Massachusetts Department of Transportation Use of Consultants and Contract Employees

This is a State Auditor performance audit of MassDOT’s use of consultants and contract employees in its information technology division from July 1, 2010 through December 31, 2012.

“This report details the audit objectives, scope, methodology, findings, and recommendations for the audit period, July 1, 2010 through December 31, 2012.”

The Auditor looked into MassDOT after being told the agency might not be following state law on the use of consultants, especially IT consultants.

“During fiscal year 2013, the Office of the State Auditor (OSA) was notified of MassDOT’s possible noncompliance with certain provisions of Chapter 29, Section 29A, of the General Laws related to the use of consultants, particularly those providing information technology (IT) services.”

State law says consultants should not supervise state employees and should not be used as replacements for state jobs, because that can bypass normal public employment rules and accountability.

“Consultant contracts, whether written with organizations or individuals, shall not be used as substitutes for state positions.”

For residents, this matters because MassDOT spends public money on IT services, and the audit says weak oversight could mean consultants are used in ways state law does not allow.

“The expenditures reported under these two codes totaled approximately $35 million for the audit period.”

The main takeaway is that MassDOT needed better rules and oversight for IT consultants, including limits on assignments, updated job descriptions, and required documentation.

“The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has not established adequate internal controls related to the use of information technology (IT) consultants that ensure its compliance with the requirements of Chapter 29, Section 29A, of the Massachusetts General Laws and the requirements of the state’s Operational Services Division (OSD).”

The Auditor recommended that MassDOT keep the improvements it started in fiscal year 2013, create written policies, update job descriptions, reassess IT staffing needs, and collect required consultant paperwork.

“Continue the practices established in fiscal year 2013 in order to comply with the provisions of Chapter 29, Section 29A, of the General Laws related to the use of consultants.”

The report is significant because MassDOT had IT consultants working for long stretches, including one for 11 years, which raised concerns that temporary consultants were effectively being used like state employees.

“We obtained the dates of hire of the 76 IT consultants working at the agency and found that 52 of these IT consultants had been employed by MassDOT’s ITD for 1 year or more, 15 had been employed for 5 or more years, and 1 had been employed for 11 years.”

A consultant is supposed to be an outside worker used for a specific, temporary purpose; a contract employee works more like a temporary employee under the agency’s direct supervision.

“Contract employees work under the direct supervision and control of the state agency that hired them and are considered temporary employees.”