§ 35-7.1-1. Establishment of office of internal audit and program integrity.
(a) There is hereby established within the office of management and budget an office of
internal audit and program integrity. Within the office of internal audit and program
integrity, there shall be a chief, appointed by the director of administration, who
shall be the administrative head of the office. The person so selected to be the chief
shall be selected without regard to political affiliation and with a demonstrated
ability in the following areas: accounting, auditing, financial analysis, investigation,
management analysis, and public administration. The office of internal audit and program
integrity will report to the office of management and budget director. Any reference
in general law to the "bureau of audits� or "office of internal audit� shall mean
the office of internal audit and program integrity.
(b) The purpose of the office is to prevent and detect fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement
in the expenditure of public funds including:
(1) All state programs and operations;
(2) The procurement of any supplies, services, or construction by state agencies, bureaus,
divisions, sections, departments, offices, commissions, institutions, and activities
of the state; and
(3) The procurement or expenditure of public funds by organizations or individuals.
(c) The chief of the office of internal audit and program integrity shall not hold, or
be a candidate for, any elective or any other appointed public office while a chief.
No current chief shall hold a position in any political party or political committee,
or, aside from voting, actively engage in the political campaign of any candidate
for public office that may cause a real or perceived conflict of interest, or participate
as a board member of any entity that receives state or federal funding.
(d) No employee of the office of internal audit and program integrity shall hold, or be
a candidate for, any elective public office while an employee, nor shall they hold
a position in any political party or political committee or, aside from voting, actively
engage in a political campaign of any candidate for public office that may cause a
real or perceived conflict of interest, or participate as a board member of any not
for profit entity that receives state or federal funding.
(e) The office of internal audit and program integrity is authorized to conduct audits
of any state department, state agency, or private entity that is a recipient of state
funding or state grants. In addition, the office of internal audit and program integrity
is authorized, but not limited to, evaluating the efficiency of operations and internal
controls, preventing and detecting fraud, waste, abuse, or mismanagement in the expenditure
of public funds, whether federal, state, or local, that are related to any and all
state programs and operations as well as the procurement of any goods, services, or
construction, by public bodies. As deemed necessary or expedient by the office of
internal audit and program integrity, audits may be made relative to the financial
affairs or the economy and efficiency of management of each department, agency, or
public body. The office of internal audit and program integrity shall determine which
such audits shall be performed in accordance with a risk-based evaluation.
(f) "Public body� or "public bodies� under this chapter shall mean state agencies, bureaus,
divisions, departments, offices, commissions, boards, institutions, including the
public institutions of higher education, districts, authorities, quasi-agencies, or
political subdivisions created by the general assembly, or the governor. "Public body�
shall also include any city and town within the state of Rhode Island but municipal
audits under this chapter shall only cover the expenditure of state or federal funds
distributed by the state. Audits and investigations of public bodies may include the
expenditures by nongovernmental agencies of federal, state, and local public funds.