For Transparency's Sake: Shining Light on the Push to Curb OIG Powers in Atlanta
IN BRIEF: Inspectors general, who serve to protect us from abuses of power by the federal government, are being fired by President Trump in swift succession. Meanwhile, in Atlanta, local officials are also working to restrict the powers of the city’s own Inspector General, which protects the Atlanta community from governmental abuses. Atlanta’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) was created in 2020 after a federal investigation and indictments of nearly a dozen people on bribery or other related charges, including for luxury travel and the purchase of custom-built machine guns. An OIG must be impartial and independent to effectively fulfill its mission of investigating government corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse. But, in Atlanta, city leadership is trying to change that.
WHY IT MATTERS: Changes to the city’s charter proposed by Atlanta city officials in a bill (25-O-1009) will shield government employees from scrutiny, limit the investigative powers of the OIG, erode the role of community organizations, give city leadership additional power over the agency, and even hinder efforts to address corruption. Atlanta residents stand to suffer if this watchdog’s power is inhibited. No government should be allowed to simply dismantle the agency that is supposed to investigate it. After all, the Atlanta city government – or any government - can’t exactly impartially investigate itself.
ON THE HORIZON: The bill is working its way through city council. Most recently, the council conducted a joint working session on the bill on the morning of on Jan. 30, 2025.
LDF AT WORK: On the evening of Jan. 30, 2025, LDF and partners hosted a town hall at the Southern Center for Human Rights. The event allowed community members to learn about what the Atlanta OIG does and how it protects Atlanta residents from corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse by city officials.