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Weekly Roundup
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February 4th, 2010
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Greetings!
We all deserve to live our lives in safe, healthy communities, with opportunities to build successful lives for ourselves and our families. Together, we can support our state in providing those opportunities!
 Last week's vote in Oregon to increase income and corporate taxes provided a much-needed counter-narrative to the "no new taxes" mantra being repeated by some of our elected representatives here in Massachusetts. Oregon's legislature and its voters recognized the wisdom and necessity of maintaining their investments in the public systems and structures that their state needs to remain competitive in the global economy.
It helped that the campaign there used messaging supplied by the Demos Center for the Public Sector to help frame the campaign not just as a debate on taxes, but as a conversation that connected taxes to their purpose: good schools, sound infrastructure and a safety net that keeps working families healthy and secure.
If you would like to learn more about framing techniques or would like a training for your group about how to talk more effectively about taxes and government do not hesitate to contact me.
Yawu Miller Project Director, ONE Massachusetts
yawu@realclout.org | 617-275-2918
Here's a look at what else has been happening around Massachusetts:
Civic Engagement | Revenue | Government Reform
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 CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
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Goal: By 2013, the voice and input of the state's multi-racial, multi-ethnic communities will create a counterweight to the currently dominant voice and will be tangibly reflected in the public decision making process.
Updates:
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 Letters to the Editor Campaign. ONE Massachusetts strives to strengthen the voices of each person in our state, especially those have not traditionally had a place at the table. We want to encourage our readers and members to write to their local media about what they value in their communities and about their support for more revenue in the state.
Please visit our site for tips to getting your letter published as well as talking points you could use to customize your message.
For more information on the campaign, and how you or your organization can get more involved - including free trainings and coaching, contact ONE Massachusetts Project Director, Yawu Miller.
Upcoming:
- Feb 16 - Mar 5 - Budget Hearings. Eight public hearings are planned on fiscal 2011 budget bill Gov. Deval Patrick filed last week. The schedule includes hearings during which testimony will be accepted from members of the general public all across the state. Learn more about a hearing close to you and participate!
- Feb. 16 at the State House,
- Feb. 19 in Waltham,
- Feb. 22 in Amherst,
- Feb. 23 in Sudbury,
- Feb. 26 in Worcester,
- March 1 in Sturbridge,
- March 2 in Fall River and the final hearing,
- March 5 at the State House.[More Information about Dates and Times]
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| REVENUE |
Goal: By 2013, a fair, adequate, and stable tax system will be implemented. It will raise sufficient revenue so that state and local governments can fund the array of services needed.
Updates:
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GOVERNMENT REFORM
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| Goal: By 2013, a transparent, accessible and accountable state and local policy-making process will be in place.
Updates:
 Transparency: Tax Credits in H2 Budget. Governor Deval Patrick released an issue brief about the tax expenditure budget for FY11 together with his general budget. In the issue brief he proposed a law promoting tax credit transparency. This proposal requires public disclosure and analysis of the results, including the number of jobs created, of a particular kind of tax expenditure, known as refundable or transferable tax credit programs.[Issues in Brief] [Carl Sciortino's article about tax credit transparency]
- Transparency: State Legislature. Representatives Matthew C. Patrick, Thomas M. Stanley, Lida E. Harkins, William G. Greene, Jr., Will N. Brownsberger, Steven J. D'Amico, Joseph R. Driscoll and John F. Quinn drafted a letter together discussing about the consolidation of power in the figure of the Speaker of the House. The eight representatives called for a functional democracy with more transparency at the state level. [Cape Cod Today]
- Clarification about New Lobbying Laws. Secretary William Galvin has issued a new opinion on the lobbying law which adds clarity to certain key issues that have concerned many non-profits in the past few months:
- In the opinion Lobbyist Section Director Alan Cote stated unequivocally that a communication with a covered executive or legislative official IS required in order to meet the statutory provisions for registering as a lobbyist. In other words, back-room staff, who never talk with legislators, are not lobbyists.
- The opinion also states that when a board member is not
compensated by the non-profit, despite being a salaried employee of
another corporation, he or she does not have to register. [More Information]
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 Want More Information on ONE Massachusetts?
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State Budget: House of Representatives. The House budget will not include a tax increase, House Speaker Robert DeLeo, a chief architect of last year's sales tax increase, declared on Thursday, touting gambling expansion as an alternative revenue generator. DeLeo's declaration on taxes means the House will likely reject Gov. Deval Patrick's proposed application of the sales tax to candy and soda, a plan the governor unveiled Wednesday. But some members may want to push tax proposals. Rep. Matthew Patrick said after DeLeo's speech that he reserves his right to push corporate tax proposals in the House this year. [SHNS] 
Federal Stimulus: Balancing the State Budget. Gov. Deval Patrick on Thursday defended balancing the budget with more than $760 million in federal funds still waiting for congressional approval, after lawmakers have voiced worries about the reliability of the assistance. "Every budget is based on reasonable assumptions, and this budget is based on reasonable assumptions, and because of the work that I've done with the congressional delegation, with the leadership in the Congress, with the president, I'm confident that we will have those resources when we need them," the governor said. [SHNS]
Economy: From Decline to Projected Growth. Economic activity in Massachusetts declined at a rate of 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter, according to an estimate from the UMass Friday, contrasting with the federal government's estimate that the national economy grew at a 5.7 percent annual clip last quarter. The state's economy is expected to grow at an annualized rate of 1.1 percent over the next six months, according to UMass. "The disappointing fourth quarter performance was due to a poor holiday spending season reflected in December employment and state withholding sales tax revenues, and a sharp rise in the December unemployment rate," added Alan Clayton-Matthews, MassBenchmark's senior contributing editor. [SHNS]