Having listened to the infamous six minutes and considering that DOR stands for Department of Revenue, would I be showing total ignorance to ask you all how this audit has anything to do with "revenue"? From what I can tell they are trying to identify town employees who are  "hatebloggers" posting messages from town computers.

CHAPTER 59. ASSESSMENT OF LOCAL TAXES

BOOKS, LISTS, TABLES AND RETURNS OF ASSESSORS

Chapter 59: Section 52B. Official inspection of valuation information, release of comparable sales data

Section 52B. All information collected pursuant to section 8A of chapter 58A and sections 38D, 38E, 57D and 61A of this chapter shall be open to the inspection of the assessors, the commissioner, the deputies, clerks and assistants of either the assessors or the commissioner and such other officials of the commonwealth or of its political subdivisions who have occasion to inspect such information in the performance of their official duties, but to no other person except by order of the appellate tax board or a court, except that if the assessor bases a valuation of an assessed owner’s real or personal property, in whole or in part, on a comparable sale, or sales, the assessor shall provide any market data relating to such comparable sale or sales to the assessed owner of the property or his designated representative upon request.

CHAPTER 59. ASSESSMENT OF LOCAL TAXES

ABATEMENTS

Chapter 59: Section 60. Records of abatements

Section 60. Every board of assessors shall record all abatements of taxes. The record of abatement of the whole or any part of any tax shall be signed by a majority of the board and shall show plainly the following details:

First, The name or title in which the tax stands assessed.

Second, The year in which the tax was assessed.

Third, The total amount of the tax.

Fourth, The date when the abatement was made.

[There is no Fifth.]

Sixth, The sum abated on personal estate.

Seventh, The sum abated on real estate.

Eighth, The total sum abated.

Ninth, In case of an abatement to put into effect a statutory exemption, exact reference to the statutory provision under which the exemption is granted.

The assessors shall forthwith upon making an abatement furnish the tax collector with a copy thereof.

The records which boards of assessors are required to keep pursuant to this section shall be kept, in the order in which such abatements of taxes are granted, in a book or set of books provided for the purpose and in such form as the commissioner may prescribe. Such book or books, or copies thereof, shall be open to public inspection. Every board of assessors shall at the request of any person furnish one or more copies of any record required by this section to be kept, upon the payment in advance of a fee approximating the cost of such copy or copies.

Applications for abatement or exemption under this chapter shall, except in proceedings before the county commissioners, the appellate tax board or a court of the commonwealth, be open only to the inspection of the assessors, the commissioner, the deputies, clerks and assistants of either the assessors or the commissioner and such other officials or designated private auditors of the commonwealth or of its political subdivisions as may have occasion to inspect such applications in the performance of their official, contractual or designated duties. For purposes of this section, a designated private auditor shall be an individual, corporation or other legal entity proficient in auditing selected by the director of accounts or any city or town to perform an audit which includes the assessing department of a city or town under any legal authority, including an audit under sections forty or forty-two of chapter forty-four, or an investigation under section forty-six A of chapter forty-four.

Why is the DOR involved in giving the okay for this audit?

The key things to remember: 1) This is only a response to the Assessor's complaint, and responds to search of Assessor's files only.  It doesn't clear them for the audit of ALL town computers.  2) It doesn't necessarily clear them for the audit of Assessing records, because the key word here is MOST.  The DOR says they can look at MOST Assessor's records, not ALL.

And it does sound like they looked at ALL.