Overview of the Bureau of the State House

This section describes the makeup and responsibilities of the Bureau of the State House.

Overview

The Bureau of the State House (BSH) was established within the Executive Office for Administration and Finance in accordance with Section 1 of Chapter 8 of the Massachusetts General Laws. On July 24, 2012, the Governor issued Executive Order 543, which resulted in the restructuring and integration of most of the Bureau of State Office Buildings’ facility-management operations (all except its State House responsibilities) into the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance. BSH was created to perform facility management for the State House.

According to the Bureau of the State House Policy Manual, BSH’s mission is as follows:

To work with the Executive Office, the MA Legislature, state agencies and the MA Historical Commission in preserving, maintaining and restoring the MA state capitol. We strive to efficiently provide a safe, accessible, clean and secure seat of government, place of business, museum of art and history as well as a site for public congregation.

According to BSH’s internal control plan (ICP),

The Bureau is organized around several functional areas: Administration; Project Management; Building Operations; [Americans with Disabilities Act] Compliance; the Art Commission; and Events Planning.

The State House Special Events Fund (SEF) was established in 1995 by Section 35P of Chapter 10 of the General Laws. Also in 1995, Section 9A, which governs use of the State House by nongovernmental entities, was added to Chapter 8 of the General Laws. (Special events at the State House are held by nongovernmental entities and are assessed fees; governmental entities are not charged to hold events there.)

The SEF’s financial activity during the audit period is shown in the table below. Other BSH spending accounts are shown in the Appendix.

SEF Financial Activity

	Fiscal Year 2018	Fiscal Year 2019	Fiscal Year 2020*
Beginning Balance	$ 263,769	$ 224,716	$ 193,993
Revenue	69,640	42,020	13,609
Subtotal	$ 333,409	$ 266,736	$ 207,602
Reductions in Balance
Expenses	104,193	72,743	29,463
Transfers Out†	4,500	0	0
Subtotal	$ 108,693	$   72,743	$   29,463
Ending Balance	$ 224,716	$ 193,993	$ 178,139

*     The amounts in this table for fiscal year 2020 only encompass the period July 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019.

†     This line item represents transfers to the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance for services provided to BSH.

Scheduling, Billing, and Fee Collection for State House Events

Section 9A of Chapter 8, and Section 35P of Chapter 10, of the General Laws both state,

The superintendent of the state house shall establish and charge a fee or service charge to nongovernmental individuals, entities and groups using the state house for meetings, receptions or exhibits, which may be [waived or reduced] at the discretion of the superintendent.

To rent space at the State House,¹ a requester has to contact the State House events coordinator by email, by phone call, or in person for available dates. A tentative hold is then placed on the specified date. Next, the requester must submit an event application signed by a sponsor (constitutional officer, secretariat head, senator, representative, or agency head) for the process to continue. The fees for space rental at the State House are reduced for nonprofit organizations according to a discount fee schedule. To have its fee waived entirely, a requester must submit a written request to the superintendent describing the requester’s background and proof of the requester’s nonprofit status.

For each event application, the State House events coordinator enters application details in the Events Management System, the software BSH uses to schedule events and bill for the use of space in the State House. The system generates a confirmation and invoice, which the State House events coordinator emails to the requester and BSH’s director of finance. Fee payments are deposited in a Commonwealth bank account and credited to the SEF in the Massachusetts Management Accounting and Reporting System.

SEF Expenses

Section 35P of Chapter 10, and Section 9A of Chapter 8, of the General Laws both state,

The superintendent may retain funds to be expended after consultation with the committee on rules of the 2 branches [of the Massachusetts General Court], acting concurrently, for [the] restoration, equipment repair and replacement and educational and cultural programs and tours at the state house.

Section 35P of Chapter 10 of the General Laws also states that funds may be expended for the maintenance of the Military History Museum in the State House.

According to BSH’s ICP, purchases over $1,000 must be approved by the Joint Committee on Rules.

1.     Spaces in the State House that are available for nongovernmental use are the Grand Staircase, the Great Hall, the Nurses Hall, and the Gardner Auditorium. The Memorial Hall and the Doric Hall are also available when approved by the superintendent.

Date published:	June 24, 2021