 |
Post Office Box 1147 ●
Marblehead, Massachusetts 01945 ●
(781) 639-9709
“Every Tax is a Pay Cut ... A Tax Cut is a Pay Raise”
45 years as “The Voice of Massachusetts Taxpayers”
— and
their Institutional Memory — |
|
CLT UPDATE
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Mass.,
#46, spent 304% higher than national average on its highways
|
Support the government of El Salvador – The
House approved, without debate, resolutions “extending its
support to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele and the
country of El Salvador.”
The resolutions state that Bukele is
battling violence, poverty and corruptions and aiming to
alleviate the causes that generate its citizens’ migration.
They also pledge to support the El
Salvador’s investment policies aimed at increasing economic
development, creating more jobs and stimulating the economy.
Rep. Joseph McGonagle (D-Everett), the
sponsor of the resolutions, did not respond to repeated
requests by Beacon Hill Roll Call for a comment on the
resolutions including responding to critics who say the
Massachusetts House should not be voting on international
issues when there is much work to be done at home.
“What else do Bay State legislators have to
do?” asked Chip Ford, Executive Director of
Citizens for Limited Taxation. “The
alleged-fulltime ‘Best Legislature Money Can Buy’ is on its
well-paid month-long vacation, and this is what happens when
too much idle time seeks justification and relevance.
I guess we should be thankful the resolution isn’t being
hand-delivered by a legislative delegation on a
taxpayers-paid junket. It’s not, is it?”
Beacon Hill Roll Call
Volume 44 - Report No. 34
August 19-23, 2019
By Bob Katzen
Even with Beacon Hill quiet during another
week of summer vacation, the wheels of government continued
to turn -- or, we should say, turn over, with a key Registry
of Motor Vehicles manager fired and replaced, a nuclear
power plant's license ready to be transferred, and seemingly
half of the state preparing to run for new offices....
Turnover seemed to be a topic high on the
mind of Beacon Hill lawmakers while many are away from
formal business on their summer recess. We have to imagine
many have spent their time off gossiping about who will run
for a congressional seat that might not even open up -- or
publicly confirming that they may go for it themselves.
State House News Service
Friday, August 23, 2019
Weekly Roundup - The Summer Churn
By Chris Lisinski
Like it or not, summer's end is just around
the bend and Beacon Hill is poised to begin stirring back to
life next week. Gov. Charlie Baker is slated to return from
his staycation up in Gloucester and is going to host company
early in the week. The Legislature, which has been quiet all
month since lawmakers returned to their districts for the
recess, will hold a committee hearing next week
— on gun laws, no less....
Lawmakers, or at least one joint committee,
will also emerge from their August downtime on Wednesday to
hold a hearing on 68 pieces of legislation related to
firearms and gun laws.
The Joint Committee on Public Safety and
Homeland Security will accept testimony on bills that would
limit buyers to purchasing one firearm within a 30-day span,
require an analysis of where guns used in crimes were
initially purchased, regulate 3D printing of firearms and
more. The Gun Owners Action League of Massachusetts has
pledged to show up to oppose what it called "draconian" gun
control measures, and the Massachusetts Coalition to Prevent
Gun Violence will also be present to speak in favor of a
number of the bills.
State House News Service
Friday, August 23, 2019
Advances - Week of Aug. 25, 2019
The latest salvo came Wednesday morning from
Raise Up Massachusetts, the coalition of more than 100
labor, community and faith-based groups that has
successfully worked to secure minimum wage increases, a new
paid family and medical leave program and guaranteed earned
sick time. In a letter distributed to lawmakers, Raise Up
pressed lawmakers to work towards an "economically
progressive" revenue proposal.
Raise Up, which has been behind the proposed
4 percent surtax on income over $1 million, pushed back
against recent commentary from business groups like
Associated Industries of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts
High Technology Council warning against new taxes to funnel
more money into public transportation.
"We need major new investments in
transportation and public education, but we cannot continue
to balance out budgets solely on the backs of low- and
moderate-income people," Raise Up Massachusetts wrote in its
letter....
But the High Tech Council, one of the groups
that successfully petitioned to remove the so-called
millionaire's tax from last year's ballot, pointed to the
state's strong economic performance in fiscal year 2019 to
argue that "Massachusetts does not have a revenue problem
despite repeated claims that billions in new taxes must be
imposed to support state spending."
Last fiscal year, state tax collections
totaled $29.69 billion, an increase of nearly 7 percent over
the previous year and eclipsing budget benchmarks by $1.1
billion. The High Tech Council said it is concerned that
political leaders could make decisions that halt the
momentum of the private sector, which it said "has buoyed
the commonwealth." Compounding that concern are "the
calamitous economic results" in states like Connecticut,
Illinois and New Jersey, where the council said policymakers
"unwisely relied on over-taxation of productive economic
activity to manage their fiscal affairs." ...
House Speaker Robert DeLeo has indicated
that he is open to tax hikes or just about any other policy
prescription to address the state's critical transportation
needs....
Raise Up said any near-term revenue proposal
must include a commitment from the Legislature to continue
the work necessary to get the millionaire's tax before
voters on the 2022 ballot, must be "economically
progressive" to bring the share of the burden on
higher-income people in line with that of lower-income
residents, must raise enough revenue to meet the state's
needs and must be "supported by the public and capable of
surviving attempted repeal."
State House News Service
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
Raise Up asks lawmakers to look to biz,
not just workers, in revenue debate
In fiscal 2019, state tax collections
totaled $29.69 billion -- an increase of nearly 7 percent
over the previous year and above budget expectations by $1.1
billion. That resulted in a deposit of $848 million in the
stabilization fund. The administration said the fund is on
track to reach a $3.3 billion balance by the end of fiscal
2020.
In April, Gov. Charlie Baker and Treasurer
Deborah Goldberg traveled to New York City to meet with
representatives from rating agencies Moody's, Standard and
Poor's, and Fitch. Modeled after a similar trip they took in
June 2016, Goldberg had suggested last December that the Bay
State make its case to the rating agencies directly.
"It is now time again ... for the secretary
and his folks, the governor, myself and my debt people to go
back down to New York and see them again just to
re-highlight all of the things that we do and why we feel
we're in a good position to manage and handle our fiscal
health," she said.
Of the $848 million transferred to the rainy
day fund from above-benchmark capital gains tax revenue, $84
million will be split between the State Retiree Benefits
Trust Fund and the Pension Liability Fund.
"Debt and pension liabilities are among the
highest in the nation, though these figures include
borrowing and benefits for local governments," Moody's wrote
about Massachusetts in its Tuesday release.
State House News Service
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Rainy day fund growth catches eye of rating agency
Massachusetts highways ranked among the
worst in the country when it comes to overall performance
and cost effectiveness, according to a new national study,
but Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack argues the
calculations are off.
“Every year that report comes out we’re sort
of down at the bottom because of the way we do things in
Massachusetts and we count things a little differently,”
Pollack said. “We think we spend that money well.”
A study released Wednesday by the Reason
Foundation, a public policy research nonprofit organization,
ranked Massachusetts No. 46 out of the 50 states for the
worst performance and cost-effectiveness, following closely
behind New York, Rhode Island, Alaska and Hawaii. Though the
average American spends 35 hours a year stuck in traffic,
drivers in Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, California
and Georgia experience the longest delays, the report found.
Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida, New York
and Connecticut spent the most on highways on a per-mile
basis, with each state spending more than $200,000 per mile
of highway it controls.
“The way the Reason Foundation assembles its
numbers ends up treating Massachusetts in a way that we
don’t think presents an accurate picture of the
cost-effectiveness of our spending,” Pollack countered.
The Boston Herald
Friday, August 23, 2019
Massachusetts highways ranked some of the worst in the
country
Massachusetts’ highway system ranks 46th in the nation in
overall cost-effectiveness and condition, according to the
Annual Highway Report by Reason Foundation. This is
a two-spot decrease from the previous report, where
Massachusetts ranked 44th overall.
In safety and performance categories, Massachusetts ranks
1st in overall fatality rate, 30th in structurally deficient
bridges, 46th in traffic congestion, 31st in urban
Interstate pavement condition and 37th in rural Interstate
pavement condition.
On spending, Massachusetts ranks 48th in total spending
per mile and 45th in capital and bridge costs per mile.
“To improve in the rankings, Massachusetts needs to
reduce its disbursements, improve its arterial pavement
condition and reduce its traffic congestion. The state is in
the bottom 10 for all four disbursements metrics, and the
bottom five for arterial pavement condition and traffic
congestion. Compared to neighboring states, the report finds
Massachusetts’ overall highway performance is better than
Rhode Island (ranks 48th), but worse than Connecticut (ranks
44th) and Vermont (ranks 19th),” said Baruch Feigenbaum,
lead author of the Annual Highway Report and
assistant director of transportation at Reason Foundation.
“Massachusetts is doing better than some comparable states
such as New Jersey (ranks 50th), but worse than others like
Maryland (ranks 39th).”
Massachusetts’ best rankings are in overall fatality rate
(1st) and rural fatality rate (1st).
Massachusetts’ worst rankings are in total disbursements
per mile (48th) and its urban arterial pavement condition
(48th).
Reason Foundation’s Annual Highway Report
August 22, 2019
|
|
Chip Ford's CLT
Commentary
When
confronted with the results of the latest Reason
Foundation annual report of state highway systems
showing that Massachusetts has gone from 44th-worst
state in the nation to 46th-worst in highway spending,
State Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack
responded:
“Every
year that report comes out we’re sort of down at the
bottom because of the way we do things in
Massachusetts and we count things a little
differently. We think we spend that money
well. . . . The way the Reason Foundation assembles
its numbers ends up treating Massachusetts in a way
that we don’t think presents an accurate picture of
the cost-effectiveness of our spending.”
Isn't it strange how misunderstood
Massachusetts government is, outside of Massachusetts
and beyond its borders? Nobody across the nation
appreciates just how —
creative shall we say —
if not infinitely wiser Bay State government
performs strictly for the benefit of its subjects.
In another report concerning the state's
at-risk credit rating, the State House News Service also
noted this unique anomaly:
In December, [State
Treasurer Deborah Goldberg] said state financial
managers needed to better explain how Massachusetts
operates. She cited mechanisms the state has to
automatically direct money to the rainy day fund and the
fact that other states pass debt on to county and local
governments.
"We do not do that
and we are clear about articulating that, though we
don't seem to get credit for that," Goldberg said at the
time, a few months before the rating agency roadshow.
No matter how you look at
— or make excuses for
— its conclusions, the
Reason Foundation report indicates that the
Massachusetts Department of Transportation spent
tremendously more per lane-mile of its highway
system ($216,066) than all other states but Florida
($241,100) and New Jersey ($511,266). On spending
alone, Massachusetts ranked 48th-worst of all 50 states.
Massachusetts total spending per
lane-mile was 304% greater than national average.
This year's analysis and report tweaked
its methodology for greater accuracy, notably changing
its measurement from "state-controlled miles" in past
reports to "state-controlled lane-miles."
The authors explained the reason for reworking the
metric:
Using
centerline-miles worked well for more than 20 years.
We used centerline-miles because the cost of
building the first mile of a highway from Point A to
Point B (including right of way acquisition and
pre-construction) is much more expensive than the
cost to build an additional mile of that highway
also from Point A to Point B. However, as
more-populated states widen their roadways and
less-populated states do not, the average width
(number of lanes) of a state roadway differs
significantly from 2.06 in West Virginia to 3.66 in
New Jersey. As a result, we think lane-miles
is a better metric for today’s state highway
systems.
This makes comparisons with
past reports difficult at best, but the major
conclusion remains the same year after year.
Massachusetts spends far, far too much on its
roads, bridges, and highways in comparison to
forty-seven other states —
and it is losing ground, going in the wrong direction,
costing taxpayers and motorists more by the year for
what it provides — or
doesn't as is more likely the case.
Note the stark difference between
Massachusetts — with every
tax and fee known to mankind — and
New Hampshire. As we were
recently reminded by Granite State Governor Sununu,
his state doesn't have an income tax, a sales tax,
or a capital gains tax. Anyone who’s driven north
over the border appreciates the remarkably better
highways across the line. For further comparison,
this year I've also included my favorite "sanctuary
state" of Kentucky to provide further insight into the
Bay State's steadfast problem of grossly bloated,
willfully wasted spending of taxpayers' money.
|
Capital and Bridges Disbursements per State-Controlled Lane-Mile |
|
Massachusetts |
$92,972 |
|
New Hampshire |
$27,822 |
|
Kentucky |
$26,163 |
|
National Average |
$36,681 |
|
Maintenance Disbursements per State-Controlled Lane-Mile |
|
Massachusetts |
$25,033 |
|
New Hampshire |
$17,951 |
|
Kentucky |
$7,372 |
|
National Average |
$11,929 |
|
Administrative Disbursements per State-Controlled Lane-Mile |
|
Massachusetts |
$23,950 |
|
New Hampshire |
$5,260 |
|
Kentucky |
$490 |
|
National Average |
$4,501 |
|
Total Disbursements (including bond principal and interest,
etc.) per State-Controlled Lane Mile |
|
Massachusetts |
$216,066 |
|
New Hampshire |
$64,176 |
|
Kentucky |
$45,829 |
|
National Average |
$71,117 |
|
Source: Reason Foundation, August 22,
2019, "24th Annual Highway Report" https://reason.org/wp-content/uploads/24th-annual-highway-report-2019.pdf |
Remember this when the Legislature
returns next week from its month-long vacation and
pivots to demands for more and higher taxes to fund "the
state's deteriorating infrastructure," as has been
promised. We surely will.
|
 |
 |
|
Chip Ford
Executive Director |
|
|
|
|
|
State House News
Service
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
Raise Up asks lawmakers to look to biz, not just
workers, in revenue debate
By Colin A. Young
With at least the House gearing up to take a run
at a broad transportation financing package when
legislators get back to work this fall, the
battle lines are being drawn as business
organizations and advocacy groups attempt to
influence whatever legislation might eventually
emerge.
The latest salvo came Wednesday morning from
Raise Up Massachusetts, the coalition of more
than 100 labor, community and faith-based groups
that has successfully worked to secure minimum
wage increases, a new paid family and medical
leave program and guaranteed earned sick time.
In a letter distributed to lawmakers, Raise Up
pressed lawmakers to work towards an
"economically progressive" revenue proposal.
Raise Up, which has been behind the proposed 4
percent surtax on income over $1 million, pushed
back against recent commentary from business
groups like Associated Industries of
Massachusetts and the Massachusetts High
Technology Council warning against new taxes to
funnel more money into public transportation.
"We need major new investments in transportation
and public education, but we cannot continue to
balance out budgets solely on the backs of low-
and moderate-income people," Raise Up
Massachusetts wrote in its letter.
The group added, "Large, profitable corporations
benefit greatly from a well-educated workforce
and a reliable transportation system, and it's
time for them to contribute themselves to fund
those investments, not just ask the rest of us
to pay more. The Massachusetts corporate
community needs to explain just how businesses
plan to do their part to fund our transportation
and public education systems."
Business groups have increasingly decried the
Boston area's public transportation woes as a
hindrance to economic growth. Traffic and
congestion on the roads make for long and
frustrating commutes by car, and the
unpredictable nature of public transportation
frequently makes workers late to their jobs.
But the High Tech Council, one of the groups
that successfully petitioned to remove the
so-called millionaire's tax from last year's
ballot, pointed to the state's strong economic
performance in fiscal year 2019 to argue that
"Massachusetts does not have a revenue problem
despite repeated claims that billions in new
taxes must be imposed to support state
spending."
Last fiscal year, state tax collections totaled
$29.69 billion, an increase of nearly 7 percent
over the previous year and eclipsing budget
benchmarks by $1.1 billion. The High Tech
Council said it is concerned that political
leaders could make decisions that halt the
momentum of the private sector, which it said
"has buoyed the commonwealth." Compounding that
concern are "the calamitous economic results" in
states like Connecticut, Illinois and New
Jersey, where the council said policymakers
"unwisely relied on over-taxation of productive
economic activity to manage their fiscal
affairs."
In its letter Wednesday, Raise Up lays the blame
for the "current transportation and public
education funding crisis" at the feet of AIM,
the High Tech Council, the Massachusetts
Competitive Partnership, the Massachusetts
Taxpayers' Foundation and the National
Federation of Independent Business -- the groups
that were successful in their opposition to the
millionaire's tax.
"Now, large, profitable corporations and their
lobbyists are calling for working people to pay
more, and they think they deserve a big round of
applause for letting the rest of us pay higher
taxes," Raise Up wrote. "Business organizations
across the state are discussing transportation
financing plans that would have road users pay
even more, without taking any responsibility for
businesses themselves to chip in."
Earlier this month, Associated Industries of
Massachusetts President and CEO John Regan said
that businesses "already burdened with business
and compliance costs" could be put under greater
stress if the Legislature opts for tax
increases.
"Beacon Hill is awash with calls for more
revenue. But the slowing of the economy during
the second quarter means this is exactly the
wrong time to place additional cost burdens on
business," Regan said. "If the economy goes into
a downturn while costs are increasing that will
create big challenges for employers."
As congestion on the roads and unreliable
service on public transportation test the
patience of commuters and other residents, House
Speaker Robert DeLeo has indicated that he is
open to tax hikes or just about any other policy
prescription to address the state's critical
transportation needs.
In April, two dozen business groups, including
the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce,
Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, Cape Cod
Chamber of Commerce and Western Massachusetts
Economic Development Council, banded together to
promote a statewide agenda for transportation as
the Massachusetts Business Coalition on
Transportation.
James Rooney, head of the Greater Boston Chamber
of Commerce, said last month that the group had
not yet gotten to the point of debating specific
proposals, like an increase in the state gas tax
or in the user fees paid with each ride with
services like Lyft or Uber, but had reached "a
point of shared understanding" of the problem.
"If there's something that we did achieve
consensus on, it is that anything that is
proposed in the form of revenue needs to be
packaged with measurable outcomes. I think I can
say that we've agreed universally that we don't
think the right approach is just an easy
revenue-raising proposal," he told the News
Service last month.
Raise Up said any near-term revenue proposal
must include a commitment from the Legislature
to continue the work necessary to get the
millionaire's tax before voters on the 2022
ballot, must be "economically progressive" to
bring the share of the burden on higher-income
people in line with that of lower-income
residents, must raise enough revenue to meet the
state's needs and must be "supported by the
public and capable of surviving attempted
repeal."
State House News
Service
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Rainy day fund growth catches eye of rating
agency
By Colin A. Young
Ever since a credit rating agency knocked the
state's credit rating down a peg two years ago,
Massachusetts money managers have paid more
attention to growing the rainy day fund. Now, a
different rating outfit is taking notice.
S&P Global Ratings downgraded its rating for
Massachusetts bonds to AA from AA+ in June 2017
and admonished the state for "the commonwealth's
failure to follow through on rebuilding its
reserves" while the economy was growing.
Since then, Gov. Charlie Baker, legislative
leaders, Treasurer Deborah Goldberg and others
have rarely talked about state finance without
mentioning the need for consistent and
predictable deposits into the stabilization
fund.
On Tuesday, Moody's Investor Services announced
that it had completed a "periodic review" of its
rating for Massachusetts (Aa1) and 14 other
states as part of a check on its own
methodologies and analytics.
The review did not and could not impact the
state's rating, but Moody's made note of a few
things about Massachusetts.
"The Aa1 rating reflects Massachusetts' growing
economy, anchored by education, healthcare and
technology sectors. Robust economic growth,
combined with close monitoring of revenues and
ample executive authority to make mid-year cuts,
have resulted in balanced budgets," the agency
wrote in a press release. "Strong year-over-year
tax revenue growth, along with prudent planning,
have afforded the commonwealth the opportunity
to build reserves."
In fiscal 2019, state tax collections totaled
$29.69 billion -- an increase of nearly 7
percent over the previous year and above budget
expectations by $1.1 billion. That resulted in a
deposit of $848 million in the stabilization
fund. The administration said the fund is on
track to reach a $3.3 billion balance by the end
of fiscal 2020.
In April, Gov. Charlie Baker and Treasurer
Deborah Goldberg traveled to New York City to
meet with representatives from rating agencies
Moody's, Standard and Poor's, and Fitch. Modeled
after a similar trip they took in June 2016,
Goldberg had suggested last December that the
Bay State make its case to the rating agencies
directly.
"It is now time again ... for the secretary and
his folks, the governor, myself and my debt
people to go back down to New York and see them
again just to re-highlight all of the things
that we do and why we feel we're in a good
position to manage and handle our fiscal
health," she said.
Of the $848 million transferred to the rainy day
fund from above-benchmark capital gains tax
revenue, $84 million will be split between the
State Retiree Benefits Trust Fund and the
Pension Liability Fund.
"Debt and pension liabilities are among the
highest in the nation, though these figures
include borrowing and benefits for local
governments," Moody's wrote about Massachusetts
in its Tuesday release.
With the latter point, about local government
debt being counted against the state, the credit
rating agency appears to have listened to
Goldberg.
In December, the treasurer said state financial
managers needed to better explain how
Massachusetts operates. She cited mechanisms the
state has to automatically direct money to the
rainy day fund and the fact that other states
pass debt on to county and local governments.
"We do not do that and we are clear about
articulating that, though we don't seem to get
credit for that," Goldberg said at the time, a
few months before the rating agency roadshow.
The Boston
Herald
Friday, August 23, 2019
Massachusetts highways ranked some of the worst
in the country
By Mary Markos
Massachusetts highways ranked among the worst in
the country when it comes to overall performance
and cost effectiveness, according to a new
national study, but Transportation Secretary
Stephanie Pollack argues the calculations are
off.
“Every year that report comes out we’re sort of
down at the bottom because of the way we do
things in Massachusetts and we count things a
little differently,” Pollack said. “We think we
spend that money well.”
A study released Wednesday by the Reason
Foundation, a public policy research nonprofit
organization, ranked Massachusetts No. 46 out of
the 50 states for the worst performance and
cost-effectiveness, following closely behind New
York, Rhode Island, Alaska and Hawaii. Though
the average American spends 35 hours a year
stuck in traffic, drivers in Massachusetts, New
Jersey, New York, California and Georgia
experience the longest delays, the report found.
Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida, New York and
Connecticut spent the most on highways on a
per-mile basis, with each state spending more
than $200,000 per mile of highway it controls.
“The way the Reason Foundation assembles its
numbers ends up treating Massachusetts in a way
that we don’t think presents an accurate picture
of the cost-effectiveness of our spending,”
Pollack countered.
The secretary pointed to the state’s five-year
$18.3 billion transportation Capital Investment
Plan, which was recently finalized for fiscal
years 2020-2024 and identifies long-term
investments and funding obligations to update
transportation infrastructure.
Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito pointed to an $18 billion
transportation bond bill filed by the
administration, requesting an additional capital
authorization to invest in building and
modernizing the transportation system. The
authorization would be used to fund existing
programs as well as several new initiatives.
“The investments that we’re making in
transportation are critical,” Polito said.
Pollack’s office later said the report uses
“outdated spending data that is nearly a decade
old and is no longer accurate,” and that there
have been “many process and systems improvements
made within the last decade.” It also pointed to
a section of the report that deems
Massachusetts’ roads the safest in the country
through the low traffic-fatality rate.
|
| |
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this
material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes
only. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
Citizens for Limited Taxation ▪
PO Box 1147 ▪ Marblehead, MA 01945
▪ (781) 639-9709
BACK TO CLT
HOMEPAGE
|
