AG Campbell will not yet enter the argument on Question 1

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell said she supported the will of voters in approving Question 1, which gives the state auditor the authority to audit the Legislature, but her office is waiting to take action.

Some lawmakers have said they will change the question, saying the change violates the Constitution’s separation of powers. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio called on social media earlier this month for the attorney general to intervene and stop lawmakers from changing the law approved by voters.

“Right now the auditor is pushing for our office to get involved. “Right now our office doesn’t matter,” Campbell said Boston Public Radio on Tuesday.

The question approved by voters will not take effect until 30 days after the election. The legislature can then respond to the auditor’s inquiries. In the event of a dispute, either party may attempt to resolve it through litigation. Only then would Campbell’s office intervene.

“But right now we’re just dealing with hypotheses,” she said.

Campbell said she supports more government transparency, citing her time on the Boston City Council when she worked to expand public records laws.

While Campbell supports the ballot question, she said her office does not believe there is a provision in it
$4 billion jobs bill should have happened. This was a provision that effectively protected BlueHub Capital, a Roxbury nonprofit that originated appreciation mortgages. According to the company, the company was sued in 2020 over allegations of predatory lending
Boston Globe. Lawmakers signed the bill into law on November 20th.

“Of course there are some things in the economic law that we welcomed. We worked with the governor, we worked with the state legislature. But we felt that this particular provision should not have been passed,” Campbell said.

“If you grant an exemption to one product or company, you may be opening the floodgates for others to also apply for an exemption. And that concerns us,” she said.

BlueHub filed a notice of additional authority in Suffolk Superior Court on November 26, requesting that the case be dismissed. They argued that the Employment Act came into force during an emergency preamble, meaning the legislation was retroactive and would nullify ongoing litigation against them.

At the time of Boston Public Radio In an interview, Campbell said she was unaware of the notice. The Attorney General’s Office is also still reviewing the wording in the Employment Act that assigns the Attorney General the role of regulatory authority.

“Give us a little time. And we also need to examine what motion for summary judgment they actually made. I haven’t seen it yet,” she said.