Mission Statement

The mission of the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is to promote the effectiveness and efficiency of programs and operations of County government and independent County agencies; prevent and detect fraud, waste, and abuse in government activities; and propose ways to increase the legal, fiscal, and ethical accountability of County government and County-funded agencies.

Budget Overview

The total approved FY24 Operating Budget for the Office of Inspector General is $2,917,321, an increase of $404,921 or 16.12 percent from the FY23 Approved Budget of $2,512,400. Personnel Costs comprise 95.30 percent of the budget for 19 full-time position(s) and no part-time position(s), and a total of 19.00 FTEs. Total FTEs may include seasonal or temporary positions and may also reflect workforce charged to or from other departments or funds. Operating Expenses account for the remaining 4.70 percent of the FY24 budget.

Consistent with the County Charter, the County Executive makes recommendations on the operating budget for all County departments, offices, and agencies. However, recognizing the Charter-defined roles, the County Executive defers significantly to Legislative and Judicial Branch agencies. Questions regarding the approved budgets for Legislative Branch departments should be directed to Sandra Marin, 240-777-7923.

County Priority Outcomes

While this program area supports all eight of the County Result Areas, the following are emphasized:

• A Growing Economy
• Effective, Sustainable Government

Program Performance Measures

Performance measures for this department are included below (where applicable). The FY24 estimates reflect funding based on the FY24 approved budget. The FY25 and FY26 figures are performance targets based on the FY25 approved budget and funding for comparable service levels in FY26.

Initiatives

• OIG spearheaded multiple new outreach initiatives for County Employees. The OIG now sends new County employees an email that explains OIG's role and ways to contact OIG. In addition, OIG was featured on a banner highlighting the OIG hotline for all outgoing County email for the month of November 2023 to recognize Fraud Awareness month.

• OIG began outreach efforts to MCPS to help educate Montgomery County Public Schools employees on how they can help the OIG to fight fraud, waste, and abuse, and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the programs and operations of MCPS and the Board of Education.

Innovations and Productivity Improvements

• A mechanism to track savings and improvements identified $133,000 in improper payments, $23,661 funds that could have been put to better use, $160,000,000 in potentially underreported spending, $210,000 in revenue loss, and $1,600 in theft through OIG audits, investigations, and referrals.

• Bill 27-22 expanded protections against retaliation to all complainants to the OIG, extended the obligation to report fraud, waste, and abuse to County contractors, and enhanced the subpoena power to ensure OIG access to necessary records.

Program Descriptions

  Inspector General

The Inspector General conducts independent audits, reviews, and investigations; receives and investigates credible complaints; reports possible violations of the law to law enforcement or another appropriate organization; notifies the County Council and County Executive of serious problems in programs; reviews legislation and regulations to strengthen controls and increase accountability; and...