Speaker’s Inspector General Bill Is Redundant to Existing Agency That Was Tasked to “Detect Fraud and Abuse”

Speaker’s Inspector General Bill Is Redundant to Existing Agency That Was Tasked to “Detect Fraud and Abuse”

Speaker of the House Christopher Blazejewski’s newly proposed Inspector General legislation provides it with the power to “...accept and may investigate complaints or information from any individual or entity concerning the possible existence of any activity constituting alleged fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement relating to any agency.”

Wait, you may have read this before. Another agency created by the Rhode Island General Assembly has pretty much the same responsibilities.

The legislation creating the Rhode Island Auditor General’s office required the office root out “fraud, waste, and abuse,” but since the law went into effect, there have been few examples of the office doing any of those things."

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The existing law for the office of Auditor General states:

“(i) The auditor general shall supervise, coordinate, and/or conduct investigations and inspections or oversight reviews with the purpose of preventing and detecting fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement in the expenditure of public funds,” states the Rhode Island General Law creating this other agency."

And remember, a GoLocal report unveiled on Wednesday unveiled that Blazejewski’s proposed legislation exempts the legislature from being investigated for fraud and abuse.”

GoLocal asked Blazejewski’s office about the conflict and if the Auditor General’s office would be redundant.

The Speaker’s office refused to answer questions about the redundancy and conflicts.

 

Criticism of Blazejewski’s Bill for Exempting the Legislature

Republican Lieutenant Governor candidate John Loughlin on Wednesday criticized the Blazejewski  Inspector General legislation for “deliberately shielding the entire legislative branch from independent scrutiny while claiming to fight waste, fraud, and abuse across the rest of state government.”

“Speaker Blazejewski says every administration — regardless of party — benefits from independent oversight,” said Loughlin. “Yet the bill he is introducing follows the narrow South Carolina model that explicitly excludes the legislative branch. The General Assembly wrote the rules so the new Inspector General can investigate the executive branch and municipalities, but not itself. That is not accountability — that is self-protection.”

Loughlin said that when he served in the Rhode Island House, the legislative branch budget stood at roughly $37 million. Today, that same budget has grown to $63 million. “Rhode Island families are right to ask why the legislature’s own spending has nearly doubled while it now exempts itself from the watchdog it is creating for everyone else,” he said.

Loughlin urged the House to strengthen the bill by adopting the so-called Delaware model, which excludes only the constitutional duties of the General Assembly. 

“Delaware’s language strikes the right balance: it protects core legislative functions while still allowing real, independent scrutiny of how taxpayer dollars are spent on staff, benefits, travel, consultants, and grants,” Loughlin said. 

“The House should make that common-sense change immediately. The legislative budget needs sunlight, not a shield," said Loughlin.

“Rhode Islanders deserve accountability in every corner of the State House — no exceptions, no excuses,” Loughlin concluded. “The era of self-exempting government must end.”

 

Fast Track By Blazejewski

The Blazejewski legislation is on a fast track. It is scheduled for a hearing today, May 21, before the House Finance Committee. By all appearances, the new Speaker will be racing this legislation through with little time for review or amendments.