Filing a Complaint with the Office of the Executive Inspector General
Complaints alleging State employee misconduct, fraud, waste, etc., can be made to the Office of Executive Inspector General for the Agencies of the Governor (OEIG) by any member of the IMSA community. However, the complaint must relate to the official conduct of a State employee of a State agency, board, commission, public university or Illinois community college district under the jurisdiction of the OEIG or a person or entity (such as a vendor of the State) doing business with an employee or State agency under the jurisdiction of the OEIG.
Anyone who files a complaint should have a reasonable belief that the allegation being reported is true. In addition, anyone filing a complaint must provide sufficient detail concerning the allegation in order for an investigation to be initiated.
The OEIG will not investigate complaints that are unrelated to its jurisdiction, such as those generally related to city, municipal, county or federal government employees and officials, or federal or state court judges and legislators. The OEIG may also decline to investigate complaints that are more appropriately dealt with as a State agency management issue, such as a complaint from a State employee who is simply dissatisfied, without legal recourse, with a supervisor, work assignment or performance rating.
Violations
Examples of allegations of violations by State employees that may be investigated by the OEIG include (but are not limited to):
- Fraud
- Abuse of authority
- Corruption
- Theft of State property
- Bid rigging
- Improper time reporting
- Misuse of State property, equipment or other assets.
Reporting
Complaints may be filed either orally or in writing. Written complaints may be submitted using the OEIG Complaint Form. Visit the OEIG File a Complaint webpage for more information.
Filing a Complaint with IMSA’s Ethics Officer
Complaints regarding allegations of IMSA employee misconduct, fraud, waste, etc., can be made to IMSA’s Ethics Officer. However, the complaint must relate to the official conduct of an IMSA employee or a person or entity (such as a vendor of the State) doing business with an IMSA employee.
To report a violation you may do one of the following:
- Email a completed IMSA Ethics Complaint form to: ETHICS@imsa.edu
- Send a completed IMSA Ethics Complaint form to:
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy
Attn: Nashwa Mekky
1500 Sullivan Road
Aurora, IL 60506
Whistleblower Protection
If you are a State employee and you do one of the following things:
- Disclose or threaten to disclose to your supervisor or any public body an act or omission that you reasonably believe to be a violation of law, rule or regulation by another State employee
- Provide information to or testify before any public body conducting an investigation, hearing or inquiry into a violation of law, rule, or regulation
- Assist or participate in a proceeding to enforce the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act
Then a State agency cannot take retaliatory action such as:
- Reprimand, discharge, suspension, demotion, denial of promotion or transfer, or change the terms or conditions of employment of any State employee that occurs in retaliation for an employee’s exercise of any one of the three protected activities, above.
- Take action,within or without the workplace, materially adverse to a reasonable employee in retaliation for engaging in a protected activity.
- Threaten any employee with any act or omission if that act or omission would constitute retaliation against the employee under the Ethics Act.
If retaliations do occur, remedies to retaliation may include:
- Employee shall be made whole
- Reinstatement
- Two times back pay
- Interest on back pay
- Payment of reasonable costs and attorneys’ fees
The employee would need to pursue a civil action in order to attempt to receive some or all of the remedial relief listed above. The State circuit courts have jurisdiction to hear cases brought under the Whistleblower protections of the Ethics Act.
Confidentiality of Those Who File Complaints
Although the OEIG and IMSA’s Ethics Officer do accept complaints that are filed anonymously, the identity of all who file complaints with the OEIG and IMSA’s Ethics Officer will be kept confidential to the extent possible under the law. There may however be circumstances under which a complainant’s identity must be revealed by law.
