CHAPTER 7. THE INSPECTOR GENERAL
IC 4-2-7
Chapter 7. The Inspector General
IC 4-2-7-1
Definitions
Sec. 1. The following definitions apply throughout this chapter:
(1) "Agency" means an authority, a board, a branch, acommission, a committee, a department, a division, or otherinstrumentality of the executive, including the administrative,department of state government. The term includes a bodycorporate and politic established as an instrumentality of thestate. The term does not include the following:
(A) The judicial department of state government.
(B) The legislative department of state government.
(C) A political subdivision (as defined in IC 4-2-6-1).
(2) "Business relationship" has the meaning set forth inIC 4-2-6-1.
(3) "Employee" means an individual who is employed by anagency on a full-time, a part-time, a temporary, an intermittent,or an hourly basis. The term includes an individual whocontracts with an agency for personal services.
(4) "Ethics commission" means the state ethics commissioncreated by IC 4-2-6-2.
(5) "Lobbyist" means an individual who seeks to influencedecision making of an agency and who is registered as anexecutive branch lobbyist under rules adopted by the Indianadepartment of administration.
(6) "Person" has the meaning set forth in IC 4-2-6-1.
(7) "Special state appointee" has the meaning set forth inIC 4-2-6-1.
(8) "State officer" has the meaning set forth in IC 4-2-6-1.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-2
Inspector general; powers and duties; appointment and removal;reappointment; compensation
Sec. 2. (a) There is established the office of the inspector general.The office of the inspector general consists of the inspector general,who is the director of the office, and an additional staff of deputyinspectors general, investigators, auditors, and clerical employeesappointed by the inspector general as necessary to carry out theduties of the inspector general. The inspector general shall providerooms and staff assistance for the ethics commission.
(b) The inspector general is responsible for addressing fraud,waste, abuse, and wrongdoing in agencies.
(c) The governor shall appoint the inspector general. Theinspector general:
(1) except as provided in subdivision (2), shall be appointed fora term that expires on the earlier of the date that:
(A) the term of the governor who appointed the inspector
general expires; or
(B) the governor leaves office;
(2) may only be removed from office by the governor for:
(A) neglect of duty;
(B) misfeasance;
(C) malfeasance; or
(D) nonfeasance;
(3) must be an attorney licensed to practice law in Indiana; and
(4) is entitled to receive compensation set by the governor andapproved by the budget agency.
If the governor is reelected, the governor may reappoint the inspectorgeneral for an additional term. The inspector general's compensationmay not be reduced during the inspector general's continuance inoffice.
(d) Subject to the approval of the budget agency, the inspectorgeneral shall fix the salary of all other employees of the office of theinspector general.
(e) Except for information declared confidential under thischapter, records of the office of the inspector general are subject topublic inspection under IC 5-14-3.
(f) IC 5-14-1.5 (the open door law) applies to public meetings ofthe office of the inspector general.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-3
Duties; criminal investigation; recommendations; annual report
Sec. 3. The inspector general shall do the following:
(1) Initiate, supervise, and coordinate investigations.
(2) Recommend policies and carry out other activities designedto deter, detect, and eradicate fraud, waste, abuse,mismanagement, and misconduct in state government.
(3) Receive complaints alleging the following:
(A) A violation of the code of ethics.
(B) Bribery (IC 35-44-1-1).
(C) Official misconduct (IC 35-44-1-2).
(D) Conflict of interest (IC 35-44-1-3).
(E) Profiteering from public service (IC 35-44-1-7).
(F) A violation of the executive branch lobbying rules.
(G) A violation of a statute or rule relating to the purchaseof goods or services by a current or former employee, stateofficer, special state appointee, lobbyist, or person who hasa business relationship with an agency.
(4) If the inspector general has reasonable cause to believe thata crime has occurred or is occurring, report the suspected crimeto:
(A) the governor; and
(B) appropriate state or federal law enforcement agenciesand prosecuting authorities having jurisdiction over thematter.
(5) Adopt rules under IC 4-22-2 to implement IC 4-2-6 and this
chapter.
(6) Adopt rules under IC 4-22-2 and section 5 of this chapter toimplement a code of ethics.
(7) Ensure that every:
(A) employee;
(B) state officer;
(C) special state appointee; and
(D) person who has a business relationship with an agency;
is properly trained in the code of ethics.
(8) Provide advice to an agency on developing, implementing,and enforcing policies and procedures to prevent or reduce therisk of fraudulent or wrongful acts within the agency.
(9) Recommend legislation to the governor and generalassembly to strengthen public integrity laws, including the codeof ethics for state officers, employees, special state appointees,and persons who have a business relationship with an agency,including whether additional specific state officers, employees,or special state appointees should be required to file a financialdisclosure statement under IC 4-2-6-8.
(10) Annually submit a report to the legislative council detailingthe inspector general's activities. The report must be in anelectronic format under IC 5-14-6.
(11) Prescribe and provide forms for statements required to befiled under IC 4-2-6 or this chapter.
(12) Accept and file information that:
(A) is voluntarily supplied; and
(B) exceeds the requirements of this chapter.
(13) Inspect financial disclosure forms.
(14) Notify persons who fail to file forms required underIC 4-2-6 or this chapter.
(15) Develop a filing, a coding, and an indexing systemrequired by IC 4-2-6 and IC 35-44-1-3.
(16) Prepare interpretive and educational materials andprograms.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.89-2006,SEC.14; P.L.1-2007, SEC.4.
IC 4-2-7-4
Powers; subpoena and contempt; reports; serving as specialprosecuting attorney; civil and criminal actions
Sec. 4. To carry out the duties described in section 3 of thischapter, the inspector general has the following powers:
(1) As part of an investigation, the inspector general may:
(A) administer oaths;
(B) examine witnesses under oath;
(C) issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum; and
(D) examine the records, reports, audits, reviews, papers,books, recommendations, contracts, correspondence, or anyother documents maintained by an agency.
(2) The inspector general may apply to a circuit or superior
court for an order holding an individual in contempt of court ifthe individual refuses to give sworn testimony under a subpoenaissued by the inspector general or otherwise disobeys asubpoena or subpoena duces tecum issued by the inspectorgeneral.
(3) The inspector general shall prepare a report summarizing theresults of every investigation. The report is confidential inaccordance with section 8 of this chapter.
(4) If the attorney general has elected not to file a civil actionfor the recovery of funds misappropriated, diverted, missing, orunlawfully gained, the inspector general may file a civil actionfor the recovery of the funds in accordance with section 6 ofthis chapter.
(5) The inspector general may prosecute a criminal matter as aspecial prosecuting attorney or special deputy prosecutingattorney in accordance with:
(A) section 7 of this chapter; or
(B) IC 33-39-2-6.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-5
Code of ethics; filing ethics complaint
Sec. 5. (a) The inspector general shall adopt rules under IC 4-22-2establishing a code of ethics for the conduct of state business. Thecode of ethics must be consistent with Indiana law.
(b) If the inspector general investigates and determines that thereis specific and credible evidence that a current or former employee,a current or former state officer, a current or former special stateappointee, or a person who has or had a business relationship with anagency has violated the code of ethics, the inspector general may:
(1) file a complaint with the ethics commission and representthe state in a public proceeding before the ethics commission asprescribed in IC 4-2-6-4; or
(2) file a complaint with the ethics commission and negotiate anagreed settlement for approval by the ethics commissionaccording to its rules.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-6
Misconduct involving state business; report to attorney general;inspector general's authority to bring civil action
Sec. 6. (a) This section applies if the inspector general findsevidence of misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance,misappropriation, fraud, or other misconduct that has resulted in afinancial loss to the state or in an unlawful benefit to an individualin the conduct of state business.
(b) If the inspector general finds evidence described in subsection(a), the inspector general shall certify a report of the matter to theattorney general and provide the attorney general with any relevantdocuments, transcripts, or written statements. Not later than one
hundred eighty (180) days after receipt of the report from theinspector general, the attorney general shall do one (1) of thefollowing:
(1) File a civil action (including an action upon a state officer'sofficial bond) to secure for the state the recovery of fundsmisappropriated, diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained. Uponrequest of the attorney general, the inspector general shall assistthe attorney general in the investigation, preparation, andprosecution of the civil action.
(2) Inform the inspector general that the attorney general doesnot intend to file a civil action for the recovery of fundsmisappropriated, diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained. If theattorney general elects not to file a civil action, the attorneygeneral shall return to the inspector general all documents andfiles initially provided by the inspector general.
(3) Inform the inspector general that the attorney general isdiligently investigating the matter and after further investigationmay file a civil action for the recovery of fundsmisappropriated, diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained.However, if more than three hundred sixty-five (365) days havepassed since the inspector general certified the report to theattorney general, the attorney general loses the authority to filea civil action for the recovery of funds misappropriated,diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained and shall return to theinspector general all documents and files initially provided bythe inspector general.
(c) If the inspector general has found evidence described insubsection (a) and reported to the attorney general under subsection(b) and:
(1) the attorney general has elected under subsection (b)(2) notto file a civil action for the recovery of funds misappropriated,diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained; or
(2) under subsection (b)(3) more than three hundred sixty-five(365) days have passed since the inspector general certified thereport to the attorney general under subsection (b) and theattorney general has not filed a civil action;
the inspector general may file a civil action for the recovery of fundsmisappropriated, diverted, missing, or unlawfully gained.
(d) If the inspector general has found evidence described insubsection (a), the inspector general may institute forfeitureproceedings under IC 34-24-2 in a court having jurisdiction in acounty where property derived from or realized through themisappropriation, diversion, disappearance, or unlawful gain of statefunds may be located, unless a prosecuting attorney has alreadyinstituted forfeiture proceedings against that property.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-7
Crimes; inspector general's duty to report to prosecuting attorney;governor's recommendation; appointment of special prosecutor by
court of appeals judge; selection; powers and limitations;indictment
Sec. 7. (a) If the inspector general discovers evidence of criminalactivity, the inspector general shall certify to the appropriateprosecuting attorney the following information:
(1) The identity of any person who may be involved in thecriminal activity.
(2) The criminal statute that the inspector general believes hasbeen violated.
In addition, the inspector general shall provide the prosecutingattorney with any relevant documents, transcripts, or writtenstatements. If the prosecuting attorney decides to prosecute the crimedescribed in the information certified to the prosecuting attorney, orany other related crimes, the inspector general shall cooperate withthe prosecuting attorney in the investigation and prosecution of thecase. Upon request of the prosecuting attorney, the inspector generalmay participate on behalf of the state in any resulting criminal trial.
(b) If:
(1) the prosecuting attorney to whom the inspector generalissues a certification under subsection (a):
(A) is disqualified from investigating or bringing a criminalprosecution in the matter addressed in the certification;
(B) does not file an information or seek an indictment notlater than one hundred eighty (180) days after the date onwhich the inspector general certified the information to theprosecuting attorney; or
(C) refers the case back to the inspector general; and
(2) the inspector general finds that there may be probable causeto believe that a person identified in a certification undersubsection (a)(1) has violated a criminal statute identified in acertification under subsection (a)(2);
the inspector general may request that the governor recommend theinspector general be appointed as a special prosecuting attorneyunder subsection (h) so that the inspector general may prosecute thematter addressed in the certification.
(c) The governor may recommend the inspector general beappointed as a special prosecuting attorney if:
(1) one (1) of the conditions set forth in subsection (b)(1)relating to the prosecuting attorney is met; and
(2) the governor finds that the appointment of the inspectorgeneral as a special prosecuting attorney is in the best interestsof justice.
(d) If the governor has recommended the appointment of theinspector general as a special prosecuting attorney, the inspectorgeneral shall file a notice with the chief judge of the court of appeals,stating:
(1) that the governor has recommended that the inspectorgeneral be appointed as a special prosecutor;
(2) the name of the county in which the crime that the inspectorgeneral intends to prosecute is alleged to have been committed;
and
(3) that the inspector general requests the chief judge to assigna court of appeals judge to determine whether the inspectorgeneral should be appointed as a special prosecuting attorney.
Upon receipt of the notice, the chief judge of the court of appealsshall randomly select a judge of the court of appeals to determinewhether the inspector general should be appointed as a specialprosecuting attorney. The chief judge shall exclude from the randomselection a judge who resided in the county in which the crime isalleged to have been committed at the time the judge was appointedto the court of appeals.
(e) The inspector general shall file a verified petition forappointment as a special prosecuting attorney with the court ofappeals judge assigned under subsection (d). In the verified petition,the inspector general shall set forth why the inspector general shouldbe appointed as a special prosecutor. The inspector general maysupport the verified petition by including relevant documents,transcripts, or written statements in support of the inspector general'sposition. The inspector general shall serve a copy of the verifiedpetition, along with any supporting evidence, on the prosecutingattorney to whom the case was originally certified under subsection(a).
(f) The prosecuting attorney shall file a verified petition insupport of or opposition to the inspector general's verified petitionfor appointment as a special prosecuting attorney not later thanfifteen (15) days after receipt of the inspector general's verifiedpetition for appointment as a special prosecuting attorney.
(g) Upon a showing of particularized need, the court of appealsjudge may order the verified petitions filed by the inspector generaland the prosecuting attorney to be confidential.
(h) After considering the verified petitions, the court of appealsjudge may appoint the inspector general or a prosecuting attorney,other than the prosecuting attorney to whom the case was certifiedunder this section, as a special prosecuting attorney if the judge findsthat:
(1) one (1) of the conditions set forth in subsection (b)(1) ismet; and
(2) appointment of a special prosecuting attorney is in the bestinterests of justice.
In making its determination under this subsection, the court ofappeals judge shall consider only the arguments and evidencecontained in the verified petitions.
(i) Except as provided in subsection (k), a special prosecutingattorney appointed under this section has the same powers as theprosecuting attorney of the county. However, the court of appealsjudge shall:
(1) limit the scope of the special prosecuting attorney's duties asa special prosecuting attorney to include only the investigationor prosecution of a particular case or particular grand juryinvestigation, including any matter that reasonably results from
the investigation, prosecution, or grand jury investigation; and
(2) establish for a time certain the length of the specialprosecuting attorney's term.
If the special prosecuting attorney's investigation or prosecutionacquires a broader scope or requires additional time to complete, thecourt of appeals judge may at any time increase the scope of thespecial prosecuting attorney's duties or establish a longer term for thespecial prosecuting attorney.
(j) An inspector general or prosecuting attorney appointed to serveas a special prosecuting attorney may appoint one (1) or moredeputies who are licensed to practice law in Indiana to serve as aspecial deputy prosecuting attorney. A special deputy prosecutingattorney is subject to the same statutory restrictions and otherrestrictions imposed on the special prosecuting attorney by the courtof appeals, but otherwise has the same powers as a deputyprosecuting attorney.
(k) An inspector general or prosecuting attorney appointed toserve as a special prosecuting attorney under this section may bringa criminal charge only after obtaining an indictment from a grandjury. An inspector general or prosecuting attorney appointed underthis section to serve as a special prosecuting attorney may not bringa criminal charge by filing an information.
(l) The inspector general or a deputy inspector general who islicensed to practice law in Indiana may serve as a special deputyprosecuting attorney under IC 33-39-2-6.
(m) If the court of appeals appoints a prosecuting attorney to serveas a special prosecuting attorney under this section, the inspectorgeneral shall reimburse the prosecuting attorney for the reasonableexpenses of investigating and prosecuting the case.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.
IC 4-2-7-8
Confidentiality of informant; exceptions; records and disclosure;penalties
Sec. 8. (a) The identity of any individual who discloses in goodfaith to the inspector general information alleging a violation of astate or federal statute, rule, regulation, or ordinance is confidentialand may not be disclosed to anyone other than the governor, the staffof the office of the inspector general, or an authority to whom theinvestigation is subsequently referred or certified, unless:
(1) the inspector general makes a written determination that itis in the public interest to disclose the individual's identity; or
(2) the individual consents in writing to disclosure of theindividual's identity.
(b) The investigative records of the inspector general may be keptconfidential in whole or in part.
(c) This subsection does not apply to a person who is a party to anaction brought by the inspector general. Information received by theinspector general is not required to be produced in the course ofdiscovery unless ordered by a court after a showing of: (1) particularized need; and
(2) proof that the information requested cannot be obtainedfrom any other source.
(d) Except as provided in subsection (e), a person who knowinglyor intentionally discloses:
(1) confidential information or records; or
(2) the identity of a person whose identity is confidential undersubsection (a);
commits unlawful disclosure of confidential information, a Class Amisdemeanor.
(e) A person may disclose confidential information or records orthe identity of a person whose identity is confidential undersubsection (a) if the governor authorizes the disclosure of thisinformation in the public interest.
As added by P.L.222-2005, SEC.14.