Delaware State News | April 30, 2025 | Opinion
by Keith Steck
For several years — and for unspoken reasons regarding creating an Office of the Inspector General — the Delaware General Assembly has not acted on well-supported, co-sponsored bills that were introduced, voted out of committee and ready to be called to the floor of the House of Representatives or the Senate for a vote. The burning question — “Why not?” — demands an answer.
Through the media, in programs with noted inspector general experts as speakers and panelists, and in presentations to various groups around the state, numerous organizations and individuals have worked to make a much-needed OIG possible in Delaware.
An entirely independent, nonpartisan office would be empowered to investigate instances of fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement that need to be addressed but often are not because they don’t always come to the attention of or aren’t under the purview of the offices of the attorney general or the auditor of accounts. Establishing such an office would help state agencies be more efficient and effective.
“We must do all we can,” said Sen. Brian Pettyjohn, R-Georgetown, the co-prime sponsor of 2025’s Senate Bill 4, “to ensure public officials are held to the high standard that all Delawareans expect. Creating the Office of the Inspector General would do just that. Having an official agency free from electoral politics to help keep the government in check is necessary and long overdue.”
After the 2022 OIG proposal was released by the House Administration Committee — and despite broad bipartisan support among the legislature’s leaders and members — the leadership in the House did not disclose why the bill was never called to the floor for a vote. Delaware citizens and good-government organizations — like the Delaware Coalition for Open Government, the League of Women Voters of Delaware and 15 others, which all supported the measure — remain in the dark as to why not. Questions like “What are you afraid of?” and “What are they hiding?” and “Who are they protecting?” have been quietly circulating up and down the state for several years and are now coming up more and more and being asked openly.
After the Senate Executive Committee voted to let the 2024 version move ahead, the Senate Finance Committee let the legislation languish, preventing it from coming up in the full Senate for consideration and a vote. Now, with the end of the 2025 legislative year approaching and this year’s bill (SB 4) in the spotlight, it is unclear yet again whether Finance Committee chair Sen. Trey Paradee, D-Dover, is going to advance it for a vote.
Sen. Paradee, stop stalling. Bring it to a vote before the Finance Committee, where it likely will pass, so the entire Senate can then vote on it! Stop hiding behind the false argument that this is a costly office; not only is it not a costly office to create and operate, it likely will more than pay for itself once fully operational, just like other inspector general offices around the country.
And stop using disproven arguments about an inspector general’s duplication of efforts in the attorney general’s and state auditor’s offices. If those offices are sufficient, why does the public continue to read about more failures of Delaware governmental programs to catch waste, fraud and abuse? And why are our legislators not acting if they see no effort to address these problems, especially given the broad support of good-government groups like DelCOG and especially given sponsorship among House members, the Senate leadership and our governor, who says that, if the bill passes, he will sign it into law?
Members of the General Assembly: If you really are concerned about these issues, hold a full House hearing, during which the public can counter unfounded arguments! You work for the people. Listen to our voices!
Citizens of Delaware: Because the First State faces steep federal funding cuts, which will likely trigger deep structural budget reductions for years to come, it is imperative that the Office of the Inspector General be approved this year.
The General Assembly must take substantive steps to offset budget reductions. Creating an independent, nonpartisan inspector general office is an essential tool in greater efficiency and in reducing waste, fraud, abuse and mismanagement in government, as well as in recovering lost or stolen state assets. In short, Delaware cannot afford not to create the office now.
Finally, in the last two months of this legislative year, we Delaware residents and organizations that care about good, well-run, cost-effective government should call and email our state senators and representatives to let them know that we demand passage of SB 4 to create the Office of the Inspector General. Residents who don’t know who their legislators are can visit legis.delaware.gov/findmylegislator to find their names and email addresses or call the number at the bottom of the page to reach them. They will take action when they read this, so the General Assembly won’t again fail to act in their constituents’ best interest. Delawareans should openly ask: “What are you afraid of?” and “What are you hiding?” and “Who are you protecting?” and demand passage of SB 4, by saying, “Pass it now! Citizens of Delaware deserve no less!”
Keith Steck is on the board of directors of the Delaware Coalition for Open Government. He is a resident of Milton.