Audit of the Division of Standards

This is a state performance audit of the Massachusetts Division of Standards covering July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2018.

“In accordance with Section 12 of Chapter 11 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Office of the State Auditor has conducted a performance audit of the Division of Standards (DOS) for the period July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2018.”

Auditors looked at whether the agency properly ran its program for inspecting commercial weighing and measuring devices in towns with 5,000 or fewer people.

“In this performance audit, we examined DOS’s administration of its program for inspection of weighing and measuring devices for towns with 5,000 or fewer inhabitants.”

If scales or pumps are wrong, shoppers may pay for goods they do not actually receive, or businesses may lose money because the devices are not measuring correctly.

“If weighing and measuring devices are not inspected regularly, consumers could pay for amounts of products they are not receiving, or businesses may not be receiving all the revenue due them from sales, as a result of uninspected weighing and measuring devices that are not calibrated properly.”

This matters to ordinary residents because the agency checks devices used to sell everyday goods like food and fuel.

“DOS is responsible for enforcing standards for weighing and measuring devices used in the sale of items such as food and fuel.”

The auditors concluded that DOS did not properly administer the commercial weights and measures program for the smallest towns.

“Does DOS properly administer its commercial weights and measures program for towns with 5,000 or fewer inhabitants?”

The audit recommended that DOS create inspection procedures and a tracking system, such as a database, to monitor whether required inspections are happening.

“DOS should establish a mechanism, such as an electronic database, that will enable it to effectively monitor compliance with these requirements.”

The report points to a broader management problem: without a well-documented control system, the agency may fail to meet goals or follow required rules.

“Without an adequately documented system of internal controls, DOS risks not meeting all of its operational objectives economically and efficiently or complying with state laws, regulations, other authoritative guidance, or grants and other contractual agreements.”

The internal control plan is basically the agency’s written plan for identifying risks and making sure its work is checked and monitored.

“DOS’s internal control plan (ICP), an agency-wide document that summarizes risks and controls for all of its business processes, is not updated annually; it was last updated in August 2015.”