Session Featured Big Bills, Less Public View BOSTON - Not long after state lawmakers ended their formal work for 2011 with a near-midnight November session, they began congratulating themselves for an exemplary season of legislating. Among those accomplishments: casinos with the promise of new jobs and tax revenue, a law allowing municipalities to negotiate health insurance for public workers, balancing a budget in tough economic times and stabilizing the state's pension plan. "I would say this was one of the most impressive sessions over the past 30 years in terms of legislation passed," said Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Association. But how much really got done this year, and, more importantly how much of the legislative process that moved these bills to law took place in public? Numbers can be interpreted in different ways. Of the 206 bills passed in 2011, 39 - or 19 percent - affect the entire state - many... Read the rest of this entry »

Evaluating Productivity a Tough Job With State Comparisons List By Krista Kano and Alyssa Moni In which state would you rather be a constituent? State A pays its full-time legislators over $60,000 a year, plus hefty compensations for committee chairs. Their pay reflects a smaller legislative body where each representative has a larger constituency. State B pays its part-time legislators under $15,000 for the year with no extra compensation besides travel expenses. There are more legislators, each representing a smaller number of people. An economical-minded constituent may opt for State B, which pays its entire legislative body what State A may pay a single chairman. But a constituent looking for a more productive legislature may choose State A. because its lawmakers put in more hours and have a considerably higher monetary incentive to serve constituents. It’s a theoretical toss up, but in reality there are distinctly different results. Massachusetts’ 200 legislators are each paid $61,132.99 a year;... Read the rest of this entry »

Massachusetts Lags Behind in Legislative Public Access By Katie Lannan and Adam Tamburin Although the Web has made some Statehouse information and online videos of hearings a click away for interested citizens, the use of the Internet has become a double-edged sword, limiting other aspects of transparency. Staff members on 15 of 22 major committees surveyed by the Boston University Statehouse Program said members sometimes vote via e-mail. Rules about public access to these emails results are vague. Ten of the committee staff polled said the votes were not available to the public. Lawmakers are increasingly absent from their committee’s public hearings. Many sessions are conducted with a fraction of the committee members present. Even sponsors of legislation are often no shows. The extent of the problem is hard to measure. Only six of 22 committees surveyed said they took attendance. Few make... Read the rest of this entry »

The Journey of the "Bath Salts" Bill By Marjorie Nesin Schoolhouse Rock’s I’m Just a Bill jingle comes to mind when citizens of the commonwealth ponder how proposed legislation becomes a law on Beacon Hill. http://youtu.be/VxT7QjlvDqM But, there’s a lot more to passing a law than the little, animated Bill suggests as he trots around Washington's Capitol Hill, lounging on the steps and staking out a committee hearing room. In the Massachusetts' Statehouse, bills can lounge for a long time, often slipping into obscurity with little public notice. One bill began its Beacon Hill journey this August after two Attleboro-area families spoke to their local representatives. A son in one family had suffered serious health consequences after using an over-the counter drug called "bath salts" and a daughter of another family had spent all of her money on the drug after becoming addicted. After hearing their stories, Rep. Elizabeth Poirier, R- North Attleboro, and Rep. George... Read the rest of this entry »

By Katie Lannan The Lowell Sun December 7, 2011 BOSTON -- State Rep. Charles Murphy stepped down from his post as House majority whip yesterday, then blasted House Speaker Robert DeLeo, calling him an ineffective leader who throttles dissent. Murphy resigned during a closed Democratic caucus, saying it spared House members a "difficult and uncomfortable" vote on his removal, which DeLeo was seeking. "I wasn't willing to put the members through a vote such as that," the Burlington Democrat told reporters after the caucus. "I find that unpalatable, so I decided to resign my position." It had been expected that DeLeo would oust Murphy during the caucus, called during the Legislature's winter recess, after Murphy had reportedly been talking with colleagues about his interest in someday becoming speaker. Murphy resigned before DeLeo's leadership changes were announced. State Rep. Byron Rushing of Boston will replace Murphy as majority whip. In... Read the rest of this entry »

By Katie Lannan The Lowell Sun December 2, 2011 BOSTON -- State Auditor Suzanne Bump told a group of news executives yesterday that she took over an auditor's office lacking in competence and planning after being run by fellow Democrat Joe DeNucci for more than two decades. "With one leadership team in place for 24 years, the office had become complacent and a bit lax," she said in an address to the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association. "It still did very meaningful work -- cases were still being prosecuted, recommendations were still being implemented that came out of the audits, but the work lacked vigor and it lacked rigor." Bump, who won the auditor's race in 2010 after DeNucci retired, said one of her first acts after taking office in January was to commission a review by the National State Auditors Association of past audits... Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrea Aldana Patriot Ledger State House Bureau Posted Dec 01, 2011 @ 07:44 AM Last update Dec 01, 2011 @ 08:16 AM BOSTON —Freshman state Rep. Tackey Chan of Quincy receives lots of emails and phone calls from his district every day. Some, mostly from the Quincy’s Asian community, arrive via his mom, Siu Hay Chan. “Those are always fun,” Chan said with a laugh. Chan, along with Rep. Donald H. Wong, R-Saugus, made history on Nov. 2, 2010, by becoming the first Asian-Americans elected to the House. But Chan said a desire to represent the Asian voice was not his primary reason for seeking election. “I truly just want to be an asset to the community and make sure everyone has as much access as they can to the government,” Chan said. Chan attended Catholic schools, then went to Brandeis University. He commuted to school in three of his four years at... Read the rest of this entry »

By Katie Lannan The Lowell Sun December 1, 2011 BOSTON -- With the Legislature again considering relaxing the state's helmet laws, some area motorcyclists say not wearing a helmet should be respected as a matter of personal choice. "It's not a death wish, it's a life choice," said Paul Cote, the New England region delegate to the American Motorcyclist Association Congress. "The people that ride should be adults and should be able to decide." Massachusetts law requires all motorcycle operators and passengers to wear helmets, but bills proposed by Sen. Stephen Brewer, D-Barre, and Rep. Anne Gobi, D-Spencer, would change that, requiring only those under age 21 to wear helmets. Cote said there is an economic incentive to pass the legislation because motorcyclists travel to nearby states that do not require helmets and spend money while there. New Hampshire has no motorcycle-helmet law, while Maine and ... Read the rest of this entry »

By Katie Lannan The Lowell Sun November 28, 2011 BOSTON -- State Sen. Jamie Eldridge is a hard man to ignore. You can follow the Acton Democrat on Twitter, friend him on Facebook or read his blog, "The Dridge Report." Avoid the Internet, and you'll still find his columns and letters to the editor in local newspapers or hear his impassioned speeches on the Senate floor. Behind it all is his communication director Melissa Threadgill, making sure his voice is heard. But Threadgill sometimes wishes it was her voice. "There are times when I'm like, 'Oh, I wish I could be up there speaking! I would do this or say this," she says. It's a wish that often becomes reality on Beacon Hill. Threadgill says it's possible she might run for office in the future. If so, she'd be in good company: almost 20 percent of Massachusetts state lawmakers say they began... Read the rest of this entry »

By Adam Tamburin The Sun Chronicle Nov. 21, 2011 BOSTON - The state legislative session ended for the year last week with a frenetic flurry of activity that left some area lawmakers reeling. State Rep. Betty Poirier, R-North Attleboro, was frustrated by the familiar surge of last-minute bills. "It's always a mystery for me to understand," she said. "In the private sector it would be looked upon as a crazy way to do business." After passing the annual budget this summer, the legislative session moved at a leisurely pace with and a primary focus on expanded gaming, pension restructuring and redistricting. The last two days of the session, however, saw several meaty bills rushed through the Statehouse. For Poirier, the pace was too fast for each bill to face a robust round of debate. "People don't have time to ask questions," she said. "You just... Read the rest of this entry »