Virginia Code 30-138: State agencies, courts, and local constitutional officers to report certain fraudulent transactions; penalty
A. Upon the discovery of circumstances suggesting a reasonable possibility that a fraudulent transaction has occurred involving funds or property under the control of any state department, court, officer, board, commission, institution or other agency of the Commonwealth, including local constitutional officers and appointed officials exercising the powers of elected constitutional officers, as to which one or more officers or employees of state or local government may be party thereto, the state agency head, court clerk or local official in charge of such entity shall promptly report such information to the Auditor of Public Accounts (Auditor), the State Inspector General, and the Superintendent of State Police (Superintendent).
Attorney's Note
Under the Virginia Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class 3 misdemeanor | up to $500 |
Terms Used In Virginia Code 30-138
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
- Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
- state agency: means the same as that term is defined in § 2. See Virginia Code 1-206
B. The Auditor, the State Inspector General, or the Superintendent shall review the information reported pursuant to subsection A and individually determine the most appropriate method to investigate the information. In the event that the Auditor, the State Inspector General, or the Superintendent determines to conduct an investigation, he shall notify the others of the commencement of the investigation as soon as practicable, unless the information involves the Auditor, the State Inspector General, or the Superintendent.
C. No state department, court, officer, board, commission, institution or other agency of the Commonwealth, including local constitutional officers and appointed officials exercising the powers of elected constitutional officers, shall employ or contract with any person, firm, corporation, or other legal entity to conduct an investigation or audit of information reported pursuant to subsection A without obtaining the prior written approval from the Auditor and the Superintendent. Pending acknowledgement of the report and receipt of the written approval from the Auditor and the Superintendent, the state department, court, officer, board, commission, institution, or other agency of the Commonwealth, including local constitutional officers and appointed officials exercising the powers of elected constitutional officers, may use their employees to audit the circumstances reported in subsection A to prevent the loss of assets.
D. All state departments, courts, officers, boards, commissions, institutions or other agencies of the Commonwealth, including local constitutional officers and appointed officials exercising the powers of elected constitutional officers and their employees, shall cooperate to the fullest extent in any investigation or audit which may occur at the direction of the Auditor or the Superintendent or both as a result of information reported pursuant to subsection A.
E. The willful failure to make the report as required by this section shall constitute a Class 3 misdemeanor.
F. Nothing herein shall affect the requirements of § 52-8.2.
1984, c. 421, § 2.1-155.3; 1997, c. 825; 2001, c. 844; 2011, cc. 798, 871.