"ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell notified state Auditor Diana DiZoglio on Thursday evening that the auditor’s office lacks the legal authority to audit the Legislature without its consent.The decision by Campbell deals a major setback to DiZoglio’s crusade to scrutinize the policies and procedures of the House and Senate chambers where she used to serve, but it doesn’t end it.In addition to seeking Campbell’s legal opinion on her authority to audit the Legislature, DiZoglio is pursuing a ballot question that would establish a law giving her that power. Campbell, who certified the question as legally suitable to go on the ballot, said in effect that her response to DiZoglio’s request is an interpretation of existing law and is unrelated to the quest for a new law.“I believe transparency is a cornerstone of good government, but that transparency must be achieved through methods that are consistent with the law,” Campbell said. “As the chief law officer of the Commonwealth, it is my office’s role to determine the legal position of the state by looking at the law as it exists on the books today, and evaluating what that law allows, and what it does not. After a thorough review of the statutory text, pertinent Supreme Judicial Court decisions, and relevant history, we have concluded that current law does not allow an audit of the Legislature over its objection.”
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| State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, surrounded by past audits by her office of the Legislature or legislative committees. (Photo by Bruce Mohl) |
"MASSACHUSETTS IS rightly proud of its “revolutionary tradition,” but according to democracy scholar Danielle Allen, the health of the state’s democratic structures isn’t all rosy in practice
“A healthy democracy depends on a couple of critical values,” Allen, a Harvard professor of political philosophy, ethics, and public policy, said on a live episode of The Codcast. “There’s the value of inclusion, really achieving full inclusion, the value of engagement or participation, and then the value of competitiveness. And on each of those dimensions, we can see room for improvement in Massachusetts.”
Allen is focused on what she calls the work of “democratic renovation,” in part through her role as president and founder of Partners in Democracy. The organization pushes for reforms to bolster running for office, voting in elections, and making government systems more transparent. Allen herself made a short-lived bid for governor last year, pushing for many of these reforms."
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