THE HOUSE AND SENATE. Beacon Hill Roll Call records local senators' votes on five roll calls from the week of April 5-9. There were no important roll calls in the House last week.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REORGANIZATION (S 2345)

Senate 37-0, approved and sent to the House a bill that would reorganize the state's economic development agencies. Provisions create a central state marketing organization by moving several existing state offices responsible for tourism and international trade into a single office, including the Cultural Council, the Massachusetts Film Office and the Massachusetts Sports Partnership; require public authorities to contract basic administrative functions with each other to reduce the costs and expenses; prohibit state authorities from using state funds to pay registered lobbyists; create a commission to study the possibility of a state-owned bank and raise from the current $2,000 to $7,000 the maximum amount one can sue for in small claims court.

Supporters said that the bill would streamline the state's economic development system and ensure accountability and efficiency from all agencies and from the "shadow government" comprised of some 50 often "unaccountable to anyone" independent state authorities. They noted that the changes would also make the state more business-friendly.

(A "Yes" vote is for the bill).

Sen. Robert Hedlund, Yes                                     

LIMIT SALARIES AT STATE AUTHORITIES (S 2345)

Senate 35-2, approved an amendment that would limit salaries at all state authorities to the salary of the governor, currently $134,000, unless the governor's Secretary of Administration and Finance signs a documented justification for the higher compensation. State authorities are so-called quasi-public, independent agencies including the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), Massachusetts Port Authority, Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and Massachusetts Convention Center Authority.

Amendment supporters said that there are more than 50 of these independent authorities, many of which are often accused of questionable and controversial practices. They noted that they use taxpayer money but do not face the same scrutiny that "regular" state agencies do. They argued that last year more than 1,000 of the 15,000 employees at these authorities made $100,000 or more and cited some outrageous salaries north of $300,000.

Amendment opponents said that the amendment is well-intentioned but impractical. They noted that the governor's salary has been static since 2001 and argued that the jobs at these authorities should not have any relationship to an arbitrary salary. They noted that the economic development bill itself creates more transparency that will lead to the control of spending and salaries at these entities.

(A "Yes" vote is for limiting the salaries. A "No" vote is against limiting them).

Sen. Robert Hedlund, Yes                                     

$247 MILLION FISCAL 2010 SUPPLEMENTAL BUDGET (S 2360)

Senate 33-4, approved a $247 million fiscal 2010 supplemental budget to pay expenses for the current fiscal year.

Provisions include nearly $200 million for Medicaid; $6.3 million to reimburse cities and towns for the cost of the special election in which Sen. Scott Brown won the race to elect a successor to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy; $700,000 for the committee charged with redistricting the state's congressional districts based on the 2010 census and $2.1 million for veterans' services.

Supporters said that the package is fiscally responsible and funds necessary programs including several that are running out of money.

Opponents said that the package does not include bold measures to control spending including a hiring freeze on state workers, privatization of state services and many reforms of state government that would save money.

The House has approved a different version of the budget and the Senate draft now goes to the House for consideration.

(A "Yes" vote is for the budget. A "No" vote is against the budget).

Sen. Robert Hedlund, No                                      

HIRING FREEZE ON STATE WORKERS (S 2360)

Senate 14-23, rejected an amendment prohibiting for two months the hiring of any new state employees to fill any existing positions and any newly-created vacancies unless the governor's Secretary of Administration and Finance signs a letter saying that filling the job is "critical to state operations."

Amendment supporters said that this hiring freeze would save millions of dollars that could be used to balance the budget while the state is facing a $1 billion deficit. They argued that no state employee should receive a raise when thousands of people in the private and public sectors are struggling and losing their jobs and their homes.

Amendment opponents said that the freeze is well-intentioned but goes too far. They noted that some collective bargaining raises for union workers are required and unavoidable because they were agreed to by the state. They argued that the Patrick administration has already lost 1,000 state jobs and frozen some state spending. (A "Yes" vote is for the amendment implementing a hiring freeze. A "No" vote is against the amendment and favors allowing hiring).

Sen. Robert Hedlund, Yes                                     

CHANGES TO THE WELFARE SYSTEM (S 2360)

Senate 8-29, rejected an amendment that would prohibit welfare recipients from using their state-funded Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards for the purchase of alcoholic beverages or tobacco products. The measure also would require a pregnant woman on welfare to work at her job up until the last ten days of her pregnancy, unless a doctor cites a medical reason that she should not do so.

Other proposed changes in welfare laws include not counting unpaid internships, unpaid home-schooling of a child or participating in vocational rehabilitation services toward fulfilling a work requirement; prohibiting anyone over 18 from being considered a dependent child for welfare purposes and requiring an unemployed recipient of aid to families with dependent children, without a documented medical necessity exemption, to provide proof that she is looking for a job within 90 days after giving birth.

Amendment supporters said that this would toughen up the state's welfare laws and begin to put a stop to the handouts and gaming of the system that discourages welfare recipients from getting a job. They argued that a current law which allows pregnant women on welfare to stop working in their third trimester encourages low-income women to have children.

Amendment opponents said that this mean-spirited amendment would make drastic changes that are unfair to people who are genuinely trying to get off the welfare rolls. They noted that most welfare recipients are good people who only stay on welfare for two years and never go back on. They argued that the amendment would also result in the state losing some $16 million in federal funding in the first year.

(A "Yes" vote is for the amendment making changes in the welfare system. A "No" vote is against the amendment).

Sen. Robert Hedlund, Yes                                     

ALSO UP ON BEACON HILL

SUMMER OLYMPICS AND ABOLISH MBTA - The Senate last week rejected several amendments including creating a special commission to study the feasibility of Massachusetts bidding for a future summer Olympics and abolishing several quasi-public state authorities including the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and Massachusetts Water Resources Authority.

PROHIBIT DISCRIMINATION AGAINST TRANSGENDER PEOPLE (S 1687) - The deadline has been extended from March 17 to May 7 for the Judiciary Committee to act on legislation that would prohibit discrimination against transgender people by adding gender identity protection to the state's non-discrimination and hate crimes laws. Last year the bill died in a study committee.

Supporters say that Massachusetts should join 12 other states that have these pro-transgender laws. They noted that the bill would prohibit discrimination against transgender people in many areas including employment, housing, credit, public accommodations and public education. Opponents say this "bathroom bill" would put women and children at risk by allowing dangerous male predators, claiming to be transgender persons, to use women’s bathrooms.

STEALING GAS (H 1284) - The Judiciary Committee has recommended that a bill creating a crime of theft of gasoline be shipped off to a study committee. The bill would impose a $100 fine and one-month loss of a driver's license for a first offense and a $200 fine and two-month loss of license for subsequent offenses. Most measures that are shipped off to a study committee are never actually studied and are essentially defeated.

PRINT ELECTION BALLOTS IN CHINESE AND VIETNAMESE (H 3665) - The Election Laws Committee has approved and sent to the House Ways and Means Committee a bill requiring the city of Boston to prepare bilingual ballots in Chinese and Vietnamese for all federal, state and municipal elections. The proposal mandates bilingual ballots in polling places in which there are 35 or more voters who speak only Chinese or 30 or more voters who speak only Vietnamese. It also requires that Chinese ballots be transliterated and include "the printing of relevant Chinese characters to represent the phonetic equivalent of the syllables of an English name."

Supporters say that the law is needed in order to allow many elderly Asian-Americans who do not read English to participate in the voting process. They noted that the transliteration is necessary because the Chinese language does not use the Western alphabet.

Opponents argue that transliteration is imprecise and would confuse voters. They questioned why only Chinese voters should receive this special treatment. Secretary of State William Galvin is one of the bill's chief opponents.

FUNERAL PROCESSIONS (S 1884) - The House gave initial approval to a Senate-approved bill establishing regulations that cars in and out of a funeral procession must follow. The measure would require all vehicles in the procession to have their headlights and tail lights on and prohibit them from driving more than 55 miles per hour on highways or faster than five miles per hour below the posted speed limit on all other roads.

The bill would require pedestrians and operators of non-funeral related vehicles to yield the right-of-way to any vehicle that is part of a funeral procession. Other provisions prohibit non-funeral vehicles from joining a funeral procession in order to get the same rights as the vehicles in the procession.

QUOTABLE QUOTES

"A school by the way that the representative (from) Taunton also attended for 13 years and was personally responsible for the pending sainthood of at least 11 different nuns who had the pleasure of having me."

–– Rep. Jim Fagan (D-Taunton) in remarks on the House floor welcoming students from St. Mary's School in Taunton.

"A cultural resource director at the Department of Transportation. Is that an absolutely critical position when you're billions of dollars in debt? A barber at the Department of Corrections."

–– Senate Republican Minority Leader Richard Tisei (R-Wakefield) commenting on current listings of state jobs that are available.

"Oftentimes you see individuals buying candy, buying cigarettes, buying Lottery tickets, scratch tickets, tobacco products with those cards."

–– Sen. Stephen Buoniconti (D-West Springfield) talking about some welfare recipients who buy non-essential items with their state-issued Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card.

"Most welfare recipients stay on welfare two years and never go on welfare again. It is very easy and quite frankly in my life, I have never seen an economic downturn or recession where many people did not stand up and try to demonize welfare recipients and pregnant women ... All of the welfare moms and pregnant moms in the history of the world will never steal from this country what the white collar criminals have stolen. It's not the welfare moms and the welfare children who cause the problems this country has today. It's white collar crime and greed."

–– Sen. Gale Candaras (D-Wilbraham) responding to Buoniconti's remarks.

Beacon Hill Roll Call

Volume 36 - Report No. 14

April 5-9, 2010

Copyright © 2010 Beacon Hill Roll Call. All Rights Reserved.

By Bob Katzen