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OGE and Offices of Inspectors General work Together to Protect the Integrity of Executive Branch Programs and Operations

October 22, 2024


Chip Christopher, Deputy Director of Compliance

Last week, I spoke with members of the Inspector General (IG) community about the various ways OGE supports the IG community. The symbiotic relationship between OGE and the Inspectors General is vital to the success of our government. In fact, OGE and the Inspectors General were created at virtually the same time in 1978 by the United States Congress as part of important government reforms after Watergate. OGE was tasked with the primary function of creating and implementing a set of uniformed ethics laws and regulations within the executive branch. And the IGs were tasked with investigating waste, fraud, and abuse across the executive branch, including potential violations of ethics rules by individuals as well as ethics program failures.

OGE supports the IGs in a variety of ways. Most directly, federal law requires an OGE official to serve on the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency’s Integrity Committee. This body is responsible for receiving, reviewing, and, as necessary, investigating allegations of wrongdoing by IGs themselves and certain other high-level members of their staffs: essentially a watchdog for the watchdogs.

OGE also provides technical assistance to IGs in their investigations of possible violations of ethics rules. For example, if an IG is investigating a possible violation of the gift rules, OGE might be asked to provide technical assistance to ensure that the investigator fully understands the rule or rules in question. OGE typically provides such technical assistance on live investigations to IGs approximately twenty times every year.

Another way that OGE aids IGs is through training sessions assisting investigators with their criminal conflict of interest investigations. For nearly 20 years OGE has offered these trainings, which familiarize IG personnel with ethics laws, rules, documents, and other helpful resources. During fiscal year 2024, OGE provided three trainings to nearly 450 IG staff from across the executive branch.    

In the 46 years since OGE and the Offices of Inspectors General were created, a relationship of mutual support and cooperation has developed. OGE will continue to foster this relationship in the coming years.