18

Page 18 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, OCTObER 11, 2024 By Bob Katzen If you have any questions about this week’s report, e-mail us at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com or call us at (617) 720-1562 THE HOUSE AND SENATE. There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. This week, Beacon Hill Roll Call looks at Question 1, one of the five questions on the ballot that will be decided directly by the voters in November. The question asks voters if they approve of a proposed law that would allow the state auditor to audit the Legislature. The actual language of the proposal is as follows: “The department of the state auditor shall audit the accounts, programs, activities and functions directly related to the aforementioned accounts of all departments, offices, commissions, institutions and activities of the commonwealth, including those of districts and authorities created by the General Court and the General Court itself, and including those of the income tax division of the department of revenue, and for such purposes, the authorized officers and employees of the department of the state auditor shall have access to such accounts at reasonable times and the department may require the production of books, documents, vouchers and other records relating to any matter within the scope of an audit conducted under this section or section 13, except tax returns.” The long trip of this question to the ballot started in 2023 when Diana DiZoglio, the newly-elected state auditor, announced she had launched an audit of the Massachusetts Legislature—something she promised in her 2022 campaign. “As I committed, my office has begun an audit of the state Legislature,” said DiZoglio. “We hope this will increase transparency, accountability and equity in an area of state government that has been completely ignored. Historically, the Legislature has been a closed-door operation, where committee votes have been hidden from the general public and legislation has been voted on in the dark of night.” House Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy) responded. “That your office has the legal authority to conduct an audit of the General Court is a claim entirely without legal support or precedent, as it runs contrary to multiple, explicit provisions of the Massachusetts Constitution, and is wholly unnecessary as the public currently has full and ready access to the House’s financial information,” said Mariano in a letter to DiZoglio. “All of the House’s accounts are available on the Commonwealth’s Financial Records Transparency Platform (“CTHRU”) webpage, which can be viewed at www.macomptroller.org/cthru,” continued the letter. “There are no expenditures of the House that are not posted on CTHRU and available for public inspection. Additionally, the House adopts rules for each legislative session, including a rule that requires all House accounts to be independently audited on an annual basis in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America and the standards applicable to financial audits contained in Government Auditing Standards, issued by the Comptroller General of the United States and that the audit report be filed with the House Clerk for public inspection.” Enter Attorney General Andrea Campbell. In November 2023, Campbell’s office stepped in, saying the auditor “does not currently have the legal authority to audit the Legislature without the Legislature’s consent.” “Massachusetts has one of the least transparent legislatures in the country, and a legislative audit would shine sunlight on an infamously opaque body,” DiZoglio told Beacon Hill Roll Call last week. “This ballot measure would simply provide parity so that the Legislature receives the same type of audit conducted of all other state entities. Our incredible bipartisan coalition of advocates and activists agree, including Progressive Massachusetts, Progressive Democrats of Massachusetts, Act on Mass, the Massachusetts Voter Table, the Massachusetts Democratic Party’s State Committee, the MassGOP, the Coalition to Reform our Legislature, the Pioneer Institute, MassFiscal Alliance, Our Revolution and more. Most recently, the Boston Globe Editorial Board endorsed a yes vote on Question 1, saying it’s ‘simply the right thing to do.’” Here are the official arguments, gathered by the secretary of state, by each side of the question. IN FAVOR: Written by Neil Morrison, Committee for Transparent Democracy, 617297-8476 www.auditthelegislature.com “A Yes Vote on Question 1 expressly authorizes the state auditor to audit the Massachusetts Legislature. The state auditor is independently elected by the people of Massachusetts to audit every state entity to help make government work better. The State Legislature is the only state entity refusing to be audited by the state auditor’s office. Legislative leaders claim it is sufficient for the Legislature to conduct audits of itself through a procured private vendor. However, the Massachusetts Legislature is continuously ranked as one of the least effective, least transparent legislatures in America and is one of only four legislatures that exempts itself from public records laws. Support for this initiative will help the state auditor’s office shine a bright light on how taxpayer dollars are spent to help increase transparency, accountability and accessibility for the people of Massachusetts. Vote “Yes” to expressly authorize the state auditor to audit the Legislature.” AGAINST: Written by Jerold Duquette, Professor of Political Science, Central Connecticut State University, 860-832-2964 www.masspoliticsprofs.org “A legislative audit conducted by the state auditor, who is an executive branch official, without the Legislature’s consent would violate the separation of powers and legislative supremacy described in and required by the Massachusetts Constitution. The performance audits conducted by the state auditor measure administrators’ performance in achieving the legislatively determined goals of the public policies they administer. The state auditor cannot substitute her interpretation of those goals for the Legislature’s without compromising the constitutional independence and preeminence of the Legislature. If enacted, Question 1 would make the state auditor into a political actor and a potentially influential participant in the legislative process, two roles that would clearly compromise the state auditor’s ability to carry out her fundamental constitutional duty to conduct credible, independent, objective and nonpartisan audits of state government departments and programs.” ALSO UP ON BEACON HILL FOSTER HOMES AND DOGS (H 4911) – The House and Senate gave final approval to and sent to Gov. Maura Healey a bill that would ban the Department of Children and Families (DCF) from prohibiting placement of a child in a foster home solely based on the presence of any specific breed of dog in the home. The bill also updates animal cruelty and abuse reporting regulations for human services employees or contractors. Supporters said that currently DCF is allowed to prohibit placement of a child in a home with German Shepherds, Pit Bulls and Rottweilers. “Current DCF regulations for foster homes impose a blanket ban on certain breeds of dogs,” said sponsor Rep. Jack Lewis (D-Framingham). “Instead of eliminating countless prospective families, this bill empowers DCF to undertake a holistic review of the family, child and dog to ensure appropriate placement. This bill also amends reporting laws for animal abuse, extending the timeframe in which human services employees or contractors can report animal abuse. Lewis continued, “As cochair of the Protecting Animal Welfare Caucus, I am proud to spearhead the passage of this bill in the House. There is an urgent need for supportive foster families in the commonwealth, and this bill will open many loving homes to adoptive and foster children.” COMMISSION TO COMBAT ANTISEMITISM – Rep. Simon Cataldo (D-Concord) and Sen. John Velis (D-Westfield) have been appointed by House Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy) and Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) to lead the state’s new Commission On Combating Antisemitism. “The work is urgent and the mission is critical,” said the pair in a joint statement. “Over the past several years, our commonwealth has earned the ignominious reputation as a hub of antisemitic activity. We have heard it through harrowing accounts from Jewish students, parents, educators and people of all backgrounds who feel it on a visceral level in our communities. And we see it in the 2023 data.” They noted that the 189 percent increase in antisemitic incidents in Massachusetts outpaced the 140 percent increase in such incidents nationwide. They said that vandalism increased by 70 percent, harassment increased by 444 percent, the number of assaults doubled and that 127 cities and towns in Massachusetts saw at least one antisemitic incident last year. “This is not OK,” said Cataldo and Velis. “These trends must be -- and can be -- reversed through concerted action. The commission will work with great dispatch to meet our statutory charge to BEACON | SEE Page 19

19 Publizr Home