Audit of the Fall River Line Pier, Inc. (April 16, 2025)
April 16, 2025 · Fall River Line Pier, Inc. · Read the full official report on mass.gov ↗
Published April 16, 2025 Audit covers July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2023 Under Diana DiZoglio · 2023–present
Read the plain-English breakdown
This is a Massachusetts State Auditor performance audit of Fall River Line Pier, Inc., covering July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2023.
“In accordance with Section 12 of Chapter 11 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Office of the State Auditor has performed an audit of the Fall River Line Pier, Inc. (FRLP) for the period July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2023.”
The audit checked whether FRLP fixed issues found in an earlier audit and whether its fixes were enough.
“The purpose of this audit was to follow up on the issues identified in our prior audit report (Audit No. 2019-0504-3A) and to determine (1) what measures, if any, FRLP took to address these issues and (2) the adequacy of those measures.”
The report says weak conflict-of-interest practices can hurt public trust and may affect FRLP’s business because people may worry they will not be treated fairly.
“This could create the appearance of conflicts of interest, if not outright conflicts of interest, which undermines the public’s faith in the government(s) that contract with FRLP and of FRLP’s work as a government contractor.”
If you live in Massachusetts, this matters because FRLP manages public pier operations, and the audit is about whether decisions, payments, and records are being handled transparently and responsibly.
“FRLP coordinates the day-to-day operations, security, and general maintenance of the Fall River State Pier, located at 1 Water Street in Fall River.”
The biggest finding was that FRLP paid $187,921 to companies tied to board members or their family members without documented conflict disclosures or board approval evidence.
“During the audit period, Fall River Line Pier, Inc. (FRLP) paid 30 expenses, totaling $187,921, to five companies in which four board members had financial interests.”
The Auditor’s office said it will check back in about six months to see whether FRLP has made progress on the issues.
“We will follow up with FRLP in approximately six months to assess its progress in addressing these issues.”
The report is significant because it found repeated problems, including ethics concerns that had already been raised in a previous audit.
“According to this new audit, FRLP has still not addressed the ethics concerns earlier raised.”
A conflict of interest means someone involved in a decision may personally, financially, or through family benefit from that decision.
“Financial Interest means, when a person has, directly or indirectly, through business, investment, or family:”
4 figure(s) pending source verification - not shown
What the Auditor checked
- Did not comply Did FRLP’s board of directors establish policies and procedures related to FRLP’s financial activities, including conflicts of interest, travel, donations, and accounts receivable?
- Partially Did FRLP make appropriate nonpayroll expenditures that were in line with its mission?
- Complied Did FRLP attempt collection for all delinquent accounts?
- Did not comply Did FRLP board members disclose and review transactions that might result in conflicts of interest?
What the Auditor found
Why it matters: The transactions could create actual or apparent conflicts of interest, undermining public trust and risking current and future revenue.
Standard: Section 6C of Chapter 180 of the Massachusetts General Laws and the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations. ( Section 6C of Chapter 180 of the Massachusetts General Laws; The [Massachusetts] Attorney General’s Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations )
2 recommendations
- FRLP should formally establish and implement policies and procedures related to its financial activities, including conflicts of interest, travel, donations, accounts payable, and accounts receivable.
- Board members should declare in writing their potential conflicts of interest, notify the board of transactions that pose a potential conflict of interest, recuse themselves from participation, and the board should vote on whether the transactions are in FRLP’s best interests.
Agency response & Auditor reply
Agency: "Conflict of Interest practices have been established in draft form to be discussed with the Board of Directors and Conflict of Interest forms have been executed by the current Board and will be executed annually by all board members moving forward."
Auditor: "FRLP attempted to explain why the conflicts of interest identified in this report are not concerning."
Why it matters: Missing board minutes weaken governance records and make it harder to track board decisions, actions, accountability, and transparency.
Standard: FRLP’s bylaws and Section 16.01(a) of Chapter 156D of the General Laws. ( FRLP’s bylaws; Section 16.01(a) of Chapter 156D of the General Laws )
2 recommendations
- FRLP should ensure that meeting minutes are completed and retained.
- FRLP should establish and implement policies and procedures defining record retention periods.
Agency response & Auditor reply
Agency: "All Meeting Minutes since the time the newly constituted FRLP Board was in place have been accounted for."
Auditor: "The steps that FRLP propose may address our concerns regarding this matter."
Why it matters: Missing or inaccurate check numbers increase the risk of misstatements, weak reconciliations, and difficulty detecting unauthorized or fraudulent transactions.
Standard: The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations on financial accountability and internal accounting controls. ( The [Massachusetts] Attorney General’s Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations )
3 recommendations
- FRLP should design and implement internal controls over expenditures, receivables, and the account reconciliation process.
- FRLP should require outsourced financial management contracts to provide sufficient segregation of duties.
- FRLP should review its QuickBooks data for additional inaccurate or missing financial transaction information.
Agency response & Auditor reply
Agency: "This is largely due to technology errors that occurred during an upgrade to the computer system and transition from a desktop QuickBooks program to an upgraded online version of QuickBooks."
Auditor: "An open question remains as to why FRLP did not correct the error if it was performing reconciliations of the data."
Prior findings revisited
"I must note, however, that our current findings mirror some of the same findings in our office’s previous audit released in 2020, under my predecessor."
"We note that our most recent audit of FRLP, issued on June 11, 2020, found similar conflict of interest concerns, which were at that time related to three board members and $121,874 in payments."
More audits of this entity
Other Office of the State Auditor reports on Fall River Line Pier, Inc. , including the prior audits referenced above.
- Fall River Line Pier, Inc.Nonprofit / Vendor · June 24, 2011
- Audit of the Fall River Line Pier, Inc. (FRLP)Nonprofit / Vendor · June 11, 2020