Bill Text: NY A05612 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides for increased independence of the office of state inspector general; requires annual reports to the legislature on the activities of the office.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-07-15 - enacting clause stricken [A05612 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A05612-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5612 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 17, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. ZEBROWSKI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to the office of state inspector general The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivisions 1, 2 and 3 of section 52 of the executive law, 2 as added by chapter 766 of the laws of 2005, are amended to read as 3 follows: 4 1. There is hereby established the office of the state inspector 5 general in the executive department. The head of the office shall be the 6 state inspector general who shall be appointed by the governor and 7 confirmed by the state senate. The state inspector general shall have at 8 least five years of demonstrated experience or expertise in accounting, 9 public administration, or audit investigations as a certified public 10 accountant or a certified internal auditor, and shall not have worked 11 for any covered agency in the last five years. 12 2. The state inspector general shall hold office [until the end of the13term of the governor by whom he or she was appointed and until his or14her successor is appointed and has qualified] for six years. 15 3. The state inspector general shall report to the secretary to the 16 governor and the legislature. It shall be the duty and responsibility of 17 the state inspector general to keep the secretary to the governor and 18 the legislature fully and currently informed by means of reports 19 required by section fifty-three of this article and otherwise, concern- 20 ing corruption, fraud, criminal activity, conflicts of interest or 21 abuse, to recommend corrective action concerning such problems, abuses, 22 and deficiencies, and to report on the progress made in implementing 23 such corrective action. 24 § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 53 of the executive law, as added by 25 chapter 766 of the laws of 2005, is amended, subdivisions 5, 6 and 7 are EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04755-01-3A. 5612 2 1 renumbered subdivisions 6, 7 and 8, and two new subdivisions 5 and 9 are 2 added to read as follows: 3 4. prepare and release to the legislature and the public written 4 reports of such investigations, as appropriate and to the extent permit- 5 ted by law, subject to redaction to protect the confidentiality of 6 witnesses. The release of all or portions of such reports may be 7 deferred to protect the confidentiality of ongoing investigations; 8 5. report immediately to the secretary of the governor whenever the 9 state inspector general becomes aware of particularly serious or 10 flagrant cases of corruption, fraud, criminal activity, conflicts of 11 interest or abuse. The secretary to the governor shall transmit any 12 such report to the appropriate committees of the legislature within 13 seven calendar days, together with a report by the secretary to the 14 governor containing any comments such head deems appropriate; 15 9. (a) provide an annual report no later than December thirty-first to 16 the legislature summarizing the activities of the office over the last 17 year, including: 18 (i) a description of significant cases of corruption, fraud, criminal 19 activity, conflicts of interest or abuse within covered agencies 20 disclosed by such activities during the reporting period; 21 (ii) a description of the recommendations for corrective action made 22 by the office during the reporting period with respect to significant 23 cases of corruption, fraud, criminal activity, conflicts of interest or 24 abuse identified pursuant to this paragraph; 25 (iii) an identification of each significant recommendation described 26 in previous annual reports on which corrective action has not been 27 completed; 28 (iv) a summary of matters referred to prosecutive authorities and the 29 prosecutions and convictions which have resulted; 30 (v) a report on each investigation conducted by the office involving a 31 senior government employee where allegations of misconduct were substan- 32 tiated, including the name of the senior government official, as defined 33 by the department or agency, if already made public by the office, and a 34 detailed description of: 35 (1) the facts and circumstances of the investigation; and 36 (2) the status and disposition of the matter, including: 37 (A) if the matter was referred to the local, state, or federal prose- 38 cutors, the date of the referral; and 39 (B) if the agency declined the referral, the date of the declination; 40 (vi) a detailed description of any instance of whistleblower retali- 41 ation, including information about the official found to have engaged in 42 retaliation; and what, if any, consequences the establishment actually 43 imposed to hold the official accountable; 44 (vii) a detailed description of any attempt by covered agencies to 45 interfere with the independence of the office, including incidents where 46 the agency has resisted or objected to oversight activities of the 47 office or restricted or significantly delayed access to information, 48 including the justification of the agency for such action; 49 (b) these reports must be made available to the public with necessary 50 redactions within thirty days of their delivery to the legislature. 51 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 52 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
