of misconduct may be consolidated for purposes of investigation.  In the absence of a completed complaint form, the Inspector General may create an investigation file and assign the file a unique tracking number if, upon information received, the Inspector General reasonably believes that misconduct may have occurred within the Inspector General's jurisdiction.

 

b)         The investigation file shall contain the complaint form or, if none, so much of the information that would normally appear on the complaint form as is known to the Inspector General at the inception of the matter.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)

 

Section 605.40  Investigations

 

a)         Investigations shall commence upon the opening of an investigation file.

 

b)         The Inspector General shall have the discretion to determine whether reasonable cause exists to warrant the opening of an investigative file and to determine the appropriate means of investigation as permitted by law.  All investigations will be conducted in a professional and thorough manner.  Investigations will be properly documented and will be submitted in written reports of findings.  Proper documentation of an investigation shall include, at a minimum, a description of the alleged misconduct or offense; the events and circumstances surrounding the allegation, including the results of interviews, review of documents and records, and other material information revealed during the investigation; and a recommendation concerning the merits of the allegation.

 

c)         The Inspector General will utilize methods for investigative interviews consistent with current practices and techniques and will observe and comply with all laws and agreements related to the questioning of employees or other individuals.

 

d)         When the Inspector General concludes that there is insufficient evidence that a violation has occurred, the Inspector General shall close the investigation.  At the request of the subject of the investigation, the Inspector General shall provide a written statement to the subject of the investigation of the Inspector General's decision to close the investigation.  Closure by the Inspector General does not bar the Inspector General from resuming the investigation if circumstances warrant.

 

e)         Monthly Reports

 

1)         The Inspector General shall monthly submit reports to the Auditor General indicating:

 

                        A)        the number of allegations received since the date of the last report;

 

B)        the number of investigations initiated since the date of the last report;

 

C)        the number of investigations concluded since the date of the last report;

 

                        D)        the number of investigations pending as of the reporting date;

 

E)        the number of complaints referred to the Attorney General since the date of the last report; and

 

F)         the number of allegations referred to any law enforcement agency since the date of the last report.

 

2)         The monthly report shall be available on the Auditor General's website at www.auditor.illinois.gov.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)

 

Section 605.50  Summary Report

 

a)                  If the Inspector General, upon conclusion of an investigation, determines that reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation has occurred, then the Inspector General shall issue a summary report of the investigation.  The report shall be delivered to the Auditor General, as ultimate jurisdictional authority.

 

b)                  The summary report of the investigation shall include the following:

 

1)         A description of any allegations or other information received by the Inspector General pertinent to the investigation.

 

2)         A description of any alleged misconduct discovered in the course of the investigation.

 

3)         Recommendations for any corrective or disciplinary action to be taken in response to any alleged misconduct described in the report, including but not limited to discharge.

 

4)         Other information the Inspector General deems relevant to the investigation or resulting recommendations.

 

c)          The Auditor General shall respond to the summary report within 20 days, in writing, to the Inspector General.  The response shall include a description of any corrective or disciplinary action to be imposed.

 

d)         If the Inspector General determines that any alleged misconduct resulted in the loss of public funds in an amount of $5,000 or greater, the Inspector General shall refer the allegations regarding that misconduct to the Attorney General and any other appropriate law enforcement authority.

 

e)           Within 60 days after receipt of a summary report and response from the Auditor General that resulted in a suspension of at least 3 days or termination of employment, the Inspector General shall make available to the public the report and response or a redacted version of the report and response.  The Auditor General may make available to the public any other summary report and response or a redacted version of the report and response.

 

f)           Before a summary report is made public, information shall be redacted that may reveal the identity of witnesses, complainants or informants, or that the Inspector General or Auditor General determines is appropriate to protect the identity of a person.  The Inspector General or Auditor General may also redact any information either believes, after consultation with appropriate parties, should not be made public.

 

g)          Publication of a report or response may be withheld if the Inspector General or Auditor General certifies that releasing the report to the public will interfere with an ongoing investigation.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)

 

Section 605.60  Cooperation in Investigations

 

a)         It is the duty of every employee under the jurisdiction of the Inspector General to cooperate with the Inspector General in any investigation undertaken pursuant to the Act.  Failure to cooperate with an investigation of the Inspector General is grounds for disciplinary action, including dismissal.  Failure to cooperate includes, but is not limited to, intentional omissions and knowing false statements.  Nothing in this provision limits or alters a person's existing rights or protections under State or federal law.

 

b)         Any employee who is the subject of an investigation who, according to present evidence or allegations, faces potential discipline shall be notified by the Inspector General of whether the interview is criminal or administrative in nature and of the right to the presence of a representative or co-worker uninvolved in the investigation or the representation of a private attorney during any interview.  The interview subject shall sign a written acknowledgement of his or her understanding of these rights on a form prescribed by the Inspector General.  If, at any point, an interview subject indicates that he or she wants the presence of a person authorized by this subsection (b), the interview shall be suspended and a new date and time set.  Evidence obtained directly or indirectly in violation of this subsection (b) shall not be admissible in any proceeding.

 

c)         Interviews shall not be audiotaped or otherwise recorded without the written consent of the employee.  The written consent shall indicate that the interview subject is not required to consent to the audio recording and his or her refusal to consent to the audio recording does not constitute failure to cooperate with the investigation.  The written consent and audiotapes shall be preserved, unedited, in the investigation file.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)

 

Section 605.70  Confidentiality

 

a)         The identity of any individual providing information or reporting any possible or alleged misconduct to the Inspector General shall be kept confidential and may be disclosed only on an as-needed basis, including for referrals to other Inspectors General, the Attorney General or appropriate law enforcement agencies, or with the consent of the individual or as otherwise required by law.  The confidentiality granted by this subsection (a) does not preclude the disclosure of the identity of a person in any capacity other than as the source of an allegation.

 

b)         Except as otherwise provided in Section 605.50 for summary reports, any allegations and related documents submitted to the Inspector General and the Inspector General's files and reports are exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act [5 ILCS 140] and are confidential, except as necessary for referral to and possible action by:

 

1)         law enforcement agencies, prosecutorial authorities, other Inspectors General or other parties as permitted by this Part; and

 

2)         the Auditor General.

 

c)         If an investigation results in a finding that an employee engaged in misconduct, the results of the investigation and the names of the witnesses may become public in any ensuing administrative or judicial proceeding.

           

d)         Requests from the ethics officer for guidance on matters involving the interpretation or application of the Act or rules promulgated under the Act are exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.  Guidance provided to an ethics officer or State employee at the request of an ethics officer on matters involving the interpretation or application of the Act or rules promulgated under the Act is exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.

 

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 11477, effective August 13, 2010)