Keller: Audit finds "mismanagement" in Massachusetts emergency shelter system, no-bid contracts
The opinions expressed below are Jon Keller's, not those of WBZ, CBS News or Paramount Global.
The migrant deluge that overwhelmed the state emergency shelter system is mostly over, for now. But the fallout from the way it was handled continues in a scathing 74-page report from State Auditor Diana DiZoglio.
No-bid contracts
The audit hits the state agency in charge - the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) - for "mismanagement" and "failing to assess" the surging numbers, and bungling oversight of spending on food, transportation and housing costs while handing out no-bid contracts.
Some examples highlighted in the audit:
The state overpaid a food delivery vendor by almost 10%.
A a cab company hired to take migrants to critical appointments billed the state at inflated rates. In Boston, a one-mile cab ride costs around $5. One company charged the state almost $147.
"People are concerned about the lack of fairness when it comes to the execution of millions of taxpayer dollars," said DiZoglio in a WBZ-TV interview. "The administration was unable to provide evidence that they had really gone through a process of any kind."
Number of families in shelters decreasing
In response, EOHLC issued a statement, saying in part: "The Healey-Driscoll administration inherited an unprecedented surge in families due to failed immigration policies and a flawed shelter system not equipped to handle it. Since that time, we have made major changes to make the system safer and protect taxpayers.... Now, the number of families in shelter and the cost to taxpayers is going down, more than 85% of families seeking shelter are now long-time Massachusetts residents, and we just announced that we will be out of hotels this summer, months ahead of schedule."
But while Healey and her defenders say the size of the migrant influx came as a surprise to everyone, DiZoglio says they should have known by early 2023 that tighter controls were needed.
"EOHLC then waited January, February, March, April, May, June, July, and then only in August decided to consider these options for food and transportation," DiZoglio told WBZ. "Let's make sure that we are not allowing these types of circumstances to repeat themselves."
Potential political fallout
Predictably, the governor's critics are all over this audit, claiming Healey wasted billions and showed little regard for state procurement laws.
This is sure to be an issue in a governor's race that already includes two former officials in the administration of former Gov. Charlie Baker, who was still in office when the migrant crisis began.
And tension between Healey and DiZoglio herself shows up in the audit when it questions the administration's concern for taxpayer dollars. The crisis may be dying down, but you'll be hearing about it for some time to come.
