Yes, it’s a big deal
One thing that angers taxpayers is when public officials pat them on the head and tell them there’s nothing to worry about — when it’s obvious that there is. The Boston Public Schools have run into big problems with the IRS, and it turns out Superintendent Tommy Chang didn’t inform the mayor or the School Committee about it in a timely way. That ought to have officials incensed — but at least outwardly, well, it doesn’t seem that way.
“We’ve fixed that and it’s not going to happen again,” Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said in an interview on WGBH radio. Well, that settles
Walsh noted that the problematic spending practices involving student activity accounts began under previous superintendents. He also waved off a call by the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance for the state auditor to examine the BPS books.
Now, the call by the conservative group was motivated by politics, no doubt — but Walsh’s suggestion that the
should be audited instead was just petulant.
In an audit of 16 student activity accounts, which contain funds raised by parents to pay for things like clubs and field trips, the IRS found that funds were used to pay school personnel under the table, and to pay vendors, while skirting federal tax rules. Documentation of the spending was often sloppy or nonexistent. The school department was required to pay back taxes and a fine.
As for the lack of communication, the chairman of the School Committee didn’t seem particularly rattled.
“Should the superintendent have told us at the time? Yes. Was it an oversight? Yes,” Michael O’Neill told The Boston Globe. “But he has apologized. I’m confident the School Committee will accept his apology and move forward.”
We understand the impulse to downplay a negative story. Schools rely heavily on funds raised by parents and others to pay for things that aren’t covered in the budget, and this could dampen fundraising efforts.
But that’s all the more reason for strict oversight — and prompt
disclosure when that oversight is revealed to be lacking.