Archive for the ‘Economy’ Category

By Neal J. Riley, The Lowell Sun

BOSTON — A bipartisan group of 18 legislators announced yesterday their support for a bill to restrict Massachusetts welfare recipients’ discretionary use of assistance money by banning their ability to withdraw cash from ATMs with electronic benefit cards.

The lawmakers, frustrated by a recommendation by a commission to only ban the use of the cards at nail salons, tattoo parlors, firearms dealers, bars, smoke shops or spas, said more steps are needed to curb further abuse in the welfare system.

“This report failed to make any substantive changes and place restriction and oversight on the $415 million a year this state hands out in cash assistance to people, and taxpayers deserve oversight of these funds,” Rep. Shaunna O’Connell, R-Taunton, said at a press conference. “There have been too many problems with this program and minor changes are not going to fix that.”
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By Neal J. Riley, The Lowell Sun

BOSTON — A commission created by the Legislature is planning to call for the end of some of the scores of tax breaks and credits that add up to a total of $26 billion in waived revenue collections each year.

The Tax Expenditure Commission, made up of legislators and policymakers, voted to adopt Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez’s recommendations to categorize existing tax breaks and allow some to expire if not reapproved by the Legislature after five years.

The commission’s final recommendations will be issued in a report on the state’s tax-expenditure policies later in the month.
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By Neal J. Riley, The Lowell Sun

BOSTON — Legalizing marijuana would be good for the state’s bottom line and would protect the health of those who use the drug, supporters told the Joint Committee on the Judiciary yesterday, even as the bill’s sponsor conceded it has almost no chance of becoming law.

“The state needs to make money,” sponsor Rep. Ellen Story, D-Amherst, testified. “This would allow the state to benefit from marijuana by regulating it.”

Story’s bill would legalize marijuana and “establish a tax on the cannabis industry.” But Story offered no details in her testimony on the tax rate or what revenue such a tax would bring to the state.
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By Neal J. Riley, The Lowell Sun

BOSTON – A ranking Republican U.S. senator and Sen. Scott Brown are once again wading into the Chelsea Housing Authority scandal, asking a federal agency to be more transparent about how much executives running federally-subsidized housing authorities are paid.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, senior member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, sent a letter co-signed by Brown yesterday to Housing and Urban Development Secretary Sean Donovan to gauge whether HUD is doing an adequate job of collecting information about executive compensation and perks.

Grassley and Brown sent another letter to HUD in November, asking about former Chelsea Housing Authority Executive Director Michael E. McLaughlin, who resigned in November after The Boston Globe reported he was making $360,383 a year despite only listing a $160,000 salary in reports to state housing officials.
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By Neal J. Riley, The Lowell Sun

BOSTON — State Sen. Jamie Eldridge is looking to make Beacon Hill a more ethical place.

The Acton Democrat has filed two bills he said will fight the public perception that campaign contributions taint the legislative process.

One bill would ban legislators from holding fundraisers during budget deliberations. Another would limit campaign contributions from those who do business with the state, a practice he said damages public confidence.
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By Mounira Al Hmoud

BOSTON – Dozens of supporters rallied Tuesday for a state law mandating paid sick days for private employers in an annual event that proponents said may finally bring success to workers around the state.

Organized by Massachusetts Paid Leave Coalition, the rally featured workers, employers, nurses, elected officials and someone in a green giant microbe called Germie, who spread flu among the crowd as people chanted “Paid sick time isn’t just for you, Germie’s here spreading the flu,” and “Germie, Germie stay away, Pass the sick time bill today.”

Almost a third of the workforce in Massachusetts has no paid sick days, according to a 2011 report by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.
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By Mounira Al Hmoud

BOSTON – Acting on a legislation authored by a MetroWest lawmaker, the Patrick administration has identified some 150 regulations – from measurement of clams to regulatory barriers to renewable energy projects – it plans to end or revise with the goal of making life easier for the state’ s small businesses.

The goal of the Economic Development Reorganization Bill, written by Sen. Karen Spilka, D-Ashland, in 2010, is to review 1,000 regulations by year’s end and 2,000 by the end of 2013.

Spilka said she was very pleased with the results.
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By Mounira Al Hmoud

BOSTON – In a speech before the full House, speaker Robert DeLeo told members he would not support new taxes or fees to balance next year’s budget, emphasizing that jobs, health care, higher education and the economy would be the Legislature’s top priorities for the remaining six months.

“For the past two years, this House has rejected balancing the budget with new taxes and fees,” he said. “As such, we will release a budget from the House Committee on Ways & Means that does not rely on new taxes and fees.”

MetroWest lawmakers had mixed reactions to the no-tax pledge.
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By Rick Sobey, The Salem News

BOSTON — The Capitol Hill debate over how to create jobs has come to Beacon Hill, with local Republican lawmakers backing their party’s philosophy that cuts in taxes and regulations are the best ways to get businesses to stay and grow in Massachusetts.

Republican legislators unveiled their jobs plan at a Statehouse news conference last week, detailing a series of proposals aimed at cutting business costs in taxes, fees, energy and health care.

“We need to look at the way businesses are taxed here,” state Rep. Bradford Hill, R-Ipswich, said after the Republican caucus unveiled its 25-bill proposal of tax cuts and fee reductions.
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By Rick Sobey, Milford Daily News

BOSTON — Area legislators had mixed reactions to a series of disappointments and victories this week after legislative committees met the deadline to make recommendations for the thousands of bills filed this session.

Wednesday was the Joint Rule 10 bill reporting deadline when joint committees had to declare their stance on 6,686 bills.

The committees had four options, either saying they recommend the bill, say the bill shouldn’t pass, request more time to review the bill, or send it to study — which is usually a death sentence for the proposal.
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