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Boston Globe
6 days ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
Mass. lawmakers reach deal to seed MBTA with $535 million from ‘millionaires' surtax spending package
The bill also would set aside $248 million to help cover The bill largely spends surplus revenue that the state collected from the surtax on annual income exceeding roughly $1 million. The revenue is constitutionally mandated to go toward transportation and education initiatives, though the agreement released Monday tips more toward transportation ($716 million in funding) than education ($593.5 million), according to lawmakers. Advertisement Legislators could shuttle the bill to Governor Maura Healey's desk as early as Wednesday, when both chambers have formal sessions scheduled. In a joint statement, state Representative Aaron Michlewitz and state Senator Michael Rodrigues, the chambers' respective budget chiefs, said the agreement 'makes critically important investments in education and transportation in the face of continued uncertainty.' Advertisement The MBTA's own spending plans already lean heavily on state largesse. The agency's board of directors last week The T's approved budget calls for hiring more than 1,000 positions to increase the agency's headcount to 8,030 employees. The T is also seeking some cost-cutting measures, such as reducing overtime costs, The MBTA has faced long-standing The T has also struggled with drawing back riders. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, fare revenue covered about To address this, the Legislature offered vastly different visions. The surtax spending bill the Senate passed last month would have dedicated $370 million to the MBTA, including $200 million to replenish the agency's budget reserve. The House, on other hand, sought far more, setting aside nearly $800 million for the T, most of which — $700 million — was tabbed for the agency's reserve and deficiency funds. Advertisement The bill released Monday falls in the middle. It would dedicate $300 million for the T's spending reserve, plus offer $175 million for workforce and safety funding. Another $40 million would go toward infrastructure upgrades, and $20 million would help fund the MBTA's low-income fare program. The gap between the chamber's plans for the T was even wider when combined with their annual state budget proposals, with the House seeking about $1.4 billion for the T between the two bills and the Senate $820 million. How Monday's deal would affect what the agency receives in the annual state budget plan is unclear. The chamber's leaders are still negotiating the details of that roughly $61.5 billion bill, which is designed to cover the fiscal year that starts July 1. Both chambers also included an array of earmarks in their surtax spending bills, ranging from Legislators had yet to release the full text of the final version Monday afternoon. The surplus surtax bill is, by design, supplemental, offering lawmakers a huge windfall to fund priorities that they perhaps wouldn't have been able to otherwise through the regular budget process. Still, the Legislature is likely to find itself in a similar position next year, too. Entering May, the voter-approved surtax had already Advertisement That type of financial cushion is welcome. President Trump has withheld or cut Companies have also Matt Stout can be reached at
Boston Globe
03-06-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Bill to reshape Cannabis Control Commission heads for House vote
It also seeks to further regulate intoxicating hemp-based items, which often exist in a legal gray area with limited oversight; adjusts the existing cap on retail licenses any one operator can hold; and eliminates the requirement that medical marijuana businesses be 'vertically integrated,' meaning they must grow and process all the marijuana they sell. Advertisement The Massachusetts State House. Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff The Ways and Means Committee advanced the bill with 23 Democrats in support of a favorable report, none opposed, eight Republicans reserving their rights, and five Boston Democrats taking no action on the committee poll. House Ways and Means Committee Chair Aaron Michlewitz said last week he was 'hopeful to do it soon' and that the House would 'make it a priority to kind of get through it as quickly as we can.' Speaker Ronald Mariano's office confirmed the cannabis bill will be on the agenda for Wednesday's formal session in the House. Advertisement Top Senate Democrats haven't expressed the same sense of urgency on the CCC. 'I will talk to senators and the chair of the Cannabis Committee, and we'll see. We'll take a look at whatever the House sends over, of course,' Senate President Karen Spilka said Thursday.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
House amendment blocks mental health case worker cuts
BOSTON (SHNS) – State mental health case managers at risk of being laid off were given a potential lifeline Tuesday, as the House voted to maintain staffing levels. Gov. Maura Healey's budget proposal in January called for slashing the DMH case manager workforce in half, from 340 to 170 individuals. The House Ways and Means Committee opted against preserving the workforce, with Chair Aaron Michlewitz citing ongoing labor issues. The threatened layoffs have prompted an outcry over mental health care access. But in a mega-amendment Tuesday, House Democrats supported a Rep. Marjorie Decker amendment (#1550) stating that 'department case manager staffing levels shall not be reduced below fiscal year 2025 case manager staffing levels.' 'This consolidated (amendment) also preserves DMH caseworker staffing levels, an important link in the chain of mental health services in our commonwealth,' Rep. Mindy Domb, co-chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery, said on the House floor. The House passed the mega-amendment on a 133-20 vote. Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children, the state-run public health hospital in Canton that the governor initially planned to shutter through her budget, also was addressed in the mega-amendment. Representatives backed a Rep. Bill Galvin amendment (#97) to create a legislative commission to study the future of the sprawling hospital while keeping it open, but did not give support to another Galvin amendment (#1164) that would have required Pappas to maintain at least 40 beds serving patients ages 7-22. 'We have appropriated $10.3 million more than House 1 to support the Department of Public Health's hospital operations, which includes important funding to keep Pappas Rehabilitation open for children and invest funding in our hospitals — and not use them as political pawns,' Decker, co-chair of the Joint Committee on Public Health, said. Healey has halted closure plans for Pappas, but hospital staff and families say the state is not sticking with the promised pause. The Senate usually unveils and debates its annual budget in May, but specific plans haven't been announced. 'The passage of this amendment and its inclusion in the House budget is an important step in our fight to save Pappas. The budget already includes the line item to fund operations for Pappas, and the language the Governor sought to allow her to close Pappas has been removed,' MNA spokesperson David Schildmeier said. 'Now we wait for the Senate's budget, where Senator Paul Feeney will be filing his own amendment.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
House budget debate day 1
BOSTON (WWLP) – The House is refining its plan for the fiscal year 2026 budget this week with debate among representatives, determining how the commonwealth will allocate its resources come July. The 61.4 billion dollar budget is 6.5% higher than last year's, but the bottom line is $600 million lower than Healey's proposal. Over the course of debate, the Senate will need to make decisions on 1,650 amendments–the most in over a decade. These amendments look to add at least $2.5 billion to the budget. House budget chief Aaron Michlewitz spoke about his goals in creating this budget. 'While there has been some progress in bringing inflation under control, recent actions in Washington are likely reversing those gains and bringing further chaos to our economy and our nation,' said Michlewitz. The House began its day with talk about tax revenue amendments, which will likely all be debated publicly. Most other amendments are expected to be decided in closed-door meetings. One Ways and Means committee member and member of the minority party spoke to his satisfaction with how the budget is handling taxes. 'We are so grateful that they embraced the ideology of the Republican Party and put no tax increases in this budget, no doubt inspired by the minority party,' said Representative Todd Smola of Warren. The most notable moment of today's debate–a Republican representative proposed a 5% tax cut that did not receive sufficient support, even among fellow Republicans, to hold a roll call vote. Once the House finishes its debate and passes a budget, it's the Senate's turn. Finally, their differences will be reconciled before a final draft is sent to the governor to be passed into law. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
