Audit of the Massachusetts School Building Authority

This is a state performance audit of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, covering January 1, 2019 through June 30, 2021.

“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 Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for the period January 1, 2019 through June 30, 2021.”

Auditors checked whether MSBA properly prioritized school districts’ requests for construction, renovation, and repair funding, and whether it had written procedures for doing that work.

“In addition, we determined whether MSBA had established written policies and procedures to govern prioritization for the Core Program and ARP.”

Without written procedures, different staff could apply the process differently, making it harder to prove that the neediest school projects are consistently prioritized.

“Without written policies and procedures, MSBA lacks the internal controls necessary to adequately ensure that its evaluation and prioritization of SOIs are completed in a consistent manner and that school districts with the most urgent need are given priority.”

If you live in Massachusetts, this matters because MSBA helps fund public school building projects using public money, including money tied to the statewide sales tax.

“MSBA is funded through a dedicated 1% statewide sales tax (drawn from the statewide 6.25% sales tax).”

The audit did not say MSBA was choosing projects illegally; it said MSBA needs clear written policies so its decision-making process is consistent and transparent.

“MSBA should develop written policies and procedures for staff members to follow when evaluating and prioritizing SOIs submitted by school districts, in an effort to enhance transparency of decision making.”

MSBA said it would consider the auditor’s recommendation and look for more ways to document how it evaluates school districts’ requests.

“As noted above, the MSBA will take the recommendations made by [OSA] under advisement and look for additional opportunities to document its evaluation process.”

Because MSBA has limited grant money, the way it ranks applications affects which communities get invited to apply for school building funds first.

“Therefore, school districts that MSBA determines to have the most urgent need, based on the results of its due diligence process, are invited to apply for the grants until the funding is completely allocated or there are no more SOIs.”

An SOI is the first application step a school district takes when asking MSBA for building, renovation, or repair grant funding.

“Submitting an SOI is the first step in the Massachusetts School Building Authority (“MSBA”) program for school building construction, addition/renovation, and repair grants.”