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6/12/2026
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Speaker Blazejewski’s legislation creating Office of Independent Inspector General included in state budget
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 STATE HOUSE – Speaker Christopher R. Blazejewski’s legislation creating an independent Office of the Inspector General was included in the passage of the state budget for the 2027 fiscal year.
The General Assembly passed the budget (2026-H 7127Aaa) on June 9 and Governor Dan McKee signed it into law today.
The budget included legislation sponsored by Blazejewski (D-Dist. 2, Providence) which establishes the Office of Inspector General to investigate the management and operations of state agencies as they relate to the prevention and detection of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement in the expenditure of public funds.
“This office is critical to ensuring that the state is spending each and every dollar as efficiently and effectively as possible,” said Blazejewski. “Every administration, regardless of party, benefits from independent oversight. It makes government more honest, more efficient, and more worthy of the public’s trust. An office of inspector general would provide an independent set of eyes, with real authority, that answers to the people. That is exactly what Rhode Island needs right now.”
The new Rhode Island Office of Inspector General will be modeled after the inspector general’s offices in several states, but most notably South Carolina and Delaware, which were the latest to adopt such offices.
The qualifications for hiring an independent inspector general would include a vast background in the fields of auditing and criminal justice, with a minimum of 10 years of professional experience in auditing, investigations, law enforcement or a related field. The inspector general could serve no more than two five-year terms.
The inspector general will be appointed by an independent advisory commission comprised of the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, the General Treasurer, the Ethics Commission, and a member of the Association of Inspectors General.
The governor will make the appointment from a list of three candidates submitted by the commission, and would be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
The inspector general will be able to initiate investigations into state and quasi-state agencies as well as municipal governments utilizing state funds. The office will also accept complaints from the public, with whistleblower protections in place to protect those bringing complaints forward.
For more information, contact:
Larry Berman, Communications Director for the Office of the Speaker
State House Room 322
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 447-2655
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