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Hinkle bill to create Office of Inspector
General heard in House committee
Rep.
Bill Hinkle, R-Cle Elum, introduced a bill this legislative
session that would bring several state agencies’ fraud investigation
units under one reporting authority. The units would report to a new
Office of Inspector General, which in turn would report directly to the
governor. House Bill 1909 had a hearing today in the House State
Government Operations and Accountability Committee.
“This bill would consolidate the chain of command, and make fraud
investigators truly independent,” Hinkle said at the hearing. “It would
create a transparent system that brings accountability and confidence
back into our fraud investigations.”
Each year Washington spends about $10 billion on claim benefits, mostly
in the departments of Social and Health Services, Labor and Industries,
Employment Security, Transportation and the Health Care Authority (the
agency that provides state employee and low-income health care).
Today, these state departments have their own units designed to identify
and investigate claims fraud. But there has been a long-standing concern
that locating these units within state agencies can result in
conflicting direction and goals.
“Sometimes it is difficult for fraud units to operate independent of an
agency’s political or budget influence,” Hinkle said. “Let’s say an
agency received a federal grant to run a program, but exposing fraud
within that program might mean losing funding. Those are conflicting
goals. This bipartisan legislation eliminates that problem.”
House Bill 1909 would create the Office of Inspector General (OIG),
consisting of the inspector and minimal support staff. Agency fraud unit
would report to the OIG, and the OIG would report directly to the
governor. The bill would also require the OIG to report regularly to the
Legislature about any vulnerabilities or deficiencies related to fraud
detection and prevention. The OIG could apply for and execute warrants,
administer oaths, take testimony and issue subpoenas.
Several other states, counties and cities have Office of Inspector
General divisions to oversee fraud investigations, including Florida,
Illinois, Massachusetts, Ohio and Pennsylvania, as well as Chicago,
Illinois and Miami-Dade County, Florida.
“Any fraud that occurs in these programs is not only cheating taxpayers,
it’s also denying eligible citizens access to needed services,” Hinkle
stated. “In my book, such abuse cannot be tolerated. Having an OIG will
help us hold government accountable, bring lawbreakers to justice and
give us a way to help more citizens in tight budget times. It’s a good
idea whose time has come.”
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For more information, contact:
John Handy, Assistant
Communications Director - (360) 786-5758
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