BOSTON — State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump today released an audit of the Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) that recommends the agency seek more information relative to the incidence of child sexual abuse from the Department of Children and Families (DCF). The audit, which examined and found no failures in certain aspects of OCA’s administration of […]
Bump calls for enhanced data sharing to improve sex offender oversight BOSTON — An audit released this week by State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump found that as of February 2017, the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB) did not have a current address for 1,769 convicted sex offenders, of which 936 had never been classified. The […]
Bump Says Findings Pointing to Persistent Deficiencies in Payment System BOSTON, MA — Auditor Suzanne M. Bump today announced that during a one year period, her office’s Medicaid Audit Unit identified more than $17.6 million in unallowable, questionable, duplicative, unauthorized, or potentially fraudulent billings at MassHealth. She estimates that corrective actions would save $8.6 million […]
Audit Report – HERE BOSTON, MA — Auditor Suzanne M. Bump today is calling on the Office of Court Interpreter Services (OCIS) to improve its payment processes, particularly for per diem court interpreters. Bump’s recommendations come as part of an audit of OCIS, which found expenditures were made without ensuring that OCIS obtained and verified […]
BOSTON, MA —State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump today released the results of an audit of the Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC), which found that the committee did not ensure that out-of-state police officers hired by municipal police departments completed the mandatory online Massachusetts Police Office Orientation Training within the required timeframe. “Communities rely on the […]
An audit released by Massachusetts Auditor Suzanne M. Bump today found the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) has not been completing investigations into claims of discrimination in the timeframe required by state regulations and its investigators have not been completing the required monthly minimum number of cases. “Massachusetts has been a leader in addressing discrimination […]
HEROES – REP. DIANA DIZOGLIO (Methuen) and STATE SENATOR KATY IVES (Newburyport). Both DiZoglio and Ives worked tirelessly to get my public records bill a fair hearing in sub committees, made sure they were voted out of those committees favorably, held strong on penalties for law breakers, and then forced a full vote in the […]
1st Amendment award Winner Colonel Sam Poulten (Ret.) The Valley Patriot newspaper honored Ret. Army Colonel, Sam Poulten, owner of 980WCAP radio in Lowell with the 1st Amendment Award lat Friday for his courage to defend free speech and a free press during a 1st Amendment lawsuit filed against the station. “It really is my […]
Statewide candidates spent $33.1 million during the 2013-14 election cycle, an increase of 9 percent from the 2010 election,according to an OCPF review of campaign finance activity by candidates. Fundraising for 2014 also totaled $33 million. The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance (OCPF’s) review of statewide campaign finance activity included receipt and expenditure […]
By: Tom Duggan, November 3, 2014 While The Valley Patriot newspaper has a policy against endorsing candidates, each member of our editorial board is free to endorse or make public who we are voting for. Here are my personal picks for the 2014 election season and why. Governor Charlie Baker, Republican As a right […]
Bump’s Bureau of Special Investigations Protects Program Integrity Boston, MA – In a report issued today, State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump said examiners within her office’s Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) identified more than $9.5 million in fraudulently obtained public assistance benefits and services in Fiscal Year 2014. This total represents a nearly 34 percent […]
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD OR LISTEN TO HOUR 1 CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD OR LISTEN TO HOUR 2 Paying Attention is hosted by Valley Patriot Publisher Tom Duggan. Tom’s, Co-host is Paul Murano. Paying Attention with Tom Duggan is produced by Chris Poublon of Dracut. Paying Attention airs on 980WCAP in Lowell, Massachusetts on Saturday’s from 10am to […]
By Tom Duggan, May, 2014 Massachusetts State Auditor Suzanne Bump says, “It’s not enough” that Governor Deval Patrick is replacing the state’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) Commissioner, telling a crowd of women in North Andover last month that replacing the head of DCF would do little to protect children while the policies and […]
Click for Turn-Page View of The Valley Patriot – Edition #127 – May, 2014 Click to download PDF of Valley Patriot
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR4PzEKaC0M &w=380&h=320] State Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives (D-Newburyport) has received the first ever Valley Patriot 1st Amendment Award at the newspaper’s tenth anniversary BASH last month. The 1st Amendment award is given to individuals who show with their actions that they value the 1st Amendment to the Constitution and are willing to fight for it. […]