AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT.

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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 462
February Session, 2026 LCO No. 2841

Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT
ADMINISTRATION AND ELECTIONS

Introduced by:
(GAE)

AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT
OVERSIGHT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) ( Effective October 1, 2026 ) (a) For purposes of this 1
section and sections 2 to 4, inclusive, of this act, "governmental agency" 2
means a state agency or a quasi -public agency, "state agency" and 3
"quasi-public agency" have the same meanings as provided in section 1-4
79 of the general statutes and "executive director" means the executive 5
director of the Office of Government Oversight. 6
(b) There is established an Office of Government Oversight that shall 7
act to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse in the management of 8
state personnel, in the use and disposition of state property and in the 9
collection, disbursement and expenditure of state and federal funds 10
administered by governmental agencies. The Office of Government 11
Oversight shall also evaluate the economy, efficiency and effectiveness 12
of governmental agencies in the performance of their delegated duties 13
and functions and of private entities that contract with such agencies to 14
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provide government services. 15
(c) The office shall be under the direction of an executive director, 16
who shall be appointed by the Auditors of Public Accounts in 17
accordance with this subsection, with the advice and consent of either 18
house of the General Assembly. A committee consisting of the president 19
pro tempore of the Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives, 20
the minority leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives and 21
the chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee 22
of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 23
government administration shall submit to the Auditors of Public 24
Accounts the names of three candidates for appointment to the position 25
of executive director. Not later than ninety days after the receipt of the 26
names from the committee, the Auditors of Public Accounts shall 27
appoint one of such candidates to be executive director and shall submit 28
such nomination to either house of the General Assembly to undergo 29
the confirmation process set forth in section 4 -7 of the general statutes. 30
If the auditors fail to make such appointment within such ninety -day 31
period, the committee by majority vote shall make such appointment 32
and submit such nomination to either house of the General Assembly 33
for confirmation. The executive director shall be appointed on the basis 34
of integrity and competence demonstrated in appropriate fields. The 35
executive director shall hold office for a term of five years and until the 36
appointment of a successor, in the same manner as the original 37
appointment, unless sooner removed for just cause by the Auditors of 38
Public Accounts. Such cause may include, but not be limited to, material 39
neglect of duty, gross misconduct or conviction of a felony. 40
(d) The Office of Government Oversight shall be an independent 41
office and shall be within the Joint Committee on Legislative 42
Management for administrative purposes only. 43
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2026) (a) The executive director shall 44
establish, within available appropriations, a system for the coordination 45
of efforts between the Office of Government Oversight and officials 46
performing similar duties and internal auditing functions within the 47
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various governmental agencies. Such system may include continuing 48
training programs for professional development, the adoption of 49
standard guidelines and procedures and the organization of a 50
communications network within the system. The internal auditors and 51
support staff within the agencies shall remain assigned to such agencies 52
but shall have their annual internal audit program approved by the 53
executive director. 54
(b) The executive director may adopt regulations, in accordance with 55
chapter 54 of the general statutes, to implement the provisions of 56
sections 1 to 4, inclusive, of this act. The executive director may employ 57
necessary staff, within available appropriations. 58
Sec. 3. (NEW) ( Effective October 1, 2026 ) (a) The executive director 59
shall: (1) Conduct preemptive inspections, inquiries and investigations 60
relating to programs and operations involving the collection, 61
administration or expenditure of state funds, the use or disposition of 62
state-owned or leased property or the management practices and 63
regulatory or statutory compliance of state agencies; (2) have access to 64
all records, data and material maintained by or available to any 65
governmental agency; and (3) have access to all records, data and 66
material maintained by or available to any person or organization 67
involved in the collection, expenditure or administration of state funds, 68
control of state -owned or leased property or management of state 69
employees. 70
(b) The executive director may apply to the Superior Court for a 71
subpoena to compel the attendance of such witnesses or the production 72
of such books, papers, records or documents as may be necessary in 73
order to obtain information that is not otherwise available and that is 74
needed in the performance of the executive director's duties. The court 75
shall, before issuing such subpoena, provide adequate opportunity for 76
the executive director and the party against whom the subpoena is 77
requested to be heard. No such subpoena shall be issued unless the 78
court certifies that the attendance of such witness or the production of 79
such books, papers, records or documents is reasonably necessary for 80
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the performance of the executive director's duties and that the executive 81
director has made reasonable efforts to secure such attendance or such 82
books, papers, records or documents without recourse to compulsory 83
process. 84
Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2026) (a) The executive director may 85
make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly 86
concerning the prevention and detection of fraud, waste and abuse, 87
including recommendations concerning legislation and regulations or 88
the coordination of preventive measures by governmental and 89
nongovernmental entities. The executive director may assist or request 90
assistance from any governmental agency, state employee or person or 91
organization collecting or expending state funds or controlling state -92
owned or leased property. 93
(b) The executive director shall report findings of fact along with any 94
recommendations: (1) To the Chief State's Attorney or the Office of State 95
Ethics, when the executive director has a reasonable belief that a state 96
law has been or is being violated; (2) to the Attorney General, when the 97
executive director has a reasonable belief that civil recovery proceedings 98
are appropriate; and (3) to the United States Attorney, when the 99
executive director has a reasonable belief that a federal law has been or 100
is being violated or when civil recovery is appropriate. 101
(c) On or before October 31, 2027, and annually thereafter, the 102
executive director shall submit, in accordance with the provisions of 103
section 11-4a of the general statutes, a report concerning the activities of 104
the Office of Government Oversight to the Governor and the joint 105
standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of 106
matters relating to appropriations and the budgets of state agencies and 107
government administration. The executive director may make such 108
other reports as the executive director deems appropriate. 109
(d) All records of the Office of Government Oversight relating to an 110
actual or potential inspection, or inquiry or investigation, shall be 111
confidential and shall not be public records under the Freedom of 112
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Information Act, as defined in section 1-200 of the general statutes, until 113
such time as (1) all such inspections, inquiries or investigations have 114
been concluded and all criminal and civil actions arising from the 115
records have been finally adjudicated or otherwise settled, or (2) to such 116
extent as may be deemed appropriate by the executive director in the 117
performance of the executive director's duties, whichever is earlier. 118
Records that are otherwise public documents shall not be deemed 119
confidential solely because they have been transferred to the custody of 120
the executive director. Where there are statutory requirements of 121
confidentiality with regard to such records, books, data, files and other 122
material printed or otherwise maintained by a governmental agency, 123
such requirements of confidentiality and penalties for the violation of 124
such requirements shall apply to the executive director and to the Office 125
of Government Oversight's employees in the same manner and to the 126
same extent as such requirements of confidentiality and penalties apply 127
to such governmental agency and such agency's employees. 128
Sec. 5. Section 1 -101pp of the general statutes is repealed and the 129
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 130
Any commissioner, deputy commissioner, state agency or quasi -131
public agency head or deputy, or person in charge of state agency 132
procurement, contracting or human resources, who has reasonable 133
cause to believe that a person has violated the provisions of the Code of 134
Ethics for Public Officials set forth in part I of this chapter or any law or 135
regulation concerning ethics in state contracting shall report such belief 136
to the Office of State Ethics, which may further report such information 137
to the Auditors of Public Accounts, the Chief State's Attorney , [or] the 138
Attorney General or the executive director of the Office of Government 139
Oversight. 140
Sec. 6. Subsection (c) of section 1-110a of the general statutes is 141
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 142
1, 2026): 143
(c) If the court determines, or the Attorney General certifies, that a 144
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public official or state or municipal employee, who was convicted of or 145
pled guilty or nolo contendere to a crime related to state or municipal 146
office, voluntarily provided information to the Attorney General, the 147
Auditors of Public Accounts , the executive director of the Office of 148
Government Oversight or any state, federal or local law enforcement 149
official concerning the commission of such crime related to state or 150
municipal office by another public official or state or municipal 151
employee who had a greater degree of culpability for such crime than 152
the public official or state or municipal employee providing such 153
information, the court shall not reduce or revoke the pension of such 154
public official or state or municipal employee, provided such public 155
official or state or municipal employee voluntarily provided such 156
information prior to learning of a criminal investigation into such crime 157
related to state or municipal office. 158
Sec. 7. Subsection (f) of section 2 -90 of the 2026 supplement to the 159
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 160
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 161
(f) (1) If the Auditors of Public Accounts discover, or if it should come 162
to their knowledge, that any unauthorized, illegal, irregular or unsafe 163
handling or expenditure of state funds or quasi-public agency funds or 164
any breakdown in the safekeeping of any resources of the state or a 165
quasi-public agency has occurred or is contemplated, they shall 166
forthwith report the facts to the Governor, the State Comptroller, the 167
clerk of each house of the General Assembly, the joint standing 168
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 169
relating to government oversight , [and] the Attorney General and the 170
executive director of the Office of Government Oversight, except that if 171
a matter reported to the Auditors of Public Accounts pursuant to section 172
4-33a, as amended by this act, is still under investigation by a state or 173
quasi-public agency, the Auditors of Public Accounts may give the 174
agency a reasonable amount of time to conduct such investigation prior 175
to the auditors reporting the matter to said officials and committee. 176
(2) If the Auditors of Public Accounts decide to delay reporting such 177
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matter in accordance with subdivision (1) of this subsection, the auditors 178
shall immediately notify the Attorney General of such decision. 179
(3) Any Auditor of Public Accounts neglecting to make the report 180
required under subdivision (1) of this subsection, or any agent of the 181
auditors neglecting to report to the Auditors of Public Accounts any 182
such matter discovered by such agent or coming to such agent's 183
knowledge, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars or 184
imprisoned not more than six months, or both. 185
(4) Any state agency or quasi -public agency that is the subject of a 186
report of the Auditors of Public Accounts that contains violations of 187
state statute or regulation, other than only minor or technical 188
recommendations, not later than six months after the issuance of the 189
auditors' report, shall report on the status of any corrective action 190
undertaken by such state agency or quasi-public agency to address such 191
violations, to the auditors, the Governor and the General Assembly, in 192
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a. Upon the receipt of the 193
agency's report, the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 194
having cognizance of matters relating to government oversight may 195
request the auditors to verify any matter in the agency's corrective 196
action report and the auditors shall have not more than sixty days to 197
respond to such request. 198
Sec. 8. Section 4 -33a of the general statutes is repealed and the 199
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 200
All boards of trustees of state institutions, state department heads, 201
boards, commissions, other state agencies responsible for state property 202
and funds and quasi -public agencies, as defined in section 1 -120, shall 203
promptly notify the Auditors of Public Accounts, [and] the Comptroller 204
and the executive director of the Office of Government Oversight of any 205
(1) unauthorized, illegal, irregular or unsafe handling or expenditure of 206
state or quasi -public agency funds, (2) breakdowns in the safekeeping 207
of any other resources of the state or quasi-public agencies, (3) breach of 208
security, as defined in section 36a -701b, or (4) contemplated action to 209
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commit one of the acts listed in subdivisions (1) to (3), inclusive, of this 210
section within their knowledge. In the case of such notification to the 211
Auditors of Public Accounts, the auditors may permit aggregate 212
reporting in a manner and at a schedule determined by the auditors. 213
Sec. 9. Section 4 -37j of the general statutes is repealed and the 214
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 215
Each foundation shall develop, in conjunction with the [Auditors of 216
Public Accounts ] executive director of the Office of Government 217
Oversight, and implement a written policy (1) for the investigation of 218
any matter involving corruption, unethical practices, violation of state 219
laws or regulations, mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse of 220
authority or danger to the public safety occurring in such foundation, 221
(2) prohibiting any officer or employee of the foundation from taking or 222
threatening to take any personnel action against any foundation 223
employee who transmits information concerning any such matter, (3) 224
providing that any foundation employee who is found to have 225
knowingly and maliciously made false charges concerning any such 226
matter under subdivision (1) of this section shall be subject to 227
disciplinary action by the employee's appointing authority, up to and 228
including dismissal, and (4) requiring the foundation to provide a copy 229
of such policy to its employees and to periodically notify the employees 230
of the existence of the policy. 231
Sec. 10. Section 4 -61dd of the general statutes is repealed and the 232
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 233
(a) Any person having knowledge of any matter involving (1) 234
corruption, unethical practices, violation of state laws or regulations, 235
mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse of authority or danger to 236
the public safety occurring in any state department or agency, any 237
quasi-public agency, as defined in section 1 -120, or any Probate Court, 238
(2) corruption, violation of state or federal laws or regulations, gross 239
waste of funds, abuse of authority or danger to the public safety 240
occurring in any large state contract, or (3) corruption by an entity 241
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receiving financial assistance pursuant to title 32 that has failed to meet 242
its contractual obligations or has failed to satisfy any condition 243
regarding such financial assistance, may transmit all facts and 244
information in such person's possession concerning such matter to the 245
[Auditors of Public Accounts ] executive director of the Office of 246
Government Oversight . The [Auditors of Public Accounts ] executive 247
director shall review such matter and report [their] any findings and any 248
recommendations to the Attorney General. Upon receiving such a 249
report, the Attorney General shall make such investigation as the 250
Attorney General deems proper regarding such report and any other 251
information that may be reasonably derived from such report. Prior to 252
conducting an investigation of any information that may be reasonably 253
derived from such report, the Attorney General shall consult with the 254
[Auditors of Public Accounts ] executive director concerning the 255
relationship of such additional information to the report that has been 256
issued pursuant to this subsection. Any such subsequent investigation 257
deemed appropriate by the Attorney General shall only be conducted 258
with the concurrence and assistance of the [Auditors of Public Accounts] 259
executive director. At the request of the Attorney General or on [their] 260
the executive director's own initiative, the [auditors] executive director 261
shall assist in the investigation. 262
(b) (1) The [Auditors of Public Accounts ] executive director may 263
reject any complaint received pursuant to subsection (a) of this section 264
if the [Auditors of Public Accounts determine ] executive director 265
determines one or more of the following: 266
(A) There are other available remedies that the complainant can 267
reasonably be expected to pursue; 268
(B) The complaint is better suited for investigation or enforcement by 269
another state agency; 270
(C) The complaint is trivial, frivolous, vexatious or not made in good 271
faith; 272
(D) Other complaints have greater priority in terms of serving the 273
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public good; 274
(E) The complaint is not timely or is too long delayed to justify further 275
investigation; or 276
(F) The complaint could be handled more appropriately as part of an 277
ongoing or scheduled regular audit. 278
(2) If the [Auditors of Public Accounts reject ] executive director 279
rejects a complaint pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, the 280
[Auditors of Public Accounts] executive director shall provide a report 281
to the Attorney General setting out the basis for the rejection. 282
(3) If at any time the [Auditors of Public Accounts determine ] 283
executive director determines that a complaint is more appropriately 284
investigated by another state agency, the [Auditors of Public Accounts] 285
executive director shall refer the complaint to such agency. The 286
investigating agency shall provide a status report regarding the referred 287
complaint to the [Auditors of Public Accounts] executive director upon 288
request. 289
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 12 -15, the 290
Commissioner of Revenue Services may, upon written request by the 291
[Auditors of Public Accounts ] executive director , disclose return or 292
return information, as defined in section 12-15, to the [Auditors of Public 293
Accounts] executive director for purposes of preparing a report under 294
subsection (a) or (b) of this section. Such return or return information 295
shall not be published in any report prepared in accordance with 296
subsection (a) or (b) of this section, and shall not otherwise be 297
redisclosed, except that such information may be redisclosed to the 298
Attorney General for purposes of an investigation authorized by 299
subsection (a) of this section. Any person who violates the provisions of 300
this subsection shall be subject to the provisions of subsection (g) of 301
section 12-15. 302
(d) The Attorney General may summon witnesses, require the 303
production of any necessary books, papers or other documents and 304
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administer oaths to witnesses, where necessary, for the purpose of an 305
investigation pursuant to this section or for the purpose of investigating 306
a suspected violation of subsection (a) of section 4-275 until such time as 307
the Attorney General files a civil action pursuant to section 4 -276. 308
Service of a subpoena ad testificandum, subpoena duces tecum and a 309
notice of deposition, may be made by: (1) Personal service or service at 310
the usual place of abode; or (2) registered or certified mail, return receipt 311
requested, a duly executed copy thereof addressed to the person to be 312
served at such person's principal place of business in this state, or, if 313
such person has no principal place of business in this state, at such 314
person's principal office or such person's residence. Upon the 315
conclusion of the investigation, the Attorney General shall where 316
necessary, report any findings to the Governor, or in matters involving 317
criminal activity, to the Chief State's Attorney. In addition to the exempt 318
records provision of section 1 -210, the [Auditors of Public Accounts ] 319
executive director and the Attorney General shall not, after receipt of 320
any information from a person under the provisions of this section or 321
sections 4-276 to 4 -280, inclusive, disclose the identity of such person 322
without such person's consent unless the [Auditors of Public Accounts] 323
executive director or the Attorney General determines that such 324
disclosure is unavoidable, and may withhold records of such 325
investigation, during the pendency of the investigation. All 326
documentary material or other information furnished to the Attorney 327
General, the Attorney General's deputy or any assistant attorney general 328
designated by the Attorney General, pursuant to a demand issued 329
under this subsection for the purpose of investigating a suspected 330
violation of subsection (a) of section 4 -275, shall be returned to the 331
person furnishing such documentary material or other information, or, 332
if such person furnished such documentary material or other 333
information in an electronic format, erased, upon the termination of the 334
Attorney General's investigation or final determination of any action or 335
proceeding commenced thereunder. 336
(e) (1) No state officer or employee, as defined in section 4 -141, no 337
quasi-public agency officer or employee, no officer or employee of a 338
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large state contractor and no appointing authority shall take or threaten 339
to take any personnel action against any state or quasi -public agency 340
employee or any employee of a large state contractor in retaliation for 341
(A) such employee's or contractor's disclosure of information to (i) an 342
employee of the [Auditors of Public Accounts ] Office of Government 343
Oversight or the Attorney General under the provisions of subsection 344
(a) of this section; (ii) an employee of the state agency or quasi -public 345
agency where such state officer or employee is employed; (iii) an 346
employee of a state agency pursuant to a mandated reporter statute or 347
pursuant to subsection (b) of section 17a -28; (iv) an employee of the 348
Probate Court where such employee is employed; or (v) in the case of a 349
large state contractor, an employee of the contracting state agency 350
concerning information involving the large state contract; or (B) such 351
employee's testimony or assistance in any proceeding under this 352
section. 353
(2) (A) Not later than ninety days after learning of the specific 354
incident giving rise to a claim that a personnel action has been 355
threatened or has occurred in violation of subdivision (1) of this 356
subsection, a state or quasi -public agency employee, an employee of a 357
large state contractor or the employee's attorney may file a complaint 358
against the state agency, quasi-public agency, Probate Court, large state 359
contractor or appointing authority concerning such personnel action 360
with the Chief Human Rights Referee designated under section 46a -57. 361
Such complaint may be amended if an additional incident giving rise to 362
a claim under this subdivision occurs subsequent to the filing of the 363
original complaint. The Chief Human Rights Referee shall assign the 364
complaint to a human rights referee appointed under section 46a -57, 365
who shall conduct a hearing and issue a decision concerning whether 366
the officer or employee taking or threatening to take the personnel 367
action violated any provision of this section. The human rights referee 368
may order a state agency, quasi -public agency or Probate Court to 369
produce (i) an employee of such agency, quasi-public agency or Probate 370
Court to testify as a witness in any proceeding under this subdivision, 371
or (ii) books, papers or other documents relevant to the complaint, 372
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without issuing a subpoena. If such agency, quasi -public agency or 373
Probate Court fails to produce such witness, books, papers or 374
documents, not later than thirty days after such order, the human rights 375
referee may consider such failure as supporting evidence for the 376
complainant. If, after the hearing, the human rights referee finds a 377
violation, the referee may award the aggrieved employee reinstatement 378
to the employee's former position, back pay and reestablishment of any 379
employee benefits for which the employee would otherwise have been 380
eligible if such violation had not occurred, reasonable attorneys' fees, 381
and any other damages. For the purposes of this subsection, such 382
human rights referee shall act as an independent hearing officer. The 383
decision of a human rights referee under this subsection may be 384
appealed by any person who was a party at such hearing, in accordance 385
with the provisions of section 4-183. 386
(B) The Chief Human Rights Referee shall adopt regulations, in 387
accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing the procedure 388
for filing complaints and noticing and conducting hearings under 389
subparagraph (A) of this subdivision. 390
(3) As an alternative to the provisions of subdivision (2) of this 391
subsection: (A) A state or quasi -public agency employee who alleges 392
that a personnel action has been threatened or taken may file an appeal 393
not later than ninety days after learning of the specific incident giving 394
rise to such claim with the Employees' Review Board under section 5 -395
202, or, in the case of a state or quasi -public agency employee covered 396
by a collective bargaining contract, in accordance with the procedure 397
provided by such contract; or (B) an employee of a large state contractor 398
alleging that such action has been threatened or taken may, after 399
exhausting all available administrative remedies, bring a civil action in 400
accordance with the provisions of subsection (c) of section 31-51m. 401
(4) In any proceeding under subdivision (2) or (3) of this subsection 402
concerning a personnel action taken or threatened against any state or 403
quasi-public agency employee or any employee of a large state 404
contractor, which personnel action occurs not later than two years after 405
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the employee first transmits facts and information concerning a matter 406
under subsection (a) of this section or discloses information under 407
subdivision (1) of this subsection to the [Auditors of Public Accounts ] 408
executive director , the Attorney General or an employee of a state 409
agency, quasi-public agency or Probate Court, as applicable, there shall 410
be a rebuttable presumption that the personnel action is in retaliation 411
for the action taken by the employee under subsection (a) of this section 412
or subdivision (1) of this subsection. 413
(5) If a state officer or employee, as defined in section 4 -141, a quasi-414
public agency officer or employee, an officer or employee of a large state 415
contractor or an appointing authority takes or threatens to take any 416
action to impede, fail to renew or cancel a contract between a state 417
agency and a large state contractor, or between a large state contractor 418
and its subcontractor, in retaliation for the disclosure of information 419
pursuant to subsection (a) of this section or subdivision (1) of this 420
subsection to any agency listed in subdivision (1) of this subsection, such 421
affected agency, contractor or subcontractor may, not later than ninety 422
days after learning of such action, threat or failure to renew, bring a civil 423
action in the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford to recover 424
damages, attorney's fees and costs. 425
(f) Any employee of a state agency, quasi -public agency, Probate 426
Court or large state contractor, who is found by the [Auditors of Public 427
Accounts] executive director , the Attorney General, a human rights 428
referee or the Employees' Review Board to have knowingly and 429
maliciously made false charges under subsection (a) of this section, shall 430
be subject to disciplinary action by such employee's appointing 431
authority up to and including dismissal. In the case of a state or quasi -432
public agency employee, such action shall be subject to appeal to the 433
Employees' Review Board in accordance with section 5 -202, or in the 434
case of state or quasi -public agency employees included in collective 435
bargaining contracts, the procedure provided by such contracts. 436
(g) On or before September first, annually, the [Auditors of Public 437
Accounts] executive director shall submit, in accordance with the 438
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provisions of section 11 -4a, to the clerk of each house of the General 439
Assembly a report indicating the number of matters for which facts and 440
information were transmitted to the [auditors] Office of Government 441
Oversight pursuant to this section during the preceding state fiscal year 442
and the disposition of each such matter. 443
(h) Each contract between a state or quasi -public agency and a large 444
state contractor shall provide that, if an officer, employee or appointing 445
authority of a large state contractor takes or threatens to take any 446
personnel action against any employee of the contractor in retaliation 447
for such employee's disclosure of information to any employee of the 448
contracting state or quasi -public agency or the [Auditors of Public 449
Accounts] executive director or the Attorney General under the 450
provisions of subsection (a) or subdivision (1) of subsection (e) of this 451
section, the contractor shall be liable for a civil penalty of not more than 452
five thousand dollars for each offense, up to a maximum of twenty per 453
cent of the value of the contract. Each violation shall be a separate and 454
distinct offense and in the case of a continuing violation each calendar 455
day's continuance of the violation shall be deemed to be a separate and 456
distinct offense. The executive head of the state or quasi -public agency 457
may request the Attorney General to bring a civil action in the superior 458
court for the judicial district of Hartford to seek imposition and recovery 459
of such civil penalty. 460
(i) Each state agency or quasi-public agency shall post a notice of the 461
provisions of this section relating to state employees and quasi -public 462
agency employees in a conspicuous place that is readily available for 463
viewing by employees of such agency or quasi -public agency. Each 464
Probate Court shall post a notice of the provisions of this section relating 465
to Probate Court employees in a conspicuous place that is readily 466
available for viewing by employees of such court. Each large state 467
contractor shall post a notice of the provisions of this section relating to 468
large state contractors in a conspicuous place which is readily available 469
for viewing by the employees of the contractor. 470
(j) No person who, in good faith, discloses information in accordance 471
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with the provisions of this section shall be liable for any civil damages 472
resulting from such good faith disclosure. 473
(k) As used in this section: 474
(1) "Large state contract" means a contract having a value of five 475
million dollars or more (A) between an entity and a state or quasi-public 476
agency, or (B) for the receipt of financial assistance by an entity from the 477
state pursuant to title 32; and 478
(2) "Large state contractor" means an entity that has entered into a 479
large state contract with a state or quasi-public agency. 480
(l) (1) No officer or employee of a state shellfish grounds lessee shall 481
take or threaten to take any personnel action against any employee of a 482
state shellfish grounds lessee in retaliation for (A) such employee's 483
disclosure of information to an employee of the leasing agency 484
concerning information involving the state shellfish grounds lease, or 485
(B) such employee's testimony or assistance in any proceeding under 486
this section. 487
(2) (A) Not later than ninety days after learning of the specific 488
incident giving rise to a claim that a personnel action has been 489
threatened or has occurred in violation of subdivision (1) of this 490
subsection, an employee of a state shellfish grounds lessee or the 491
employee's attorney may file a complaint against the state shellfish 492
grounds lessee concerning such personnel action with the Chief Human 493
Rights Referee designated under section 46a-57. Such complaint may be 494
amended if an additional incident giving rise to a claim under this 495
subdivision occurs subsequent to the filing of the original complaint. 496
The Chief Human Rights Referee shall assign the complaint to a human 497
rights referee appointed under section 46a -57, who shall conduct a 498
hearing and issue a decision concerning whether the officer or employee 499
taking or threatening to take the personnel action violated any provision 500
of this subsection. The human rights referee may order a state shellfish 501
grounds lessee to produce (i) an employee of such lessee to testify as a 502
witness in any proceeding under this subdivision, or (ii) books, papers 503
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or other documents relevant to the complaint, without issuing a 504
subpoena. If such state shellfish grounds lessee fails to produce such 505
witness, books, papers or documents, not later than thirty days after 506
such order, the human rights referee may consider such failure as 507
supporting evidence for the complainant. If, after the hearing, the 508
human rights referee finds a violation, the referee may award the 509
aggrieved employee reinstatement to the employee's former position, 510
back pay and reestablishment of any employee benefits for which the 511
employee would otherwise have been eligible if such violation had not 512
occurred, reasonable attorneys' fees and any other damages. For the 513
purposes of this subsection, such human rights referee shall act as an 514
independent hearing officer. The decision of a human rights referee 515
under this subsection may be appealed by any person who was a party 516
at such hearing, in accordance with the provisions of section 4-183. 517
(B) The Chief Human Rights Referee shall adopt regulations, in 518
accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing the procedure 519
for filing complaints and noticing and conducting hearings under 520
subparagraph (A) of this subdivision. 521
(3) As an alternative to the provisions of subdivision (2) of this 522
subsection, an employee of a state shellfish grounds lessee who alleges 523
that a personnel action has been threatened or taken may, after 524
exhausting all available administrative remedies, bring a civil action in 525
accordance with the provisions of subsection (c) of section 31-51m. 526
(4) In any proceeding under subdivision (2) or (3) of this subsection 527
concerning a personnel action taken or threatened against any employee 528
of a state shellfish grounds lessee, which personnel action occurs not 529
later than two years after the employee first transmits facts and 530
information to an employee of the leasing agency concerning the state 531
shellfish grounds lease, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the 532
personnel action is in retaliation for the action taken by the employee 533
under subdivision (1) of this subsection. 534
Sec. 11. Subsection (f) of section 4 -278 of the general statutes is 535
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repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 536
1, 2026): 537
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (e) of this section, 538
where the action is one that the court finds to be based primarily on 539
disclosures of specific information that was not provided by the person 540
bringing the action relating to allegations or transactions (1) in a 541
criminal, civil or administrative hearing, (2) in a report, hearing, audit 542
or investigation conducted by the General Assembly, a committee of the 543
General Assembly, the Auditors of Public Accounts, the Office of 544
Government Oversight, a state agency or a quasi -public agency, or (3) 545
from the news media, the court may award from such proceeds to the 546
person bringing the action such sums as it considers appropriate, but in 547
no case more than ten per cent of the proceeds, taking into account the 548
significance of the information and the role of the person bringing the 549
action in advancing the case to litigation. Any such person shall also 550
receive an amount for reasonable expenses that the court finds to have 551
been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attorneys' fees and costs. All 552
such expenses, fees and costs shall be awarded against the defendant. 553
Sec. 12. Subsection (b) of section 4 -282 of the general statutes is 554
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 555
1, 2026): 556
(b) Unless opposed by the state, the court shall dismiss an action or 557
claim brought under section 4-277 if allegations or transactions that are 558
substantially the same as those alleged in the action or claim were 559
publicly disclosed (1) in a state criminal, civil or administrative hearing 560
in which the state or its agent is a party, (2) in a report, hearing, audit or 561
investigation conducted by the General Assembly, a committee of the 562
General Assembly, the Auditors of Public Accounts, the Office of 563
Government Oversight, a state agency or quasi-public agency, or (3) by 564
the news media, except the court shall not dismiss such action or claim 565
if the action or claim is brought by the Attorney General or the person 566
who is an original source of information. 567
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This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 2 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 3 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 4 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 5 October 1, 2026 1-101pp
Sec. 6 October 1, 2026 1-110a(c)
Sec. 7 October 1, 2026 2-90(f)
Sec. 8 October 1, 2026 4-33a
Sec. 9 October 1, 2026 4-37j
Sec. 10 October 1, 2026 4-61dd
Sec. 11 October 1, 2026 4-278(f)
Sec. 12 October 1, 2026 4-282(b)

GAE Joint Favorable
APP Joint Favorable