Press Release  Inspector General Shapiro Calls on the Town of Abington to Adopt Recommendations to Prevent Waste and Abuse of Town Resources

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) issued its review of the Department of Public Works in the Town of Abington based upon a complaint about the former Department of Public Works Assistant Superintendent’s practice of not remitting the cash proceeds of scrap metal sales to the town treasurer.

“In the course of our investigation, we found that the town failed to implement recommendations from a 2017 Inspector General’s investigation into the town Highway Department,” Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shapiro said. “Had the town adopted those recommendations as directed, it is likely that actions of the Assistant Superintendent would have been prevented, or at least uncovered by the town through its internal oversight.”

In 2021, the OIG initiated an investigation into former Assistant Superintendent John Caine’s practice of selling scrap metal collected from town projects to a recycling company and not depositing the money with the town treasurer. The investigation found that between 2016 and 2021, the company paid more than $9,000 in cash from town scrap metal sales. The investigation found that Mr. Caine kept an envelope of cash in his desk drawer. Mr. Caine claimed that he used these public funds to purchase food and beverages for DPW employees. When he was questioned about this practice, he turned over an envelope containing $3,000 in cash.

Since the town has no written procedures governing the sale of surplus equipment valued less than $10,000, despite the OIG specifically recommending that they adopt such procedures in its 2017 report to the town, Abington is obligated to follow the default procedures specified in Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 30B (the Uniform Procurement Act) for the sale of equipment valued greater than $10,000.  These procedures require obtaining competitive bids, public auction or use of established markets, which the town did not do. Additionally, the company that purchased the scrap metal was not a registered vendor with the town and did not keep detailed records of the sales, nor did Mr. Caine retain receipts of cash received or records of how he ultimately spent the cash.  As such, the OIG cannot verify the exact amount of cash received or that the public funds were used as Mr. Caine stated.

While investigating this complaint, the OIG learned that the town had not instituted other recommendations stemming from a 2017 investigation into town employees using the town garage to perform auto maintenance on non-town-owned vehicles, including their personal vehicles and vehicles they worked on for private sale. Indeed, this practice was still in place when the OIG began its 2021 investigation. Further, the State Ethics Commission received complaints of this same practice in 2007 and 2012. On both occasions, the Commission asked the town to provide documentation of a written policy prohibiting this practice. In 2012, the town drafted such a policy, but never implemented it.

“This is the kind of behavior that undermines public trust and confidence in their government. It is exactly what laws like Chapter 30B are designed to prevent,” IG Shapiro said. “Public officials have a duty to abide by the rules governing the use of public funds to purchase goods and services and the sale of public property. When they fail to do so, the public rightfully feels alienated from their government and increasingly cynical. Had the funds been received properly, the revenue would have been included in the town’s General Ledger and the use of such funds would have followed the town’s budgeting process.”

The OIG offers training and technical assistance on public procurement. In FY24, IG Shapiro announced a pilot program offering free public procurement training to every community in the Commonwealth. The program, One Free Designee, allows each municipality to have one employee attend three basic procurement classes to earn their Massachusetts Certified Public Procurement Officer designation at no cost to the community. The OIG is absorbing the cost as a pilot for FY24 in hopes of expanding the number of public procurement officials with this designation.

The OIG also recently updated its manual on Chapter 30B, which serves as a guide for public procurement.  The OIG also offers technical assistance on Chapter 30B procurements either by phone (617-722-8838) or online.

If you suspect fraud, waste or abuse of public resources, please contact the OIG’s 24-hour confidential hotline at 1-800-322-1323.

###