HISTORY

Following a federal investigation into corruption in Atlanta government, in February 2019, the Mayor and City Council of Atlanta established a task force to assess the city’s oversight and investigative infrastructure to address fraud, corruption, and abuse by City employees, officials, and those interacting with City government.

 

The Task Force for the Promotion of Public Trust was constituted with appointments of the Mayor, the City Council, and the City Council President of former prosecutors, members of academia, former local government attorneys, residents of the City of Atlanta, and former judges. 

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The Task Force held five public meetings, during which it received testimony from subject matter experts and members of the public and relevant documentation, including state and local statutes and ordinances.

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In October 2019, the Task Force released a report of its findings, with the principal recommendation that the City create an independent Inspector General’s Office empowered to identify and investigate fraud, waste, corruption, abuse, and misconduct.

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Acting upon the recommendations of the Task Force, in February 2020, City Council passed legislation to form the City’s first Office of the Inspector General (OIG).  Under the ordinance, the OIG would consist of three divisions: Ethics, responsible for advice, training, investigation, and enforcement regarding the City’s Code of Conduct, and financial disclosures, to be directed by the City Ethics Officer; Independent Procurement Review, responsible for performing pre-audits of the City’s solicitations worth more than one million dollars, to be directed by the Inspector General; and Compliance, responsible for investigating allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse, to be directed by the Inspector General.    

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