"The study will be conducted with all haste by the Office of Public Mendacity; nevertheless, the Office will fail to blame the culpable." This statement:

includes a shift in tense.

*** includes a passive construction-one in which the subject receives the action of the predicate rather than producing the action.

includes an inappropriate use of a semicolon.

includes a shift in person.

is a sentence fragment.

Correct.

To analyze the statement and determine the correct answer, let's break it down:

"The study will be conducted with all haste by the Office of Public Mendacity; nevertheless, the Office will fail to blame the culpable."

Looking at the options given:

1. "Includes a shift in tense" - There is no shift in tense in this statement, as all the verbs are in the future tense ("will be conducted," "will fail").

2. "Includes a passive construction" - This statement does indeed include a passive construction. The subject, "the Office of Public Mendacity," receives the action of the predicate ("will be conducted," "will fail").

3. "Includes an inappropriate use of a semicolon" - The use of a semicolon in this statement is appropriate because it separates two independent clauses that are related in meaning.

4. "Includes a shift in person" - There is no shift in person in this statement, as it consistently refers to the Office of Public Mendacity.

5. "Is a sentence fragment" - This statement is not a sentence fragment. It is a complete sentence that contains a subject ("the Office of Public Mendacity") and a predicate ("will be conducted," "will fail").

Based on the above analysis, the correct answer is:

*** Includes a passive construction - one in which the subject receives the action of the predicate rather than producing the action.