1 Va. Admin. Code § 42-30-80 - Fund payments to whistle blowers

A. Within 10 working days, excluding state holidays and weekends, of the closing of a WBPA Program investigation that verifies a final recovery and deposit in the fund of $5,000 or more, the State Inspector General will review and certify the fund claim. Within five working days after the State Inspector General's verification, the whistle blower will be notified of the award amount he is eligible to receive. Upon approval of the fund claim, the State Inspector General will submit a written request to the State Comptroller to make a reward payment from the fund to the whistle blower.

B. The State Treasurer will make reward payments from the fund based on a warrant issued by the State Comptroller and a written request signed by the State Inspector General.

C. Award amounts.

1. The amount of the fund reward shall be up to 10% of the actual sums recovered by the Commonwealth as a result of the disclosure of the wrongdoing or abuse.

2. OSIG will consider many factors in determining the amount of an award based on the unique facts and circumstances of each case. OSIG may increase the award percentage up to the maximum allowed based on the following factors:

(i) the significance of the information provided to OSIG to the success of any proceeding brought against wrongdoers;

(ii) the extent of the assistance provided to OSIG in its investigation and any resulting findings;

(iii) OSIG's law-enforcement interest in deterring violations of the applicable laws by making awards to whistle blowers who provide information that leads to the successful enforcement of these laws; and

(iv) whether and the extent to which the whistle blower participated in his agency's internal compliance systems, such as, for example, reporting the possible violations through internal whistle blower, legal, or compliance procedures, before or at the same time the possible violations were reported to OSIG.

3. OSIG may reduce the amount of an award based on the following:

(i) if the whistle blower was a participant in or culpable for the violations reported;

(ii) if the whistle blower unreasonably delayed reporting the violations to OSIG; and

(iii) if the whistle blower interfered with his agency's internal compliance and reporting systems, such as, for example, making false statements to the compliance department that hindered its efforts to investigate possible wrongdoing or abuse.

4. The amount of the reward will not exceed the balance of the fund, regardless of the sums recovered.

5. In the event that multiple whistle blowers have simultaneously reported the same fund-eligible occurrence of wrongdoing or abuse, the fund moneys may be split up to 10% among the whistle blowers at the State Inspector General's discretion. The State Inspector General's decision regarding the allocation of fund moneys is final and binding upon all parties and cannot be appealed.

6. The request for payment will include the name and address of the whistle blower and the payment amount. OSIG will provide documentation supporting the amount of the payment to the State Comptroller.

7. Once approved, the State Comptroller shall forward the request to Finance and Administration of the Department of Accounts (DOA) with a request that Finance and Administration process the payment to the whistle blower.

8. DOA will ensure the amount of the fund reward is properly included in the whistle blower's federal and state tax records (i.e., W-2 for employees; 1099 for Commonwealth citizens).

9. OSIG will confirm that DOA processes the fund request and that the reward payment is made to the whistle blower for the amount approved by the State Inspector General.

D. Five percent of all sums recovered on behalf of the Commonwealth will be retained in the fund to support the administration of the fund, defray advertising costs, and subsidize the operation of the hotline. Expenditures for administrative costs for management of the fund will be approved by the State Inspector General.

Notes

1 Va. Admin. Code § 42-30-80

Derived From Virginia Register Volume 35, Issue 20, eff. 6/27/2019.

Statutory Authority: § 2.2-3014 of the Code of Virginia.