Quasi-Public Reforms

    FY2012 House 1 Budget Recommendation:
    Issues in Brief
    Deval L. Patrick, Governor
    Timothy P. Murray, Lt. Governor

Since 2007, Governor Patrick has made unprecedented progress in creating an accountable and transparent state government for taxpayers.  Together with the Legislature and other constitutional officers, we have:

• Adopted the state’s strongest-ever ethics, lobbying and campaign finance reforms;
• Strengthened the Open Meeting Law;
• Reformed the state’s transportation agencies, eliminating the Turnpike Authority and making the MBTA accountable to the Secretary of Transportation;
• Reorganized the state’s economic development authorities, making them accountable to the Secretary of Housing and Economic Development;
• Created the www.mass.gov/transparency website, making state government finance information available to all;
• Made the state budget process more transparent, on-line at www.mass.gov/budget, and winning the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award by the Government Finance Officers Association; and,
• Commissioned the Quasi-Public Authority Compensation Review Commission, chaired by Stephen Crosby, Dean of the McCormack School at University of Massachusetts (“the Crosby Study”) to provide transparency to executive pay at state authorities.

Building on these efforts, and consistent with the recommendations of the Crosby Study, in this budget we seek to bring additional accountability and transparency to state authorities, those state agencies controlled by independent boards rather than the Governor and Legislature.  Section 20 of the budget will require state authorities to:

• Be audited annually by an independent auditor, reporting to an audit committee of its governing board, and filing the audit with the State Auditor;
• Be audited separately on state funds over $500,000, providing transparency of taxpayer support for authorities;
• Set compensation for management by compensation committee of its board, based on comparable compensation for similar officers in state government, as well as the private-sector;
• Prohibit executive pay-outs for sick, vacation, and other leave greater than would be allowed for state employees;
• Prohibit severance pay for executives removed for cause, and limiting severance pay to not more than three months salary for early termination without cause; and,
• Prohibit the commonwealth from subsidizing the pensions and health insurance of state authorities’ retirees, requiring authorities to fund their liabilities.

Prepared by Scott Jordan, Executive Office for Administration and Finance ·
www.mass.gov/budget/governor
For more information contact: contactanf@massmail.state.ma.us (617) 727-2040