Notice of Victim’s Rights
If a complaint is filed with the Office of the Executive Inspector General for the Illinois Comptroller (OEIG) which alleges you are the victim of discrimination, harassment, or sexual harassment in violation of Section 5-65 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), subsection (a) of Section 4.7 of the Lobbyist Registration Act, or Article 2 of the Illinois Human Rights Act, then you have certain Victim’s Rights with regard to investigations of those allegations by the OEIG as outlined in Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act (5 ILCS 430/20-63).
As set forth in Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act, an alleged victim of discrimination, harassment, or sexual harassment shall have the following rights:
Within 5 business days of receiving a complaint in which the victim is identified, the OEIG will notify the victim of receipt of the complaint, inform the victim of their rights under Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act, and explain of the process, rules, and procedures related to the investigation of the complaint’s allegations and the duties of the OEIG and the Executive Ethics Commission. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(1).
Within 5 business days after the OEIG decides open or close an investigation into the complaint or refer the complaint to another appropriate agency, the OEIG shall notify the victim of the decision unless the OEIG reasonably determines that publicly acknowledging the existence of an investigation would interfere with the conduct or completion of that investigation. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(2).
The right to review statements and evidence given to the OEIG by the victim and any summary of those statements and evidence, if such summary exists. The victim may make suggestions of changes to those statements and evidence for the OEIG's consideration, but the OEIG shall have the final authority to determine what statements, evidence, and summaries are included in any report of the investigation. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(3).
The right to have a union representative, attorney, co-worker, or other support person who is not involved in the investigation, at the complainant's expense, present at any interview or meeting, whether in person or by telephone or audio-visual communication, between the victim and the OEIG or Executive Ethics Commission. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(4).
The right to submit an impact statement that shall be included with the OEIG's summary report to the Executive Ethics Commission for its consideration. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(5).
The right to testify at a hearing held by the Executive Ethics Commission under subsection (g) of Section 20-50, to the extent the hearing is based on an allegation of a violation of Section 5-65 of this Act or subsection (a) of Section 4.7 of the Lobbyist Registration Act involving the victim, and have a single union representative, attorney, co-worker, or other support person who is not involved in the investigation, at the victim's expense, accompany them while testifying. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(6).
The right to review, within 5 business days prior to its release, any portion of a summary report of the investigation subject to public release under this Article related to the allegations concerning the victim, after redactions made by the Executive Ethics Commission, and offer suggestions for redaction or provide a response that shall be made public with the summary report. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(7).
The right to file a complaint with the Executive Ethics Commission for any violation of the above rights (as set forth in Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act) by the OEIG. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(b)(8).
Please Note:
The information contained on this website is a summary of what is set forth in the Ethics Act. For the exact language of these rights, please see, generally, Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act or review the citation provided after each subsection.
The Ethics Act uses the term “Complainant’s Rights” to refer to the rights of a “a known person identified in a complaint filed with an Executive Inspector General as a person subjected to alleged discrimination, harassment, or sexual harassment in violation of Section 5-65 of this Act, subsection (a) of Section 4.7 of the Lobbyist Registration Act, or Article 2 of the Illinois Human Rights Act, regardless of whether the complaint is filed by the person.” For clarity, and because the victim may not be the person who files the complaint, this website uses the term “Victim’s Rights” or “Victim” in place of “Complainant’s Rights” or “Complainant.” See generally, 5 ILCS 430/20-63(a).
The victim shall have the sole discretion in determining whether to exercise the rights set forth above (and in Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act). See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(c).
All rights set forth above (and in Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act) shall be waived if the victim fails to cooperate with the OEIG's investigation of the complaint. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(c).
The above notice requirements imposed the OEIG (as required by Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act) shall be waived if the OEIG is unable to identify or locate the victim. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(d).
A victim who receives a copy of any summary report, in whole or in part, as outlined above (and as required by Section 20-63 of the Ethics Act) shall keep the report confidential and shall not disclose the report prior to the publication of the report by the Executive Ethics Commission. A victim that violates this confidentiality requirement shall be subject to an administrative fine by the Executive Ethics Commission of up to $5,000. See 5 ILCS 430/20-63(e).
