Diana DiZoglio, the State Comptroller of Massachusetts, announced Tuesday that her office has begun an audit of the state legislature.
The Democrat, who previously served as both a state legislator and a senator, pledged to overhaul the Democratic-dominated legislature’s run during the campaign for last year’s auditor election.
Dizoglio said he hopes the audit will “increase transparency, accountability and fairness in areas of state government that have been so completely ignored.”
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“Historically, Congress has operated in secret, with committee votes hidden from the general public and laws voted in the dark of night,” Dizoglio said at a press conference.
According to Dizoglio, the Massachusetts legislature was last audited in 1922.
Diana DiZoglio, the Democratic state auditor for Massachusetts, announced Tuesday that her office has begun its first audit of the state legislature in over a century. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm, File)
Democratic Senate Speaker Karen Spilka did not immediately respond to a request for comment.An aide to Democratic House Speaker Ronald Mariano said he could not immediately comment.
Critics say the Massachusetts legislature is one of the least transparent legislatures in the country.
The 200 members of Congress are exempt from the state’s open session laws, and Democrats in both houses of Congress hold regular closed-door caucuses to keep the law out of the ear of the press and the general public. We are talking about
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During state budget debates in the House, legislators typically gather in a room at the side of the House chamber to discuss proposed amendments that would or would not be added to the large spending plan.
Dizoglio said taxpayers deserve the opportunity to participate in legislative, budgetary and regulatory issues that are important to them.
“Everyone should have fair and transparent access to all state-funded agencies, including the legislature, and access to information,” Dizoglio said.
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Dizoglio said he hopes lawmakers will welcome the audit. She said her office will publish the review once it is complete.
