We must invest in OPEGA, a vehicle that can restore the people’s trust in government.

The Department of Human Services is the agency of state government most responsible for providing a lifeline to the neediest among us. The department, which has at its disposal $1.8 billion in state and federal funds, is charged with seeing that thousands of Maine children, adults and seniors get the food, shelter, health care and safety they need.

Given the mission and size of DHS, we must be assured that the department is carefully managing the vast resources we have provided. When waste or fraud does occur, the extraordinary costs can be measured in terms of both dollars and services not delivered.

The news of $30 million in accounting blunders in the Department of Human Services on top of other high profile mistakes has shaken people’s trust in the state’s primary social service agency. Lack of trust in the DHS is, unfortunately, well founded. The state auditor reports that 92 percent of all accounting errors made throughout Maine government occur in this troubled department.

Now we are learning that the federal government is looking into alleged improprieties in the Maine Department of Education involving programs targeted at the students of migrant workers. What really concerns me about this incident is that state officials have known about the investigation into the $4 million program for six weeks but legislators on the Committee of Oversight had to learn about the problems from the media.

The responsibility for restoring confidence in state government lies with the Legislature. Lawmakers have the authority to create expectations, ask the hard questions and hold agencies accountable. Unfortunately, the Legislature has not been fulfilling its oversight obligations.

Last winter you may have heard about false issuance of $434,000 in checks by a DHS bureaucrat. This act, which clearly violates the public trust, was committed to prevent surplus funds from returning to the General Fund. Despite the severity, the issue has been largely ignored to this point and the unnamed bureaucrat who committed the infraction remains employed in the department.

For months my Republican colleagues on the Committee of Oversight have been pressing for answers about the issuance of these checks. We want to know what has been done to hold the employee who violated the public trust accountable, how this happened in the first place and what is being done to prevent future occurrences. While a subcommittee has finally been formed to look into the matter, it remains to be seen if any real action will be taken.

Upon learning of the $30 million in accounting errors at DHS, House Republicans called for the formation of a special legislative committee and the hiring of an independent auditor to get to the bottom of these problems. A few days later, the governor announced that the state would be working with an outside accounting firm, but legislative leaders have yet to establish a committee to work with the firm. This has to change.

Another step toward better oversight will be funding the newly created Legislative Office of Program Evaluation and Government Accountability. The office, which will be comprised of independent, professional analysts, will investigate government agencies and programs and report back to the Legislature. These reports will help us decide how to set priorities and improve the operations of state government.

Forty-four states have legislative oversight offices. The return on investment in terms of savings and efficiencies in these states is certainly impressive in a dollars and cents perspective. Knowing, however, that people are getting their money’s worth, as they say in the television commercials, is priceless.

OPEGA was authorized with bipartisan support during the last Legislature. Unfortunately, it ran up against the $1.2 billion budget shortfall in this year’s initial budget proposal. We still have a chance to fund the office in the Part II budget.

Given the need to restore the people’s trust in government, this is an investment we ought to make.

Rep. Randy Hotham of Dixfield is a member of the Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee and chairs the 34-member House Republican Freshman Caucus.