BOSTON — Suzanne Bump, Democratic candidate for state auditor, has received endorsements from two Latino community organizations, two women's advocacy groups and three LGTB organizations.

MassEquality, the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus, and Bay State Stonewall Democrats have all endorsed her candidacy.

"This election is critical and we need candidates in office like Suzanne Bump who understand the importance of watching out for all citizens of the commonwealth, including LGBT citizens," said MassEquality Executive Director Kara Suffredini. "Suzanne Bump is someone who, from early in her career, has been very supportive of LGBT people and MassEquality enthusiastically endorses her for state auditor."

Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus and NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts have endorsed Bump's candidacy.

"We believe that Suzanne Bump's background and experience make her uniquely qualified to be Massachusetts' next state auditor. She has a strong track record of support for working families and we can count on her to protect the interests of the taxpayer," said MWPC Executive Director Priti Rao. "As former secretary of labor for the commonwealth, she demonstrated that commitment by developing and streamlining programs that resulted in minimized costs and maximized opportunities for workforce and small business development. In this very challenging economy, Suzanne's experience will be an invaluable asset in her role as the state's fiscal watchdog. We proudly support Suzanne Bump for state auditor."

¿Oíste?, a statwide political organization consisting of six regional councils that advances the political, social and economic standing of Latinos and Latinas, and La Semana News, a leading Spanish-language community newspaper in the Boston metro area, have also both endorsed Bump.

Bump has also received the endorsement of the Massachusetts Coalition for New Americans.

"Suzanne Bump has a long history of supporting civil rights and the programs that help all Massachusetts citizens, including immigrants and their families," said Eva Millona, the coalition's executive director.

QUINCY, Mass. — Suzanne Bump, Democratic nominee for state auditor, said she would conduct a thorough audit of the performance of the Committee for Public Counsel Service and the Bar Advocate programs.
 
“The state’s district attorneys have raised an important issue. There may be a problem with the way the public’s money is being spent on criminal defense,” said Bump in a statement issued Oct. 14. “Defendants have rights, but taxpayers do too, and they shouldn’t be abused.”
 
The Massachusetts District Attorneys Association issued a statement last week pointing out that defense counsel budgets have received substantial increases year after year while the district attorneys have not received comparable resources. One of their proposed solutions is to increase the DAs' budgets. Supporters of defense counsel have countered that their compensation is appropriate.

“So far, this debate has generated a lot of angry words and several ideas about how the state can spend more money in this area,” said Bump. “It has not generated any ideas or proposals about how we can deliver these services more effectively and save the taxpayers’ money.  There is a natural role here for the state auditor,” she said.

“I’ve talked about performance audits since I started this campaign. The issue raised by the District Attorneys perfectly illustrates my point,” Bump continued.  “As state auditor I will look at the way we spend taxpayer dollars to provide constitutionally required counsel to criminal defendants, determine whether the system is being abused, and identify changes to be made to save taxpayers money and deliver better services.”

“Through a thorough performance audit we can discover why the budget for defense counsel rises astronomically every year while the crime rate has remained essentially flat. If caseloads are the same, then why do defense costs keep increasing?” Bump asked.

Bump outlined some possible solutions, including reducing reliance on private attorneys in favor of having more public defenders, building better controls into the programs to ensure that attorneys are billing their cases consistent with reasonable defense practices, and exploring ways of resolving cases without excessive and costly litigation while protecting public safety.

“We need to get to the proper resolution of cases in the most cost-effective manner,” said Bump. “When we do that, we will save money for taxpayers and free up the resources to invest in programs that reduce crime and enhance public safety.”

QUINCY, Mass. — Suzanne Bump, the Democratic candidate for Massachusetts State Auditor, has been endorsed by MassEquality, a grassroots organization working to achieve full equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Bump is the first candidate for state auditor to have received an endorsement from MassEquality.

“This election is critical and we need candidates in office like Suzanne Bump who understand the importance of watching out for all citizens of the Commonwealth, including LGBT citizens,” said Kara Suffredini, executive director of MassEquality. “Bump’s opponent signed a petition that sought to take away the rights of LGBT people to marry in Massachusetts. But Suzanne Bump is someone who, from early in her career, has been very supportive of LGBT people and MassEquality enthusiastically endorses her for state auditor.”

Bump, who won the Democratic nomination in a three-way primary on Sept. 14 with 50 percent of the vote, is the former Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and is a former House Chairman of Commerce and Labor.

“Since 1985 I have been vigorously advocating on behalf of the LGBT community. I’m very grateful for MassEquality’s endorsement and their mission of equal civil rights has always been a major element of my own personal values,” said Bump. “My opponent, Mary Connaughton has chosen not to speak about her personal values, but as I see it, they have been clearly demonstrated through her actions. By signing anti-gay marriage petitions, Connaughton paints a fairly clear picture of her values.“

MassEquality’s endorsement is the latest in a series of statements of support for Bump from LGBT rights organizations, including the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus and the Bay Windows newspaper.