Press Release  Superior Court Ruling Affirms State Ethics Commission Decision that Former State Auditor’s Office Consultant Jeffrey Fournier Violated Conflict of Interest Law

Boston, MA — In a decision issued this week in Suffolk Superior Court, Justice Christine M. Roach has affirmed the State Ethics Commission’s 2021 decision that Jeffrey Fournier, a former consultant to the Office of the State Auditor, violated the conflict of interest law by attempting to sell his private company’s services to two state agencies in response to the findings of an OSA audit, and by using or attempting to use his position as an OSA consultant to gain access to decision makers in those agencies. The Suffolk Superior Court decision upholds the Commission’s determination that, as a consultant who personally provided professional, highly specialized services to OSA, Fournier was a state employee for purposes of the conflict of interest law and was therefore subject to the law.

While working for OSA as an information technology consultant, Fournier also operated a private company, Riscovery, Inc., with two partners. In December 2017, OSA published an audit report that identified shortcomings in the Department of Children and Families’ ability to identify and investigate injuries to children and report critical incidents to the Office of the Child Advocate. The audit report recommended that DCF require its staff to routinely monitor Medicaid Management Information System data to help identify critical incidents involving children in the state agency’s care. Shortly after the audit report was published, Fournier contacted DCF and OCA on behalf of Riscovery, identified himself as an OSA consultant, and attempted to sell them Riscovery’s services to monitor Medicaid Management Information System data.

The conflict of interest law prohibits state employees from representing or acting on behalf of anyone other than the Commonwealth in connection with matters in which a state agency is a party or has a direct and substantial interest. The law also prohibits public employees from using or attempting to use their official positions to obtain valuable privileges and other benefits that are not properly available to them or others in similar situations. Fournier violated these prohibitions by contacting DCF and OCA on behalf of Riscovery and using or attempting to use his position as an OSA consultant to gain access to DCF and OCA to pitch Riscovery’s services.

The Commission encourages public employees to contact the Commission’s Legal Division at 617-371-9500 for free advice if they have any questions regarding how the conflict of interest law may apply to them.

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