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2026 Op. N.D. Att'y Gen. 1 (2026)

handle is hein.sag/sagnd0108 and id is 1 raw text is: STATE OF NORTH DAKOTA OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL www. atto rneyg en era I n d g ov (701) 328-2210 Drew H. Wrigley ATTORNEY GENERAL LETTER OPINION 2026-L-01 Mr. Joshua C. Gallion State Auditor Office ofthe State Auditor 600 E. Boulevard Ave. Dept. 117 Bismarck, ND 58505 State Auditor Gallion: Thank you for your letter asking whether North Dakota Century Code, N.D.C.C. § 54-10-22.1, authorizes the State Auditor and the Auditor's employees to conduct an audit of the North Dakota Protection and Advocacy Project (P&A) even when the agency has records in its possession that are made confidential by state or federal law. It is my understanding that you plan to conduct a performance audit of P&A to test its internal controls, compliance, and financial transactions. One objective of this audit is to review whether reports of suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation are being investigated according to P&A policy, and it may be necessary to access certain records that contain confidential information to complete this objective. P&A believes it cannot participate in an audit because it was created by federal law and possesses records that are confidential under state and federal laws. P&A also expressed concern that Rule 1.6 of the North Dakota Rules of Professional Conduct for licensed attorneys and the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics' prohibit them from disclosing the contents of client files to the Auditor's office. The Auditor's office and P&A have met to discuss the audit and P&A objected to allowing an audit. ANALYSIS P&A is a state agency, in accordance with the Developmental Disabilities and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act), the Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act of 1986 (PAIMI Act), and the Protection and Advocacy of Individuals Rights Act (PAIR Act), to establish an effective protection and advocacy system to respond to allegations of abuse and neglect and generally protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.2 The core requirement of the federal P&A statutes is that, in order to receive federal funding, each state must establish an effective protection and advocacy ' The application of the National Association of Social Workers is outside the scope of this opinion and will not be addressed. 2 42 U.S.C. §§ 15001-115; 42 U.S.C. § 10801-851; 29 U.S.C § 794e.