Senate Bill No. 399
(By Senators Wooton, Ball, Bowman, Dittmar, Hunter, Kessler,
Oliverio, Schoonover, Snyder and White)
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[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary;
reported February 4, 1998.]
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A BILL to amend chapter twelve of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article four-a, relating to
establishing an office for the receipt and referral of reports
of suspected fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement or waste
of state funds for the state of West Virginia; authorizing
employment of a staff; procedures; and confidentiality.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter twelve of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding thereto
a new article, designated article four-a, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4A. CENTRALIZED MANAGEMENT OF COMPLAINTS.
§12-4A-1. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds that there is no centralized state authority responsible for receiving and referring reports of
possible fraud, misappropriation of, mismanagement or waste of
state funds. It is the intent of the Legislature to see that all
state funds are utilized for the maximum benefit of the people of
the state of West Virginia. The Legislature finds that it is
important to provide the people of this state with both a forum and
an opportunity to report suspected fraud, waste or abuse of state
funds, and to have those reports properly investigated.
§12-4A-2. General purpose.
The state auditor shall have authority for receiving reports
of possible fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement or waste of
state funds of the state of West Virginia for referral to the
commission on special investigations, county prosecutors and law- enforcement agencies.
§12-4A-3. Duties generally.
(a) The state auditor may maintain a staff, one of whom shall
be a forensic certified public accountant, to receive and review
reports of suspected fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement or
waste of state funds which shall be filed in that office. Such
reports shall be confidential, except that the state auditor or his
or her designee may supply information necessary to effectuate this
article to the appropriate governmental entities.
(b) The state auditor shall establish modes of communication
sufficient to receive reports of suspected fraud, misappropriation of, mismanagement or waste of state funds. Reports of suspected
fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement or waste may be filed by any
citizen or employee of the state of West Virginia.
(c) Nothing in this article shall be construed to limit the
authority of any other governmental entity to conduct an internal
investigation of suspected fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement
or waste.
§12-4A-4. Enforcement.
(a) The authority to enforce the provisions of this article
shall be vested in the state auditor. The state auditor shall
promptly forward any evidence of suspected fraud, misappropriation
of, mismanagement or waste of state funds to the commission on
special investigations and, if potentially criminal in nature, to
the prosecuting attorney of the county in which such is alleged to
have taken place, to the law-enforcement agency with jurisdiction
in the area as well as to the commission on special investigations.
(b) If such reports are made about an agency that has its own
investigative body, then the state auditor may refer evidence of
the fraud, misappropriation, mismanagement or waste to that
investigative body.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to enable the State
Auditor to receive complaints for the fraudulent use of state funds
and refer such to the Commission on Special Investigations, state
and local law enforcement and local prosecutors.
This is a new article; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.)
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FINANCE COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
On page three, section three, lines one and two, by striking
out the words "maintain a staff, one of whom shall be a forensic
certified public" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "employ
a forensic".