Newbury Town Administrator Meets with Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shaprio

NEWBURY — Town Administrator Tracy Blais is pleased to report that she held a lengthy and extremely informative meeting with Massachusetts Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shapiro on Thursday.

While many in the state think the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) only conducts oversight of state agencies and municipalities, the office also offers numerous training programs and educational resources to help municipalities identify best practices. 

“I came away from the meeting understanding that the OIG is not just an oversight agency working to prevent and detect fraud, waste and abuse, but also a tremendous resource available for communities to partner with to ensure best practices in public procurement and promote overall good government,” said Town Administrator Blais. 

As a result of the meeting and all that Town Administrator Blais learned, three members of the Newbury municipal team will now be participating in training opportunities offered by the OIG to enhance their knowledge of Massachusetts procurement laws and best practices.

Inspector General Shapiro visited Newbury as part of an effort to visit municipal stakeholders all across the Commonwealth. He has held more than 60 such visits across the state. 

In addition to discussing municipal best practices, he and Administrator Blais also discussed legislation that Inspector General Shapiro has testified in support of that would update procurement laws.

The new laws are aimed at making it easier for municipalities to procure services for snow plowing, removal and hauling by enabling municipalities to hire companies to do all three tasks. Current law forces municipalities to contract for snow plowing work separately from hauling and removal. Snow removal and hauling tend to be more popular among private contractors, so by combining all three services municipalities should be able to attract more competitive bids. 

“This was a tremendously informative meeting that will enable us to pursue new training in best practices and accountability,” said Town Administrator Blais. “I’d like to thank Inspector General Shapiro for visiting, sharing his ideas, and listening to our concerns. We appreciate his time and attention.”

To learn more about the OIG, visit: https://www.mass.gov/orgs/office-of-the-inspector-general.