The Boston Globe and State House News are both reporting that Governor Charlie Baker informed his Cabinet this morning that the state's mid year budget gap is worse than previously reported registering at $765 million out of an enacted $36.5 billion budget for fiscal year 2015  passed in July. 

Baker's statement confirms the earlier estimate by the Massachusetts Taxpayer's Foundation suggesting that the deficit was much larger than the $329 million suggested by the prior Administration.  The challenge now facing the new Governor is how to trim the state's budget deficit on a budget not of his own making, without harming essential services. 

Lepore open to innovative partnership 

The Governor and his chief fiscal advisor, Secretary of Administration and Finance Kristin Lepore, will likely be examining potential solutions which could possibly include painful budget cuts or other alternative approaches.

Today's online Boston Globe quotes Lepore as considering a partnership approach between the Governor and the Legislature that could result in a portion of capital gains receipts going into the General Fund, rather than it's current destination which is the State's Rainy Day Fund.  Such an approach might stabilize the state's fiscal resources without violating the Governor's position to not increase taxes or deplete state reserves.

The Globe's story also quoted Lepore, while not fully endorsing this partnership approach, the Secretary indicated the Administration might be open to this idea while also considering areas of budget reductions.

To advocates watching every move of the Administration this first proposal seems intriguing, bi-partisan and sensitive to the potential harmful effects of deep budget cuts upon critically needed programs.

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