- Office of the Inspector General
Media Contact for Inspector General Recommends that Malden Hire a CFO to Implement Financial Controls
Jack Meyers
The OIG found that the Permits, Inspections, and Planning Services (“PIPS”) Department for the city of Malden (“the City”) had control and oversight deficiencies that enabled embezzlement within the department in 2014. For instance, PIPS did not have a system for logging payments when they came in and it failed to segregate duties, allowing a single clerk to collect and maintain custody of payments until they were logged into the permit system.
The OIG also found that while the City adopted new financial policies and procedures after the embezzlement was discovered, it failed to formalize the improved policies and procedures. In 2018, some of those policies, procedures and controls were no longer in effect in PIPS.
The OIG concluded that the City ignored recommendations made by an outside auditor to hire a Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) to oversee its financial operations. The OIG recommends that the City hire a CFO with a proven, successful track record in financial management who would be able to effectively apply accounting standards and strengthen the City’s internal controls.