During the recent casino debate, the question was thrown out asking what is the Legislature’s alternative for job creation. How do we help our economy and how do we create jobs? First, if one believes, as I do, that the casinos would not create new economic growth but just move revenues from other spending to the casinos, there is no new growth we have to replace. However, we do need to work on the economy constantly and we need to create new revenue for the commonwealth by creating new jobs.
I have been working on economic development for 22 years in the Legislature. The following is a list of some of the job creation programs that we have worked on in the past three years under Speaker Sal DiMasi. These are not all my initiatives, but I have worked on many of these and continue to try to put programs together to create new jobs. I don't believe in give away programs but feel we need to try to work with business to find ways to expand our economy. I also think that we should create programs for our Massachusetts businesses in order to work with our present employers rather than create programs trying to lure new companies here. That is important, but many states get caught up in a competition to bring businesses to their state with giveaway programs. That is a zero sum game and we should avoid those where possible.
Here is my list:
STEM CELL RESEARCH
Chapter 27 of the Acts of 2005
Despite objections of Governor Romney, Legislature enacted groundbreaking legislation to establish Massachusetts as a center for cutting edge, life-saving research with appropriate regulatory oversight.
LIFE SCIENCE BILL
As Passed by the House
The 10-year initiative includes $250 million in tax credits for life sciences companies that promise to create jobs in the Commonwealth and $250 million in direct research grants to encourage the best and brightest in the industry to continue research in Massachusetts, and $500 million in capital investments in the industry.
- Capital investments in the life sciences industry, including $90 million for the RNAi Center at the University of Massachusetts to promote the work of Professor Craig Mello, the Nobel laureate, $95 million to create a life sciences center at UMass-Amherst and $120 million to establish the Massachusetts Life Sciences Opportunity Relocation and Expansion Jobs Capital Program Trust Fund.
- Direct grants and programs for the industry, such as $40 million for seed money to address federal funding shortfalls for life science research, $30 million to aid post-doctoral and graduate students studying life sciences, the establishment of new grant programs to boost the biotechnology workforce ($25 million), and “requipment” grants ($30 million) that provide funding for the state’s vocational and technical schools to train the next generation of life science employees. This funding makes the future of the life sciences industry more inclusive for all of the residents in the Commonwealth.
- Tax incentives for certified $25 million companies per year, including a tax credit toward the purchase of property for life science companies, extending from five- to 15-years the tax exemption for life science companies and additional tax credits for companies located in Economic Opportunity Areas throughout the state.
ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE Chapter 123 of the Acts of 2006
Following statewide job growth listening tour, House passed a comprehensive stimulus package designed to make smart, bold investments in workforce training, infrastructure, technology and cultural facilities
$30 million for Brownfields Redevelopment Fund
$50 million for Historical Rehabilitation Tax Credit
$10 million to spur activity in the state’s life sciences and technology sector
$13 million for establishment of first-in-the-nation Cultural Facilities Fund; Annual appropriation will attract hundreds of millions of dollars in private investments
$23 million for workforce development and training programs
$100 million bond program for infrastructure improvements that encourage economic development.
STREAMLINED PERMITTING
House combated the excessive regulation and red tape that impede economic development and job growth in the Commonwealth by approving legislation to streamline the state and local building approval process
Provide technical and marketing assistance to communities that set 180-day permitting timeframe
Additional funding to assist Division of Administrative Law Appeals expedite decisions on development disputes and meet new requirement to issue decisions within 90 days of a hearing
Create new division of the state’s Land Court to focus exclusively on land use and environmental permit disputes.
BRINGING BRISTOL MYERS SQUIBB TO MASSACHUSETTS
Chapter 173 of the Acts of 2006
Beat out competitor states like North Carolina and New York, bipartisan Massachusetts effort persuades global drug giant Bristol-Myers Squibb to build a $660 million manufacturing plant at Devens; Company will create hundreds of high-paying jobs and produce ripple effect through economy as more life sciences companies choose to set up shop in the Commonwealth. The state provided upgrades to water, sewer, and electrical power to site (All public infrastructure) and the company pledged to spend upwards to three quarter of a billion dollars in Massachusetts. The key was having development ready land at Devens.
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT INCENTIVE (I-CUBED)
H.5253 – Engrossed by the House
New financing mechanism forged partnership between communities, state and developers in order to stimulate development and job growth across Massachusetts; Authorizes Massachusetts Development Finance Agency to sell bonds for public infrastructure improvements related to economic development projects; Income tax revenue generated from resulting new jobs would pay off bonds. This is for huge projects in a few key areas.
FILM TAX INCENTIVES
Chapter 158 of the Acts of 2005
Seeking to further facilitate job growth and make Massachusetts competitive with other states and countries, House takes action to attract multi-billion dollar movie industry to Massachusetts to create jobs, increase tourism and generate revenue for state and local economies.
FILM TAX CREDITS
Chapter 63 of the Acts of 2007
To increase revenue and spur job growth in the Commonwealth, the House passed legislation to provide the burgeoning Massachusetts movie industry with incentives to film here through meaningful tax credits. The impact was immediate, with ‘The Pink Panther 2’ moving its central location to Boston to take advantage of the credits.
MILITARY BASE PROTECTION AND DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 4 of the Acts of 2005
$261 million plan to expand and renovate Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford and US Army Soldiers System in Natick will keep jobs in Massachusetts and bases open during 2005 BRAC review process. This is the base closing process. These bases employ thousands of people and we feel that we can keep them open to research commercial uses of new technologies.
Sales Tax Holiday
Chapter 81 of the Acts of 2007
For the fourth consecutive year, the House passed legislation to provide consumers with a two-day sales tax breaks and deliver a shot-in-the-arm to businesses throughout the Commonwealth in August. By all reports, the ‘holiday’ was another success for retailers, consumers and the Commonwealth.
FY ’08 Supplemental Budget
Chapter 122 of the Acts of 2007
The House passed a $278.7 million supplemental budget that closed the books on fiscal year 2007 and provided approximately $100 million for key economic development initiatives to stimulate emerging industries such as clean energy development and support growth industries such as life sciences. It also further funded the cultural facilities bill, an important tool for the Berkshires
Aid to Commercial Fishing Sector
Chapter 160 of the Acts of 2007
The House voted to provide financial support to the commercial fishing industry in Massachusetts through an appropriation of no less than $500,000.
Green Communities Act of 2007
H. 4373 Engrossed by House
The House unanimously approved bold energy reform legislation to promote the use of cleaner, renewable energy in Massachusetts. The bill establishes energy goals for the Commonwealth and acts to implement those goals through statewide clean energy initiatives and reforms. The bill provides incentives to individuals, business owners and municipalities to invest in energy-saving technologies and aims to reduce energy consumption at the state-level. This bill will spur the creation of jobs in green industries and encourage the growth of new technologies in green industries here in the Commonwealth.
FROZE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE RATE
H. 4699 Enacted by House
House of Representatives moved to help spur the economy by approving a freeze to the annual unemployment insurance rate, which is expected to save employers $153 million next year.
BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT IN THE COMMONWEALTH
We are working with the Governor to fund a broadband initiative to make broadband ubiquitous across the state. This will encourage the development of business in areas that didn’t have the infrastructure. The Governor’s efforts are a result of the House initiative to create a Director of Broadband Development and further our information highways. Verizon has recently pledged $100 million towards this effort and we believe that we can “plug in” almost all of the unserved communities in Massachusetts
In addition, we have placed more resources in creating the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) initiative to further our technologies, the groundbreaking Cultural Facilities fund to rehabilitate and strengthen our creative economy, and much more. We have placed millions in workforce training programs that train or retrain our workforce for jobs in new technologies. These investments are particularly important considering that there are currently over 90,000 jobs across the Commonwealth that are unfilled. I co-chair this effort for the state.
In the Berkshires, we funded an initiative called the Berkshire Compact for Higher Education. This compact is designed to create new ways to bring education opportunities to Berkshire students, raise aspirations for our youth, and create new opportunities in the area.
Does this type of economic investment work? The answer is a resounding yes. However, unlike the quick fix solution proposed by the Governor with casinos, these programs need to take root and grow. As an example of this, let’s look at Chapter 19 of the Acts of 1993. This has been around long enough to take a good look at this programs track record. In its first nine years, the Act has created 55,000 new jobs, retained 97,000 jobs, and has created incentives that lead to over $9 billion in private investment.
Creating jobs and economic growth is not easy. We need to be intelligent about placing resources where they will be most effective. It is not the quick fix in search of fast revenues that will lead to solid and sustained growth in our economy; it is the deliberative strategy. A sustainable economy is one that grows in partnership with our government, our workforce and our business community. That is what we are working on.
10 comments:
Kolchak the Job Creation Stalker
chbpod
Dan Bosley:
Thank you for your work on the casino bill..you and DiMasi did the right thing!
I also like to thank you for this post - as a blog surfer it is sometimes frustrating to always read that nothing s getting done on Beacon Hill...your post proves that wrong....I hope you and DiMasi can work more closely with the Governor in the future to add to your list.
Dan.....You are wrong on the Casino issue. You have no real facts to back up what you are professing to be truths, only outdated probability studies prepared by anti Casino interest and your own personal nearsightedness on the issue. All that said... I do have sympathy for the Legislature when they try to bring economic growth to the State. It isn't an easy task. But you notice I didn't say Job Growth. Job Growth and Economic Growth are not synonymous with each other. Economic Growth just puts more monies in the coffers of the State, not in the pockets of the Citizen. DAN, I am wondering if maybe you are a wannabe Republican because you seem to buy into the draconian Trickle Down Regan Theory of economics? And looking at your voting record you seem to favor business over the working stiff every time they come in conflict! From what I see happening on Beacon Hill is a lot of Hot Air, Feel Good, No Substance, Band-aid Bills, that are more concerned with not wanting to piss off Corporations than directly helping the Citizen! Until this attitude changes we will remain a second rate state that the rest of the Country laughs at!
Jack, I see you won't let facts stand in the way of your opinion on gambling. I don't make these studies up, but you are dismissive of any study brought up because you have an opinion on gambling. You have every right to your opinion, but you can't have your own facts. The fact is that many new studies indicate that gambling is not good economic development policy.
I find it interesting that you paint me as a Reagan Republican and yet you are advocating for a policy that will make a few rich individuals and corporations even wealthier by taking money out of state that they receive disproportionately from the poorest people in the state.
I have read many, many, many studies on gambling in the last year and can't say that I've seen one prepared by "anti-casino interests". On the other hand, almost without exception, when you see a study that shows positives - they are almost always funded at some level by "gambling interests" such as casinos. A great recent example was Spill Free Gaming. This report had 5% funding from gambling interests and was presented at the March 18th hearing(and refuted by me).
This "study" had more holes than a slice of Swiss cheese. As an example, they found that real estate values "increased" in the area around Foxwoods. This "increase" was actually and 8% decrease. The study tries to sell it as an increase because their "regression model" predicted a 20% decrease. Go chop nearly 10% of the value off your house and tell me it's an increase.
Dan & bumpkin & others.....Those positive or negative Studies are not worth the paper they are written on. They are liken to an Expert whiteness at a trial. You pay one to say one thing and the defense payees another to say the opposite. The FACTS I refer to are common sense, in your face FACTS!
1. CASINOS generate lots and lots of good paying jobs...FACT!
2. CASINOS, through Tax revenue add to the coffers of the community that hosts them as well as to the State coffers...FACT
3. CASINOS attract people and their vacation dollars to an area that they normally wouldn't consider...FACT
4. CASINOS have the blessing of the majority of the Citizens of Massachusetts (just put it on a BINDING Referendum question if you dare?) as well as the Mayors...FACT
5. And the list goes on and on!
I would suspect that you people watch FAUX NEWS, for your fair and balanced knowledge of events that shape our world! After all, by all Studies, (Nealson Rating) they are very popular. Does that mean that they are correct with facts or maybe because it is one of those shows "WE LOVE TO HATE" Another backward STUDY!
Jack, those aren't facts. They are your opinions. You have to look behind the numbers to find out what the real story is about spending and where it comes from. I have looked at this for twelve years and you are wrong.
Dan, you're such a fraud. You continually make personal and biased opinions on gambling impacts and ascribe them as being fact-based. You've had this issue in front of you for 13 years and you've never initiated an independent study through your committee. But you profess to cite all these unnamed studies that allegedly anchor your opposition to gambling expansion, such as "studies show...," "we know that studies document...," and one that I realy laughed at, which went "study after study documents that..."
And yet I have never seen you cite one study, other than a diatribe by Prof. Earl Grinols of Baylor University, who is chairman of Evangelical Economists of America, and served as co-chair of President Bush's 200 and 2004 support group known as "Evangelical Economists for Bush."
When an alleged liberal has to rely on the musings and rants of an evangelical Christian economist who supports Bushnomics, it's no wonder that Massachusetts has been ravaged by the local version --- Bosleynomics.
Dan, I see you have a B.A. in History; unfortunately, you didn’t pay attention during your college English classes since your “about me” column contains several grammatical errors.
You may want to correct these errors as you wouldn’t want readers to assume your lack literate English is also indicative of your lack of acumen regarding economic development.
For the record:
You were elected to the “Massachusetts House of Representatives” --- not the Massachusetts State House.
You are the House “chair” of the economic development and emerging technology committee. Other than the word “House,” all other descriptions begin with lower-case. You just don’t capitalize every word just because you think it makes you look more important. It doesn’t.
You are the former national “chair” of the council of state governments. Again, all lower case!
You are the author of “five” economic stimulus bills --- not “5.” Proper English requires numbers one through nine to be written as words, not as a number. (By the way, economic stimulus expertise requires more than proposing legislative tax giveaways to big business and writing energy deregulation legislation that results in less competition and higher electric rates. But you keep on kidding yourself that you have any economic development expertise).
You are a “graduate” of the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts --- not a “Graduate.”
Well, congratulations anonymous, you have made me take away anonymous posting because of your diatribe.
You have posted this type of criticism elsewhere and are wrong in all those places. First, I haven't quoted Grinols studies in the past few years, as there has been some question over his impartiality. However, where we do use his data, we take note of his views. I also use a survey done by Clyde Barrow even though I have been critical of his patron origin analysis. In this past year, I have used both the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis as well as Boston as sources for studies. I have used an economic study done by Douglas Walker, generally thought of as a pro casino economist. I used a survey from Harrah’s that I believe you said didn't exist. I also used a study by two gentlemen from Missouri (I am home and don't have access to this, but believe one of the men's name is Leven) that extensively details the economic transfer from Missouri's economy into ten casinos. You conveniently leave these out.
As for initiating an independent study, it is my job to look at the entire body of work and come up with an analysis of all the material available. Unlike when I started looking at this, the body of work is growing and a lot of it seems to be stating the same things I have been saying, that this is not good for Massachusetts. Despite your rants against me, I have yet to see you offer any evidence to the contrary.
As for my grammar, I am well aware that I need to go back and clean that up. I, however, have a full time job and then some. I will get to it when I have a chance, but thank you for reading about me. I didn’t think that anyone actually read that.
And attacking one’s grammar is the last refuge of people devoid of any real counter arguments, and is a little pathetic, don’t you think?
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