Hynes State House Report June, 2002 The Massachusetts Legislature is putting finishing touches on the state budget for the Fiscal Year 2003, which begins on July 1. The House of Representatives completed its budget actions a month ago and the State Senate is completing its final judgments on this measure now. The budget is the policy and fiscal document in any given year. It determines the public policies which will secure funding for the various governmental departments and agencies. This year budget deliberations have been colored by a free fall drop in state income which began a year ago. Overall revenues to feed government programs have collapsed by 12.5% or $2 billion in the last twelve months. At the same time recurring program growth, without any expansion but occasioned solely by inflation, court judgements, and collective bargaining agreements, have grown by over $1 billion. Principal areas of such growth are in health care programs, debt service, and mental retardation services. This almost $3 billion budget gap was closed in the House by three factors. Reserves, such as the "Rainy Day" Stabilization Fund were called upon to satisfy almost $1 billion, budget cuts were made totaling another $1 billion, and $1 billion worth of taxes were increased. This resulted in a $22.9 billion budget, virtually the same level of spending as in the current year, being sent to the Senate for its consideration. The major budgetary items in which I played a leading role are the following: Local Aid and Core Education: The budget released by House Ways and Means showed a 10% decline in these items. I worked hard with many others to restore level funding, which was accomplished through the vote to increase taxes. It seemed contrary to the stated objective of federal, state, and local officials to tolerate reductions of hundreds of millions of dollars to local education, fire, police, and road programs. For the better part of the last decade we at the state level have fought to prioritize funding for education while demanding increased standards and measurable levels of achievement and performance. At the same time we have established new programs of educational scholarships and hiring bonuses to attract teachers worthy of the children they serve and accountable to the highest standards of professionalism. Yet declines in state funding would not only threaten these objectives but result in the consequences of lay offs of many new, young teachers hired in the last several years, lost forever to this profession. Additionally, reductions in local aid and state education funds place increased burdens on the property tax to support these vital programs. The Senate, as well, appears to embrace this policy and thus, Scituate and Marshfield will not see a 10% reduction in core state aid but can expect the same level of funding as in the current year. We were, likewise, able to increase by $25 million the Early Childhood Education Program which supports in both Marshfield and Scituate, coordination among day care providers and programs for early care and learning for 3 to 5 year olds, parent training, and day care teacher certification. Talking Information Center, the chief administrative agency providing radio reading services for over 20,000 blind in the Commonwealth, was able to see funding of $475,000 for next year, a restoration of $275,000 in the reductions proposed by House Ways and Means. The $1.8 billion mental health and mental retardation services were level funded. Over 60,000 state citizens are supported by a variety of housing, work training, counseling, and transportation services. The four year old Senior Pharmacy Program, which is now acting like a low cost insurance policy, is able to support drug purchases for any participating senior and was financed at nearly $100 million. Health Care costs, which include the almost $6 billion Medicaid Program and health insurance for 140,000 active state employees and retirees continue to be the PACMAN of budgetary programs. Both private and public health insurance programs are threatened by exploding cost increases, occasioned by several years of double digit health care inflation, which shows no signs of subsiding. These costs, driven largely by an aging population consuming more health care services and the expense of new medical technologies and developing new drugs are breaking the bank. Employers and employees are collapsing under the weight of these growing costs which threaten the accessibility of health care services to many citizens. This health care crisis demands immediate federal attention but, in fact, the response of the federal government has been just the opposite, actually reducing reimbursements for Medicare and Medicaid and effectively paring benefits for many of the nation's sick. Tourism: Activites which encourage, promote, and service tourists are Massachusetts' third laheigt industry and vital to our economic stability and growth. Nearly 27 million people (over 4 times our population) visit the Bay State each year and spend over $13 billion. This industry, suffering disproportionately in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorists attacks, is fortunately bouncing back. Summer is the most popular season for domestic travelers in Massachusetts, so, good weather, economic health, and a sense of safety and security play critical roles in families' vacation plans and sustaining this vital industry. Greater Boston is the most popular destination for visitors, welcoming 10.6 million or 43% of domestic visitors annually. Cape Cod and the Islands are the second most popular regional destination with 4.7 million. South of Boston, including Marshfield and Scituate host 1.7 million visitors annually, about 70% of all domestic person trips to Massachusetts. Enjoy a healthy and safe Massachusetts summer! Reflection: "Vacation: the rest period between the rounds of life." - Warren Goldberg Back to top of page |