Inspector General Brian Lampkin asks subcommittee for $647,309 and five staff to handle complex school investigations

Inspector General Brian Lampkin told the Senate finance constitutional subcommittee that his office is requesting an additional $647,309 for fiscal year 2627 to hire five full-time equivalent positions — a program manager, two senior auditors and two investigator-4 positions — to respond to a rise in complex investigations, particularly those involving school districts.

"If you look on in your packet on tab 4...we're requesting an additional $647,309 to support a request for an increase of staffing by 5, FTE positions," Lampkin said, explaining the roles and the justification for the request.

Lampkin said the office's investigative workload has grown in complexity and duration, noting that school investigations now take about 120 business days to reach a draft report compared with roughly 90 business days for a typical case. "We noted that our investigative time has increased about 50% over the last fiscal year," he said, adding that the added staff would help restore timelier responses.

He also asked the committee to carry forward proviso 94.2 into next year's budget to preserve funds for outside legal counsel, external forensic accounting services and continuing professional education for staff, citing certification and continuing professional education requirements.

Committee members expressed appreciation for the office's work and took the request under consideration as part of upcoming budget deliberations. "We do appreciate what you do, and we'll take this under consideration as we begin our budget deliberations over here," the chair said.

The subcommittee did not take a vote on the funding request during the hearing; members indicated they would review the packet materials and discuss the request further with the committee chair and with budget staff.