Any military or civilian member may file any IG complaint. However, many DoD civilian complaints (e.g., discrimination, sexual harassment or conditions of employment) must be addressed by agencies other than the IG.  Anyone, including civilians with no DoD affiliation, may file Fraud, Waste and Abuse (FWA) disclosures.  Depending on the circumstances, the IG may also accept complaints from dependents or relatives of active duty members and retirees and their dependents.  However, it is always best for the actual "victim" or person who witnessed the alleged wrongdoing to file the complaint. If you have a concern and are unsure if you should file a complaint, contact the IG office for advice and/or assistance.

Any FWA and violations of law, regulations, Service instructions, directives or policy should be reported through the appropriate grievance channels.  The subject of your complaint must be a Joint Staff, program or person.  Bear in mind, however, the fact that you may disagree with your supervisor(s) over management styles or have what you believe is a "personality conflict" does not constitute an injustice or mismanagement.  If you are not sure your concern is a reportable matter, contact the IG office for advice and/or assistance.

Individuals should attempt to resolve FWA issues and personal complaints at the lowest possible level, using command channels before elevating them to the next higher level or to the IG.  Further, complaints must be promptly filed within IG, command, or other grievance channels.  IGs may dismiss a complaint if there is no FWA, recognizable wrong or violation of law, regulation or policy.  Also, complaints more than 60 days from the date of occurrence may be dismissed, unless there are extenuating circumstances or special Joint Staff interests to justify an investigation.  Remember, the sooner a complaint is filed, the better the chances are to resolve the matter.

Complaints may be filed with a superior or commander in your chain of command, the IG or other appropriate inspector, or within any established grievance channel.  FWA complaints may be reported to the Service’s audit agency, any military investigative organization (i.e., OSI, CID, NCIS), security forces squadron, or other appropriate authority.

Complaints may be filed with a superior or commander in your chain of command, the IG or other appropriate inspector, or within any established grievance channel.  FWA complaints may be reported to the Service’s audit agency, any military investigative organization (i.e., OSI, CID, NCIS), security forces squadron, or other appropriate authority.

You may file your complaint to any IG at any level, including the Inspector General, Department of Defense (IG, DoD).  However, established regulations encourage IGs to resolve complaints at the lowest level.  Therefore, a good "rule of thumb" is to determine the lowest level commander who can "fix" the problem and submit your complaint to that commander’s IG. If you believe the commander is part of the problem, then submit your complaint to the IG of the next higher commander.  You should generally start by submitting your complaint to your local IG, who can provide guidance and determine if your complaint needs to be "elevated" to a higher level IG or placed in a different grievance channel.

The IG generally does not handle matters covered by Service regulations, directives, policy or instructions.  If a policy directive or instruction provides a specific means of appeal or redress of a grievance, you must exhaust those appeal channels/procedures before submitting a complaint to the IG.  Further, you must be able to allege that the process was mishandled or handled prejudicially before an IG will process a complaint of mishandling.  Mere dissatisfaction with the outcome of an appeal is not sufficient basis for an IG investigation.

You should provide factual and relevant information related to the issue or complaint, preferably by completing (and signing) a DD Form 2949, Joint Inspector General Action Request (available at the link below). However, if you do not have immediate access to a DD Form 2949, you can simply prepare a letter and mail (or fax) it to the appropriate IG.  Complaint letters should be signed, legible (preferably typed) and reproducible.  They should include your rank/grade, name, Joint Staff Directorate, home and duty addresses and phone numbers (commercial and DSN), and, if active duty, your social security number. FWA disclosures may be submitted on a DD Form 2949, by letter, in person, or by FWA hotlines.

List your allegation(s) briefly; however, be specific and avoid broad generalizations.  For example, do not write, "My supervisor is a poor manager and abuses his subordinates." Instead, provide the name/rank of the specific person(s) you believe have done something wrong.  Cite the specific instance(s) of wrongdoing.  For example, state "On 2 Dec 98, Major John P. Jones, Commander, JX, Pentagon, directed SrA Glen Allen and A1C Teresa Anderson to wash his POV."  Briefly describe the circumstances surrounding the alleged incident.  Multiple allegations must be clearly delineated so they can be easily recognized.  Ensure you clearly express a violation of law, regulation, directive or policy in each allegation.

When you file an IG complaint you are making an official statement; therefore, you are subject to punitive action if you intentionally make false statements. When you sign a DD Form 2949, you are signing a statement that says, "Those who knowingly and intentionally provide false statements in this complaint are subject to potential punitive and administrative actions (UCMJ Art. 107; 18 U.S.C. 1001)."

Also, filing an IG complaint will not normally delay or prevent completion of command actions such as reassignment, retirement, discharge, nonjudicial punishment, etc.  IGs do not have the authority to place individuals on administrative hold; that authority rests with commanders and your Service’s personnel center.

DD Form 2949, Joint Inspector General Action Request

Mailing Address
Joint Staff Inspector
RM 2C150
300 Joint Staff
The Pentagon
Washington, DC 20318-0300

Email: js.pentagon.odjs.list.inspector-general1@mail.mil