The State Auditor audits state spending to ensure that funds are being spent legally but also to be sure that we aren’t wasting scarce resources through, for example, inefficient systems, ineffective administration of programs, and redundancy. The State Auditor can and should be a catalyst for accountability in how government spends our tax dollars. I intend to expand on the important work that has been done by the Auditor’s office in reviewing Massachusetts’ health care spending and to be that catalyst for accountability and results.
In Fiscal Year 2011, Massachusetts will spend over $13.5 billion of the state budget (or 42%) on health care-related spending. It pays for Massachusetts’ Medicaid program, known as MassHealth, the Commonwealth Care Program, which provides health insurance to uninsured individuals, the Medical Assistance Trust Fund and state employee health insurance. By establishing a unit within the auditor’s office dedicated solely to ferreting out fraud, waste and inefficiencies in the state’s health care programs, I will help taxpayers get a better return on their tax dollars and improve access to health care. more »
Every investment the Commonwealth makes – whether it is a line item in the state’s budget or a tax credit or other incentive – must be measured by the benefit to Massachusetts citizens and taxpayers, particularly in these challenging fiscal times.
Accountability for investment of scarce resources must be built into state government.
As State Auditor, protecting taxpayers through fiscal accountability will be the central mission of my office. Using the tools at my disposal – including financial and performance audits – I will carefully scrutinize tax credits and other tax incentives offered to Massachusetts businesses to ensure that they continue to provide the benefits the legislature intended when they were first enacted. more »
Q: What’s the most significant improvement you plan to make in the office?
A: First –making sure no taxpayer wonders whether anyone in government is watching out for them; second, making sure no taxpayer wonders whether a dollar they give to state government will be a dollar well spent; and third, making sure no one who relies upon any government service worries whether that service will be compromised by a failing bureaucracy or a dishonest vendor stealing from the system. This means ensuring that tax dollars are being spent effectively and efficiently as well as legally.
Expanding the use of performance audits and focusing scrutiny on the money expended via state contracts for services, especially in the health and human services areas, provide exciting opportunities to help government work smarter and deliver better government, Through these audits, I will identify poor service delivery, inefficient administration, failures in oversight, improper spending, and excessive bureaucracy, I will recommend steps to be taken to remedy these problems and aid agencies in realizing these improvements. more »
