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Inspector General Employee Information
When and what should I report to the OIG?
Employees should report any situation that involves suspected waste, fraud, abuse
or mismanagement of NCUA programs, operations or assets. Examples of matters that
should be reported include:
- Contract and procurement fraud and collusion;
- Bribery and acceptance of gratuities;
- Gross mismanagement;
- Misuse, embezzlement or theft of government property or funds;
- Employee misconduct, such as misuse of official position or acceptance of unauthorized
gifts and other illegal or unethical activities.
What if I am not sure whether to report something?
Call us anyway to ask whether what you have should be reported.
**Above all, please do not undertake your own investigation. The OIG has
trained criminal investigators on staff to do this.
How to file a complaint
You may call the OIG Hotline at 703-518-6357 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT to
speak with an OIG investigator . After hours, you may leave a message and your call
will be returned the next business day.
Outside of the Metropolitan DC area, call 800-778-4806.
You may write to us : National Credit Union Administration 1775 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-3428
or
OIG
PO Box 25705
Alexandria, VA 22313-5705
Mail sent to the OIG office post box is retrieved by the OIG staff. It does not
go through the agency mail distribution center. You may also walk into our office
at NCUA Headquarters in Alexandria. We will be happy to speak with you. We cannot
guarantee the confidentiality of complaints sent via e-mail.
Must I cooperate with the IG?
NCUA Instruction 1910.08, October 14, 2003, provides that all NCUA employees must
cooperate to the fullest extent with OIG auditors and investigators. This means
that when an OIG auditor or investigator requests your assistance in an official
OIG audit or investigation, you must provide any documents or testimony requested.
Of course you do not forfeit your Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate yourself
if you are accused of a criminal violation.
An employee who fails to cooperate with an official OIG audit or investigation may
be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.
What to do during an audit
NCUA Instruction 1910.2, January 14, 1997, provides that all NCUA employees must
cooperate to the fullest extent with OIG auditors and investigators. This means
that when an OIG auditor requests your assistance in an official OIG audit, then
you must provide any documents or testimony requested. Of course you do not forfeit
your Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate yourself if you are accused of a criminal
violation.
An employee who fails to cooperate with an official OIG audit, may be subject to
disciplinary action up to and including termination.
What to do during an Investigation
It is important to cooperate fully with an OIG investigator who is conducting an
official investigation. If the investigator asks for your statement or asks for
documents, you must provide them. Of course, you do not forfeit your Fifth Amendment
right not to incriminate yourself if you are accused of a criminal violation.
It is also important not to discuss an investigator’s questions and your answers
with anyone else. This could interfere with the conduct of the investigation.
Ethics Questions
All ethics questions should be directed to the Designated Agency Ethics Official,
the Deputy General Counsel, or his designee.
Is my identity confidential?
When you contact the IG you may ask to remain anonymous, or ask that your identity
be kept confidential. Under Section 7(b) of the IG Act, the OIG must not disclose
a complaining employee’s identity without his or her consent unless the IG determines
that disclosure is unavoidable during the course of the investigation. Such disclosure
is very rare and usually occurs when a court or Congressional committee requires
it.
It is important to remember that if you ask to remain anonymous or to have your
identity kept confidential, it may make it more difficult to investigate your complaint.