State auditor sues Beacon Hill to force compliance with audit

Local News

Diana DiZoglio’s action comes 15 months after nearly 72 percent of Massachusetts voters approved her authority to audit the Legislature.

State Auditor Diana DiZoglio has filed a lawsuit to enforce the overwhelmingly approved ballot initiative giving her authority to audit the State Legislature — but without the support of Attorney General Andrea Campbell.

“This day has been a long time coming,” DiZoglio, a Democrat, said during a press conference Tuesday announcing the lawsuit filed in the state’s highest court, the first court action to enforce the ballot question.

DiZoglio’s action comes 15 months after nearly 72 percent of Massachusetts voters approved of a ballot measure specifying that the state auditor has the authority to audit the Legislature. 

The Legislature itself refused to participate in her first audit before the ballot question, and House leaders have indicated they will not comply in the future. Campbell’s office, which represented elected officials in court, has also refused to represent DiZoglio’s office in court.

“This is not just about an audit anymore,” DiZoglio said. “This behavior is permeating state government and it is causing people to lose trust and faith in their state government, in their leaders, in their courts, in their lawmakers across the board.”

Per the Statehouse News Service, House Speaker Ronald Mariano, Senate President Karen Spilka, House Clerk Timothy Carroll and Senate Clerk Michael Hurley are named as defendants in the complaint.

Mariano did not return a request for comment Tuesday night. Spilka’s office directed inquiries to State Sen. Cindy Friedman, the chair of the subcommittee.

Friedman stressed that an independent audit is completed annually, so “we must assume that the Auditor’s intentions are purely political.”

“The Senate has tried to work with the Auditor and her office to understand what she is seeking to audit beyond the independent, professional audits that the Senate already undergoes each year,” Friedman said. 

In a statement, Campbell said DiZoglio’s office is not answering the AG’s “straightforward questions” about the potential audit, “including how privileges given to the Legislature in our state constitution nearly 250 years ago impact (DiZoglio’s) authority to audit the Legislature.”

“The Auditor does not have the authority to file this lawsuit,” Campbell said. “This is another ploy to sidestep the required approval of my office and will bring her no closer to auditing the Legislature. This filing is not about enforcing the law.”

DiZoglio said that her office has answered questions and that Campbell’s refusal to support her completion of an audit has emboldened other state leaders. The Trial Court and the Appeals Court have both refused to participate in website accessibility audits, each citing a Campbell letter that DiZoglio’s authority is limited to the executive branch.

“She needs to stop gaslighting us. She needs to stop spreading falsehoods about our office and accusing my office staff of not giving her the information that she has requested,” DiZoglio said. “It’s been a year now. This is ridiculous.”

Amid an ongoing election year, DiZoglio has found unlikely allies in the many Republicans running for state offices. John Deaton, a Senate hopeful who previously ran against Sen. Elizabeth Warren and is now vying for Sen. Ed Markey’s seat, filed a complaint in the SJC with other taxpayers to force legislative compliance.

“As someone who grew up among and still fights for working families, parents, and vulnerable residents, an audit would ensure taxpayer dollars actually reach the people who need them most,” Deaton said in a statement.

While DiZoglio said her office did not pay any counsel to litigate the filed lawsuit, Republican governor candidate Mike Minogue has offered to pay outside attorneys to litigate a complaint against Legislature leadership.

“Seventy-two percent of Massachusetts voters demanded an independent audit because they want transparency and accountability, and Beacon Hill has spent over a year trying to block it,” Minogue said in a statement Tuesday, vowing to support the audits if elected governor. “The law is clear, the voters were clear, and the obstruction needs to end.”

Molly Farrar is a general assignment reporter for Boston.com, focusing on education, politics, crime, and more.