[ Search ] [ Legislation ] [ Bill Summary ]
[ Home ] [ Back ] [ Bottom ]
90_SB1524
15 ILCS 405/9 from Ch. 15, par. 209
15 ILCS 405/22.3 new
Amends the State Comptroller Act. Provides for the
appointment of an Inspector General within the Office of the
Comptroller. Provides that the Inspector General shall
review warrants submitted to the Comptroller for payment.
Provides that the Inspector General may stop payment for
certain vouchers. Provides for notice to agencies submitting
warrants for which a stop payment orders are issued.
Provides for an agency response to a stop payment order.
Provides that the Inspector General may review State
contracts to a vendor for which multiple payments have been
requested to determine the appropriateness of the contracts.
Provides that the Inspector General may request that the
Attorney General investigate suspected fraud. Provides that
the provisions concerning the Inspector General are repealed
on January 1, 2009. Effective January 1, 1999.
LRB9011305MWpc
LRB9011305MWpc
1 AN ACT to amend the State Comptroller Act by changing
2 Section 9 and by adding Section 22.3.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The State Comptroller Act is amended by
6 changing Section 9 and by adding Section 22.3 as follows:
7 (15 ILCS 405/9) (from Ch. 15, par. 209)
8 Sec. 9. Warrants; vouchers; preaudit.
9 (a) No payment may be made from public funds held by the
10 State Treasurer in or outside of the State treasury, except
11 by warrant drawn by the Comptroller and presented by him to
12 the treasurer to be countersigned except for payments made
13 pursuant to Section 9.03 or 9.05 of this Act.
14 (b) No warrant for the payment of money by the State
15 Treasurer may be drawn by the Comptroller without the
16 presentation of itemized vouchers indicating that the
17 obligation or expenditure is pursuant to law and authorized,
18 and authorizing the Comptroller to order payment.
19 (c) The Comptroller shall examine each voucher required
20 by law to be filed with him and determine whether
21 unencumbered appropriations or unencumbered obligational or
22 expenditure authority other than by appropriation are legally
23 available to incur the obligation or to make the expenditure
24 of public funds. If he or she determines that unencumbered
25 appropriations or other obligational or expenditure authority
26 are not available from which to incur the obligation or make
27 the expenditure, the Comptroller shall refuse to draw a
28 warrant.
29 (d) The Comptroller shall examine each voucher and all
30 other documentation required to accompany the voucher, and
31 shall ascertain whether the voucher and documentation meet
-2- LRB9011305MWpc
1 all requirements established by or pursuant to law. If the
2 Comptroller determines that the voucher and documentation do
3 not meet applicable requirements established by or pursuant
4 to law, he shall refuse to draw a warrant. As used in this
5 Section, "requirements established by or pursuant to law"
6 includes statutory enactments and requirements established by
7 rules and regulations adopted pursuant to this Act.
8 (e) Prior to drawing a warrant, the Comptroller and the
9 Inspector General of the Office of the Comptroller may review
10 the voucher, any documentation accompanying the voucher, and
11 any other documentation related to the transaction on file
12 with him, and determine if the transaction is in accordance
13 with the law. If based on his or her review the Comptroller
14 or the Inspector General has reason to believe that such
15 transaction is not in accordance with the law, he or she
16 shall refuse to draw a warrant.
17 (f) Where the Comptroller refuses to draw a warrant
18 pursuant to this Section or as determined by the Inspector
19 General, he or she shall maintain separate records of such
20 transactions in accordance with Section 22.3 of this Act.
21 (g) State agencies shall have the principal
22 responsibility for the preaudit of their encumbrances,
23 expenditures, and other transactions as otherwise required by
24 law.
25 (Source: P.A. 88-412.)
26 (15 ILCS 405/22.3 new)
27 Sec. 22.3. Inspector General of the Office of the
28 Comptroller.
29 (a) The Comptroller shall appoint an Inspector General
30 of the Office of the Comptroller with the advice and consent
31 of the Senate. The Inspector General shall serve a term of 5
32 years beginning on July 1, 1999. The Inspector General shall
33 serve until his or her successor is appointed. No person
-3- LRB9011305MWpc
1 shall serve as the Inspector General for more than 2 terms.
2 The Inspector General shall have an annual salary of no less
3 than 10% less than the salary of the Comptroller. The
4 Inspector General's salary shall be set by the Compensation
5 Review Board after the first appointment is confirmed by the
6 Senate.
7 The Inspector General of the Office of Comptroller shall
8 be a certified public accountant or an attorney licensed to
9 practice in Illinois or shall have considerable experience in
10 the fields of public or corporate finance.
11 (b) Except for warrants for personal services, the
12 Inspector General shall have the authority to review all
13 warrants submitted to the Comptroller for payment. The
14 Inspector General may impose a stop payment order upon any
15 warrant if, in his or her opinion, the proposed expenditure
16 is clearly illegal, the cost is excessive for the type of
17 product provided, the cost is excessive for the type of
18 service to be performed, the product or service is
19 duplicative of an existing State-provided service, or the
20 expenditure clearly is not in the best interest of the people
21 of the State of Illinois. For the purposes of this
22 subsection (b), the "best interests of the people of the
23 State of Illinois" means an expenditure that does not serve
24 the function or the authority of the State agency or office
25 for which the expenditure is requested.
26 The General Assembly, the Supreme Court, and the courts
27 subject to the authority of the Supreme Court are exempt from
28 the authority of the Inspector General.
29 (c) Any stop payment order imposed upon a warrant must
30 have a statement attached to it by the Inspector General that
31 details the reason for issuing the order. The issuance of a
32 stop payment order shall prohibit the Comptroller from
33 issuing a payment warrant for 5 business days. Stop payment
34 orders, together with a statement supporting the order, shall
-4- LRB9011305MWpc
1 be forwarded to the appropriate agency within 2 business days
2 by the Inspector General. The director or executive officer
3 of the State agency for which the proposed expenditure was
4 requested shall respond to a stop payment order to the
5 Inspector General within the 5 days or the warrant is
6 cancelled. Upon the filing of a response to the stop payment
7 order, the warrant may be processed for payment unless the
8 payment would be illegal regardless of the rationale provided
9 by the agency. Agency responses shall be compiled by the
10 Inspector General.
11 (d) The Inspector General shall report quarterly and
12 annually to the Governor, the Attorney General, the
13 Comptroller, the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader
14 of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
15 the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, and the
16 Auditor General.
17 (e) The Inspector General shall also review any contract
18 or contracts to a vendor for which multiple warrants for
19 payment by the Comptroller have been requested to determine
20 the appropriateness of the contract or contracts. The
21 Inspector General may issue a special report on any such
22 contract. Special reports shall be submitted to the
23 appropriate elected officer and the agency or department
24 director or officer that has submitted warrants for payment
25 to the contractor.
26 (f) If a warrant is deemed an emergency by an agency,
27 then the expenditure shall be exempt from the stop payment
28 order. The warrant shall require a statement to verify the
29 emergency spending. Emergency statements shall also be
30 included in the quarterly and annual reports of the Inspector
31 General.
32 (g) The Inspector General may request that the Attorney
33 General investigate suspected fraud connected with any
34 warrant reviewed by the Inspector General.
-5- LRB9011305MWpc
1 (h) This Section is repealed on January 1, 2009.
2 Section 99. This Act takes effect on January 1, 1999.