Audit

Audit  Audit of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners

This audit of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners examines the board's efforts to address issues identified in a prior audit. The audit examines the period of July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2017.

Organization: Office of the State Auditor
Date published: July 10, 2018

Executive Summary

In accordance with Section 12 of Chapter 11 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Office of the State Auditor has conducted a performance audit of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) for the period July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2017. In this performance audit, we followed up on issues identified in our previous audit of MBLC (No. 2013-0165-3S) to determine what measures, if any, MBLC’s management had taken to address those issues. During the prior audit, we examined MBLC’s monitoring of library construction projects, the timeliness of the submission of monthly reports on library construction projects to MBLC, MBLC’s reviewing of contractor certification files, MBLC’s documentation of formal site visits to sub-grantees, and the adequacy of MBLC’s internal control plan (ICP).

During our current audit, we found that MBLC had taken measures to fully address only one of the four issues we identified in our prior audit. Specifically, in our prior audit, we found that MBLC had not required municipalities that had been awarded Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP) grants to view contractor certification files at the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) for the responsible general contractors who submitted the lowest eligible bids before making a final determination for construction work on their library projects. Review of certification files allows municipalities to further substantiate bidders’ job performance on prior state projects and assess their ability to provide project services in a timely and professional manner. During our current audit, we found that MBLC had updated Section 6.09 1(b)(3)(b) of Title 605 of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations to require municipalities that have been awarded MPLCP grants to review the DCAMM contractor certification files of the lowest responsible eligible bidders for general contract work before final contractor selection.

MBLC has not taken measures to fully address the three other issues we previously identified. Below is a summary of our findings and recommendations, with links to each page listed.

Finding 1a

MBLC did not ensure that it received monthly library construction project reports in a timely manner.

Finding 1b

MBLC did not conduct site visits to all sub-grantees.

Finding 1c

MBLC’s ICP did not comply with the Office of the State Comptroller’s requirements, and MBLC had not established adequate controls over this activity.

Recommendations

  1. MBLC should enhance its policies and procedures for the administration of its monthly construction reports. The policies and procedures should include a requirement that the reports be submitted after the report month’s end, by a specific date, and follow-up procedures to ensure that they are submitted on time.
  2. MBLC management should take the measures necessary to ensure that all site visits are conducted as required and that Site Visit Report forms are completed to document each visit.
  3. MBLC should prepare an updated ICP that includes and identifies all eight components of enterprise risk management and develop proper internal controls over this activity to ensure that it is properly conducted annually. 

 A PDF copy of the audit of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is available here.

List of Abbreviations

DCAMM

Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance

ERM

enterprise risk management

ICP

internal control plan

LSTA

Library Services and Technology Act

MBLC

Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners

MPLCP

Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program

OSA

Office of the State Auditor

OSC

Office of the State Comptroller

Contact

Phone

Fax

(617) 727-3014

Address

Massachusetts State House
Room 230
Boston, MA 02133

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