Dan Bosley's Blog

2006 Convocation Speech

2011-08-14T17:03:00.002-04:00

I listened to some Harry Chapin today. I don't know why it's been so long since I listened to his music, but it was far too long. In 2006, I was asked to give the Convocation speech for incoming freshmen at MCLA. Listening to Harry Chapin today reminded me that I talked about him in that speech and thought I would post it here. Far too many people don't get involved in our society, and Harry's admonition to each of us to "Do Something" is good advice. Hope you enjoy the speech, or at least the music references.

Convocation 2006

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
Church Street Center
Daniel E. Bosley
September 5, 2006

Chairman Lamb, Members of the Board of Trustees, President Grant, distinguished faculty and administration, and particularly, the members of the class of 2010. Class of 2010, it seems like a long way away, doesn’t it? Yet it will be over in a flash and will be the most rewarding time of your lives. I want to thank you for the privilege of speaking to you today. I am very honored by this invitation. I am a little nervous though. Convocation speeches are daunting tasks; trying to tell you everything you need to know to succeed in college in fifteen minutes or so. I thought that maybe I should follow the traditional formula of a few jokes, followed by telling you how much the world depends on you, while throwing in a pithy quote or two. Should I admonish you that it is your responsibility to change the world and then send you off? That’s been done before and tends to be scary telling you that the whole world depends on you. Perhaps I should use a few Latin or foreign phrases. This always seems popular. And it always seems profound, whether it is or not. In regards to this, I am reminded of the former Congressman from this district, the First Massachusetts District. The late Silvio Conte used to end many of his speeches with the Italian phrase (and this is from memory), “Svegli l’amico, Il discorso finito.” In English, this means “Wake up, pal, the speech is over.” Goofy, but it sounds wonderful and would get applause.
As I thought about what I would talk about, I thought back to my own freshman year in 1972. Who was our convocation speaker? Did we have a convocation speaker? I don’t remember. But I do remember freshman year very well. I remember what it was like to be a freshman. I spent half my time excited that I was here, and half the time scared to death over the prospect of college. It is all different and new. Could I do college work? Would I make friends? My daughter is a freshman at UMass this year and she is going through the same mixture of anxiety and excitement that I went through and I imagine all of you are going through. That is a natural reaction. This is a big change from anything you have encountered so far. College is much different than high school. There, you were seniors last year. I would imagine you felt pretty comfortable. Here, you are back to being freshman again. There, you had the routine of high school pretty much down. Here, everything is a new experience. There your parents made sure that there was structure and reminded you that you needed to do your homework. Here you are on your own and have to do all this yourself, including laundry! There you were surrounded by your friends of at least the last four years. Here, you have to make new friends all over again. There you were home, and here, many of you are away from your families for an extended period for the first time. It is natural that you should be apprehensive about this. As I said, I know I was. But I will tell you that you are about to embark on the four most exciting years of your lives. College is a life changing experience. It is the bridge between the last vestiges of growing up and adulthood. Here you will learn to be your own person.
You will make new friends, friends you will keep and stay close to for the rest of your lives. I talked to my college roommate three days ago. We keep in touch and he is still one of my best friends. His daughter, who is my goddaughter and the rest of the family are coming to town in a few weeks as her college plays Williams in field hockey. You will have friendships such as this that will last a lifetime.
A whole new world will open up to you. I remember so many of my professors who made profound differences in my life. The world opened up from merely my local community and a small circle of friends to the rest of the world. Some of these faculty members are still here, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them and all of the faculty and staff who make this a great institution. I hope that you rely on the faculty, especially your advisors as you get acclimated to college life. These advisors are invaluable. They will answer your questions, keep you on track, give you advice, hold your confidence, and tell you where the best pizza in town is.
While the commitment of this institution to educate you remains the same, there are many big changes since I started my freshman year here in 1972. The campus center was under construction and wasn’t going to open until 1976. There were no townhouses. Even the name was different. This was not the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, but North Adams State College. We had no cell phones; fax machines, Ipods, Laptops, or any computers for that matter. We didn’t have Instant Messenger (IM) or myspace. It wasn’t that we didn’t have them. They hadn’t been invented yet! It wasn’t until four years later in 1976, that Apple Computer was formed. Their first home computer, the Apple 1 ran off of a cassette tape and they sold 175 of them. So computers were not to be had. In 1972, the first hand held scientific calculator was marketed. We didn’t have them either because they were marketed at $400. But we were probably the last class that actually knew how to use a slide rule.
And it wasn’t just technology that was different. Richard Nixon was President and it was the first year that women were allowed to run in the Boston Marathon. Can we even imagine not allowing women into a race today?
In many ways, your lives are much different. You will be the best-educated generation ever. The Internet and ease of travel have made the world much smaller and that gives you opportunities that we never had when I was in school. You have far more opportunities than I did at your age to experience life elsewhere in the world. Take advantage of this. You will have a much longer life span and more technology than we ever dreamed of. And your education here will help prepare you for the opportunities and the challenges that lie ahead of you. This college will do more than educate you. The faculty and staff will give you the tools to learn and more importantly, to reason. Especially at a liberal arts college such as this one, you are taught critical thinking. And hopefully, they will inspire you along a course of action that you will follow the rest of your lives. That happened to me. I grew up in a single parent family in a very small town. My eighth grade class consisted of 8 students and my high school class was something like 216. I arrived on campus not knowing what to expect from college or quite frankly, what to expect from myself. But the professors and staff here did more than educate me. They gave me a passion that has lead to a career in public service. I was inspired by my teachers to get involved in my community and that has lead to being the state representative for this area for the last twenty years. I have been able to make a difference in my hometown and surrounding area. I have been able to touch the lives of so many others. I have been able to travel all over the world, Russia, South Africa, all of Europe, China, and Israel, to name some of the places I have been in order to gain a greater understanding of the world and our global neighbors. I have been able to give back to my community and fellow citizens because this college inspired me to give back, and gave me the tools to do so. Without the ability to go here and to grow here, I don’t know where I would be and I know that I owe this institution a large debt of gratitude. They will do the same for you.
Now you don’t have to run for office to get involved, but hopefully they will point you in a direction that not only involves a career, but also makes your lives more fulfilling. It isn’t enough to be educated, but we must be enriched by our experiences here. Our collective experience allows us all to contribute to the well being of our community. That contribution, helping each other become more enriched is what makes us a community out of a collection of individuals.
And that is what defines the collegiate experience. It is not enough to be book smart, but you need to be able to use that knowledge and have the desire to use that knowledge. That makes all of the difference. Are there any Red Sox fans out here? You may know that there is a website for fans called the Sons of Sam Horn. It is a site for real hard-core fans where baseball fanatics argue over such things as the Whip, which is walks and hits per inning as measured against individual batters or they argue over the replacement value of a lesser player over the salary of a regular on the team. I am intimidated by the statistical expertise on that site, but they are not always right in trying to predict how a player will do in Boston or even in the major leagues in general. That is because they can’t measure the value of the intangibles of a player. That is the spirit or passion that motivates a person to succeed. That is hopefully what you will learn from your next four years; that heart and commitment to excel at whatever course you take through life.
I know that you had a summer reading assignment. If I could suggest a companion to this may be Doug Morris’ book, “It’s a Sprawl World After All”. I will make sure that the library has a copy. It also talks about ways to do better than we have done in making communities more responsive to the needs of its citizens. In preparation for today and as you have that reading assignment, I was asked if I had a book that inspired me that I would like to have placed in the library. I thought a lot about this and decided that there are many books that have inspired me over my lifetime. One of these was a book that I read in a Clark Billings class on city politics in 1976. That book is “The Power Broker” by Robert Caro. I love that book and have given it out as a Christmas present almost every year since. I formed the literacy caucus in the State House in 1993, and I have gone around the state promoting literacy and reading ever since, so there are a lot of books I could suggest. However, I would rather they include some music in the library, especially music from the sixties and early seventies. That was what inspired my generation. It shaped our thinking. In many ways it spurred us to action. Music spoke to us. One of my favorite singer songwriters was a folk singer named Harry Chapin. Chapin died in 1981 in his midthirties, September 3, 1981, so Sunday was the 25th anniversary of his death. In 1980, he wrote a song called “Remember When the Music”. The first verse of this song went,
“Remember when the music
Came from wooden boxes strung with silver wire
And as we sang the words, it would set our minds on fire,
For we believed in things, and so we'd sing.”
And we did believe in things and people sang as a form of social conscience and protest. Music was a unifier. It taught us that we were not alone in our thoughts and actions and formed social opinion. It moved people to action. Some of the issues are the same as issues today; “Immigration Man” by Crosby, Stills, and Nash spoke of the problems concerning immigration. Country Joe MacDonald asked “what were we fighting for” in Viet Nam and Phil Ochs sang “we aren’t going a ‘marching anymore.” Peter Paul and Mary sang about the environment in their song “Power”; and Bob Dylan asked “How many years can a people exist, before they’re allowed to be free” in the song “Blowin’ in the Wind”. Robert Lamm wrote a very powerful song for his band Chicago called “Dialogue Parts 1 & 2”. The song is a conversation between two college students. One is an activist worried about the problems of the world. The other is oblivious to what is going on and doesn’t think there are any problems, or at least, it’s not up to him to solve them. Student One asks, “Will you try to change things with the power that you have, the power of a million new ideas?
Student Two replies, “What is this power you speak of and this need for things to change? I always thought that everything was fine.”
The reason I mention this music is two fold. First, some of the problems today are the same as then. We are still arguing over immigration. Instead of Viet Nam, we are involved in a similar struggle in Iraq. Al Gore’s movie, “An Inconvenient Truth” reminds us that we still need to do much better regarding the environment. While my generation was experiencing the roll out of the Civil Rights Act, today we are still hearing about racial profiling, questioning equal rights, and debating whether we should keep affirmative action. The need to be involved remains as strong today as it was in 1972.
The second reason I mention this is that like the second student in Lamm’s dialogue, apathy is as bad as making a bad decision. It leads to having no role in the decision-making process and let’s others make choices for you. So you have to be involved somehow, somewhere, some way. When he was much younger, Academic Vice President Steve Green used to wear a button that simply said, “Give a damn.” That was the attitude that many of us had. It wasn’t a statement about any particular political philosophy, but just said that you should care about what was going on enough to be involved. I am asking you to care and get involved, as it is a matter that is about self-preservation as much as anything else.
As I said earlier, you don’t have to be a politician to be involved or to make great changes. People who one day made a simple decision to take a small action made some of the most important changes in my lifetime. Rosa Parks decided one day that she was too tired to stand for a white passenger on the bus home and from this simple action of standing up for herself by sitting down, great changes occurred. One student stopping a tank in Tiananmen Square with a flower in his hand fed tremendous change in China. Sometimes it is the simplest action. And to act doesn’t mean that you have to create huge sweeping change. I am fond of saying that we need to keep changing the world incrementally, one day at a time. Bobby Kennedy said this far more eloquently when he said, “Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.” Whether it is to join in a local activity, to get involved with some interest group, or to help your fellow students, get involved. To quote Harry Chapin, again, he once said, “When in Doubt, Do Something.”
This is a wonderful time to be in college. These are challenging times. Microsoft’s Bill Gates calls this the “Decade of Velocity”. We see changes in technology and science on an almost daily basis. The speed of this change is accelerating, and some of those changes are monumental. For example, we have hopes through stem cell therapies that we can cure diseases previously thought incurable. Through nanotechnology, machines are getting smaller and more intuitive. But through new technologies and scientific discoveries, we are also making life more complicated. How do we react towards our global neighbors in a global economy? How do we provide meaningful jobs? How do we deal with new issues of ethics brought about by new treatments involving genetics and stem cells? What we do with this technology and how we use it to change society depends on those of you who get involved to make those changes. Soon, it will no longer be up to me to make these decisions, but you will be the ones that will have to take on these tasks.
Let me end by going back to Harry Chapin. I met Harry in Williamstown one night in the mid seventies after a concert. A few friends and I walked into a local restaurant for dinner and he was at the bar. We stopped and said hi, and he graciously asked us to sit down. We ended up in a long conversation that is memorable to this day. Harry Chapin wasn’t just a musician, but also believed in the music that he sang. He started something called World Hunger Year (WHY), a non-profit organization that has been dedicated to wiping out hunger and poverty at the grass roots level since 1975. Every day they work with over 5,000 organizations on the grass roots level community by community to bring self-help programs to those in need. Every day, they create miracles for thousands of people. And they do it all at the local level. He didn’t just sing about this, he lived the life.
Back to his song, “Remember When the Music”, Harry sang,
“ And I feel that something's coming, and it's not just in the wind.
It's more than just tomorrow, it's more than where we've been,
It offers me a promise, it's telling me "Begin",
I know we're needing something worth believing in.”
He lived that life and 25 years after his death he is still making a difference. We lived that life and we sang and have helped change people’s lives for the better. And that is something worth believing in. Class of 2010, will you try to change things with the power that you have, the power of a million new ideas? Now it’s your turn to sing, and your voice lessons start with your first class tomorrow. Good luck. I wish you the very best success here at MCLA. Again, I want to thank you for this opportunity. And in closing, let me say, Svegli l’amico, Il discorso finito!
Thank you!

Comments on net neutrality

2010-12-23T12:23:00.003-05:00

Considering the recent ruling on net neutrality by the FCC, I thought that I would publish my testimony before the FCC from February of 2008. This was a hearing held in Cambridge as as they began looking at this issue.

It seems that the same issues guided their ruling. They were torn between the need for greater bandwidth, and the need to keep the internet usable for everyone. This is only the beginning of this issue. They will have to come back to it again and again as we continue to evolve technologically.

Representative Daniel E. Bosley
House Chairman
Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies
Rm 42, State House, Boston, Ma.

Testimony:
FCC Public En Banc Hearing on Broadband Network Management Practices

Monday, February 25, 2008

Thank you Mr. Chairman for the opportunity to participate in this hearing today. Broadband, particularly as it pertains to our economic development efforts in Massachusetts has been a focal point of my committee over the past few years. My district, the First Berkshire District, is a more rural part of the Commonwealth and our efforts to create jobs has been hampered by the inability to bring broadband to many of the communities of western Massachusetts.

For the record, I was the House Chair of the Government Regulations Committee for over ten years. This was the committee that heard all of our public utility legislation. For the last three plus years, I have been the Chair of the Economic Development and Emerging Technology Committee. More than that, I have been working for better telecommunication services in my district and throughout the state for all 22 years in the Legislature. Nineteen years ago I was an intervener in the first major rate case in telephony in many years. I took our Public Utilities Commission to the SJC in 1991 suing over rulings regarding rates and expansion of calling areas. In 1995, I was able to fund a Western Massachusetts initiative that became Berkshire Connect, a collaborative partnership formed to improve our county’s telecommunication system and Internet services.

In a $347 million economic development bill that I co-authored 2 years ago, I inserted a section creating an office of Broadband Director in our Economic Development Secretariat. The directive for that office included working on broadband expansion and this year, our Governor, Governor Patrick filed a bill to commit $25 million towards making Broadband ubiquitous in the Commonwealth.

I have made such an effort because the Internet has changed the way we conduct our business in the US, and it has changed our way of life. When I was first elected, I had one telephone number. Today I have eleven, I think. In those twenty-two years we have fundamentally changed our conduct based on new technologies. Without access to those technologies, we fall far behind other regions and other nations in our ability to create jobs and conduct commerce. I am here today to say that I support the efforts to craft some form of net neutrality legislation as a way of keeping the Internet vibrant, vital, and innovative. Without net neutrality, things such as Berkshire Connect would not happen and innovation will be stifled. Obviously, while my focus as a legislator has been on the business aspects of broadband, it is a much larger issue than just commerce. Broadband is dramatically changing the way we educate our children and treat our sick. In fact, in 1996, I was in a small town in Russia advising the region on how to set up unemployment systems. I had occasion to talk to a group of students from the Pskov Polytechnic Institute. I asked these students what brought about democratic changes to Russia and they immediately answered that the Internet was responsible. The government could no longer control the information that people received. The internet is a powerful influence in every facet of our lives today.

Mr. Chairman, in my ten years as Chairman of the Government Regulation Committee, I have seen many initiatives that were designed to advantage one company or another. These things include Reciprocal Compensation, Franchise Fee fights, open access or open documents, right of way fees and ownership as well as bandwidth and frequency issues. The discussions and deliberations over these issues have all been made from two very different perspectives. Businesses such as the Bells or Cable companies have a responsibility to their shareholders and want to profit from any expansion that they invest in. They argue for little government interference and the right to build out their networks as they see fit. Internet and smaller or start up companies want unlimited cheap access to the largest available customer base. They can argue as they see fit. On both sides it is their responsibility to argue the best possible policy for their companies or constituency. It is our responsibility in government to be the arbiters of what is good policy for our citizens.

There have been cases where Internet providers have slowed access or in a isolated cases to this point, denied access to certain sites. I know that they argue that they are doing so in order to ensure that they will be able to service customers and that it is not discrimination on their parts to do so, but good business practices. They also argue that they should have the right to tier their services or charge premiums for some sites especially those that use more bandwidth. I think they are wrong for several reasons. First, you can’t argue that you are not restricting access and then argue that you have that right. They have to pick one argument or the other. Both can’t be right. Second, millions in this country access the Internet at any one time. We cannot allow a few large companies to pick and choose what people should have access to. Tiering services creates the kind of stratification in our society that we are trying to get rid of and further restricts access to services and companies. The issue of tiered services reminds me of the issue of slotting for space in supermarkets. In any large supermarket, there are tens of thousands of different products. In order to ensure premium exposure some enterprising company offered to pay the supermarket for product placement. This is a good marketing strategy. However, today almost all firms are charged a slotting fee in order to get their product anywhere on the shelf. Small firms fall by the wayside and firms that could be major market players, or may have better products are prohibited from participating in the market. Many think this has thwarted competition and customer choice. What started out as an economic and marketing tactic has lead to a stifling of competition and only the wealthy companies can compete. Today, Food producers are routinely charged thousands of dollars for shelf space and even more money if they then want their product advertised or promoted. The markets use the same argument that is used by large Internet providers. If we don’t charge the users of shelf space, we will have to charge customers more for the goods we sell. Or if we can’t produce this revenue, we will have to limit our size and we can’t provide the services needed. I would submit that we should let customers decide which goods they want and let competition keep costs down.

Enough about supermarkets. If we want a truly innovative Internet, we need to make sure it is nondiscriminatory. That is my definition of net neutrality. The large providers will tell us that in order to provide services they must have some leeway in deciding what to slow down or they reserve the right to tier services so that people will pay for more excessive use of bandwidth. The question is, who decides what is excessive use? Is it the 50th Youtube video of people tasering one another? Is it the 100th video of people using Mentos and Coca Cola to create an explosion? Or is it a fringe political group? Or how about a group of social activists? How about such as the views of a black minister who was sick of discrimination and wants to become active in his community? If firms could prohibit some users and the Internet was in effect at the time, would the Reverend Dr. King get his website published or would it be excessive use to go to the website of a small town activist preacher? Would Google become a leader today used by millions if it couldn’t pass muster on start up as worthy of placing in an affordable tiered service. The answer is we need all of these sites if the Internet is to be truly nondiscriminatory and ubiquitous. Let users decide what they should open and download. That said, there should be some small exceptions. Providers should be able to remove viruses and viral sites as well as be able to remove or restrict sites that demonstrate a clearly defined public safety danger.

Lastly on this, providers claim that competition will keep them affordable and keep most websites in service supposes that there is enough competition to achieve this. This is just not so. In many places there is one provider. Some small providers try to compete by reselling services, but that leaves them subject to the whim and the bandwidth of the large providers. That doesn’t solve the problem. We must keep the Internet open and free from a few deciding what we can or can’t open and/or download.

Finally, Mr. Chairman, the issue is not content, it is capacity. And here the large providers have a point. The chairman of Cisco Systems has said that in one day, Youtube sends data equivalent to 75 billion emails. This is a problem and we need to keep up with expansion if we are to continue to expand the content and knowledge found on the Internet. I would make two suggestions. First, by keeping the Internet open and nondiscriminatory, we will continue to witness the kinds of innovation that has kept up with market demand for many. DSL was an innovation that allowed us to receive higher speed Internet over old twisted copper wires. Today people are looking at VPN or P4P in order to work within the existing system. Innovators are working to make packets smaller with new compression techniques. As long as they can participate in an open system, creative individuals and companies will find innovative ways to adapt and achieve more service within our existing system.

Second, we need a national broadband plan. Business claim that they have to maintain the right to make bandwidth decisions is a perverse incentive that allows them to maximize profits by keeping the system restricted. There is no incentive for them to expand capacity as supply drops demand and price. Yet, this system is as important to us as deployment of universal voice was in its time. Government must step in with a plan and with money to build out our systems, and not just to keep up with demand, but also to increase our average US speed in order to compete in the global marketplace. We are falling behind other countries in our ability to conduct business at maximum speeds. Japan is ten times faster than our speeds and others, such as Korea, France, and Singapore to name a few are leapfrogging over our aging infrastructure . Today Japan has fiber to the home in 80 percent of their households. We need to act to compete. We need a national plan to achieve universal coverage and to increase speed to 100MBpS. We need fiber to the house. A.T. & T’s stated policy is fiber to the neighborhood node, while Qwest hasn’t even committed to that penetration! This may be good for their shareholders but it is disastrous for our long-term needs. We need more long term planning and planning that takes into account our national needs and not just short-term profit margins. There is nothing wrong with making a profit and certainly these companies have a responsibility to their bottom line. But we have a national need that we need to address that transcends any one companies’ corporate strategy. While we have been trying to devise a plan in Massachusetts and other states, such as New York in the planning stages or Kentucky has implemented are increasing coverage on a state by state basis, we are the only industrialized nation in the world without a national broadband strategy. The Brookings Institute has said that widespread increased coverage of high-speed broadband would immediately add hundreds of millions to our economy and over 1.2 million jobs per year. This is too important and too expensive to presume that large companies will do this by themselves. I read recently that the large North American providers invested $70 billion in infrastructure last year alone. But at the end of the day, they have invested where they think they can make the most profit and investment is uneven. Verizon alone has spent hundreds of millions in Massachusetts over the last few years, and yet one third of Western Massachusetts has little or no access to Broadband, and those that do are at much lower speeds than are necessary to be competitive in today’s marketplace. Just as Massachusetts is poised to commit $25 million or more to broadband development, other states and the federal government need to work together to develop a national strategy. This is critical. We should be partners with companies to build a strong competitive market in order to keep up with demand, negate the argument for discrimination in use of bandwidth, lower costs to international levels, and provide the strong business network we need to compete with in today’s global economy.

Thank you and I look forward to questions after the entire panel has spoken.

Happy Holidays

2009-12-24T15:29:00.003-05:00

I haven't posted lately and feel bad about that. There are things I am working on and need to write about, but it is the holiday season. I went to the lighting of the menorah at the State House last week (on the fourth day. I guess the political calendar dictated that but it worked out fine because Rabbi lit the initial candle, then the Governor, Senate President and the Speaker lit a candle, so it worked out.)The children who sang were wonderful, and each constitutional officer spoke also. (I am going to miss Joe DeNucci.)

So here it is Christmas Eve and I am home, having finished my shopping and every present is wrapped, with big thanks to my daughter Stephanie. Tonight is traditionally with my family and we are headed to my sister's house. Tomorrow, we are home and at my wife's aunt Pat's house. It will be nice to see everyone and spend the day relaxing with relatives.

There are many problems in this world, in our country and in our state today. We still have many people unemployed and we struggle to create jobs. Our budgets aren't healthy enough to satisfy everyone's needs, and we are mired in a quagmire in Afghanistan. But if there is one universal theme in our stories of the holidays, it is a theme of redemption and hope. Whether it is a lamp that burns brightly for eight days on one day’s oil, or a star that burns brightly lighting the way to Nazareth, the holidays remind us that the human experience is one of rising above our adversities. Whether it is a band of brothers or one person with disciples, our collective religions tell us that miracles do happen if we have hope and faith and work together towards a higher goal of peace and brotherhood.

On this holiday, despite the news on Fox News or CNN, I will take comfort in my friends and family, renewed by the spirit of the holidays and its story of hope and faith. My wish on this Christmas eve is that we remember this spirit and use it to guide us the day after and the next day and that day after that. Here's to all of you on this Christmas Eve. I wish you all the best of holidays, and the merriest of new years.

Capuano For US Senator

2009-11-24T08:35:00.001-05:00

The race to elect a successor to Senator Ted Kennedy holds its primary election on December 8. I am urging everyone to vote for Congressman Mike Capuano. I do not do this lightly. This is a decision that marks the first chance to vote for someone other than Ted Kennedy in 47 years. And Ted Kennedy was so important for our area and our state that we need to ensure the best person is elected to take his place and carry on the tradition passionately advocating for the people in the Commonwealth. I believe that the best person for this job is Mike Capuano. He has the passion, energy, intelligence, and voting record that make him a worthy successor to Kennedy.

We have been faced with a population that has not kept up with the US population growth. We have lost Congressmen in the past during redistricting and we face the prospect of losing another. That means we must fight even harder to make sure that the northeast and Massachusetts in particular continues to get our fair share of government programs. It means that we need to fight harder to shape national policy. Mike Capuano has proven that he is a fighter.

A few people have come up to me in the Berkshires asking why I am not supporting the “hometown” candidate. One letter writer has called me a turncoat for not advocating for the Berkshire candidate. I take exception to that. First, Coakley hasn’t lived in the Berkshires for thirty years. When she ran for state representative and district attorney, she stated she was from Dorchester. In my mind it is far more important to elect the best person based on credentials rather than gender, relationship, or where they lived thirty years ago.

I like Martha Coakley. I campaigned and voted for her as Attorney General. However, I have to judge her based on my interactions with her office. I have a list of five different issues that I have either spoken to her or her office about over the last three years. None have been acted on. A few, like gas pricing hearings to find out why we pay higher prices in the Berkshires as opposed to areas like Phillipston-Templeton; or why we can’t provide a list of companies raising charitable funds with how much goes to the charity as opposed to the paid fundraiser, have statewide implications. Yet, I have been told there is nothing we can do on my concerns or there has been no response.

I would however, like to be very clear. My vote is not against another candidate, but because I believe that Mike Capuano is clearly the best choice. Mike Capuano has always answered my phone calls. I called his office recently over the Financial Stability bill to advocate for some amendments that would help small communities. His staff was responsive, knowledgeable, and ready to work on my concerns. He is familiar with our area and always discusses the Berkshires with a knowledge that most from his side of the state don’t have.

And he has a record he can be proud of. He became the Mayor of Somerville and cleaned the city up. As Mayor, he was a respected leader advocating for our cities and towns. That is where I first met Mike. He was at the State House working to secure money for our communities.

Mike has experience in Washington and serves on a couple of committees that have given him experience in areas that we need in Massachusetts. One of the most pressing issues facing us today statewide is transportation. How do we make capital improvements on the MBTA without bankrupting the state? How do we get rid of the backlog of projects necessary to improve our infrastructure? Mike has worked on these. Mike serves on Financial Services and what is more important to our economy than stability and job growth? Mike has experience in foreign affairs and that has become increasingly important for Massachusetts as we try to expand our foreign trade, foreign direct investment, and deal with international companies. How many had the courage to stand up and vote against the Iraq war with Ted Kennedy? Not many, but Mike did. And if that isn’t enough, he is also the person that was charged as chairman to lead a Special Task Force on Ethics Enforcement.

Add all this together and you get a hard working passionate representative that I would be proud to have as my Senator. I hope you look at all the candidates and examine their records. They are all decent people who want to serve you. But the person with the most experience is Mike Capuano. I hope you agree and vote for Mike on December 8.

Basic Research

2009-10-18T12:31:00.001-04:00

There is a great op-ed piece today in the Boston Globe over something I have been writing about for a number of months. This piece written by Robert Weisman is titled Business Intelligence and can be found here: http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/10/18/the_building_blocks_of_new_industries_are_missing/.

The article states that we have little basic research in the US as compared to the past and that hampers our abilities to create new industries and new inventions or innovations. While our life science success in Massachusetts has been very good, it has masked this lack of basic research that we used to do in abundance. In a state that relies on innovation and creativity in our economy as much as Massachusetts does, it is critical that we return to our roots, tend our knitting, begin at home or any other worn but true cliché you can come up with.

The articles about Evergreen Solar in the Globe over the past few days detail the problem with picking winners and losers in our economy. I hope that Evergreen does well and becomes a leading company in Massachusetts, but we need to take precious state resources and put them in areas where all businesses can take advantage of them. We need to maximize our resources and let the market decide what is the next technology or invention. If I were king of the Forest, I would have used the stimulus money to launch a new economy rather than bail out the old. I would have called it “Retool America” and we would invest in job training, basic research along with the renewed emphasis on science and math in our schools. I would prepare industrial sites, manage our water and electric systems better and new equipment for our voke-tech schools.

A few years ago, I was in Mexico visiting companies along with other state officials including then Gov. Mike Huckabee from Arkansas. One of our fellow travelers told the companies in Mexico that they believe that Mexico took our jobs in the US after NAFTA was enacted. The companies replied that this wasn’t true and went on to defend their roles. However, they then bemoaned the fact that they were losing jobs and market to companies in China! Last year, I was in China in October to speak at a large tech conference. In meetings with Chinese officials, they told me they were losing jobs to Vietnam and Thailand because labor was cheaper. My point is this: We are never going to be the cheapest labor in the US. However, we can use our strengths in innovation and education to create new good paying jobs in new areas. We need to stay one step ahead of the competition on this and that means basic research to create new businesses.

Shakespeare and Company

2009-10-18T12:11:00.001-04:00

There has been a lot written on Shakespeare and Company over the last few weeks. My role in this was simple. I have a relationship with someone at their bank and a mutual friend told me that Shakespeare may have some troubles that needed attention. I talked with Tina Packer from Shakespeare and Company and talked with Rep. Smitty Pignatelli who represents that district. I think it is important to be able t find a way to address ways to assist our cultural facilities and felt that, if we can help Shakespeare and Company, we could help all the other facilities in similar straits. Part of this is recognizing these facilities as parts, important parts of our business community. If a widget factory was having trouble and employed several hundred people, there would be several state agencies that would be rushing to help. We need to apply the same standards to cultural, tourism, agricultural, and other businesses that are extremely important for our economic health.

Having read the Boston Globe editorial this morning concerning Shakespeare and Company, I am of two minds. First, I think it is a tribute to the importance and the breadth of work from Shakespeare and Company that the Globe bothered to editorialize. They clearly understand that there are many many activities of the Company that transcend merely putting on performances. So it is heartening that the Globe gets it and opines that it is essential that Shakespeare and Company right their ship and restore their fiscal health.

On the other hand, almost every cultural facility relies heavily on their ability to fund raise private funds. When donors lose confidence in the future of a facility, it always hampers their fund raising ability. The Globe editorial was harsh, but honest and straightforward. Unfortunately, the word bankruptcy was mentioned in a local story and that hasn’t helped. A note to Alan Chartock: despite a disclaimer that he wants the company to survive, you can’t use that to excuse the rest of the column. It’s like the old comedian who said something to the effect of saying to someone” Gosh you gained weight and look awful.” And then saying, “I mean that in a good way.” You can’t have it both ways and your info is bad, even if you playfully use your dog as a foil.

There is a big lesson to be learned in the trials and tribulations over Shakespeare and Company’s troubles. A few cultural facilities have bemoaned the fact that people were looking to Shakespeare and Company as opposed to their needs. A few have suggested that we shouldn’t help them because they didn’t manage their finances as well as some others. I would suggest that they read the parable the Prodigal Son. We help where we can and no one suggested that we help one at the expense of another. I didn’t hear Shakespeare and Company complain when other received earmarks in the budget or received money from the Cultural Facilities fund. Rather than trying to stop assistance to one facility in a time of need, perhaps the parties in question should have been on the phone calling to find out how they can help each other for mutual benefit.

Stone Soup

2009-10-12T09:23:00.000-04:00

When I was very young (yes, yes, a long, long time ago), I loved the Captain Kangaroo Show. Bob Keeshan was the Captain, and along with Mr. Greenjeans would entertain us every morning. I didn’t realize until many years later that this show was much more than Mr. Moose getting the Captain to say the word that would make lots of ping pong balls drop. It was also educational.

Jim Carville once said that all life you needed to know about life you can learn from watching The Andy Griffith Show. That’s how I feel about Captain Kangaroo. Life lessons were learned there long before Sesame Street. Where am I going with this? Well, as I watch our reaction to the recession, I am reminded of the story that the Captain used to read every now and then called “Stone Soup”.

The story goes something like this. Three soldiers were on their way home from a war when they happened into a small village of suspicious and war weary inhabitants. They stopped and asked for food. The villagers replied that there was no food to be had. One of the soldiers suggested that they make stone soup and feed the entire town. They got a big pot, filled it with water and placed three large stones in the bottom. They proceeded to boil this, stirring it and tasting it every now and then. The townsfolk were very curious. How could you make soup from stones? The soldiers said it would be delicious and would serve the entire town. As they went along, one soldier opined that it was good, but could be great if there were only a few carrots. One of the townsfolk said that he may be able to find a few carrots. So that went in. Over the course of cooking the soup, the townsfolk responded like this with potatoes, tomatoes, and much more until there were all sorts of seasonings, vegetables, and much more in the soup. The soldiers fed the town, ate, and went on their way. As they left the town marveled at how they made soup from stones!!

I haven’t seen nor heard that story since the days of the Captain (Kangaroo, not Morgan), but think of it often in my job. It should be required reading for all elected officials.

The federal government’s use of stimulus funds is much like the stones. It requires people to feel it works and then they begin to supply the other ingredients. Consumers spend on things like cars. Businesses invest in manpower or equipment upgrades. Each of these borrows from financial institutions as people invest in themselves and the economy. Government doesn’t have enough spending power by themselves, but must inspire and lead as we rebuild our economy. Whether that causes people to start to invest depends on whether you have sold them on the idea of stone soup, and of course, whether they have a few carrots or potatoes left.

Local News

2009-10-09T08:51:00.001-04:00

For those who have said I don’t post enough about district concerns, it isn’t because we are not working on district issues. This week was a very good one in spite of the economy. The biggest news was that the Governor released his five year capital spending plan and MCLA’s science building is in the plan. Despite having to cut over $1.1 billion from the original plan, the $50+ million science building has made the cut and we will release $500,000 this year to begin the design phase. This is good news. It brings our science facilities into the 21st century, consolidates the classes, and stabilizes this area of curriculum. Besides that, it allows us to train our future workforce for the types of jobs that we need. That can be truly transformative for our economic efforts.

This week also saw the release in committee of the creative index bill for our classrooms. I believe that this will help to continue the innovation and creativity that is the hallmark of the Massachusetts’s economy. In this area, coupled with the Berkshire compact, the lap top initiative, and other local programs, gives us an ability to compete with other parts of the state to improve our economy and compete or anywhere else.

We also had a hearing on renaming the local skating rink. This bill was released from committee and we should see action on it very soon. It is important that we continue to remember the Viet Nam Veterans who the rink is names after, but giving it the name also of Peter Foote will personalize the sacrifice that each one who served in Viet Nam made and that will amplify the remembrance of that sacrifice.

Finally, we will be delivering a check to the city of North Adams this week on the improved corridors to the city. This transportation money will improve the entry corridors to the city. This helps us in so many ways from looking nicer, better services for constituents, to improving our ability to attract businesses.

Economic Update

2009-10-09T08:40:00.001-04:00

Economists in Massachusetts have indicated that we are going to have a very slow recovery from the recession. Last month’s revenues, despite higher sales and other taxes, were off by $243 million and it is projected by the Department of Revenue that we have to reduce projections by $600 million for the next year.

This does not bode well for the Commonwealth, obviously. We are spending down our federal stimulus money and have about $600 million left in the stabilization fund. Next year’s budget is going to have to cut more spending at a time when many services have already been severely cut back.

If you are one of the two or three people who read this blog on a regular basis, you know that I have been saying that consumer spending is not rebounding and that job loss will continue to impact our recovery. At this recent hearing, many of the economists who spoke mentioned both of these factors. Let me once again state that in this time of fiscal downturn, we need to invest money into our efforts to create jobs in Massachusetts. While some are saying we have too many economic development agencies in the state, I believe we need to take advantage of all of the programs that have worked in the past to try to prepare ourselves as we come out of this economic crisis. The only way to restore fiscal health is the creation of jobs and that means working with the employers of the state to find ways to remove barriers on job creation. More on this in future posts.

Pandemic Bill in Massachusetts

2009-10-09T07:59:00.001-04:00

This week was a mixed bag of issues at the State House. On the larger issues, we passed a pandemic bill in the House that closes gaps in our chain of command and should make it easier to react to a health emergency, whether it is an illness outbreak or a terrorist biological attack. We did so while avoiding the controversial issues that have plagued (pun intended) this bill since it was introduced.

The House bill struck out the Senate version sections that mandated vaccination, that allowed entry into people houses, and that took away the right to public assembly. While these were probably well intentioned by the authors, they traded away too many freedoms in exchange for control. This bill has been around for eight years, and we needed to get a bill passed.

What does this bill do? It gives local boards of health a role in pandemic preparations for the first time. It codifies a lot of regulation so that everyone is aware of the actions that could be taken. It codifies an appeal process for individuals for the first time. It limits the Governor’s power to suspend rules and call for a public health emergency to ninety days. It gives people civil liability protection if they volunteer to assist in a public health emergency. And it sets out rules for the Department of public Health in how they react and what they can do in case of emergency.

This is important. A few weeks after September 11, I was part of a group of Legislators that were chosen from the large municipality and state organizations to meet with Homeland Security in order to detail plans in case of further attack. It became apparent that we needed better inter and intra state cooperation in order to react to threats, whether they were natural or “man made”. For example, if a terrorist biological weapon were to be released in New York City, what do we do if parents start arriving at Williams College in the Berkshires to pick up their kids? If the Massachusetts Turnpike finds a pathogen in a rest stop, who do we contact to coordinate efforts on containment? Or if the Swine flu becomes an epidemic, how do we contain the illness and cover essential services? We need plans to react to these and we need to coordinate our efforts in a clear manner. This bill sets us on that path to planning.

Interim Senator

2009-09-17T09:12:00.003-04:00

Four years ago, the Legislature in Massachusetts voted to change our state system from a gubernatorial appointment of the next US Senator in the case of a vacancy,to an elected position. I was not at the State House the day the vote was taken and didn't vote on this. I would have voted with the majority at the time. Since then, obviously this issue has come back with the death of Senator Kennedy. I have received a lot of email on both sides of this. After much deliberation, we are voting on this today.Here is my response to that email and my decision on this matter. I appreciate everyone's comments on both sides.

Thank you for your email. After consideration, I am going to vote for an interim senator for Massachusetts. While many will cry politics on this, I believe that if you strip away the politics from the current debate over replacement of Ted Kennedy, the core issue is; should Massachusetts have two US Senators representing the state at all times even in the interim while awaiting the voter's choice in a new election. I think the answer is yes. That is not political, it is practical. Given population shifts and the passing of our long time Senator as well as our reliance on these offices to give us assistance in such issues as Medicare, social security, immigration, and passport issues, I believe that it is imperative to have two US Senators in Washington.
People deserve to be represented in Washington with our full legislative contingent.

People claim that the vote to do away with the practice of appointing a Senator if there is a vacancy was political. Of course it was. Gov. Romney was running for President and no one wanted to give him a leg up on the competition by appointing himself. That was a choice that was made given that situation. We have a different situation today and if there are cries of hypocrisy, then they apply to the Republicans too as they thought this was a good idea four years ago and now decry the appointment of an interim Senator. The difference this time is that we have a pledge that the interim appointment will not be someone who will seek the permanent appointment so that the people of Massachusetts will truly be able to elect, by popular vote, the next US Senator. I believe this is fair and equitable.

Thanks for the email and input on this matter, I appreciate your comments.

Sincerely, Dan Bosley

Random Thoughts on a Beautiful Day

2009-09-14T07:46:00.001-04:00

- Is there anyone who thinks that the vote against an interim Senator four years ago wasn’t political? Romney was sworn in as Governor and checked out immediately. He was clearly running for President and no one in the Democratic Party wanted to give him a leg up by having him become the Senator from Massachusetts.
- The difference this time around is that the idea is to ensure as much as possible that the interim Senator will not run for the elected position. So we get to have two Senators in Massachusetts during the interim and the public gets to elect the next Senator. What’s wrong with that?
- I know it is a pain in the neck to get around State St., but isn’t it great to have the bridge finally being repaired? BTW, that is the longest span in Berkshire County.
- I was out early Sunday morning taking pictures and in one area near the Savoy State Forest; the leaves are already turning quite a bit.
- My first trip for this school year to Sullivan School is today. Anna Saldo Burke and her third grade classes adopted me years ago and I get to class several times a year. Today I get to read to them.
- I keep hearing from people that Ted Kennedy’s passing is the end of an era. It is, partly because politics has become much more about personalities and less about issues. Ideologues have a hard time reaching across aisles as Ted did. But whose fault is that? We should demand that government again becomes more important than politics.
- If consumer spending is a huge part of our economy, how can we have a recovery when no one has any discretionary spending power? One of the aspects of this recession was that consumers were tapped out. Now we are being asked to do the same thing that got us into the last problem. I think this is going to take us longer to dig out of than in past recessions. Hang on, and continue to save a little.
- Gambling once again raises its ugly head in the state. Considering what we are now reading about Connecticut and the debt problems of the casinos as well as the weakness of the market, why is this still a good idea to some?
- We all have things that drive us nuts. For me, it’s people who have to push onto an elevator before people get off. Doesn’t it make more sense to wait till the elevator offloads before squeezing on? How much time do you have to save that you are in that hurry? And while I am on elevators, it drives me nuts when a young person gets on an elevator and presses the button to go up one floor. What drives you nuts?
- Back to politics; after two Globe stories where they dragged out Joe Kennedy’s ex-wife from years ago to write a story about his annulment and then printed a long story about his oil from Hugo Chavez, is it any wonder that Joe K didn’t run? The Globe has helped their candidate by defining the race. That’s too bad as Joe Kennedy was a good Congressman and would have helped this race as a candidate. This also says a lot about reporting and the direction of newspapers.
- I have decided to support Mike Capuano for the Senate seat. He is also a good Congressman and has been a good friend. I like his no nonsense style and find that he is as comfortable with a few people from the neighborhood as he is with foreign heads of state. He works hard and I like the fact that he is compassionate but also warns about how we spend money now and in the future. He is a good person and will work hard for us. And we will see him in Western Massachusetts if he is elected.

Boston Charter Day

2009-09-12T12:27:00.002-04:00

This past Friday, I was asked by one of my colleagues to speak at Boston Charter Day. This is a celebration by historians in both Boston Massachusetts and Boston, Lincolnshire , England of the September 1630 chartering of the city of Boston. I, of course, got a kick out of being the furthest representative from Boston and talking on this occasion. I spoke about the development of government. I thought it may be interesting. These are my remarks:

Welcome and thank you for this opportunity to speak today
I come from North Adams – the farthest city from Boston and farthest commute in the state, but get to spend half of the week in the beautiful Berkshires and half of the week in Shawmut/Trimountaine/Boston.
My grandfather on my mother’s side comes from South England near Plymouth in a small town called Looe. This is very far from Boston England – but my great grandparents came here much the same as those in the 1600s – looking for a better life for themselves and their families.
Now we know that the first European settler here in Boston was William Blackstone in 1625. We know that the Puritans who served in the Arbella Armada of 11 ships brought too many settlers for Salem to accommodate and those settlers migrated from Salem to Charlestown before eventually settling in Boston. This was mostly because of potable water in this area. That was the start and we know that since a large number of settlers came from the Boston England area – this city came to be named Boston.
For the next 130 years, it was the largest, wealthiest, and most influential city in America. Its geographic location and large port made it so.
Due to its position of influence, the City of Boston and her residents greatly influenced the growth of a governance system in Massachusetts, and eventually in the United States.
The factor that was of most importance originally was the fact that early settlers here were Puritans rather than Pilgrims. They weren’t separatists from the Church of England, but were chartered colonists – (I was always told that the difference was that Puritans had money – Pilgrims did not). The word puritan came from their belief in purity of the Church. They felt that the Church of England had been compromised by tolerance of other beliefs.
As a result, they imposed a strict set of rules on all the residents of this new land. They legislated morality as well as laws. This had the effect of creating an extremely structured and stable society here. Lest we think it was all about morality and church, they also preached education and hard work, both of which were key factors in stability and expansion of the economy.
The other main factor in the growth of Boston and the evolution of government was that Boston and the Massachusetts Bay Colony was allowed far more self-governance than their American counterparts in Virginia.
In 1629, the twelve men in England who were members of the Mass. Bay Colony decided to transfer the power to the new world. In effect, they founded a new company and a new government.
Arguably the Charter of 1629 should be recognized as one of the most important documents in our history.
Governor Winthrop brought this charter with him when he came to the colony. It gave the colony unprecedented power. It created a General Court of all free men. This court elected a Governor themselves and stated that they possessed the right to govern their own affairs as long as their laws were not contrary to the laws of England.
That Great and General Court has met regularly except for an inter charter period in the 1680s for 379 years.
Not all settlers had a voice at the beginning. Some were indentured to others in order to finance their way to the new country. But as they worked this debt off, more and more became free men.
In October 1630, 109 settlers petitioned for rights as freemen. This was at the first meeting of the Great and General Court. In May 1631, at their next meeting, 116 men were admitted as freemen. They immediately put through reforms that curbed the Governors power and declared that only the General Court had the power to tax.
So many so became freemen, that by May 1634, the General Court arranged for representatives from each city and town to make decisions for them.
This was included in a document sent out in 1641 – the Body of Liberties. This was the first code of law for the Commonwealth. It codified a representative form of government and said that the General Court could not be dissolved without the majority consent of that body. This was amazingly progressive for its time. It included protection for the rights of children, outlawed slavery, declared usury as forbidden and separated church and state. Public records were declared open to the public. This was tremendously progressive…well not all progressive, the death penalty was reaffirmed for witchcraft.
While the first legislators were all members of the church, by the 1640’s expansion of the colony lead to elimination of religious tests of officeholders.
In 1644, the single assembly was split into two bodies, the House and Senate and the beginning of separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches began. This happened gradually ending with the Constitution of 1780. 1644 A bicameral legislature was declared. The House became the body of freemen, and the Senate was deputies to the Governor…the body of property and wealth. Thus, we are the oldest bicameral legislature in the United States
In 1652 the bodies adopted the right of mutual veto. This is important as it gave both branches equal power.
The General Court lasted under the Province Charter until 1774 when it became the Massachusetts government; however it wasn’t until adoption of the 1780 Constitution that we officially became the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The pre-eminent political scientist, Andrew McLaughlin wrote, “If I were called upon to select a single fact on enterprise which more nearly than any other thing embraced the significance of the American Revolution…I would choose the formation of the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780; and I should do so because the constitution rested upon a fully developed convention, the greatest institution of government which America has produced, the institution which answered, in itself, the problem of how men could make governments of their own free will.”
239 representatives from 190 communities met in September 1779 to draft a Constitution. They had a “free conversation” and delegated a Grand Committee of 30 to prepare a draft. This committee selected a subcommittee of three – John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Bowdoin to write the document. In the end, they let John Adams write this document. John Adams set out to write a document that, he wrote, created “an empire of laws, not men.”
This was a broad comprehensive document and today Massachusetts is the only state that still operates under its original constitution.
3 points are important:
1. Our rights must be respected by our government
2. It is our duty to maintain our government
3. The basic framework of that government
The Constitution gave the people tremendous power:
• Said government was accountable to the people
• We have the right to replace our officials
o Right to assemble
o Codified the separation of powers
o Right to impose taxes
This was far ahead of its time and set precedent for our national Constitution. Much of our federal government mirrors our state government.

Also in 1780, Senate was set at 40 members, where they have been since that time…House has fluctuated with growth of population high was 748 members in 1811
There are a couple things that make us unique. Each citizen of the Commonwealth can petition the legislature to pass a bill. This is the right of free petition. And each bill has to have a public hearing. No other state has both of these. You can still get your day in the general court.
This system has served us well, but it is a dynamic document. There have been changes or refinements along the way.
1840 citizens not taxpayers became the voters and legislators
1857 legislature abandoned town and city representation and elected 240 members from districts
1964 one man, one vote
1979 house cut to 160
In 1912, President Teddy Roosevelt said that, “Massachusetts has taken the lead in every movement for the welfare of this nation since the days when men of the 13 colonies sent their representatives to the first Continental Congress.”

There have been three presidents that have served here…John Adams, John Quincy Adams, and Calvin Coolidge…6 speakers of the US House, and one Supreme Court Justice. Daniel Webster, and John Greenlief Whittier served and Ralph Waldo Emerson served as clergy to the House. What a place

We are proud of our heritage, our history, and our roots in Massachusetts. I believe that those roots have been responsible for who we are today.
Because of the Puritan emphasis on education and hard work and given our spirit of self determination, we lead the nation in college degrees per capita – on doctoral degrees per capita. We have 123 colleges and universities in our small state. That has lead to a record and history of innovation and creativity in our economy – from developing the first vaccine in 1791 to mapping the human genome.

Senator Edward Kennedy

2009-08-27T23:52:00.003-04:00

I am deeply saddened by the passing of Sen. Kennedy yesterday. While it was not unexpected, it is a tragic and sad day for Massachusetts and the US Senate. My thoughts and prayers go to his family.

There has been much written about the senior Senator over the last few days and much more will be written. We will not realize the full impact of the loss nor will we realize the impact to Massachusetts until we start to look at the things Ted used to do that will no longer happen. We have lost the most influential member of Congress and that will hurt. For many of us, we have also lost a friend and someone who cared deeply for the people of this state and for the people in need of a champion all over this country. People who are far more eloquent than I am will detail the accomplishments and career of the Senator over the next few weeks and months. I would just like to relate a few stories of my personal dealings with Ted Kennedy.

First, I have two treasured pictures of Ted Kennedy. The first is a picture of Ted and Vicki with my daughter Stephanie. I was taking the Senator on a tour of MassMoCA a number of years ago and my daughter (much younger then) came along. I wanted her to meet the Senator and told her he was one of the most powerful men in Washington. So I have a picture of them together at the museum. The other is the picture that was on the front page of the Los Angeles Times during the 2000 convention. It is a picture of Ted and Caroline together waving to the crowd. I sent to the Times for a few prints of this and asked Ted to autograph it for me. He wrote, “Dan, I am looking for you, Ted Kennedy.”

The Senator and the family were on vacation in the Berkshires and I received a phone call from Gene Dellea asking me to go to lunch with the Senator and a small group. I was seated across from Ted who was about three seats from his wife Vicki. As many know, Ted Kennedy waged a lifetime battle with weight (I can relate) and he sat there with a salad for lunch. As the meal ended and the waiter asked for dessert preferences, the Senator said he wanted coffee but told the person on his right that the chocolate cake with the chocolate sauce was good. As dessert went on, every time Vicki was looking the other way, Ted would scoop a big spoon of cake and sauce out and eat it. He would grin, so proud that he was sneaking dessert until Vicki turned to him and said, “Ted, you know you have chocolate sauce all over your shirt”! He looked down very dismayed until we all started laughing and he joined in with a loud laugh himself. He took his job seriously, but could laugh at himself, a disappearing trait in politics.

In the mid-nineties, I was on my way to Washington to speak to Congress about heating assistance and the federal transportation bill with a number of people from around the east coast. I asked a number of people, as I always do, whether I could do anything else while I was down there. I was told by a few members of the BRTA that the train in Pittsfield was in danger. Newt Gringrich was Speaker of the House and Dick Armey from Texas was the House Ways and Means Chair. The rumor was that they were closing Amtrak stations all over including Texas. So I called Ted Kennedy’s office and asked to speak to him about this when I was in Washington. I arrived at his office with a bunch of people to talk to him about fuel assistance and we sat around his office in a semi circle. Being the closest on the left of the seats, I was close enough to the Senator to see the 3x5 card in his hand. The only thing typed on it was, “Dan Bosley-Amtrak-Pittsfield”. As our meeting wound down, a staffer reminded the Senator that I had wanted to talk about Amtrak. Ted Kennedy said something to the effect that trains were important and Pittsfield was important and America was getting into training, training the Amtrak way! He then asked if anyone wanted to take a picture and my chance ended with pictures of our group. I remember thinking that this didn’t go as I expected. I was a little disappointed until the next morning. I was in again a large meeting in Washington. This time I was with the CEO for Amtrak looking for an update on the proposed transportation bill. All we got was a half hour lecture of how we should lobby Congress to give Amtrak a penny from the federal gas tax. However, as this meeting ended and we all were leaving, Amtrak CEO Downs asked if I were in the room. He asked me to hang back. We went into his office and he said that I didn’t have to worry about Pittsfield closing. He said he received a personal phone call from Sen. Kennedy at home last evening requesting that they leave the Pittsfield stop open. He said that we shouldn’t worry and that he was very happy to have had the chance to talk to the Senator about Amtrak’s request for more money. He thanked me for getting Ted to call him! He went on to ask if I knew just how influential the Senator was and that he was thrilled to be able to talk to the most powerful man in the Senate as their funding was being discussed. He said that if I needed anything else, just call him. I remember leaving thinking God Bless Kennedy for making the phone call and taking care of us.

The last story is about Ted Kennedy’s appearance at the Commencement ceremony at MCLA in May ’06. I brought a copy of his recent book, “America: Back on Track” so that he could sign it. While we were getting “robed up” for the ceremony, I brought the book over and asked him to sign it. He took the pen and signed the book, but then started to go over the book and mark what he considered to be the important parts. I remember thinking, “hey, he’s writing in my book”, but how cool is it to have a book with the parts that he thought were important pointed out?

I remember where I was when I learned of both Bobby and John Kennedy’s death. The passing of Ted Kennedy is more difficult for me. Perhaps this is because I am older and more aware of our mortality. Perhaps this is because I knew him personally. Either way, we are diminished by his death and have lost a very good friend to the citizens of Massachusetts as well as a good friend to, in Dylan’s words, “the luckless, the abandoned, and forsaked” all over the country. He will be missed.

A Governor's visit

2009-08-17T08:31:00.000-04:00

Governor Patrick spent a day last week in the North Berkshire Community. He was gracious, inquisitive, supportive of our efforts here, and brought money!! What more could one ask for?

I am quick to criticize our administration when I feel they are wrong and the flip side should be that I should be just as quick to praise them when I feel they are right in their efforts. I feel this is one area that we have forgotten. Governor Patrick had a good trip here and we should say thanks for that.

The Governor announced that we would be receiving approximately 1.6 million in the district. These were Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) to North Adams and Adams as well as some housing money. This comes from a $40+ million pool of grants around the state. A few people have questioned how the state can afford this when we are running a deficit and have cut other programs. A few have suggested that if there is money, why spend part of it on a skating rink as opposed to education or health care? Good questions. The answer is two-fold. First, this is federal block grant money that goes to the states each year to enhance communities. If we don’t use it, it goes elsewhere in the system, so we may as well use money that is designated for communities. On the question of putting resources into the skating rink, this is money that goes to people in the community. The skating rink is used by many kids and adults in the North Berkshire Community. Government should enhance the lives of our people and this will be a little money that will go a long way to helping locals use this facility.

The Governor also visited local businesses and art galleries. He asked a lot of good questions. He passed through the Juvenile court and said hi to Alex Daugherty. He talked with people on the street and had coffee in Brew Ha Ha.

But the most endearing quality of our Governor shines through when talking with kids. At the skating rink, he made a point of talking with every child there. He encouraged them to use the rink and was very engaged. (He also traveled out on the ice with his street shoes on. I was worried given his bad hip that he would slip, but he handled himself well.) He took several pictures with the kids. The Governor was scheduled to go to an area park to see the ROPES course that is operated regionally by the police departments. Given the death of Eunice Shiver and his hurrying back to the wake on the Cape, his office cancelled his afternoon appearance. When the Governor left the skating rink, he told his driver to take him to the ROPES course. He wasn’t going to disappoint the kids and he had made a promise at the Fall Foliage Parade to visit this course. The kids were thrilled and he again spent time visiting, posing for pictures, and talking to the kids. Thanks Governor for some time well spent.

Getting Out of the Recession

2009-08-09T07:24:00.001-04:00

President Barak Obama and many economic advisors have said that they believe that the worst of our economic times are behind us and that we should start to see signs of an economic turnaround. While there will be higher unemployment and struggles, the worst is behind us. Indeed, Wall Street has experienced the biggest one month growth in July in many months.

I think that the President is right when it comes to Wall Street. Growth is occurring. However, Wall Street no longer reflects the average family or consumer and that is one of the problems. They are not tied to fiscal reality for the average family.

There is a second problem that is different today than in past recessions. That is consumer spending and this is going to be a big problem moving forward. Most economic experts will tell you that consumer spending drives the economy. Growth only occurs when people consume and that consumption depends on confidence in the market. It also relies upon the confidence that one will remain working and not have a fear of losing their job. The suggestion that we are turning the corner on the recession is steeped in numbers from Wall Street and the dependence on a return of confidence as the market grows that will lead to more spending. There are a couple of problems with this.

First is that the job market has changed. I have often quoted a study by the Center for Work and Learning in Washington D.C. that was done in the nineties that states that the average person graduating from college in the year 2000 will have to changed or be retrained for their job up to seven times in their career due to technological changes in the work place. I would suggest that this total is low. We know that manufacturing has struggled in the US and even though it is still important, the skill sets required for these jobs have changed dramatically. I worked in the machine tool trades about twenty-five years ago when machinists used micrometers as the most technologically advanced tool. Today machines talk to one another by laser and computers spit out three dimensional models of parts before the machines are started. Skill sets have changed and continue to change. Bill Gates called the 2000’s the “Decade of Velocity”. He may have underestimated the speed of change. We know that fields of new technologies such as stem cell research, nanotechnology, green adaptations of new discoveries, defense work and IT to name a few weren’t even around for our parents generation, yet they dominate the job sets being created. So people are not as confident that they can keep their job as in past generations and we have a challenge in retraining people to keep up with new advances in technologies. All of this slows consumer confidence.

Second, we have witnessed several generations that have spent more money than they have and there is little credit left with which to spend regardless of consumer confidence. Think about it. We have spent the last few decades giving people multiple credit cards, easy payments, and things such as subprime mortgages all while blasting them with commercials about products that they need RIGHT NOW! Want an iphone? Get it. Cars on your own signature and if you can’t afford a home, we will give you one for next to nothing, oh and don’t sweat the balloon payment five years out.

This is irresponsible. But it has lead to a very high consumer debt level while we are saving less than many generations past. Even the federal government is getting with the program spending far more than they have saddling future generations with debt service (already the highest line item in the federal budget) that will make it harder to find expendable income. So, yes, consumer confidence and spending is important, but do we have any money left to spend?

Governor's Veto

2009-08-09T07:01:00.001-04:00

My last post was concerning the $80 million supplemental budget that the House passed just prior to breaking for the summer. It was placed on the Governor’s desk and he has had ten days to sign, amend, or veto the bill. As this is a budget, the Governor may line item veto the sections he disagrees with.

Governor Patrick signed the bill this past week, vetoing $33 million in spending and keeping intact the $40 million for legal immigrant health care. He suggested that $40 million wasn’t enough for this item.

I agree with the Governor’s vetoes up to a point and had hoped he would veto the entire bill. I don’t believe that this level of spending is sustainable. That said, I am saddened that he had to veto food bank money as well as regional library elder health care line items. These are important to my district, but I could not see spending $80 million in order to spend $6 million or so on programs that I like. That is the math that gets us in trouble.

I am also troubled by the statement that $40 million is not enough for the legal immigrant’s health care program. I believe that legal immigrants should be treated just as native citizens or people who have moved here to Massachusetts from another state. They are treated as a separate category of health care spending because the federal government doesn’t split the cost of health care for immigrants. That means that we pay 100% instead of 50% for their health care. The administration’s statement, along with the original estimate of upwards to $120 million for this line item, indicates to me that the administration will be back for more money for this later on in the year and that doesn’t bode well.

It saddens me to have to vote against any worthwhile program in the budget, but we have to live within our means and we have to find more cost effective ways of doing things within our line items. Until we do, the budget just continues to grow.

I believe that next year’s budget will be even tougher. Cities and towns have exhausted their rainy day funds. Next year is an election year and that means that elected officials are not going to want to bring home ore bad news than is necessary. That limits flexibility. If we don’t start to control spending now, we are in for an even tougher time next year.

Our Supplemental Budget

2009-07-31T07:43:00.002-04:00

This week, the House and Senate voting overwhelmingly, passing an $80 million supplemental budget and placing it on the Governor’s desk. It had a lot of good things in it, such as restoring funding for Regional Libraries, emergency food banks, and the like. However, despite the fact that these were some of my priorities in the FY 2010 budget, I could not vote for this budget. I don’t feel that we should spend this amount of money at a time when we are not sure where revenues will bottom out and when we are being told we are in deficit in this year’s budget.

This is difficult and I don’t blame people for voting to restore these programs. For example, this spending bill restored food bank funding to the level of last year. Last year the food banks ran out of money and this year the demand for food will be even greater. But I felt that it was false for the Legislature to take up and pass additional spending that, I believe is unsustainable as we go forward.

There are several reasons that I voted against this budget. First, instead of taking up each of the Governor’s budget vetoes and deliberating over whether we should override a particular veto, the entire $80 million was placed into one spending bill. Therefore, if one wanted to increase spending on one line item, whether it was as little as $25,000 for beach preservation, you had to vote for $80 million in spending. I didn’t feel that we should do so.

Second, our revenues are still coming in less than even last month’s downsized predictions. We don’t know how much money we will have to spend. In caucus, I spoke about an individual from my district who always contributes to local cultural facilities. He told me he would be contributing again, but not right away. He said, “Dan, I still have money, but I am not sure how much and won’t know until the economy bottoms out. Then I will reassess and contribute.” We are like that guy. We know that we have some 20+ billion dollars, but we are not sure how much money we have and until we do, we should proceed cautiously.

Another factor in my decision was the timing of the supplemental budget. Again, as we have not seen any revenues yet from this fiscal year, we need to get some kind of idea as to how we are performing revenue-wise in the new fiscal year. July is not generally a good month for revenues and the first real benchmark will be the first quarterly payments in September. I believed that we should wait for the first quarter to see if we could afford to spend more money.

The signs are not good. It appears that the mid-month reports indicate that we will not meet the lowered revised benchmarks for July. The Senate President stated, on the day we passed the supplemental budget, that we may have to revise or cut local aid line items. And Michael Widmer, Director of the respected Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, has stated that he feels we are several hundred million dollars out of balance at this time.

Taken together with the timing of the budget on the week before a higher sales tax took effect, I felt the timing was not right to restore these items even though many of them are good programs.

Lastly, if revenues are down as predicted, we are fooling ourselves if we think that we can sustain these line items. The Governor has a constitutional responsibility to balance our budget. If we are out of balance, he will cut these items under his constitutional right to do so. Even if he doesn’t, next year we will be faced with even bigger budget deficits and this additional spending inflates the budget and creates a structural deficit that will be harder to deal with next year. That is not right. Add to that two other factors: federal stimulus money and our stabilization fund. Next year, we will not be able to rely heavily on federal stimulus money as this was a temporary fix. That creates problems for us and gaps in our budget. And our stabilization fund will be depleted. We have been supplementing our spending from these revenue sources, but will no longer be able to do so. This is unsustainable. More spending now means more to cut later unless revenues make a dramatic turnaround. We cannot rely on a dramatic rebound, but must be prudent in our budgeting.

I have written in the past about our budget process. We have had both tax increases and we have cut the budget this past year. We need enact more reform as to how we conduct business in Massachusetts. And we need to prepare our economy so that we grow revenues from increased business activity. This is not easy, but we must start now to plan for next year. That is the prudent business course. Next year is an election year. It will get harder to handle these problems. Again, that means we must start now.

The Cambridge Incident

2009-07-24T07:44:00.000-04:00

I have a friend who is a police officer. He told me that when they get a call that there is an attempted break-in at a home, or even when an alarm goes off, they have to follow up on the call. They can’t dismiss it because they think they know what’s going on. In one case I have heard of multiple times where the same person has set off the alarm at the family home and the cops would always ask the same person for an ID as that is what they have to do “by the book.” Asking for some identification, however, usually is the end of such incidents. That should have been the end of this incident.

I also know that I have been very irritable after a long flight. Heck, I’ve been pretty cranky after a short flight. If I got home and found that my front door was stuck, I would be in a very foul mood. Having cops show up questioning me after a long period away and a long flight home would send me over the edge.

I know only as much as the news articles I have read, and don’t know either of these gentlemen, but it seems to me that this incident itself was less about race than it was about two people who met at a time when both were at less than their best behavior. Either one could have prevented this escalation by taking a deep breath and walking away. A police officer has his job to do and he was responding to a call. And the professor should expect that some identification ends this event. Both failed to act as responsibly, in my opinion, as they could have in order to prevent this outcome. If one apologizes to the other, then it should be reciprocal and the other should also apologize. They should either meet privately and talk this out or just let it go and move on.

However, the larger story here is that this has become such a huge news story. That indicates that there is still a large gap between the treatment of black and white in this country and an even larger gap as to how we feel about such incidents. We have a long way to go. Perhaps this is the lesson to take away from this. Forget the actions of both men on the front porch of Professor Gates’ house and concentrate on why this touched off such widespread discussion, opinion, and press. If something good comes out of this it is a better understanding of racial attitudes and why they are such as they are. Only through a discussion of these and not the rehashing of the incident itself comes enlightenment and attitudinal changes.

Laura and Stephanie

2009-07-18T09:21:00.004-04:00

Top photo is Stephanie on the left with Singer Sara Barelles
Bottom Photo is Laura

Any time one is elected to public office, you expect a lot of scrutiny. You are always on the job and people come up to you all the time to ask questions, to set up appointments, etc. It doesn’t matter if you are at dinner, in a hospital visiting someone, at a ball game, or sitting on your back deck. This is part of public office and it is accepted for the most part. Whenever people see you, they generally have an opinion or a problem and you have to realize that this is the most important thing on people’s minds when they approach you and need to be empathetic. Some of my best conversations have been at the local dump, er, landfill, no wait, transfer station. This is a part of public life.

However, most people don’t realize that when you run for office, the whole family becomes involved. Political life changes the family dynamic dramatically and the whole family is “on the job” in many ways. I never talk about the family as I have always thought that they deserve to stay out of the public spotlight and have a reasonable expectation to some privacy. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t important and aren’t part of the services that constituents receive. So this is a shout out to the families that participate in politics and government even though they didn’t run and aren’t paid for the service they provide.

Laura and I have been married for twenty seven years. I wasn’t in politics when we married, but she knew my interest in all things political. Still, it is quite a jump from interest to running and shortly after we were married, I became a city councilor in North Adams and then became the state representative a few years later. She has been an active participant ever since. The life of a political spouse is interesting, but it affects everything. I can’t tell you the number of times over the past twenty three years that I have come home and said, “Oh I don’t know if I told you, but this weekend we have to go to…”. And every year Laura has to march in the fall Foliage Parade (although I am concerned that she usually gets a bigger hand than I do). There are campaign events and Laura has planned countless cook outs and get togethers. She is the practical voice of advice and has to listen to me when I come home either frustrated or angry about the events of the day. While I am in the State House in Boston, Laura is back in the district. She is the one stopped in the supermarket by people asking for appointments or advice. She is the one who has to handle all the things around the house while I am gone, and she was the one who was always here for Stephanie as our daughter grew up. She handled phone calls and attended events with no complaints. She is far more practical than I am and gives me advice that keeps me focused and grounded as I go off in the many different directions that our jobs send us into. She’s the one who remembers most of the names! The hours of any elected official are varied and I am at events in the evening and on weekends and other times that many think of as family time. This can be tough and she has been a great partner through it all. She has been supportive and I know that she has sacrificed her ambitions so that I can pursue the career I have. I would be far less effective if she weren’t there for me.

My daughter Stephanie was born after I was elected, so this is the only job she has known me to have. Stephanie turned twenty one this year and has grown into a responsible wonderful adult. A senior at UMass Amherst and a member of the incredible Marching Band, she also has grown up differently because of my job. Some of it is funny. She once told then Gov. Jane Swift (who she has known all her life) that she wanted to run for my seat. The Governor told her that she would write the first check to her. She told me one day that she had a slogan for when she ran for my seat. She said it was “It’s time for a change, elect a new Bosley”! My daughter accompanied me to a dinner that I was emceeing one night and Jane Swift asked her how she liked it. Stephanie, about 10 at the time said it was good except when I got up to speak, then it was “blah blah blah”. Everyone’ s a critic. One day after she got her license, Laura sat her down and said that she should be careful on the road and watch out for other drivers. She then went on to say that if she got in an accident or was speeding, it would reflect on her father! So she has lived in that spotlight. One aspect of this is that she has always been very politically aware. She ran for class office in school, was elected to Girl’s State, participated in People to People and has been politically active in several campaigns. Last year we knocked on doors together in New Hampshire during the Presidential election. She has work study at the Donahue Institute at UMass and last year stayed there to help with a foreign exchange program with officials predominantly form Argentina. She had an internship last semester in Washington working for a nonprofit and is looking at an MSW so that she can continue to stay active. And she is a great political advisor to her dad. In many ways, she has become the one I go to on issues. She is sharp and cuts to the point very quickly. She is far more politically aware than many her age and I feel that she will make a name for herself in the future.

I have been thinking about this lately. No one makes someone run for office and no one keeps us there. I think I do a pretty good job, but it does take away from our families. I don’t see my mother, sister or brother anywhere near as often as I would like, and I spend a lot of time away from my district that I care very much for. I do this because I love my job, but the family gets caught up in this without placing their names on the ballot and they are the real unsung heroes in the jobs that the elected officials do. All we can do is thank them and let them know how much we love them for being there for us.

Good Week for North Berkshire

2009-07-12T09:45:00.002-04:00

This week we were able to spread a little good news for the First Berkshire District. First, the city of North Adams was awarded over $3 million under federal stimulus money in order to upgrade the roadways in and around the city. Most of the work will happen on the major paths into the city. This is great news and I hope we are able to do more in other towns in the district.. Thanks goes to Peter Niles, the District One chief for his help on this. He does a great job. This coupled with broadband planning and pushing for the new science building at M.C.L.A. dramatically enhances our efforts to rebuild our economy.

The other good news was that the list of Registry of Motor Vehicles, first listed as twelve closings became eleven as we worked with the Patrick administration to keep our North Berkshire Registry open. At the end of the day, we were not only successful, but we will have enhanced the office by adding District One highway engineers as a satellite office at the Registry. I had opportunities to lobby the Governor on this issue and expressed the objection that any measurement that just takes use into account doesn't help us in the Berkshires because of our smaller population. I told him that under that measurement alone, the Berkshires always lose. However, we are part of the state and should get the same services as elsewhere. To his credit the Governor agreed and Transportation Secretary Aloisi came up with this plan. Thanks to them, Lt. Gov. Murray, Registrar Kaprelian, Sen. Ben Downing, and Mayor Barrett for their advocacy and help. This was a collaborative effort and was innovative.

Sunday Morning Musings

2009-07-12T09:43:00.000-04:00

Toward the end of the song Stairway to Heaven is the lyric, “And as we wind on down the road, our shadows longer than our souls,”. The singer is making the point that the person he is talking about is more concerned with material wealth than her spiritual health. I have been thinking a lot about this over the past few months as we have been struggling with our budget. How much can we do and how do we do it? Where does government help end and our responsibility begin? How much are we responsible for our fellow man and how much is too much? We struggle with these constantly as we try to strike a balance. It isn’t easy. Do we spend more to help people in need now or do we appropriate in order to seed future projects that will help our budget in the long term? What is truly necessary and who sets those priorities? What is material and what is spiritual?

First, let me say that spiritual is not necessarily religious, but is, to me, a human responsibility to help each other as best we can. And material is not necessarily money, but services that give us comfort. Economic times such as these give us pause and an opportunity to examine every program that we have to decide what is viable and necessary, and what is outdated and dysfunctional. While this is painful, it is necessary for the continuation of an effective government.

This isn’t easy. First, entropy keeps most programs going even if they are outdated. People hate change. I know I do. I am still disgruntled about the designated hitter rule! So we resist change, well, just because. We also resist change because each line item, each program has grown its own constituency that will fight hard to keep a program going even if it is no longer as effective as other newer programs. People are employed in those agencies and they fight hard to keep going. Who wants to lose a job?

But programs can be very much like grass growing in a driveway or on a flagstone walk in the backyard. We can see the grass growing between stone and we can cut that back, but the roots continue to grow until they threaten to split apart the masonry. Much the same, we can enact budget cuts, but the core of or programs continue to grow. And left unchecked, they threaten the stability of the budget.

This is the second time in my legislative career that we have witnessed a deep recession. The first was in the early nineties and the second is this one. There have been others, but not like these two where the effect was deep and lasting over several budgets.

While there are similarities between the two, there is one striking difference this time. People seem more concerned with their shadows that their souls. People are more likely to criticize over one issue than in the past. When I first entered office in 1987, people would disagree on an issue, but would still consider all your work or positions rather than just one. Today, there is far more vitriol that doesn’t add to the debate, but further pulls us apart.

Some of this may be that more people are getting news from the internet or from blogs where there is no fact checking and a nastiness that seems to come with anonymity. It may be the threat of job loss as our economy churns and old jobs are lost and new jobs require new skill sets. Some is admittedly self-inflicted as we have grown far better at the politics of some issues than the actual governing of those issues.

For those of you who read this blog on a regular basis (thanks to both of you!) you know that I have talked about new ways to conduct business in government. We cut programs and increase taxes, but we also need to reform government in order to do things better and more efficiently with new technologies, and we need to expand our tax base by creating opportunities for business expansion. We can’t do this by adhering to old ideologies or based on political philosophy alone, but we need creative thinking and active participation focused on problem solving rather than scoring political points. And we can’t do this alone. No one person or ideology has a corner on the truth. We need a conversation on what we expect and how we achieve that. No political rallies. No vitriolic talk show hosts, just a conversation amongst ourselves. Wouldn’t that be nice?

FY 2010 Budget Statement

2009-06-20T07:31:00.001-04:00

This is a very tough but honest budget. Over the past year, we have experienced a revenue drop that I have not seen in my 23 years in the legislature.

In a normal budget year, we would have experienced a $1.4 billion increase in our budget due to the natural expansion of obligations in areas such as health care, pensions, education, debt service on prior year capital spending and other prior approved spending.

This year, we not only cut out any increase in spending, but we also cut over $1 billion in the House budget and then closed a $1.5 billion gap by utilizing $199 million from the stabilization account. We also maximized federal funds and continued to make further cuts to our bottom line. In short, between our current budget and next year’s, we had to close a $5 billion gap.

We are not alone; this is a worldwide recession and every state is going through the same process. We are fortunate that in years past the Legislature had placed money into a Stabilization Fund that we have been able to draw down over the last few months.

In an effort to balance the budget, we have reformed our transportation system, cut dozens of line items in their entirety, reformed the way we do business in state government and increased our own health insurance premiums. Through the whole process we made tough decisions and were forced to raise the state sales tax to 6.25%.

We did not come to these decisions lightly. In my opinion, the increase to the sales tax was preferable to the Governor’s more burdensome gas tax proposal which would have cost my constituents approximately three times as much as the sales tax.

These budget times are unprecedented in recent history. No part of the budget was spared, including local aid. We are bound by the state constitution to create a balanced budget and we tried to find the proper balance between cuts, taxes and reforms.

Can we do more to reform our budget? Yes, but real reform is difficult and takes time. The legislature will continue to work on these reforms as we go forward.

That said, there are some bright spots for the 1st Berkshire District. We were able to keep 75% of the funding for veterans services like the Turner House. The Emergency Food Assistance Program was level funded at $12 million and the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program was brought up to $1.2 million.

Payment in lieu of taxes was zeroed out in some versions but in the end we were able to ultimately achieve funding of $27.3 million.

Language was kept in for funding our community coalition.

The Mass Cultural Council, so important to our economy, was funded at $9.7 million.

Regional Transportation Authorities (RTA's) received $44.6 million, but there are new funding formulas that will among other things annually allocate $15 million of the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund to RTAs as we continue to work to modernize our system as a whole.

Local Tourism Councils were kept funded in a time where it would have been easy to be short sighted and eliminate this expenditure entirely.

We funded the essential School Pothole Account at $3.5 million and that is an important avenue for our distressed schools.

Our colleges and our Councils on Aging both received modest increases.

Again, this is the worst revenue outlook that I have experienced in my 23 years. I worked very hard and did my best to secure funding in these tough times for my constituents. All of this was done in an incredibly tough year. I have, in the past, worked to bring reform to the way we do business in Massachusetts. I will continue to work hard to do this in the future as it is a pleasure to work for the great people of North Berkshire and Franklin County.

Slot Resolution at Democratic Convention

2009-06-07T13:16:00.003-04:00

Congratulations to all the people who worked hard to get an anti-slot resolution adopted during the Democratic Issues Convention this weekend. Getting this adopted was impressive and makes me feel that we still can beat this when it comes up for a vote later this year. Good job!

Sal DiMasi and Public Service

2009-06-07T10:51:00.001-04:00

Since the news of indictments broke this week, I have been thinking over what to say or even what to think concerning this whole matter. I was one of the last defenders of the Speaker in the House and was quite vocal. I have been thinking over this a lot in the past few days and know that I have to write something.

First, let me say that I still won’t make any judgments concerning Sal DiMasi. That is now for the courts and everyone is innocent until the trial is over. Everyone deserves this right.

So what can I say? Well, for starters, I have been asked how we could have voted in January for a Speaker that had been in the paper so many times over the past year with all of the allegations concerning Cognos and other issues. I won’t speak for anyone else, but there were at least three reasons that I voted for him. First, he was and is my friend and I had never seen any impropriety from him in the years that we worked together. Politics is a rough and tumble business and that doesn’t mean I hadn’t seen him partake in the shoulder sharpened tactics that we all employ when are sure we are right on an issue. But I have never seen the Speaker cross the line on the ethics of an issue.

Second, our word is our bond in the Legislature. We live by our ability to convince people of our positions on issues. We live and die by our word. So when I was told on many occasions that nothing wrong was done on the allegations, I believe that we are wired to believe each other on this count as we know how much it means when we say such things to one another.

Third, there were alternative explanations for each and every allegation. For example, I was told that the department of education needed to have new software in order for our Ways and Means Committee to be able to see into the department. We spend more on education than on most parts of the budget and we need information in order to spend that money wisely. It makes sense, then, to go out to bid for software that makes the system more transparent to us and that gives us this information. It wasn’t as if Cognos was a “fly by night” company. They were a reputable firm. Lastly, I knew that we didn’t make the decision in the Legislature as to who was awarded the contract. Therefore, I tended to believe the Speaker on these issues as they made sense with alternative explanations and given how we operate.

There were other issues at work here as well. Many times in my career, I have been contacted by friends or acquaintances looking for help with the government. This may be help, or for a reference in getting a job that is posted or they have a great idea and need the services of our economic development offices. When someone in the business community calls me and tells me that they are having trouble with the department of revenue because they have fallen behind on their taxes, I will call DOR and remind them that we shouldn’t be in the business of putting people out of business and ask them to work something out. Or perhaps someone will have a problem with the registry of motor vehicles and we try to be helpful. Each one of us has businesses that we know or are in our district that call us. Constituent requests make up a lot of our phone calls and advocacy. In all cases, I ask the department in question for a fair shake and consideration. After that, it is up to the business or individual to make their own case on the problem or issue in question. But people shouldn’t be penalized for knowing us or for their friendship. I assume or assumed that the Speaker was doing the same thing.

Lastly, those of us in public life are frustrated by the press and that leads us to discount their stories when there are legitimate concerns. When was the last time we saw a good story about the work of the Legislature in the press? I would gladly take the bad stories if they wrote about all the good work we do. I work very hard for my constituents and spend a lot of time in Boston, away from my family and district in doing so. I have been the author of quite a few major pieces of legislation, and have never had a scandal in my district or office. That is not the exception, but the rule. Most members work very hard for their districts and on many state issues. Yet, over the past week, we have been called pigs, enablers, crooks, bums, and a few more choice words. People never see all the good we do and yet get the daily dose of allegations. A little balance would be nice.

That doesn’t mean that there aren’t things we can do to make the system and situation better. There are. However, we must make sure that we don’t rush in and change things that will make it more difficult to do our jobs. The toughest ethics laws in the world are not going to stop someone who will betray their constituents and the public trust. So we need to be smart concerning reforms. I would suggest that one of the ways we can make government more transparent and get more people involved in by going back to doing business the way we used to when I first came into the Legislature. By that I mean that we should print our daily calendar and have more formal sessions dealing with issues before us. The daily calendar was a listing of all bills ready for action. We used to read through the calendar each day and then go back through it to take up issues ready for debate. Not only is this more informative for the public, but gives the whole Legislature more power by placing each issue in some form on the floor. With that one can make motions and it gets harder for a select few to decide what we will deal with. This gives tremendous empowerment to the rank and file members and it also hones debate skills as more people speak on the floor.

I also think we need a way to televise our hearings and sessions again. I have always been surprised by the number of people who would tell me they watched our sessions. It is expensive, but I feel we need to try to find a way to cover this as it adds a lot to our transparency.

There is more, but this post is already overly long. I promised myself that I would cut the size of these, but as I have said before, these are complicated issues and the public deserves more than a sound bite.

Got To Read Each Day

2009-05-28T16:07:00.004-04:00

Let’s get off of politics for a post. I just got back from a book signing by one of my favorite authors. Michael Connelly is a former police beat reporter from Los Angeles who has written a series of mysteries, mostly about a detective named Hieronymus Bosch (I hope I spelled that right). He also has written a few books, including “The “Lincoln Lawyer” about a lawyer named Mickey Haller. These are great books and I think that he is one of the best at his craft right now. I bought “The Scarecrow”, his new novel.

Mr. Connelly was at Border’s with another great author, George Pelecanos. He was a writer and director for the TV series “The Wire”. He has also written about a dozen books and I look forward to reading these. I bought his new book, “The Way Home”.

I believe that reading is extremely important. It teaches us about people and places, but does so much more. On a basic level it teaches us vocabulary. It also teaches us to think and handle complex plots and problems. It allows us to use our imaginations and that introduces innovation and creativity into our thought process. That makes a tremendous difference in our lives.

I have been very active in our literacy efforts in the State House throughout most of my career. In 1993, I formed the literacy caucus along with former Representative Barbara Hildt and former Representative and former Mayor of Fall River Ed Lambert. That year we introduced the first state budget line item for adult basic education (ABE). We managed to get $4 million placed into the Education Reform bill and into the budget. Since then this line item has grown to a high of over $30 million. This has been used to create a network across the state. Adult basic education is broken down into three parts: literacy, GED preparation, and English as a second language. I have also been active in our local reading days or promotions. Libraries have been an important budget item for me. ABE has been my number one budget and legislative priority since 1993.

Reading is the great equalizer. You can be rich or poor, as long as you can get to a bookmobile or a library, you can meet interesting people or go to fascinating places within the pages of a book. And it doesn’t matter what you read as long as you continue to read. When I speak in schools about reading, I tell the kids that I read something every day. That is the truth. It is a practice that I have kept since my school days.

Back to Michael Connelly. He is a fascinating author that gives you a very detailed description of police work. His characters are complicated and varied and it brings you into the world of detective work. I like that. I have read all of his books. I like to stick with an author if I like his work. I have read all of the books by Stephen King, David Baldacci, Beth Saulnier, Dan Brown, and Lee Childs. Not everything I read is fiction. I am on my third book by Bill Bryson and have read a few of Robert Reich’s books on the economy. I am working through “The World is Curved” by economist David Smick, and have “China Inc.” about the emerging economy of China by Ted Fishman. Again, it doesn’t matter what you read as long as you enjoy it.

I'd like to share three stories about authors. First, I was fortunate to have been asked to introduce David Baldacci at a conference years ago. I hadn’t read any of his books, but had seen the movie “Absolute Power” based on his novel. I went out and bought “Saving Faith” and “The Winner” along with “Absolute Power” before meeting him. He graciously signed all of these and asked me which I liked best. I had to tell him I hadn’t read any, and he laughed and signed them anyway. Since then I have read all of his books and like the stories about the Camel Club best. If I had to recommend one book, though, read “Wish You Well”. It is different than most of his books and it is very good. Baldacci is very much involved in literacy and has his own literacy foundation. He deserves our support for his work and philanthropic support.

The second story is about author Beth Saulnier. Beth is from North Adams and I knew her father. In 1990, I was running for my third term and she was just back in North Adams from college, working for a local newspaper. We had just raised taxes in Massachusetts in reaction to a recession and very difficult budget year. It was a tough year for many and I had a very tough local challenger. During a debate where the questioners were members of the local media, she asked a question on an issue that hadn’t come up in the other debates that year. (It is a long story, so I will leave the actual question for a future post.) To make a long story short, I think I answered the question adequately, but my opponent gave this long rambling and funny answer. After that, I felt much better about reelection. Beth wrote five books under her name and two under the name Elizabeth Bloom. In a book set in North Adams, she autographed my copy of the book, “To Dan, whose political career I once saved.”

My third story is about the Senior Senator from Massachusetts, Ted Kennedy. I know Ted Kennedy as an elected official and admire him. In 2006, he wrote a book, “America Back on Track”. It is about what we need to do to revitalize this nation. That same year he was the commencement speaker at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams. I brought my copy of the book to commencement to ask him to sign it. As I sat down with the Senator, he took his pen and started flipping through the book discussing certain parts and underlining passages. As he was doing that it struck me that here I am sitting with one of the preeminent US Senators of our times and the author of the book, and I have a copy not only signed, but he underlined his favorite passages and points. How cool is that?

Memorial Day

2009-05-25T00:02:00.002-04:00

The following are my Memorial Day remarks for 2009. I join many others in remembrance of those who have fallen in service to this country. Thank you for your service.

Thank you for holding this ceremony. It is important that we gather here in thanks to those who have given themselves for their country. Many communities do not commemorate the day with as many ceremonies at their schools or town halls as we do here. We continue to do so and that says a lot about the character of our community. Thank you. Once again we are met on a Memorial Day, celebrating and commemorating those who gave their lives for this country and for their fellow man. We have been doing this for about 150 years, since a local druggist, a Mr. Welles, suggested after the Civil War that we honor those who fell in that war. That idea was picked up by Gen Murray, a patriot who had fought with distinction in the Civil War. He and Welles formed a committee and that first year they brought their Memorial Day ceremonies to three cemeteries locally. The next year they did the same thing and that is how this got started. It was originally called Decoration Day because that was how they commemorated the day, by decorating the graves of the fallen soldiers. That was 1865. In 1868, it was made an official day of commemoration, but it wasn’t until 1971 that the last Monday in May was designated as Memorial Day. The first President to speak at a national Memorial Day ceremony was James Garfield in 1880. His notable words capture the true spirit of why we set aside this day of remembrance: He said of our veterans, ”We do not know one promise these men made, one pledge they gave, one word they spoke; but we do know they summed up and perfected, by one supreme act, the highest virtues of men and citizens. For love of country, they accepted death, and thus resolved all doubts, and made immortal their patriotism and virtue.”

I’d like to take Garfield’s stirring words one-step further. I’d like to believe the men and women we honor today immortalized more than their patriotism. They immortalized the principle that freedom is essential to the human condition. So vital is freedom that men and women die to preserve it – not only for themselves, but also for others.
Since that day in 1865, two things have remained consistent. Memorial Day ceremonies have been kept every year, and young men and women have given their lives for their country and to ensure our safety. It is not only fitting that we continue to observe this day, it is our duty as Americans to honor these fallen patriots. We honor their service, remind ourselves of the lessons taken from them, lessons on patriotism, service, lessons that teach us that great ideals such as democracy and freedom don’t simply happen, but come at a great cost, and rededicate ourselves to those same ideals that these heroes died for.
Stephen Ambrose said of WWII, we paid dearly in human lives, but he said that we didn’t tire of war or our responsibility, because determination outweighed that price. Determination, loyalty, patriotism…it doesn’t matter what you call it, it is the selflessness of young men and women who are called to duty and they sacrifice their safety and ultimately, their lives for their friends, family and even for people they have never met. They do so because they respond to the call of duty. They do so because they know that if they do not, then we lose something far greater, the democracy and the example of human rights and freedoms that is America.
And they must also realize that this service continues today; in Afghanistan, Iraq, patrolling the waters in East Africa, and so many other places where our troops put themselves in harm’s way to defend the ideals of our country. And that is the message that we must keep to pass along to each generation. In all of these cases, men and women served this country not because of an immediate threat to their families and homes, but to serve the ideals and principles of this country. They held dearly to the beliefs set forth by the Declaration of Independence. They are simple yet powerful; We hold these truths to be self evident, that all people are endowed with certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These are not just words to us, but the ideals for which men and women have unquestioningly, time and again, put themselves in harm’s way defending. And continue to do so today. As we adjourn our sessions in the State House, we have a moment of silence and adjourn in memory of any soldier that is killed in duty to their country. It still happens today and we still adjourn in honor of our fallen comrades and fellow citizens. None of these brave men and women planned to give their lives that day, but they knew the risks of military service and they risked their lives daily in the cause of a free nation.

At our best, we should pay homage to our nation’s dead all year round. But we don’t. One of the amazing things about living in a free land is that we don’t have to think each day about our freedoms. We can take for granted freedom of speech, assembly, worship and all the others that people have fought so hard to give to us. We can take them for granted because that is what freedom is; it is the ability to do what we can without fear that someone will take it away from us. But we, here today know, that the price of this freedom has been the blood of our men and women; those who gave the ultimate sacrifice of laying down their lives, those who sacrificed and came home wounded in body, mind, and spirit, and those who sacrificed by staying at home and waiting for their loved ones to return.
And we know that there will always be a need to be vigilant in this world. We need to make sure that in taking these freedoms for granted, we do not lose that sense of how dear freedom is, or how costly, and; as my grandfather, who came to this country and became a citizen because of the love for is adopted land, taught me years ago, we must not forget those who made and kept this nation as a beacon of freedom and hope to the rest of the world.
We must always remember what unites us as one America, and recognize that the mortar holding our society together is mixed with the blood and tears of those who fought and died in battle. Over one million and a quarter men and women have breathed their last while serving our country. We can never repay them and their families for this sacrifice, but we can honor their actions with our remembrance.

Let us hold up the example of their courage for all to see.
Let us carry the message of their sacrifice to the generations to come.
And let us never forget the price that they paid to ensure that this remains the greatest country in the history of this planet.

The brave men and women who gave their lives for our country deserve our remembrance and they have handed off to us that awesome responsibility to take up the service that they gave their lives for and pass it forth to a new generation. It is now up to us to be the heroes and the people who preserve those ideals and rights that they died for. Hopefully, someday we will not send people into battle to defend these inalienable rights. Hopefully someday we can live in peace. But that will only happen if we rededicate ourselves to our nation and to the lessons and ideals that these people gave of themselves to defend. That is why we meet each year, to remember their sacrifice and to thank them for that selfless sacrifice. We meet to remember that we must stay vigilant and become the next generation to advance these principles. And we meet to celebrate that great experiment in democracy that is called America.

As long as we continue to meet and commemorate their lives, then their lives continue to hold meaning and continue to inspire us to carry on the ideals of freedom and democracy. They continue to live in our hearts and minds and continue their service to our country. Again, thank you for holding this ceremony and God Bless America.

Reform before Revenue

2009-05-23T08:45:00.001-04:00

Lately in Massachusetts, this catch phrase has lead to all sorts of one-upmanship and criticism in the State House. The Governor has threatened to veto a proposed sales tax until he gets real reform and the House and Senate has gone off on the Governor for not understanding the process. I think we all need to take a step back and start again.

The newspapers and blogs have taken the Governor’s side in this and have gone as far as asking citizens to call their legislators to tell them to reform the system before revenue enhancements. This is complicated and let me give you one legislators opinion.

First, there is the premise that Legislators don’t want to reform the processes that we govern by. This is not true. As a matter of fact, both the House and Senate have passed various reform bills concerning ethics, pensions, and transportation. We are now reconciling these in conference committee. This is the process by which we work. The Governor should understand that. Second, while you may or may not agree with all the parts in the bills passed, all would be an improvement on the existing statutes. These will get better in conference and I think that most will be happy with the final bills.

So why not do these before the budget and any revenue increases? Our budget has to be passed by July 1st. We need to pass budgets in the House and Senate prior to that in order to conference the budget and get it to the Governor in time for his deliberations and signing. We can’t stop this practice as the state wouldn’t have a budget if we did and that would be bad for all of us. And we have a huge budget crisis that needs our attention. This is the worst I have seen in my 23 years in the Legislature and we need to resolve it before we know what else we can do on things such as transportation.

The Legislature is frustrated with the governor because he should understand this. The ethics bill doesn’t save a dime for the state and I would suggest that it doesn’t make us any more ethical. If you have a bad apple, they will continue to be ethically challenged regardless of how many laws one passes. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t examine our laws and change them to reflect our times, but this is not the most pressing issue for most people. As for the pension bill, by the Governor’s own words, it saves $1 billion over the next twenty years. We need to save $1.5 billion additionally in our budget this year because of lowered revenue figures in the past month! Again, I think most people would agree that we need to stop some of the past practices regarding pensions, but the real crisis is the budget and how we keep services intact for the citizens of the state.

I believe that the Governor is setting up “straw men” with issues that are popular with the press and play well. This is an old and reliable political ploy. However, his reticence to work with the Legislature on budget issues makes it far more difficult to resolve our budget problems.

The Governor has chastised the Legislature for not passing his gas tax. Then he has criticized us for passing a sales tax. As I have said in the past, the sales tax was not my first choice, but it was the only one with enough votes to pass. The Governor has said that a broad based tax such as the sales tax is a thumb in the eye to the citizens of the Commonwealth. Yet his gas tax would be a far larger broad based tax and much more unfair to large regions of the state. His criticism of taxes rings hollow in the face of the proposed gas, sugar, rooms, telecom and meals taxes that he has proposed. His suggestion that expanded gambling in Massachusetts is a broad based tax on the poorest residents and his department of revenue has increased their enforcement of business taxes to the point that the business community is ready to revolt.

If we want to restore the faith of the electorate, we need to pass a balanced budget that is intelligent and fair. Most people that I have talked to aren’t all that concerned about another ethics law. They equate it to dozens of gun laws and yet we still have gun crimes in the Commonwealth. If you want an honest legislature, elect honest people and let them do their jobs. People in my district are concerned over their health care, whether they can buy a house, get a job or get their kid into a college and afford to pay for it. They are worried about the economy and whether their property taxes will go up if the state can’t afford local aid. They are worried that their bridge won’t get repaired or their state park my not open or that their child can’t get a summer job. These are all budget issues. We need to finish our budget deliberations in order to do that.

Again, as I have said in the past, our budget doesn’t balance in the best of times. That is why we’ve laid off big dig debt on the Turnpike. It is why we took school building assistance and the MBTA out of our budget and gave them a revenue stream. It is why we were so backlogged in capital projects. And it is why we don’t fully fund health care each year shorting one part or another of the system. We can’t afford to do all this with the healthiest of revenue streams.

Rather than calling cuts reforms; and rather than kicking each other over the process, we should be working together on the worst budget crisis in the last 70 plus years. We should be planning for when we get out of this. We should being working to expand the economy. And we should be trying to find ways to do things cheaper while maintaining services because this is true reform.

But that takes hard work. It is easier to criticize one another over who is at fault or who mom likes best.

The Fiscal Crisis in Massachusetts

2009-05-05T18:06:00.000-04:00

The international fiscal crisis has hit us very hard in Massachusetts. With a proposed state budget that has already seen a reduction of $3.6 billion in proposed spending, revenue estimates indicate we will need to find at least $1 billion more in cuts. If we continue to reduce the budget in order to run government in the present manner, we are going to devastate some programs. It is clear we need to change the way we run government in order to get through this fiscal crisis. Where there are challenges there are also opportunities and we need to seize these in order to conduct a top to bottom examination of how government is run and what is expected of it.

In 1988, I was part of a small group that worked to address the fiscal crisis at that time. We proposed that we cut the size of government by reducing our employees by 6,000 (10%) and finding $600 million in reductions in our approximately $11 billion budget. We proposed reforms to change the way we delivered services. We also proposed raising taxes. After a lot of consternation and debate, we ended up passing almost all of our plans. The challenge is even larger this time and we need to examine everything we do, and how we do it in order to cope with this crisis.
It is clear that in any given year we can’t sustain the current budget even given better times and revenues. In 1980, the voters in Massachusetts passed a limitation on our property taxes. It restricts the amount that cities and towns can raise in property taxes. As a result, communities look to state government for more assistance and the state has responded. Also in the 1980’s the federal government cut back on federal programs and eliminated federal revenue sharing. David Stockman, the budget director in the Reagan White House put it succinctly, saying that you can’t share revenues when running a deficit. There were no revenues to share. Considering that Reagan raised the budget deficit more than every President combined up to his time, he was probably right, but it placed even further burden on state government. You have one branch shouldering a burden that was previously shared by three.

Even though state government has picked up a larger burden, it has not been without cost. Our infrastructure has suffered as well as long term programs such as our pension system. Even in relatively good years we have underfunded or avoided our obligation on such things as the Big Dig or the MBTA. In order to address long term concerns, we need to fix our budget, decide the proper role for state government, and set us on a course that promotes long term planning and stability. During this year’s budget debate, I said several times that we need a four pronged approach to address our fiscal dilemma. We need to cut, increase taxes, reform government and increase our job base.

Cuts: We need to examine the core functions of government. Every program in state government has a constituency and does good things, but we can’t afford to be all things to all people. One of the raps on democrats is that we decide what is best for people rather than let them make a choice (candy tax?). We need to examine all programs to find those that we can’t afford and either eliminate them or cut them back. We also need to examine the number of people in state government and find ways to cut the number of employees that we have. That doesn’t mean that employees don’t do a good job, most do. However, we need to find ways to do more with less. In order to get our house in order, we need to cut the budget. I have always opted for cutting programs out rather than enact across the boards cuts. Across the board lessens all programs regardless of their efficacy.

Taxes: Taxes are the price we pay for government. In fact, our budget demands are countercyclical. The need for our services rises during economic downturns while at the same time, our revenues plummet. Our tax burden is not high in Massachusetts. I am cognizant of the fact that the cost of living is high in Massachusetts and we need to factor that into discussions over tax burden, but once we find the core functions of government, you have to pay for them. Nuff said. We need to have a discussion over this that we never seem to have. First we need to determine what we expect from government and then we need to discuss how we pay for this. Former Speaker Charles Flaherty once told me that we should make a list of line items in order of importance in the state budget. Then we should apply state funding. If we run out of money we need to discuss whether we should fund those things left. Either they are not important or we find the revenues.

Reform: Much has been said about reforms by our Governor lately. I appreciate his passion, but I have a different definition of reform. I have several problems with the Governor’s approach. First, he is setting up straw men. We will address his concerns by the time the budget comes around to his desk. By demanding action, he is not advancing the arguments of reform, just playing politics. Second, I haven’t seen a lot of reform, just cuts and these cuts don’t address the bottom line of the budget. In the Governor’s initial Youtube budget video, he states that his pension reform will save a billion dollars over the next twenty years. That is laudable, but we need to save one billion this year! The Governor can criticize pension all he wants. (He never filed a reform bill.) We all agree on the programs and changes he is referring to. I agree on the MBTA pension, but the percentage of employees that take retirement in their 40’s is very small. After twenty years at that age the pension is around 40%, so one can’t realistically afford this. As for “retired” legislators, yes, take away a stupid loophole that most of us would be embarrassed to take. However, the three million dollar savings is an estimate if people currently in their forties and fifties live to their late eighties! This hardly solves the problem. Again, I am not saying we shouldn’t do these, but they are easy and we all agree on these. This is hardly major reform, but a political talking point. They are straw men.

What we need is more detail on his other reforms. Saving money on back room operations in our transportation departments is a good idea and standard business practice in the private sector, but how will this work? Time after time the Governor has filed bills with little detail and has expected us to pass these so that government could work out the details later. This is wrong and we are derelict of our duties if we pass something without working out the details beforehand. To me, reforms means walking into each secretariat and asking how we can deliver services for less using new technologies or techniques. Massachusetts’ economy and heritage has always been built on innovation. We need to apply these techniques to state government. For example, we have reformed our health care system, but not the delivery system. Why not a single biller system that takes the administrative costs off of individual health care entities and places them in one place doing the work of many. Why don’t we accept federal reporting requirements rather than duplicate these on the state level? Why don’t we make it easier to reuse unused drugs in nursing homes? Why don’t we push to include wiring in each new state subsidized housing project in order to place new technologies in elder apartments that keep people in their homes, monitoring them electronically? It is far cheaper than hospitalization, nursing home placement or even an individual care giver coming to each home to find out if they have taken medication. These are real reforms. Instead of pushing for the candy bar patrol, perhaps we should work on these ideas.
Reforms? Well, we know that six acres of photovoltaic produces one megawatt of electricity. That seems like a lot, but we have acres and acres of rooftops on state office buildings. Why don’t we lead by example and produce green power while reducing our electric costs? Why don’t we combine our phone systems and go out to bid for one phone system for state government? These are real reforms.

How about an executive order reducing paperwork in each department by ten percent? That’s real reform and in today’s technological society, I am sick of seeing people printing out each and every email.

Back to transportation: How about we take some of the green jobs money and exchange every
light in every traffic signal in the Commonwealth with new energy efficient lighting. We could cut energy consumption to a fraction of current use (no pun intended). It has saved a bundle on the Cape. Or how about we use roller compacted concrete as a base for our side roads at far less cost? Massport uses this as it is far more durable than asphalt. And let’s go out to bid for our aggregate (stone) for road jobs. We use the California standard. We primarily utilize two companies that ship aggregate in from out of state and we pay much more than the national average. If we used a different standard we could save millions in road projects. These are real reforms. Reforms aren’t simply cutting government, but real reforms require thought and innovation. How do we do more with less? Private companies constantly undergo this kind of self examination in order to stay competitive. We need to do the same.

We need to break down the silos in state government and let them communicate, like interlocking boards of directors. We need to place management from one department into others at staff meetings so we better coordinate state government actions and deliberations. That coordinates programs, cuts down on duplication and combines resources. That’s real reform.

The bottom line is that if we are to continue to deliver programs and services without continually telling people that we must make do with less, we need to reform our delivery system.

Increase jobs: Let’s face it, we can ask individual taxpayers for more money, or we can create more taxpayers. In order to do that, we need more people employed. That means we need to create jobs. I have written extensively about this before, so let me just reiterate a few points.

First, we need to stop treating the business community like the enemy. They create jobs and more jobs than government can create. And we need a consistent policy that gives the business community a level of comfort that the rules won’t continually change. They want consistency and transparency in rules and regulations. We haven’t achieved that and we must in order to create jobs.

We need to rein in the department of revenue. I know we need to maximize revenues, but they can’t take that task on. Their job is to promote a consistent policy, not to make policy.

We don’t need to take on individual business sectors in order to promote them over other sectors. We need to lay the foundation for any type of business that wants to be here. Things like workforce training, land preparation; coordination of assistance programs, and a healthy education system, as well as a clean environment is the basis for our economy. We need a consistent policy that promotes growth and makes business a partner with the state in order to grow revenues.

Another long post, but I believe that this is an important subject and is complicated. We have the responsibility to do more than cut and tax. We need a sense of history, not histrionics. People deserve more than catch phrases and slogans. I will post on the individual pieces of this more in the future.

House State Budget Wrap-up (Spending)

2009-05-04T09:35:00.000-04:00

The following is the press release we put out on the budget. We passed a budget that closed a #.6 billion budget gap through revenue increases, cuts to line items (including elimination of dozens of line items), and changes in programs (reforms) that lead to tens of millions in savings. The budget is balanced and we can move forward in the process.
Two items to note in the process were that we didn’t use any of our stabilization funds and we took a hit on insurance for our own state employees. With regards to the stabilization fund, it is down to $1.2 billion and we will need some of this to balance our books at the end of this fiscal year. We need to keep the rest as we know that this budget crisis will not end in one fiscal year. We will need this and the pain of dealing with short revenues and unmet needs will go on for several fiscal years. Charley Murphy, the Chair of Ways and Means deserves a lot of credit for not responding to the moment and planning for the future by keeping this money from being spent now.

As for the insurance increase, I wanted to keep our insurance split at 85-15. In other words, we pay 85% of the costs and the worker pays 15%. We ended up at 80-20. I know that most people will not understand this and will insist that workers pay more for their insurance. I know that people will point to the fact that most private employees pay more as a percentage of the costs. However, we shouldn’t spring this on our workers during a budget debate which gives them little or no time to plan for increased costs. Second, while the percentage has been the same and is, admittedly high, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Because our percentages have stayed the same, the insurance commission has increased co-pays and deductions. For example, if you have to go to a second tier hospital in our system, your costs can be as high as a $700 co-pay up to four ties in a calendar year. So it is not as if costs have stayed the same for state workers. They pay more even when the percentage contributions stay the same. I am not going to beat this horse, but in Berkshire County, if you are in Tufts Navigator, there are no first tier hospitals, so you end up paying more. If you have to take anything other than a preferred drug (for example, for some reason the generic drug doesn’t work and you have to pay for name brand), well, I pay $ 53 on a $60 prescription. For a state employee in the GIC indemnity plan, the 70-30 split would have cost $4,000 more per year. Tough to pay when one is making $50,000/yr. Even with the 80-20 split, the cost for the indemnity plan increases around $100/mo. That is tough to take as we decrease the number of employees, freeze wages, ask for furloughs, and then ask them to work harder. I wish we could have done better.

Here is the press release we have issued on the line items and areas that I worked with in the budget:

BOSLEY COMMENTS ON TOUGH BUDGET YEAR

BOSTON – With the conclusion of the House budget deliberations late Friday evening, State Representative Daniel E. Bosley (D – North Adams) commented on the amended FY 2010 proposed spending plan, saying; “This has been a very tough budget process. With a predicted $3.6 billion dollar deficit, many programs were cut or not included at all in this House budget. In recognition of the dire fiscal situation the state and nation are facing, my budget priorities this year reflected services that, in times like these, become heavily relied upon.”

To offset the deficit and to preserve local aid, the House voted to increase the sales tax by 1.25%. The vote keeps the exemption on key household items, such as food, clothing and home heating oil, which have never been taxed. It also eliminates the need for burdensome taxes on gas, alcohol and sugar. The estimates revenues from this are projected around $900 million, which will supplement the original local aid projections, as well as allow funding for other vital programs implemented across the Commonwealth.

Earlier in the week, the House passed an amendment to restore $205 million in local aid to cities and towns and a 6.65% increase from the original projections for the First Berkshire District. The recalculated projected Chapter 70 (local aid) funding, which includes funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for Rep. Bosley’s district are as follows:

Adams - 2,269,459
Charlemont - 325,522
Clarksburg - 2,241,267
Florida - 617,512
Hawley - 67,594
Heath - 87,779
Monroe - 109,266
North Adams - 19,118,020
Rowe - 79,485
Savoy - 654,064
Williamstown - 1,967,845

While the FY 2010 Budget adopted by the House for higher education does reduce state funding for our public higher education institutions by approximately $156.8 million (16%) from FY 2009 levels, the federal funds provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, when coupled with the state appropriations we provided in the House Budget, will bring funding for our public higher education institutions back to their FY 2009 levels. Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts was funded at $14,372,730 and of that amount, a total of $350,000 is for the Berkshire Wireless Learning Initiative, and of that, $100,000 is allocated for the Berkshire Compact, which assesses and evaluates the higher education resources available to Berkshire County residents.

Through a language change in a Medicaid line item, championed by Representative Bosley, North Adams Regional Hospital was able to prevent cuts of approximately $3 million to their budget. This boost of funding, won on the floor, is particularly important considering that the Hospital has already made $4.5 million in cuts to their budget from last year through cutting costs, lay-offs of staff, and contract negotiations.

This year’s budget was not heavily laden with earmarks. As a result, earmarks within line items that Representative Bosley has typically secured are not present as earmarks; however, the majority of funding for these earmarks was preserved as a certain percentage within the overall line item. For example, the Turner House, which serves homeless and low income veterans in Williamstown and has historically been funded at $42,000, will retain seventy five percent of their funding from last year (which equates to $31,500). In addition to that, the United Veterans of America: Soldier On, which has been funded at $100,000, will also retain seventy five percent of their FY ’09 funding (amounting to $75,000).

The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition (NBCC) oversees all of Northern Berkshire’s social services, making sure that there is no grant application duplication or programs competing to offer our small constituency similar services. One of the programs, the Berkshire Youth Development Project, was funded at eighty percent of its FY ’09 funding which gives them $120,000 to continue coordinating efforts aimed at youth. In addition to that, $200,000 was secured for the Massachusetts Model Community Coalitions, of which the NBCC will receive $50,000. According to Rep. Bosley, “in this low economic period, our community coalitions can mobilize our communities to advocate about those services that are most critically needed, ensuring that our constituents talk with each other in finding ways to coordinate, collaborate, and maximize those resources that are left. Dollar for dollar this program is, in my opinion, one of the best in the Commonwealth. For every dollar the State puts into this, $33 is generated in community projects and programs.”

Representative Bosley also sponsored an amendment, which the House passed, to clarify language in the dairy farm tax credit from last session. The 90% refundable tax credit allows farmers to take a credit when the federal milk marketing order price for the applicable market drops below a trigger price established by the Commissioner of Agricultural Resources. The Department of Agriculture is charged with developing regulations to ensure that the cost of the tax credit to the state range from zero when milk prices are sufficient to cover Massachusetts farmers’ production expenses to no more than $4 million. The technical correction ensures that farmers will have $4 million available for assistance each year.

The 15 Regional Transit Authorities across the Commonwealth received an $8.2 million increase in funding from the originally proposed budget for a total of $54,993,971. This funding would ensure that proposed service reductions that threaten to affect consistent transportation and will allow RTAs to provide quality, reliable and cost-effective service for seniors, workers, the disabled and the general public.

The budget also included language that allocates $1,000,000 for a grant application process to offset deficits incurred at highway information centers on state highways and federally-assisted highways, including the Adams Visitor Center. “In tough economic times, keeping the Adams Visitor Center functioning as fully as possible will help the Berkshires maintain the vital tourism industry and allow it to continue flourishing”, said Bosley.

In addition to those achievements, Representative Bosley and the other members of the Berkshire delegation – Representative Smitty Pignatelli (D-Lenox), Representative Denis Guyer (D-Dalton) and Representative Chris Speranzo (D-Pittsfield) were able to secure funding for the following local and statewide programs that directly affect the Berkshires:

• $150,000 for the Western MA Enterprise Fund to provide workforce training in Western MA
• $9,383,215 for Berkshire Community College
• $50,521,840 for regional school transportation, 72% of the FY’09 total allocation
• $150,000 for the Bay State Games, which is crucial funding for the annual events held in Williamstown and North Berkshire County
• $50,000 for the Senior Farm Share Program
• Local police departments will receive 25% of their FY ’08 Community Policing grant awards

This bill, the House budget proposal, engrossed in the House, will now be sent to the Senate for consideration and debate. Once the Senate engrosses its version of the budget document, a conference committee will work out the differences between the two versions for final enactment. The bill will then be sent to the Governor.

House State Budget Wrap-up (revenues)

2009-05-04T09:10:00.001-04:00

Friday brought the end to budget deliberations in the House. The House of representative passed a $906 million increase in the sales tax in Massachusetts. That raised the tax from 5% to 6.25%. We kept the exemptions the same, so food (except for meals tax) and clothes under $1175.00 are exempt as are many other goods and services. Any tax increase is a tough vote. I think that many members were cognizant of the fact that we have had a sharp increase in unemployment over the past six months and we know that many people are worried about their finances. However, the nature of government is that demand for our services is countercyclical with revenues and we need to try to meet demands as much as possible. Our budget, due to the global recession and falling state revenues was $532 million less than the Governor’s budget and we needed to backfill revenues to meet demand. The tax increase allowed us to cover close to $300 million in transportation costs, commit almost $300 million to increasing local aid, and cover some programs that weren’t covered in the budget originally. I think that this was worth it.

The inclusion of the sales tax increase in the budget caused quite a firestorm with the Governor. He sent a letter to house members stating that he wasn’t happy with a broad based tax in the budget and later said he would veto the sales tax if it hit his desk. He later said that he wanted reform before revenues, and even later, said he wasn’t against the sales tax, but wanted to get his package in place instead. All of this leads one to wonder where the Governor will be when the budget is placed before him. At any rate, it was important that we passed a budget and send it to the Senate as they need to get to work on it. Budgets are snapshots in time and our “snapshot” on revenues is based on consensus revenue figures available at the start of the House budget process. We know that the figure we will end up with is much less, and both the Senate and conference committee will need time to process this. One could ask why we didn’t downgrade our revenue figures if we knew that revenues were dropping. Good question. Budgets are snapshots and if we downgraded or upgraded revenues based on the data available when we were deliberating, it would change every day. The same is true of line items. The needs change every day and if we reacted to this, we could never get a budget done. So we did our budget in order to keep the process going and we will work out revenues available with the best information available during budget deliberations as well as during the conference. The Governor also has the power to make corrections by vetoing or amending the budget as well as limiting the amount in the budget during the year by using his power to withhold funds in order to keep the budget balanced. This is a constitutional requirement in Massachusetts as well as most other states.

As for revenues, the final decision to vote for the increase was an easy one, although as readers of this blog (my daughter, Greg Roach and Clark Billings!) know, it was not my first choice. I felt that if the average person was going to be hit with $144/yr in order to increase the sales tax by $906 million/yr, then we should have raised the income tax to 5.8% 9or an average of $150.00/yr/average person)in order to raise $1.2 billion. In other words, for a burden of an extra $6.00/yr, we could have raised an additional $300 million. However, as the Speaker correctly pointed out, “politics is the art of the possible”, and the votes for the income tax were not present in the House. So we went with the sales tax in order to bring more money primarily to cities and towns as well as fund some of the transportation budget gap.

The other reason that this was easier for me was that it replaced the Governor’s proposals to increase a tax on “sugar” foods and a gas tax increase. While the Governor decried the use of a broad based tax to balance our budget, his gas tax would have cost the average taxpayer in my district about double the burden of an increased gas tax. I am not sure why the Governor does not consider this a broad based tax. Given this choice between the gas and other taxes, or a sales tax, the choice was easy.

Finally, the gas tax would have been used in the Boston area disproportionately while the sales tax will be collected more heavily in the Boston area, so again, this was an easy choice.

Budgets and Revenues

2009-04-25T10:27:00.001-04:00

I have written a lot about the budget lately. Obviously, it is the most important document we pass each year as it sets not only the spending levels for each program run in state government, but also details our collective priorities for the upcoming year. It is important we take care of the things that people rely on in the Commonwealth and it is important that we balance our budget to be fiscally responsible.

Most budget discussions center around cuts in spending and revenues. There are a few other things we should consider. First we should take this opportunity to do a top to bottom review of how we conduct business. In 1989, several of us rolled out a plan to raise taxes and cut our budget. We proposed specific ways in which we felt we could better conduct the business of government. We proposed cuts in paperwork, consolidation of services, and we proposed the elimination of 6,000 jobs. That was ten percent of the work force at the time. Today we have grown from 66,000 workers to over 100,000. We need to do the same thing as we did I 1989. This isn’t easy, nor is it politically safe. In 1989, then Representatives Bob Havern and John Bartley, and I, the three proposers of our plan were harshly criticized by conservatives for wanting to raise taxes, and from liberals for wanting to cut our work force. At the end of the day, we enacted our tax plan and cut over $600 million out of government spending.

The other area we can’t ignore is job creation. I have spent time on this before and won’t repeat those posts, but it is important that we create more jobs, and by extension, more taxpayers and more revenue.

One final thought on the sales tax that everyone seems to be migrating to as a way to raise revenues. That would not be my first choice if indeed we have to raise taxes. However, these are the two logical places to look for increases in revenues. Tax policy is incredible arcane and complex. We shouldn’t be setting tax policy in the budget as these need to be thoroughly vetted before we make an informed choice.

Back to sales versus income tax. If we were to raise money, I would look to the income tax first. There are several advantages. First, it is more progressive than a sales tax. The sales tax drives people to the internet or to other states. People may avoid making a purchase of a larger item if sales tax increases makes it more expensive, but everybody take a pay raise even if they pay more in taxes. Most importantly, the average person would pay less if we enacted a slightly larger income tax vs. sales tax. According to the Mass. Taxpayers Foundation, a two penny rise in the sales tax would cost on average $230.00/per capita/yr. It would raise $1.45b.

A rate raise from 5.3% to 5.9% would raise the same amount, $1.45b. However, it would cost the average taxpayer $185.00/per capita/yr. That is a savings of $45.00/yr for the average taxpayer for a tax that is more progressive and is deductable on your federal income tax! This just makes sense to me.

One final final note: In 1989-90, people were very angry over the budget and the tax increases. We will see this again this year. Over the past twelve months, 102,000 people have been added to the unemployment rolls. That means that 1,000,000 people are fearful they will lose their jobs and that means they don’t think they can afford more taxes. When people are nervous about their bills, families, and jobs, it is a hard time to raise their taxes. More importantly, one top of that, we are asking them to pay more for less service. If we passed an income or sales tax increase, the best case scenario is that we restore about a third of the cuts that we are facing. And that is prior to the Senate deliberations that will probably have to base a budget on one half to a billion dollars less revenue than we are basing our budget on. People will be angry and we need to demonstrate responsibility and restrain.

2010 Budget continued

2009-04-20T07:55:00.004-04:00

One other thought on taxes. We are stuck in an old tax system that may not work as well as it should in the best of times. Our corporate taxes have decreased as a portion of revenues over the past decade and longer. We are arguing over increasing the gas tax as we look for alternative fuels and higher cafe (mileage) standards for cars. As we urge people not to smoke, we up the cigarette tax. All of this means that we need to recognize that these sources of taxation are diminishing over time and will not be able to carry our budget needs in the future. Add the sales tax to that. We are concerned over a higher sales tax sending more people to New Hampshire, or even elsewhere as the tax advantage on other borders is diminished or wiped out. We also know that more and more is being bought and sold over the internet and we don't tax that, which is already a disadvantage to local businesses. An increase in sales tax adds to that disadvantage. There is a diminished marginal utility to raising taxes in these areas.

Our reflex reaction seems to be to increase these taxes to make up the revenue shortfall, which further exacerbates the problem; or to "close loopholes", which leads to anti-competitiveness and further devolution of our tax base. We need a complete rethinking of how we tax and what we tax to bring it in line with a new economic paradigm. We no longer make widgets like we used to in Massachusetts, yet our tax policy is geared to that rather than finding new (and fair) revenue streams in new services or technologies. These don't necessarily have to be taxes. In the Life Science Bill, we included a portion that allowed us to take an equity position in new companies that we assist as start-ups. Perhaps other innovative ideas can be explored.

We also don't account for the fact that companies are global in scale today. In fact, we inhibit this with new tax policy that gives us the opportunity to look at a multinational companies holdings as a way to increase our tax take here whether they actually do business in Massachusetts or make money here. At a tine when we are trying to increase our share of new technological companies, this is a huge inhibitor to increasing our job base in state.

2010 Budget

2009-04-18T01:02:00.003-04:00

The FY 2010 budget was released this week and it is a grim document. The global recession has taken its toll on our revenues and this budget is much less than last year’s version. As a result of revenue declines, the Ways and Means Committee had a $3.6 billion deficit to cope with. They produced a budget that didn’t use any of the remaining stabilization funds nor did it increase taxes. The result was a stark budget reflective of the revenues available. Even for those who are well aware of the fiscal situation we face, seeing it in the budget document in black and white was very disheartening.

There are a lot of reactions to this. Some have praised it as an honest budget. Some have criticized it for not looking at raising revenues to fund the deficiencies created by the recession. Others have just slammed it without offering any suggestions. The truth is that there is not one answer to the budget crisis, but we need to work in a lot of different directions at one time. As one of the authors of the tax increase as well as the spending cuts in 1990, I have seen this situation before. That said, this is much worse than I have witnessed in 23 years as a state representative. This crisis is much deeper and is exacerbated by avoidance over the past decade of coming to grips with structural deficits in our state budget. We need to set aside politics as usual and work on a long term solution to this problem. It is important that we not only find a way to balance our budget this year, but we need to create a plan that will look out five or ten years to avoid this situation in the future. That is easier said than done as legislators run for office every two years and budget each year. That means that we tend to think in terms of one or two year tranches. Politics lately seems to lend itself to fixing the issues of the day rather than looking to long term solutions. That is not just found today in politics, but is a societal problem where we tend to look at instant gratification as an American right. We have instant communication on cell phones, can get credit at the cash register, and talk to anyone anywhere instantly over the internet. The world has shrunk to the point where we can go anywhere in a 24 hour period, and politicians tell us that we can painlessly avoid taxes while entertaining ourselves in order to balance our budget (casinos anyone?) .

How do we fix this problem? It is not easy and even a multiple solution approach is full of Hobson’s choices. I have learned that a lot of political decisions are made deliberatively and that means that by the time we make a decision, events narrow our decisions for us. Waiting on our problems today have lead to a lot of problems that have no easy answers. This is going to be difficult and we need to make people aware of that. In 1990, people were angry because we had to raise taxes and still cut the budget. Our constituent’s expectations were that if they had to suffer higher taxes, they would be provided with services. Yet we raised taxes and services were still cut. That led to anger and frustration. The same is true today. Look, we have a $3.6 billion deficit. We have cut health care programs, eliminated 55 line items completely, and cut discretionary local aid by 25%. In a best case scenario, we could raise one of two broad base taxes, sales or income. If we raise the sales tax by a penny, we will raise an additional $750 million. That means we still have to cut over $2.6 billion from a maintenance budget. If we were to raise the income tax by .6% to 5.9%, we would raise $1.6 billion. That means we still have to cut $2 billion! People would see higher taxes and they would still experience cuts in programs they have come to rely on.

One final note on taxes: People seem to be leaning towards a sales tax increase, should there be a tax increase. However, they should add up all the sales tax they pay in a week. I did. If we are talking about an average increase of $2.00 each week, that is $104 per year in increased sales tax in order to achieve a state budget increase in $750 million in revenues. If we were to increase the income tax by .6%, the average family in Massachusetts would see a $120 increase for the year. That’s a little more than the sales tax, but it raises an additional $1.6 billion in revenues for the Commonwealth. That is over two times as much for a very small increase over the sales tax. And the income tax is more progressive in that people in higher income brackets will pay more while a penny on the sales tax is a penny regardless of income. I fail to see the reticence with the income tax if indeed we need to raise taxes.

However, and it is a big however, there are other considerations before we raise taxes. First, we need to understand how people feel about raising taxes in a recession. We have lost over 102,000 jobs in the state over the last twelve months. (Actually, we may have lost more than that, but unemployment claims are up that amount in the last twelve months.) First, if 102,000 people have lost their jobs, then 1.2 million think their jobs are in jeopardy. That means people resist paying more taxes as they don’t think they will be able to afford an increase if they lose their jobs, and people are angry and uncertain about the future. We need to be mindful of this. Additionally, people don’t think we have cut the budget enough and feel we should “economize” before we look for more revenues. I agree, to a certain extent, although I don’t think there are huge savings, or savings enough to avoid some revenue adjustment if we are to maintain core services.

In 1990, the “three amigo” stabilization plan, as our plan came to be known, called for an increase in taxes, but also called for deep cuts in our budget. We suggested that we cut our workforce by 6,600 jobs. At the time, our workforce was approximately 66,000 employees. So we were looking at a downsizing of ten percent. More than that, we needed to find new ways to continue services with less people in a more productive manner. I am not suggesting that we cut “waste, fraud, and abuse”, as that is a catch phrase that simply is not true on any sizable scale in state government regardless of the press highlighting a few cases. I am suggesting that we find new ways to deliver services that save us money and that we examine every mid-level manager in our system. Let’s use some common sense rather than create departments for each new initiative. Again, we need to demonstrate that each dollar we raise goes to delivery of services that people need or expect from state government. Unions need to sit down and be part of the solution and they have to be reasonable over how we deliver services. And government can’t arbitrarily take benefits away such as health payments at a time when we are going to ask them to do more with less people and with no increase in pay. We need to find ways to cut our costs such as utilities and paperwork. Let’s put some common sense in delivery of services. Finally, let’s combine services such as pension and health systems. Let’s let the cities and towns do more to manage their costs with minimal interference.

One last point; there is a third course of action we have to undertake. I know that all of this is not easy. It is clear that we can’t cut our way to a balanced budget without cutting into essential services. We also can’t tax our way to solvency. We need to increase the number of people paying taxes in Massachusetts. That means we need to increase our job base as much as possible. The federal stimulus bill gives us a few years to plan for a long term economic strategy. We need to take that time to do what we can. People have said that we can’t impact the economy much on a state by state basis as we are restricted by the national and international economic trends. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t impact our economic future at all. We have programs that work very well. The technical assistance program run by the community development corporations around the state have been leveraging money at a 25-1 ratio. Recently our Banking Commissioner testified before federal officials that our $10 million investment in the capital access program has resulted in over $241 million in private investment and over $100 million in payroll taxes. I created that program in Chapter 19 of the Acts of 1993. In the same bill we created the EDIP program. That has incentivized over $7.4 billion in private investment in Massachusetts! My point is that with intelligent planning, we can create jobs and revenue in Massachusetts. I would much rather have more people paying taxes than paying more taxes individually.

None of this is easy and none is without pain. However, we have no choice but to try this approach. We are out of options at this point. We cannot be ideologues, nor can we be ostriches. We need to start today to resolve our problems in a manner that is honest, intelligent and keeps faith with our constituent’s expectations.

Some of the Family

2009-03-22T22:41:00.003-04:00

I started a blog to talk about issues, but also to post pictures. It has been a long time since I have posted pics, so I decided to post a few of my animals. Banker is the Dalmation. He is two and is very active. He is my second Dalmation and they are intelligent, loyal, inquisitive, and very social. Here is Banker being precocious.
I also have two cats and this is Sasha. Can you tell that the scratching post is filled with catnip? One more time, This is my cat on drugs!!

Best Places to Live in Massachusetts

2009-03-21T23:43:00.001-04:00

The Boston Globe has a story in Sunday’s paper that gives us the best places to live in Massachusetts in quite a few categories. Of course, those of us from Western Massachusetts know that this means the best places in the eastern third of the state. Sure enough, not one Central or Western mass city or town is mentioned.

Of course we are used to this in the Berkshires. We are like a foreign country to the Globe. Unfortunately this has lead to a like mindset in the Greater Boston area. There are many examples of this. A story on WBZ-TV a few years ago detailed the plan to try to open a second large airport in Massachusetts in “Western Mass”. I was intrigued and turned on the story only to find that they were talking about Worcester!

A second example was the discussion of a broadband bill on Blue Mass Group. People were insulted that we wanted to spend state money on bringing high speed services to Western Massachusetts. Some people suggested that we shouldn’t spend money out here when more money was needed d for mass transportation in the Boston area. Never mind that 20% of all of our sales tax in western Mass goes to paying the MBTA now, they wanted more.

The third example would be the suggested 19 cent increase in gas tax. It would appear that a fair tax is one that someone else pays.

It is unfortunate that people have so little regard for Western Massachusetts. It contains a great deal of beauty; both natural and cultural. We have the highest peak in Massachusetts, Mt Greylock. We have the state’s leg of the Appalachian Trail. In our area, you can see bike paths, trails, lakes, and some of the best fly fishing on the East Coast. Want to raft? There are a number of places and services that can be utilized. If you would like to see 500 million year old bedrock marble quarries, you can visit the Natural Bridge State Park. Or maybe you would like to just relax and camp in a scenic park with a beautiful lake. Clarksburg State Park has been named as one of the top 100 small campgrounds in the US several times over the past few years. And on the Taconic Trail, you can actually stand in three states at one time while partaking of some spectacular scenic vistas. You can bike up Taconic, but if you prefer flat land, we have miles of bike paths.

Maybe history is more your thing. The Berkshires are filled with history and ties to some of the great movements, people, and thought that molded our American culture. It seems as if everyone stopped in the Berkshires at some point. You can see the site that used to be the North Adams Iron Works, where the steel plates were made for the first ironclad union vessel in the Civil War. You can visit the Susan B. Anthony House. Or how about the home of W.E.B. Dubois? Hancock Shaker Village combines history with out door activities, with culture, great furniture and a sense of immersion into a culture and way of life. There are many different sites that contribute to the history of our great nation.

Here in Berkshire County we have more cultural organizations, facilities, and activities per square foot than anywhere else in the US. We have museums such as the Berkshire Museum that has an innovation hall detailing Massachusetts contributions to American life. We have great art museums regardless of your tastes. For example, we have the quintessential American artist, Normand Rockwell at the Rockwell Museum in his home town. We have the eclectic teaching museum, the Williams College Museum of Art. And that is bracketed by the Clark Art Museum with impressionists and old masters; and the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMoca), one of the largest museums in the country.

We have more acting troops in Berkshire County than almost anywhere else. They are lead by two of the oldest theaters in the US, the Berkshire Theater in Stockbridge and the Williamstown Theater. Each year, some of the top actors from Broadway, Hollywood, and around the country come to the Berkshires to ply their trade and enthrall visitors.

I love music and what better place to be than in the Berkshires in the summer. Tanglewood brings the Boston Symphony to the Berkshires.

Artisans, artists and Hancock furniture awaits the visitors who stay at out summer cottages, hotels, and bed and breakfasts in the summer. Skiing, both cross country and downhill await our winter travelers and of course, even the Globe must know about the spectacular foliage in the autumn.

As I just sat down and wrote this, I am sure that I have left out a ton of activities. There are malls and outlets stores for shoppers, antique stores, baseball in two locales, and outlet stores. There is a little something for every taste and you can make a week out of activities and site, or you can move here (median house price at last look was $203,000), breathe the fresh air and shop for local foods at farmer’s markets from local farms just down the road.

If you come out to visit, plan to spend a little time and please spend a little money. It’s good for the economy. And let’s not tell the Globe. We don’t need them angry about all the fun they are missing.

Get a Receipt with that Doughnut!

2009-03-14T10:46:00.003-04:00

The late comedian, Mitch Hedberg had a skit about getting a receipt for a doughnut. He would ask why he received a receipt for a doughnut and insisted that paper and ink should not come into this transaction. He said, “Why would you ever need the receipt as proof of purchase?” He would end by saying, “I have proof, no wait, its home in the file, under “D” for delicious.” We now know why he would need a receipt. He would need it if he lived in Massachusetts, where Governor Patrick has filed a “sugar” tax and where DOR is going after every penny in our couch cushions.

Governor Patrick has filed a “sin tax” to charge people sales tax on candy bars, soda, and other forms of sugar foods. So you may need a receipt if you are eating a candy bar walking down the street and an agent of the Department of Revenue (DOR) approaches demanding proof that you have, indeed, paid your tax.

Outrageous? Yes. However, in a recent conversation with a constituent who owns a business in my district, I was told a story that makes this seem not so farfetched. This struggling business man told me he had just gone through a DOR audit at his hotel. I have known this individual for 30 years and know him to be meticulous in his book keeping. I told him so and opined that he couldn’t have had any problems. He pointed to his fireplace and said he was hit on the fireplace and had to pay for that. Let me explain that his fireplace is in his outer dining room just off of the bar and is lit in the winter time for a little warmth, but more for ambiance than heat. The auditor told him that fireplaces are utilities just like gas and electricity and he needed to pay a sales tax on his cord wood! If we are hitting businesses up for their fireplace wood, we should just stop people and demand their pocket change as they walk down the street.

Is this an isolated incident? Sadly, no. Over the past few years, I have been called by store owners who sell herbs in their supermarket and the DOR is now differentiating as to how they are sold. As food, it is tax exempt, but if they believe they are being sold as vitamins, they reach back to tax the store owner. Got a coffee bar as well as sell food for take -out? Count your cookies! Cookies are tax exempt if taken out as food, but taxable on premises as a meal. Somehow DOR determines what you are selling and how.

And it is not just small business owners. The Department has determined that they are going to restructure the taxation of telecommunication services reaching into other states to look for taxes. While this may or may not be good policy, it doesn’t matter. The Department is supposed to enforce the law, not create it.

Large companies aside, we have to examine who we are taxing and why. In the Governor’s supplemental budget filing, he counts on over $100 million in tax case settlements with big companies and tax disputes. So let’s settle with the big guys, but we’d better count the candy in the little guy’s pockets.

The latest proposals for taxation hit the poorest taxpayers. Proposals to tax candy or sugar, gas, alcohol, telecommunications (phones and cable TV), as well as the recent increase in tobacco all fall disproportionately on the low income tax payers. How much can they afford to pay considering that 653,000 Americans filed for unemployment payments for the first time last week? 12 million Americans are unemployed and here in Massachusetts our unemployment rate is at 8.4% and rising.

Can we afford this? Ah what the heck, it only comes out to a large vat of coffee a week! So, be prepared to pay more for the simple things in life, and don’t forget, keep your doughnut receipt handy.

One More Gas Tax Comment

2009-02-27T18:13:00.004-05:00

After a district meeting on Monday this week, I traveled back to Boston in the evening. As I was leaving town, I noticed at an area gas station that the price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas was $1.91. On my way to Boston, I stopped at a Shell Station in Templeton, just outside of Gardner. There, I filled my tank for $1.79/gal. Not only was it cheaper there, but I saw several stations in Cambridge with lower gas prices!

North Adams Mayor John Barrett has been complaining for the past year that gas prices are higher in the Berkshires than elsewhere in the state. I have made numerous phone calls to complain about the higher prices (and prices are even higher in South County). I have been told that transportation is the difference in price, but that makes no sense. The station at Templeton is at least as far away from gas distributors as is my district. And it doesn’t explain why prices invariably go up every week end.

That means that Berkshire County residents are expected to pay more per gallon than those areas that will actually see a benefit from this gas tax. Let me see; more per gallon, in an area where the rural nature means we use more gallons to travel and the weather and hilly terrain mean we actually need our SUVs and we don’t have the option of mass transit.

Just another reason to find a better way to pay for our transportation system.

More on the Gas Tax

2009-02-21T08:15:00.004-05:00

In 1986, I first ran for state representative and one of the things I talked about was our need to repair or replace the Hadley Overpass in North Adams. This is the longest span in Berkshire County and was in bad shape. Here we are in 2009 and the Overpass is finally being rebuilt twenty-three years later. We are not replacing it, but rebuilding the existing structure after years of being told we have to replace it and much dithering back and forth on replace/repair.

The machinations over this bridge are, in a nutshell, why it is difficult for me to vote for a proposed 19 cent gas tax in Massachusetts. We have poured money into the greater Boston area and have neglected the rest of the state as we did so. Now, my constituents are asked once again to send money to Boston for its road and mass transit systems.

This is unfair. When I entered office, over 80% of the bridges in Berkshire County were substandard. These were not unsafe, but needed work. Today the number is still around the same. For years the western part of the state has seen money diminish for roads and bridges. We have witnessed time and again the postponement of bids for work, and we have lived with lousy roads in an area that doesn’t have the luxury of a sprawling mass transit system. In all that time, I have never complained because Boston and the surrounding areas have been a powerful economic engine for the state. However, enough is enough and I am very reluctant to vote for more money to once again bail out bad projects, decisions, or management. If we had had the same percentage spent here as in the eastern part of the state, we could have been part of the economic engine for the state.

Today, the people of my district subsidize the MBTA with one penny on the sales tax even though they are not within scores of miles of that system. We passed this as we were told that a penny from the sales tax and forward funding for the “t” would take care of them and we wouldn’t have to spend any more money on this system. Live and learn. Hiring practices, inefficiencies in new construction and ridiculous pension benefits are piling up new costs on this system.
For years we have waited for the “Big Dig” project to be done so that we could expand road construction in other parts of the state. The cost overruns on this project were legion and here we are after the system is in place and we are being asked to pay once again.

While I know that we need to come up with a plan to fund our transportation needs, I am unclear as to why people actually using the roadways that need to be paid for can’t pay a greater share for that benefit. The people going north/south on the Big Dig should pay for this. Many of the people in my district live in rural towns where a car is a necessity. They should pay a modest increase in the gas tax in order to repair their roads and bridges. And they shouldn’t be penalized for having SUV’s in the more hilly and snowy terrain of the Berkshires. In some areas, these are necessities.

Finally, I can’t fathom the Governor’s desire to eliminate any tolls when the entire system in fiscally insolvent. People of the Metro West area should not be asked to shoulder the burden of paying a disproportionate share of the Big Dig debt obligations. However, the solution seems to be to shift that disproportionate share to others rather than those who actually use the roads. Keep the tolls as they are and supplement these with a gas tax increase that is an acceptable size. And put the tolls back on exits one through four. I have been saying this since Gov. Weld eliminated these tolls and no one on Berkshire County has ever complained that I want to tax them more. Most of the travelers through these exits are not from Massachusetts!

Fixing our transportation system is a difficult problem and I know that it will cost us more money in order to right our system. However, the Governor’s statement that this will cost about as much per week as a large cup of coffee is wrong on two counts. First, in the Berkshires we tend to drive more because of the lack of mass transit and the rural nature of our population. It would not be unreasonable to put 20,000 miles on our vehicles per year. That would work out to a cost of $16.00/mo. That’s a lot of coffee. And new more energy efficient vehicles are nice, but unaffordable to people in lower income levels that have a hard time keeping the old car going on their income. A new car doesn't just mean more car payments, but higher insurance costs, excise tax, etc.

Second, this is on top of other tax and fee proposals. I drove approximately 29,000 miles back and forth to Boston last year. Some of that is paid for by per diems, but much is not. For me, in my income bracket, this proposed tax would be an inconvenience. However, we have many people living from paycheck to paycheck in the Berkshires and throughout the state. We had an increase in our unemployment rolls of 16,800 last month. Those people are living on an unemployment check. If all of the plans being floated around were to occur, the average family may be paying more for their alcohol, candy, meals, hotel stays (yes, people from the Berkshires pay this on the Cape or elsewhere in the state. It is not just a tax on out of state visitors.), telephone service, broadband, as well as the recently raised tax on cigarettes. Add to this higher local fees to make up for lost state revenues and that family living week to week could experience a $30-40 increase in their monthly bills or more. Where does this money come from?

Again, I know we have to pay for our transportation system. But we must keep in mind that we are in the worst fiscal climate in 70+ years. People can’t rely on state services given the constraints of our budgets. Every dollar is precious. We need to be intelligent and innovative in our thinking. And we need to be fair to all of the citizens in the Commonwealth, regardless of where they live.

Gas Tax Proposal

2009-02-14T13:03:00.002-05:00

The recent pronouncement from Governor Patrick over a 29 cent gas tax increase has resulted in many phone calls, emails, text messages, and people stopping me on the street asking me what the hell we are thinking in state government.

First, let me say I am not in favor of a 29 cent gas tax. That said, we have a serious problem with our transportation systems in Massachusetts and we need to do something about it. A commission formed to look at this has indicated that we need to spend $19 billion on our roads and bridges just to stay where we are in terms of the shape of our roads. That is not a good place. In 1986, when I was first elected to the legislature, approximately 85% of our bridges in Berkshire County were substandard. That doesn’t mean they were unsafe, but indicated that we needed a lot of maintenance. Today, the number is pretty close to this in spite of the work that we’ve done over the last 23 years. It is clear that we need to do more for our transportation system.

Of course, we need to do more than “run in place”. Here in Berkshire County, we need to increase the amount of money spent on our regional transportation system, the BRTA. We need to do so throughout the state. Sen. Stan Rosenberg and I have established and chair a caucus on regional transportation and the needs in our areas are many and urgent. We need to look at rail for both passengers and freight in Massachusetts. There are better and greener ways to move people around.

The dilemma is how we pay for this. We need a long term strategy that will take care of our back commitments and let us plan for the future. There is no one good solution to this. Any solution has to incorporate a lot of differing strategies in order to stabilize our transportation system.

I started by saying that I was not in favor of a $.29 gas tax. That said, we have not had an increase in the tax since 1992. It has remained at 23.5 cents since then. It has to go up modestly. Here are the gas taxes for the surrounding states:
Vermont $.20
New Hampshire $.20.6
Maine $.27.4
Rhode Island $.31
Connecticut $35.5
New York $44.5
At 23.5 cents we are at the low end regionally. However, if we are to ask people to pay more for gas tax, there are a series of other things that need to happen prior to a vote on the gas tax. Here is my list of suggestions

First, we need to enact the “Olver amendment”. This was an amendment that Congressman Olver used to add to every transportation bill when he was the State Senator from Amherst. It would ensure that each region of the state received a benefit from the gas tax or any transportation plan. If people in my district pay more for a tax, they should reasonably expect that that money will go towards improvements in Berkshire County. One of the problems many of us have with the new proposals is that the administration proposes, and that every news report covers, mentions the dire need to fund the “Big Dig” debt and the MBTA in Boston. After years of road and bridge neglect in order to pay for the big dig, the people of Western Mass can’t be expected to continue to pay for these.

Neither should we expect metro west to continue to pay more than their share from turnpike tolls. However, the Governor has indicated a desire to remove the tolls all the way across the state to Route 128. This is unfair. They shouldn’t pay more, but should continue to pay to use the turnpike. And given our financial situation, a suggestion to remove tolls at this time is silly. In fact, as a Western Mass legislator, I have advocated for a reinstatement of the tolls on exits one through four. We need the revenue, and studies indicate that a vast majority of the users on these exits are from out of state.

I realize that the Governor wants to charge tolls on the borders of the state, but there are far too many ways to circumvent the western borders on back roads throughout the Berkshires. You would create less congestion and make more money by simply reinstating the exit 1-4 tolls.

Lastly, but foremost, we need to reform our current system. We pay far more per road mile than surrounding states and we need to know why that is. We need to examine the policies and practices of surrounding states and take their best practices to streamline our system and its costs. This needs to happen before we increase any fees, tolls or taxes.

Changes in Latitudes; Changes in Attitudes

2009-02-14T08:54:00.002-05:00

Well, the House members have finally received committee assignments for the new biennium. For the first time since 1992, I am not a chair of a major committee. I have been reassigned as the vice chair of the Standing Committee on Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets. It is disappointing, but this is still a paid position and the committee will be active in the capital projects from around the state as well as the federal stimulus bill.

One of the problems with government on all levels is that it is reactive rather than proactive in nature. It reacts rather than plans for the future. Since we live yearly budget to yearly budget, and are elected in two year traunches, I guess that this is normal. However, we neglect our long term planning and need to think through the long term effects of short term policy decisions. Take, for example, the issue of gambling. Recent statements by pro-gambling interests have said that we should consider this as it would bring money in very quickly. However, we need to take a look at the long term effects of such a huge policy decision. We can’t look at a short term money grab when the long term effects may include dramatic increases in addiction, bankruptcies, and crime. All of these cost money. We can’t look at short term additions to our budget if there are long term ramifications that lead to state dependency on a few large tax payers at the expense of many smaller diverse businesses making up a more recession resistant stable tax base. Our well being has to include long term as well as short term thoughtfulness over the issues we face.

For many years, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has neglected our physical infrastructure preferring to spend money on our social service systems. We can’t neglect this any longer. Our ability to compete economically relies on our work force and creative, critical, innovative thinking. That means investing in our public higher education system. It means investing in infrastructure such as site preparation. It means new science buildings to educate people in new sciences. We need to address this need.

Recent reports indicate that we will need to spend upwards of $19 billion over the next twenty years just to run in place with our transportation needs. We need to fix our roads and bridges state wide. We need to get a decent passenger rail system in place state wide. We need to address this need.

Our position as a preeminent life science state means that we need to find ways to dispose of waste and more importantly, have a plentiful source of water. I have raised this issue over the past several years as we have had indications that we are running low on supplies south of Boston and in Boston itself. That doesn’t mean we are running out of water, but it does mean that we need to plan carefully for the future. As the national chair of the Council of State Governments in 2003, I saw the difficulties that western and southwestern states have had as they are running low on water supply. States are suing each other over water rights and rivers such as the mighty Rio Grande are merely trickles as upstream states dam the rivers and take all of the water. We need to address this need.

The federal stimulus bill is a big boost for states. We need to spend it wisely. The reaction of some is to substitute this wherever possible for state funding in our budget while revenues are down. This merely expands the base of the budget in an unsustainable way. We need to look at short term spending priorities that lead to economic projects that continue to give us a return on our investment. (Although taking $60 million off the top for a right handed power hitter for our beloved Red Sox is a pretty good investment too.) We have needs around the state and this gives us a chance to address capital needs in order to advance an economy that will mirror the evolving technology economy of America. With investment, we can maintain our edge in the creative economy. We need to address this need.

All of these should involve a lot of hard work for the bonding committee. I look forward to working on these issues and many others.

I will miss my economic development and emerging technolgies committee. It was designed by our former Speaker for me. And for the first time in 17 years, I will not chair an economic development position. But I have found that any position is what you make of it and starting Tuesday, I will be back in the State House working on the issues I care deeply about.

Thoughts on the Economy

2009-02-08T14:00:00.001-05:00

It has been a while since my last post. This is a busy time of year and I have had little time to post. My daughter is in the Washington D.C. area on an internship for college and I have been there twice in the past few weeks.

At the State House, our former Speaker had me working on a few issues in my committee. I had a reasonable assurance that I was staying there and he had me working on a few issues to help sustain our economy while not spending much money. We had been meeting with businesses, especially small businesses in order to find ways to help. This committee was designed with me in mind by our former Speaker. I love working to solve the complex problems of business to keep people employed. This is a problem that I have worked on since coming to the State House 23 years ago. It is a reflection of the tough times in my district. We now have a new Speaker and I have no idea what he will do, but it has been a great ride.

Some of the things we are working on are finding ways to fund new technologies. New businesses don’t have the same life cycle as traditional manufacturing and banks cannot react to this new cycle because of banking rules and regulations. I have had a few conversations with Congressman Frank and his office about looking to state and federal regulatory changes that would react to the new business paradigm. I have also been actively trying to get state government through their quasi-public agencies to look at loan guarantees for small businesses as well as a way to vette new technologies in order to give the financial industries a level of comfort with new technology businesses.

As example, the old industrial model could be a business buying equipment to build widgets. They would find a site, train workers, buy materials and equipment, and would start building and selling widgets. They would bill customers for widgets and banks lent money based on those receivables and business model. Today, a life science business may not sell product for a decade! Or a defense company may get an SBIR grant to develop new products but has no money to commercialize that product. In these two examples, banks can’t lend money without regulators penalizing the banks based on risk. We need to find ways to finance these businesses. And since new banks aren’t necessarily familiar with new technologies, it is hard to lend to these businesses based on their fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders.
We are also taking a look at streamlining our tax policy in order to treat all forms of telecommunication the same. Right now, we treat wireless companies different from land wired line companies. These are both treated differently than cable companies which are treated differently than satellite companies….I think you get the picture. We need to find ways to treat all of these companies the same way, tax them equitable, and still leave incentives for expansion of broadband services.
Much has been made of the federal stimulus package that, as of my posting, still has not been finalized. I have mixed feelings over the stim bill. We are running up deficits with each package that need to be paid back. We are expecting these packages to do far more than they are able to do. We cannot solve the world wide fiscal crisis with these packages. Still, it is important that we find ways to pump money into our economy and these bills need to maximize their impact and not just be expected to replace state revenues.

I will write a longer post based on an op-ed piece I am working on, but let me briefly point to some rules I believe we need if we are to pass such bills to stimulate our economy.

First, we can’t expect government to replace the role of private enterprise. There is not enough money to do so no matter how much we run up our deficits. Government has to be smart as to how this is spent and we shouldn’t become partners in banks or businesses as we have to let the marketplace recover with market incentives.
Second, we have to stop government policy that contracts the number of banks we have in this country. We need many smaller local institutions rather than a lesser number of larger institutions. If we contract the number of banks until there are a handful of large banks, we only make the problems bigger if there is a downturn. We were far better off with local banks making local decisions.

Third, that being said, we cannot let the market run wild, but need rules in place to stop what has been happening in the market for the last decade or so. The stock market has been irresponsible. They have made the investments made in the market more important than the underlying businesses that they are supposed to be financing. Investments are split up and sold again and again with little regard for the fact that money in and of itself only has the worth of the underlying assets. Of course the market has collapsed. A dollar is only worth a dollar no matter how much you try to squeeze out of it by selling on the margins. We need a strong watchdog to make sure that this doesn’t happen again or we are just resetting the market to make the same mistakes again.

Four, that means we need to recreate our economy in order to regain its market value. When I was young, a sheet of steel, for example, was sent to Detroit and a car was built from it. The creation of something from that sheet of steel added value and that was where the jobs were created. We need to recreate our economy in order to reflect those things we can do here. That means that we need to invest in the types of things we need now such as new technologies. Perhaps we no longer manufacture to the extent we used to, but in green technologies, life sciences, nanotech as well as others, we are leading the world in technologies and we need to capitalize on these opportunities. We also need to look at production here and realize that it may be more expensive, but we are far more productive than most of our competitors. In other words, it costs more to make a widget, but you can make more per hour and they are of better quality.

Fifth, we need to reclaim our place in the world economy. That is something that has been lost with the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. We need a much more thoughtful policy regarding how we trade and we need to establish ties with different countries in order to maximize our position. In other words, let’s start trading with others rather than competing with them. That helps our bottom line and takes away a disincentive to stay in the US to manufacture and grow.

Six, we need to create a new infrastructure in order to rebuild our economy. We need a recommitment to our transportation infrastructure. We need to learn from the rest of the world and make a real effort to build a rational working rail system for goods and people. We need to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure in the US. And that leads to the real challenge.

Seven, we need a real commitment from the American people for hard work to make thing work.

I just visited my daughter in Washington by rail. The train on the way back was late and I missed my connection. Two escalators were not working in various train stations and a sign on the DC metro warned that the elevator at the medical center was broke. Here in Massachusetts, we need to spend $19 billion just stay where we are regarding roads and bridges. That is not a good place to be. We are a country in need of a national commitment in order to fix our crumbling infrastructure. Too many people think that the American dream means cheap gas, lots of credit, and free utilities. We need a national commitment in order to rebuild our country into the economic power that we think it is. That means no more blue states and red states. It means we must be honest with the American people about what we need to do. It means no more misdirection as to the real problems. It means we all roll up our sleeves and realize that the only way to get back to a thriving economy is with hard work.

Martin Luther King day 2009

2009-01-19T08:41:00.003-05:00

The Following are my remarks for the Martin Luther King day celebration in North Adams:

Once again we find ourselves here celebrating the life of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King. I am happy that we take the time and effort each year to celebrate his life. It is not just a fitting tribute, but is also a reminder that we need to continue his noble work.

I was reminded of this as I read this quote recently,
“The unfinished legacy that calls us still – is a fundamental belief in the continued perfection of American ideals.

It’s a belief that says if this nation was truly founded on the principles of freedom and equality; it could not sit idly by while millions were shackled because of the color of their skin. That if we are to shine as a beacon of hope to the rest of the world, we must be respected not just for the might of our military, but for the reach of our ideals. That if this is a land where destiny is not determined by birth or circumstance, we have a duty to ensure that the child of a millionaire and the child of a welfare mom have the same chance in life. That if out of many, we are truly one, then we must not limit ourselves to the pursuit of selfish gain, but that which will help all Americans rise together.”

This could have been said by Dr King, but was spoken recently by President–elect Barak Obama. He reminds us that we must be ever mindful that it is up to each of us to continue the work of Rev King and that that is our duty as Americans. But we should also find great joy in this day and in tomorrow historic inauguration.
Anyone who knows me knows that music plays a large part in my life. Lately I have been thinking a lot about some of the civil rights songs of the sixties. Songs like, “I woke up this morning with my mind on freedom”; or “I’m on my way to Freedomland”; and of course, “The Times They are achangin’”!!!

What an historic event tomorrow. And it would not have happened if James Farmer hadn’t lead protesters with CORE or Julian Bond hadn’t organized students. The voting rights act happened because people like John Lewis and Willie Ricks organized thousands to fight the old Jim Crow laws. So many individuals knew it was up to them to stride down that road to freedom. And all of those individuals were inspired by the leadership, courage and faith of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King. He was an inspiration to each and every one of these leaders as he still is to all of us.
What faith and courage that took. Reverend King lived in a different time. I am old enough to remember public officials standing in front of school steps to deny entrance to black students. I am old enough to remember the protest marches in front of angry crowds with little help from government, and people being killed just for asking to vote or to use a water fountain. Yet, in those tumultuous times, in those most dangerous times, Dr. King had faith that, together, using nonviolent means, he, and those oppressed would overcome oppression. He had a profound faith in his God, in his fellow man and in his cause, that one day we would reach a place where all would be treated equally. He foretold that in his “I have a dream” speech.
He said, “Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.

Well, we took a big step forward this year. For the first time in the history of this country, tomorrow, a Black man who grew up in less than rich means, married to a woman whose ancestors were both slaves and slave owners, will take the oath of office as President of these United States, the most powerful position in the world. How great is that?

It wasn’t easy, but it is world changing. In my lifetime I have seen a country that has gone from a time when a black man could not vote in large parts of this country to the inauguration tomorrow. How times have changed in the last few decades.
Barak Obama got more votes cast for him than any man in history. And as I said, he won in places where when I was growing up, blacks weren’t allowed to vote. Think of that! In Georgia, where Martin Luther King was brought up, and people were arrested in the 60’s for simply wanting to go to college, Obama got 47% of the vote. In Virginia, capitol of the Confederacy, He won with 53%. He won the Southern state of North Carolina. That is truly uplifting. Even in Mississippi, where Martin Luther King said in his I have a dream speech, I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. In Mississippi, Obama got 43% of the vote. That is amazing. And so it went. In South Carolina where they still fly the Confederate flag, 45%!

Alabama, well, Alabama shows us that we still have some work to do. But in the privacy of the voting booth, where no one would see their vote, people overwhelmingly voted for Barak Obama. What a great country we live in.
The ability to elect a black man has the potential of being transformative in this country. And again, Rev. King foretold that.

In his “Give us the Ballot” Speech in 1957, he said,
“But even more, all types of conniving methods are still being used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters. The denial of this sacred right is a tragic betrayal of the highest mandates of our democratic tradition. And so our most urgent request to the president of the United States and every member of Congress are to give us the right to vote.
Give us the ballot, and we will no longer have to worry the federal government about our basic rights.
Give us the ballot, and we will no longer plead to the federal government for passage of an anti-lynching law; we will by the power of our vote write the law on the statute books of the South and bring an end to the dastardly acts of the hooded perpetrators of violence.
Give us the ballot, and we will transform the salient misdeeds of bloodthirsty mobs into the calculated good deeds of orderly citizens.
In this juncture of our nation's history, there is an urgent need for dedicated and courageous leadership.”

Well, my friends, those words ring true today. We have elected a man who will lead us that has the same sense of justice and equality as did Rev. King. He wasn’t elected because he was black, but because he inspired those with his words, wisdom, and message. And that is the truly inspiring thing about this election. It is not just that the first Black man was elected by a majority white population, but that it was done regardless of his color. Don’t get me wrong, I am proud that we have broken this barrier, but it is important to celebrate the fact that race didn’t matter to many voters. That is a true sign of equality and a sign of how far we have come.

Now comes the tough part. We all have to work hard to make sure he succeeds, because if he does, we all succeed. We have many challenges in front of us. Our economy has faltered and that hurts our poorest citizens and makes it that much harder to overcome poverty and despair. The world is watching to see if we regain our position as a leader in human rights. And we still stand guard over the gains we have made as there are those who would take them away. We are challenged in this nation, but we have a leader that understands that and was elected to lead us to regain our glory as a nation. But he needs all of our help, our ideas, our understanding, and our sweat equity in order to be successful.

Wendell Berry is a farmer philosopher from Kentucky. I heard him speak a number of years ago, and his words are very relevant today. He said that the public world is obsessed with leadership. But it is leadership without members. Society is hooked on heroics without wanting to participate by doing the small things that help our leaders. People want you to fix problems without any impact on them. That has to change. We need to regain that understanding that it takes all of us to succeed. Dr. King knew that it takes all of us to make a difference. That is his legacy and his challenge to us all.

In a speech in Birmingham, he said, “the thing we are all challenged to do is to keep this movement moving. There is power in unity and numbers.”

Today we celebrate the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King. And tomorrow, let’s all celebrate the election of President –Elect Barak Obama. And Wednesday, we need to rededicate ourselves to keep this movement moving. We are the unity and the numbers that Reverend King to which Rev. King referred.
The need is still there. As far as we have come, we have a ways to go. A Springfield church burning or the Jena 6 incidents in Louisiana are reminders of our need to remain vigilant and continue to work hard. And the challenge is to do so in a nonviolent way with love towards all of our fellow man as Dr. King exhorted us to do. His message was one of injustice in racism and poverty, but it is also one of hope and love. It is a message of faith and it is uplifting. And it is not one of faceless people in need of help. It is a message about you and me. It is as simple as that.

Tomorrow will be a wonderful day full of pomp and circumstance and we can rightfully rejoice in our new President. But on Wednesday, we have to ask ourselves what we can do to advance the cause that Dr. King so nobly advanced and gave his life for. That is his requirement of us and our duty as citizens of this great nation and as members of humanity. Our humanity and the greatness of this nation are, and were founded on, our ability to help those in need of our help. We need to reach out for, (with a little help from Bob Dylan,)
“the aching ones whose wounds cannot be nursed
For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones and worse
And for every needy person in the whole wide universe” Only then can we truly
“ gaze upon the chimes of freedom flashing”
Perhaps that was Dr. King’s greatest lasting gift to us, to let us see that if it is to be it is up to me. And you, and you, and each and every one of us. We are the unity. We are the numbers. We are the strength of the movement that has lead us to Barak Obama. That is our mission and our faith. Let me leave you with Rev. King’s own words about this:

“Go out with that faith today. Go back to your homes in the Southland to that faith, with that faith today. Go back to Philadelphia, to New York, to Detroit and Chicago with that faith today: that the universe is on our side in the struggle. Stand up for justice. Sometimes it gets hard, but it is always difficult to get out of Egypt, for the Red Sea always stands before you with discouraging dimensions. And even after you've crossed the Red Sea, you have to move through a wilderness with prodigious hilltops of evil and gigantic mountains of opposition. But I say to you this afternoon: Keep moving. Let nothing slow you up. Move on with dignity and honor and respectability.

I realize that it will cause restless nights sometime. It might cause losing a job; it will cause suffering and sacrifice. It might even cause physical death for some. But if physical death is the price that some must pay to free their children from a permanent life of psychological death, then nothing can be more Christian. Keep going today. Keep moving amid every obstacle. Keep moving amid every mountain of opposition. If you will do that with dignity, when the history books are written in the future, the historians will have to look back and say, "There lived a great people. A people with 'fleecy locks and black complexion,' but a people who injected new meaning into the veins of civilization : a people which stood up with dignity and honor and saved Western civilization in her darkest hour a people that gave new integrity and a new dimension of love to our civilization." When that happens, "the morning stars will sing together and the sons of God will shout for joy."

Thank you and God Bless America and our new President.

Happy New Year

2009-01-01T00:46:00.002-05:00

To all those who have read and/or commented on this blog; to all those who have helped make the First Berkshire District and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts a better place to live; for all those who have reached out to each other with a helping hand or a word of encouragement; and for all those who have exhibited a kindness to the world around them, thank you for your help in 2008. You are the true heroes in our society and I wish each and very one of you a wonderful 2009. As the old saying goes: May the best day of last year be the worst day of this year.
2008 was a tough year. The economy tanked in a way I have not seen in 22 years in office. Budgets were slashed and a lot of people found themselves far worse off than they started the year. It is going to take a long time to turn this economy around, but with this Presidential election this year, we have an opportunity to work together in this nation to make it a much better place. We shouldn't be divided into red states and blue states. We shouldn't get angry if we disagree on issues. We should realize that disagreement is part of the decision making process and the true test of a nation and its people is the ability to work together despite differences of opinion. Let us all pledge, or make a new year's resolution that we will work together with less acrimony in order to advance those things that we all care about. Again, a heartfelt happy new year to all and best wishes for 2009.

Economic Recession Hits the North Pole

2008-12-21T21:34:00.001-05:00

December 21, 2008
Dateline: Boston, Mass.

BPI: In a packed press conference held in Faneuil Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, Santa Claus today asked for help from the US $700 billion bailout package. Santa said that without some assistance this year, he would have to cut back on Christmas and may have to shutter the operations center at the North Pole. Santa has estimated that he will need in the vicinity of $39 billion in order to complete his deliveries “on time and on budget” this year.

Santa was in Boston over the weekend to meet with Massachusetts’s officials about his application for life science funding when accountants from the Canadian firm of D’Argent , Tout and LeMonde (DT&L) gave him the bad news. “Bad investments in the off season coupled with high energy costs have really hit us hard,” Santa explained. “Cold weather costs us greatly each year, but since global warming hit, the sump pumps to keep things dry with all the icebergs thawing is costing an arm and a leg.”

He added, “ Transportation is a killer and has been worse since the reindeer unionized. You’d think that one night a year isn’t bad working conditions, but we now have to pay for degree days and well, they are working on a holiday.” Santa went on to say that negotiations have been difficult this year as the coursers are looking for danger pay. “It was the darndest thing last year. We were flying over little villages in Alaska when some woman in a helicopter started shooting at us! Now they are nervous and we can’t have Dasher up there with a nervous stomach. We have to keep stopping and scooping.”

Santa said the economy has hit him in several ways. “No one keeps anything in inventory anymore, and we pay a premium just to keep to schedule. That has cost us more. We try to buy year round in anticipation, but storage costs increases our carrying costs and banks don’t like to see inventory sitting there.”

Santa’s spokesman, Herbie T. Elf pointed to a couple of investments gone badly this year. “Santa’s house has been in the family forever, and Mrs. Claus really likes it, but has been getting a little tired with all the wind and bluster up here. You think the Cape is tough on a paint job, come on up to the Pole. But this was a lousy year to get a new mortgage on the old house. Last year was good, but there is little demand this year and the banker said we could flip it for a nicer place in the magnetic north pole before our subprime rates kicked into a conventional mortgage, but we didn’t know that they demanded insurance because we are in a flood plain. That was a real killer.”

At this point, Santa interjected, “How was I supposed to know the pole sits on the Artic Ocean? I’m just a toy maker for God’s sake!”

Mr. Elf continued, “ The mortgage company was nice but very firm on our paying back the loan and we need relief. We counter offered, but the Tickle Me Elmos are not worth what they used to be.”

As for other investment problems, because of pending lawsuits, all Herbie Elf would say was, “ I can’t say anything but this, I believe that Mr. Madoff has been relocated to the “naughty” list, if you know what I mean.”

Mr. Claus was asked about his meetings in Boston with Gov. Patrick and the life science people. He said that meetings were cordial and the governor encouraged him to think about relocating to Boston. When asked why he was looking for life science money, all Santa would say was, “Where do you think we get all these identical elves?”

Mr. Claus said that the amount was firm, but how payments are made are open for negotiations. Payments could be divided between dba’s such as Father Christmas, Sinter Klaus, Kris Kringle, or Santa Claus. Santa did however point out that he would prefer to receive payments in the name of St. Nick as that preserved his religious tax-free status. “It just adds to the mounting cost if I have to pay taxes.” he shrugged.
An accountant from Mr. Claus’ firm, Joshua Heifitz pointed out that the cost could be worse. “Fortunately, we are in a down year “nice” list-wise. People like Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Mr. Madoff, investment accountants, and even a few from this state have driven down demand and we feel that we are comfortable with the aforementioned amount.”
Mr. Heifitz concluded the press conference by asking what people would do if Santa had to close shop. “If Santa closes, what’s left? Burger King meat scented perfume? So who’s happy with that shmutz? Someone’s got to help the good people. Besides, Santa Claus is too big for us to let fail!”
When asked, the White House refused comment. Senator Redd Stanton of Mississippi suggested that the timing of the request was suspicious. “Here we are a few days before Christmas and Mister Claus comes around with his hand out. I just think the timing is suspicious. What we really ought to be talking about is whether he needs some documentation before flying all over the country illegally. There’s something wrong with that." Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut was far more open to looking at this request. “While I am concerned and disappointed that Mr. Claus flew down here in his personal sleigh rather than take a domestic animal, I have always said we need to keep the Ho Ho Ho in Christmas”, Dodd was quoted as saying.
Big Press International

Ice Storm Repair Efforts

2008-12-20T14:09:00.004-05:00

I have spent some time looking at the damage done by an ice storm about a week ago. There are huge swathes of trees that came down on power lines and some people haven't had power for over a week. It is easy to blame the utilities when one doesn't have power, but this was unexpected and the damage was wide spread. I am looking at how we could better respond and will work with the utilities in order to make sure they respond quicker also. One of the issues is making sure that areas with smaller populations receive the same response as areas with larger populations. While companies have to prioritize resources, it doesn't matter to a customer whether they are the only customer in town to lose power or the whole town loses power. At the least we need to ensure people get timely, accurate info after a storm of this nature.

I have stayed on top of this situation by talking with each utility to measure their progress and by staying in touch with the Governor's efforts. My office has called each town and we have offered our help in getting paperwork to Mema/Fema offices in order to make sure we qualify for disaster relief aid.

I am worried about the long term effects of this storm and about subsequent storms. There are many trees down and many will die. I am worried about the long term effects on soil erosion and water tables. I also worry that emergency work to get lines up and power and telephone service restored have taken a long time and there are still trees that are down but not touching the power lines presently. these could come down and take wires in subsequent storms. We need to watch this closely.

The following is a press release that I issued on December 19. It contains a lot of information on what has been done; what needs to be done; who to call if power is not restored; and who farms should call over physical losses.

Bosley Comments on Power Outage and Restoration Efforts

Last Friday, parts of the Commonwealth – particularly in the Worcester area and along Route 2 throughout Berkshire and Franklin counties – were devastated with an ice storm that left hundreds of thousands without power and destroyed hundreds of trees.

Representative Daniel E. Bosley (D-North Adams) surveyed the damage around the First Berkshire District earlier this week. “Despite the progress that has been made since last week, I am gravely concerned about a recurrence of downed wires due to fallen trees that have not been cleared given the forecast of two or three storms in succession. It is imperative that everyone work together to restore power to homes and businesses and clear the roads for safe travel and emergency vehicles.”

The storm had far-reaching effects for all utility companies. For example, approximately 20,000 Western Massachusetts Electricity Company (WMECO) customers were without power as a result of the storm – 1,354 in Berkshire County. As of today, more than 17,500 of those have had their power restored with 48 customers remaining – down from 199 yesterday – in Savoy and 13 in Franklin County – down from 88 yesterday.

With over 1,000 line and tree crews as well as an additional 1,300 support personnel working throughout the Commonwealth, National Grid has restored power to all but 13 houses in Florida and 200 in North Adams. They have fielded over 51,000 phone calls and identified 4,000 individual items that require the company’s attention, such as downed lines, open circuit breakers, trees leaning on electrical equipment and broken poles. National Grid customers that lose power can call the customer service center at 800-322-3223 so that a restoration crew can be deployed in a timely fashion.

Verizon had 4,000 lines down but as of Wednesday, they have replaced 900 poles. “Although electricity has not yet been restored to everyone, I applaud the rapid responses of the local utility companies and the state’s emergency management services,” said Bosley. “Given the enormity of the damage, crews have worked hard to restore service.” Most of the utilities have said they hope to have all power restored by Saturday.

For those who remain without power or lose power this winter, Rep. Bosley reminds them to adhere to a few practices to prevent the pipes from freezing and to keep a fuse from blowing when power is restored. According to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) website, “to keep pipes from freezing, wrap them in insulation or layers of newspapers, covering the newspapers with plastic to keep out moisture; let faucets drip a trickle of water from the faucet farthest from your water meter to help keep pipes from freezing; if pipes freeze, remove insulation, completely open all faucets and pour hot water over the pipes, starting where they are most exposed to the cold. A hand-held hair dryer, used with caution, also works well; in order to protect against possible voltage irregularities that can occur when power is restored, you should unplug all sensitive electronic equipment, including your TVs, stereo, VCR, microwave oven, computer, cordless telephone, answering machine and garage door opener.”

For the towns that submitted a preliminary damage assessment to MEMA, the state will sort through to estimate what the state is capable of funding. Following that they will work with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to financially assist those communities who dispersed otherwise budgeted funds to provide for the clean-up and any damages sustained to residences and businesses. Rep. Bosley said, “I have been working with MEMA and the Patrick Administration to ensure all cities and towns in the district are accounted for and I am particularly worried about the long-term effects of all of the damaged trees, which could lead to soil erosion and affect the water tables in the future.” As of yesterday, preliminary damages were estimated at around $2.6 million. With more winter weather on the way, those costs will likely increase.

In addition to that, Rep. Bosley recognizes that a lot of damages have been sustained at local farms. For farmers who have suffered physical losses due to the storm, they are urged to call and report losses to the local Farm Service Agency (FSA). For Berkshire County, the contact information for the Pittsfield office is 413-443-1776 Ext 100 and the Franklin County FSA in Greenfield can be contacted at 413-772-0384 Ext 2.

Following the storm, Governor Deval Patrick declared a State of Emergency. The declaration of a State of Emergency will enable the Governor to take the appropriate steps to mobilize many of the Commonwealth's assets, such as the National Guard, and conduct other emergency business to assist local communities is their response to and recovery from the many impacts of this winter storm. If you have questions or need assistance during this emergency, contact Mass 2-1-1 by dialing “2-1-1” or visit www.mass211.org.

National Grid customers that experience a loss of power can call the customer service center at 800-322-3223 so that a restoration crew can be deployed in a timely fashion.

Paying for our Roads

2008-12-06T09:33:00.001-05:00

Over the past few years, Massachusetts has struggled as to how we pay for our roads system. We incurred a huge debt during the construction of the “Big Dig” project in Boston. This project aided in the transportation of cars through Boston on the North South highway. The rest of the state complained about paying for this. But the issue is complicated. On one hand, we needed to get traffic through Boston faster. The expressway was built for less than 50,000 cars per day and was handling over 250,000 cars per day just before the Dig was opened. It was clear that, given the amount of activity in this area, we needed to do something like this. Given the amount of revenue generated by business activity in this area, it is in the interests of everyone in the state to ensure that a better roadway was constructed. It also brought in a tremendous amount of federal dollars and this fueled our economy with goods, services, and salaries.
On the other hand, this project sucked highway money out of the rest of the state and many projects were left undone. These projects were, and are, just as important as the Big Dig to those areas around the state stifled by lousy transportation.
There are many other considerations. How do we rebuild a reliance on rail for both passenger and goods? How do we rebuild our regional transportation? Are there ways we can lessen our reliance on cars and use more enviro-friendly mass transportation? Is this fiscally possible given the problems of the MBTA in Boston?
However, for today, let’s just look at our roadways. It seems to me that we need to find a way to look at a statewide plan if we are to reorganize and modernize our highway departments or systems. The Big Dig grew far larger than anyone imagined. In doing so, it ate up a generation of highway funding resulting in a crisis today. We can lay blame and I am sure in hindsight that a better job could have been done in managing the financial aspects of this project. But the fact is that the Dig was the largest construction project ever done in America and there were not enough state and federal auditors to watch over something of this size. And the Big Dig was first proposed as part of the Eisenhower Defense Highway bill passed in the 50’s. Naturally the price grew with inflation, but also with the cost of such things as steel that far outgrew inflation. It was expensive but necessary.
Whatever the reasons, the state is charged with paying their fair share and until we come to grips with this, we can’t spend money on the rest of the system. That has been the problem. The state didn’t come to grips with this project, as it was ongoing, the federal government was complaining about the size and demanding we put together a funding scheme. Consequently, a lot of this debt (over $2 billion) was given to the Massachusetts Turnpike Agency. That has lead to fiscal problems at the pike and lead to toll increases that place the burden on the people who travel from the western suburbs of Boston. Since they don’t use the north south route through the Big Dig, they are complaining about paying for the roadway. The same can be said for the people in some neighborhoods in Boston who are looking at $7.00/day tolls to get to work. The people in western Massachusetts don’t want to pay for this as they think that their roads haven’t been done because of this project. So what do we do?
The Governor wants to merge the transportation systems of the Massachusetts port authority (MassPort), the turnpike (MTA) and our highway department together. There are problems with this. First, MassPort cannot commingle federal moneys from the airport together with other funds. This is a bad fit and since 9/11 they have struggled fiscally themselves. As for the MTA, they have their own outstanding bonds that will have to be reconciled if they merge. This is very complex. And I have said this could be good or bad depending on whether the rest of the state will look like the turnpike or the turnpike will look like the rest of our roads. But the largest problem is that this generates little towards resolving the biggest issue; that of the big dig debt. The agencies are like three people who go out to lunch and get a $75 bill and only have $60. They can pass the bill around, but ultimately, they still only have $60! The issue here is about raising the revenues to pay for the kind of roads and bridges we want.
There are currently four ways that have been suggested to do this.
1. The Senate has suggested that we take a look at privatizing the turnpike. This has had mixed results around the US. Moreover, that gives us money up front for long term leasing or purchase of roads. Will future legislatures run through this money resulting in more problems in the future or will they salt that money away and use it over the course of the years of the lease?
2. Can we offer ways to cut back expenditures in order to make the transportation agencies run leaner, putting more money into retiring debt and fixing roads? There are always ways to squeeze money out of the budgets, but we need to be cautious about what that means. One of the ways that we “squeezed” money out of the budget while paying for the Dig was by cutting back on the design work in the 90’s. That led to jobs around the state being postponed multiple times for years.
3. We can raise tolls. This is unacceptable to many as they pay tolls but don’t feel that others are paying their fair share. That is true. A part of the state is paying greatly increased tolls while others pay nothing, including people who use the big Dig on a daily basis. And the tolls in western Massachusetts were taken down years ago despite the studies that find that most of those tolls were paid for by out of state users of the pike.
4. We can raise the gas tax. This hasn’t been done since 1992 and we are below the national average in gas tax. A law was passed in the 90’s that ensured all the gas tax was actually used on our roadways. This seems more equitable since everyone pays it and it is a consumption tax. The more you drive, the more you pay. However, it is tough to raise a tax during a fiscal downturn. And, people in rural areas such as mine know that cars are a necessity and rural areas mean that services are farther away. While an urban area trip to the grocery store means around the block, in some towns it means traveling 15 miles both ways. Is this equitable?

I am sorry that this is such a long post, but this is a complicated issue and a thorough discussion could take up volumes. It is also a Hobson’s choice that may not have a right answer.

I think we need to do a little of everything in order to be equitable and to solve this problem. It is a drag on our economy and people are paying more for their cars through accelerated tire wear and realignments and the like because our roads are bad. We are losing commerce because our roads are bad. We need to fix this.

I believe we need to look for all the savings we can wring out of the systems. This means that the turnpike can no longer fund tourism grants or plowing adjacent roads. We need to increase our electronic passes and decrease our toll takers. We need to reinstate the western tolls to pay for the western maintenance. We need to take look at tolls at the borders of the state. And I am leaning towards an increase in the gas tax... a modest increase the gas tax. Gas has gone from $4.03/gal to $1.73. (That is the range I have paid in the last year.) If we had passed a gas tax at $4.03 to take effect of increasing our tax $.01 for every $.25 drop in price over the last few months we would have raised the gas tax by $.08 and no one would have noticed. We need to raise taxes between $.06-$.09. I think that as gas prices continue to drop, this is not an unfair burden given that it has not been increased in over 16 years. We could even provide a sliding scale to decrease this if gas prices rise precipitously in the future. This actually makes sense given that higher gas prices lead to decreased use of roads. Again, this is complicated as we need to ensure highway bondholders that we would continue to raise money to pay for bonds. So the state would have to make commitments on this, or find ways to increase mass transportation.
However, and it is a big however, we need to ensure that this increase creates a meaningful state plan to repair our roads ALL across the state. This includes funding the redheaded stepchildren of our system, the regional transportation authorities. In order to gain acceptance, people need to know that their roads will be taken care of.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2008-11-27T08:07:00.002-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I hope you all have a great day and get to spend time with family and friends doing whatever makes you happy and healthy. Well, healthy except for the food and more food!! We spend so much time thinking about all the things we need to do, or what goes wrong in our everyday lives. We need to spend time today, at least, thinking about all of the good things we have in our lives. I am thankful for a good supportive caring family and all of the friends that enrich my life. I hope you have the same.
This has been a tough year in a lot of ways. Yet, many people have invested their hopes and dreams in a new leader for our country. We should live, not in reflection of what has gone wrong, but in hope of what we can do together in the future. I wish you all a healthy and happy day and may the best day of the past year be the worst day in the upcoming year.

Visit To China

2008-11-13T09:29:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago, I spent two weeks in China. It was a trade mission with the Massachusetts Office of International Trade and Investment. I realized a lifelong dream by standing on the Great Wall of China. What a thrill! I also manned the Massachusetts booth at the Shenzhen Hi-Tech Trade Fair; spoke at a Minister’s Conference at that fair as one of ten from around the world; gave one of two keynote addresses at a Merger and Acquisition Conference in Shanghai, witnessed a signing of a green communities agreement; visited our Massachusetts Tech Center in the Zhjanjiang Park; visited out trade office in Beijing; toured Tsinghua University and met with officials of that school; and had numerous meetings with government officials on both the federal and provincial level. It was a busy and fascinating trip.
I have been dealing with international trade issues for over fifteen years. I have met many of these Chinese officials in Boston and have worked to establish trade ties there and elsewhere around the globe. China is interesting when you consider that their economy is growing and they have one quarter of the world’s population. There is a market there for everything. In the Zhangjiang Park, there were so many life science companies that I felt like I was in Cambridge, Mass.
There are so many opportunities in China that it is important that we explore each one available. Yet it is also important that those opportunities are mutually beneficial. They must be bilateral. But they have to be explored.
When I first entered the Legislature over twenty years ago, a typical life science company in Massachusetts may have run something like this: research was done in Cambridge/ Boston because of the abundance of research labs and universities and our hospital cluster in this area. Backroom operations such as sales and management may have been located in central Massachusetts, and clinical trials may have happened in the greater Boston area. Manufacturing could be done in western Massachusetts as the machine tool trades and cost lead to this area being conducive to those operations. Today, research and development is still being done in the Cambridge/Boston area, but clinical trials may be done in Brazil; backroom operations may be in Zurich and manufacturing may be in China. This is a worldwide economy and we either participate in it or we get left behind. I believe that Massachusetts is well positioned to compete in this worldwide marketplace with a large high tech business base and an innovative workforce. However, it takes a lot of work and follow through in order to compete and we need to do more in order to equip our business community with the tools to effectively trade with other provinces and states around the globe.

A Great Day

2008-11-05T06:29:00.002-05:00

Thank you to everyone who voted yesterday. In Massachusetts, they believe it was a record number of voters that lined up and voted in the state. Across our country, people stood in line and voted. They made history by electing the first African American to the office of the president. That is incredible. However, it was also important that so many people participated and engaged in the vote and decision over who the next President would be. Unlike most other countries, we do so in a deliberate and participatory manner that leads to an orderly transition in power from one political philosophy and party to another.

Now it is up to all of us to continue to stay engaged in the process of democracy. The system works when we all work to be a part of it. We have a lot of work to do to support our new President-elect. Let's get to work.

In my district, even though I had no opposition, I appreciate the people who still checked off my name and I really appreciate the many people who came up to me at the polls yesterday with words of encouragement and suggestions for things for us to do. Thank you and I look forward to working with you for another two-year term.
Thanks again, and now, let's get to work!

Vote!

2008-11-04T05:19:00.001-05:00

It is Election Day. The latest polling indicates that 30% of respondents have voted early this year and predictions are that 70% of eligible American voters may vote today. There have been bigger crowds out at rallies and more interest in this election than there has been for many years. Please get out and vote. This is a crucial election. There are two national candidates who have very clearly defined differences. This nation needs to make a choice and get behind our next Presidential nominee. That means everyone needs to participate in this choice.
I know that we are told every four years that that particular election is the most important in our lifetime. This is not rhetoric this time. This is a turning point for our country. We are in the midst of combat actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are borrowing billions of dollars to operate our federal government and have run up a record deficit in the past eight years. We have lost the respect of people around the world and have lost our place as a leader on many world issues. We are falling behind in the evolving global economy. Our country is lurching through a financial crisis and a recession. Most importantly, this nation has been divided on many issues between "red" states and "blue" states. Over the last eight years we have seen national leaders use wedge issues that divide us and we have been much better at politics than at government.
We can do better. But that means each of us needs to participate in this election and make a choice. The promise that this country holds for each of us is a wonderful thing. We have freedoms here that many others in other countries can merely dream about. But maintaining these freedoms is hard work. Each of us must participate and not just criticize the choices others make. We have to have a discussion over the direction of our country and we have to work to advance those collective goals. That is not easy and it means that we need to be active in our communities, in our elections, and in our causes. Ronald Reagan asked the question in 1980, "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" That is only part of the question. The other is "What have you done to make this country better than four years ago?" That means we all need to work to make this country better than it was or is. We need to all work in order to hand the next generation the American dream still intact and better than we were received from our parents. For some of us, that means running for office. For others, it means civic involvement or activism. For all of us, it means getting involved with our vote. It all starts there. Reagan had the question right, but we need to hearken back to the words of John F. Kennedy as to how we make this country better than it was four years ago. He exhorted us to get involved when he said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." He knew that we all needed to participate in order to preserve and enhance the American dream.
I think that we have forgotten that in many ways. Many people feel disenfranchised. Many do not vote or feel that vote doesn’t count. Many feel that we are entitled to services and goods here in America simply because we are Americans. All that changes today, if we get out and make a choice. An election doesn't necessarily change our country in and of itself. But if we all make the decision to vote in this critical election, it is a start. If we all decide to get involved locally, it is a start. If we all decide to have a discussion rather than criticize each other’s choices, it is a movement.
That starts today. We have the power to make a choice today that will dictate the direction of our country for years to come. Please join with me in getting involved and voting today. Vote for the candidate of your choice, but go vote!
Thank you for your vote and your service.

New York Windmills

2008-10-05T11:41:00.004-04:00

Last weekend I took two staff members and visited the windmill complex in upstate New York. These windmills are located primarily in the towns of Chateaugay, Clinton, and Ellenberg. Each one generates enough electricity to power about 500 homes. There are hundreds planned.
I heard of the windmills in a dairy farm commission hearing last spring, but didn’t realize how big this was until I had occasion in August to pass through these towns on the way back from Canada. They are in people back yards and you can see corn growing or cows grazing right around the windmills. Testimony during the dairy hearings stated that the dairy farmers are sharing the profits form the windmills and most were enthusiastic about their placement. Here in Massachusetts where windmills are controversial, I wonder if we would be so quick to embrace these? If you click on these and enlarge the images, you can see the tops of windmills all around the farm.

Did Last Night's Vice Presidential Debate Provoke a Worldwide Crisis?

2008-10-03T12:51:00.003-04:00

Reuters: London, England. World English teachers today issued a multinational press release announcing that there is a sudden global shortage of the word “also” that is threatening the ability for people all over the world to make additions in sentences as a form of communication. Professor Ian Shellington, Professor Emeritus, Oxford University detailed this sudden shortage of the adverb today in an interview with Katie Couric. “This is a sudden and complete depletion of a very valuable resource in our ability to communicate with one another,” detailed Shellington. “It would appear that this is a very severe loss that has halted overnight communication in such things as email.”

John Soucer, a football coach in the Laffey-Bristol League described how this has impacted his ability to live a normal life. “Me and some mates were returning from Cracker’s Pub last night and I was going to post some of me exploits on me blog, when I was unable to one up some bloke from Stilton. His posts are usually cheesy and they stink, but he’s always bragging. I found an distinct and dreaded inability to one up him due to my shortage of , y’know, that word.” Bollocks! What’s a bloke to do if we can’t brag about our knitting??!

Closer to home Mitzi Smith-Hurst, spokeswoman for the American Teachers Association blamed the shortage on No Child Left Behind. “This is what happens when schools and teachers are under funded by the present administration. If we had more money, we’d have more language. It’s as simple as that.”

Speculation over the shortage has reached immediate consensus. Overwhelmingly the overnight news agencies have pointed to the overuse of the word during last night’s debate by Alaskan Governor and Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin in her one and one half hour debate with Democratic nominee Sen. Joseph Biden of Pennsylvania, and until recently, Delaware. Tom Brokaw, NBC icon stated that, while he didn’t usually pick winners and losers in these debates, she was the clear winner in use of the “A” word. Researchers at Factcheck.org said that it hampered their ability to research facts used by the Governor. Researcher Derek Bloggonanon said, “Jees, we kept looking up statements because, you know, we are supposed to look these things up in real time. But we would start to look this stuff up and then she would add something else and pretty soon our computers were slower than assistance to New Orleans. It really hurt us.” The Presidential Debate Commission could not confirm or deny this as the source of the language crisis. Mimi Langdorf, spokesperson for the Commission said they keep count on many things, but not on language use. “Quite frankly, Langdorf said,” We haven’t run across anything quite like this since Ross Perot’s use of the word “Get”. The Commission did point to notes taken from the podium as possible proof that Palin did, indeed, precipitate this crisis. Ms Langdorf stated, “You may notice during debates that candidates will make notes for their use. We do keep the notes from the podiums in our archives as part of the Presidential debate collection in Windage, Minnesota, proposed home of the Presidential Debate Commission Museum and Gift Shop. On Governor Palin’s sheet, the word in question was scribbled one hundred and seventeen times. The only other notes were “wink, wink”, and “Make sure they flew in the moose meat for Todd’s dinner.”

Fox News had immediate overnight special programming on this issue with commentators ridiculing the press’ reporting of this story. “What a bunch of cry babies,” noted newsman Ron Huntsman, “This is from the elite eastern press corps who can’t seem to lower themselves to use the word ‘too’. For crying out loud, get over it.”

The White House issued a statement that it was studying the situation and would look to release more language from the federal language reserve. This would mark the first time in the eight years of the Bush Presidency that an expansion of language has been allowed. In the meantime, White House advisors, after an early morning meeting, have asked that people remain confident in our English Language. “Our Languages is strong,” President Bush said after being told of the early morning meeting. Advisors have advised that the language shortage is temporary and should abate as soon as Palin is placed back into isolation and away from the press corps. In the meantime, they have asked the general public to use the words “besides”, “likewise”, and the phrase “as well” until normalcy returns to the United States.

In related news, overnight markets were down substantially upon learning of this latest shortage, oil prices rose to over $100.00 per barrel, and Pubster’s Dictionary and Thesaurus, the largest of the wordsmiths in the US has asked Congress to consider a $150 million fiscal package to allow them to recapitalize the word market.

Yellow Cardinal?/ no/ Cedar Waxwing

2008-09-21T18:07:00.007-04:00

This is a picture of a yellow cardinal. I had never seen one before, but this was taken at the eastern portal of the Hoosac Tunnel in the Town of Florida. There were a bunch of Cardinals flying around by the train trestle over the Deerfield River. Only one was red and the rest were various shades of yellow! If you enlarge this picture you can clearly see a red spot on the wing that is shaped like a heart. Talk about carrying your heart on your sleeve!

Edited: After the Comment, it looks as if this is a Cedar Waxwing. Thank you for the comment. I have never heard nor seen this bird before. I thought it was a Cardinal because, well, it looks like one and there was a red one in the group. Nonetheless, it is a beautiful bird. BTW, it is sitting on the fencing of the train trestle. This is a long rickety bridge over the Deerfiel River.

Issues Update

2008-09-21T17:58:00.000-04:00

It has been a month since my last post. This is not for lack of activity, but just a lack of time. Things have been progressing on several fronts.

Heating Assistance Forum. I believe that the forum was a success. The people who attended were given a lot of practical advice on where to go for assistance this winter and also were given information on services that could help make their homes more energy efficient. To an extent, it may have been too much information at one time. We gave out palm cards that had numbers of services available and hopefully, people will call these services. Since the forum, I have had a lot of calls asking for information and I know that people who were there have referred others to us.

Food Assistance. The other need this winter will be for food assistance for people who will be spending more money on heating and less on eating. Again, we have heard from a lot of people on this issue. This is an issue that I have worked on n the past and continue to do so. This year, the Legislature increased their funding for food banks to over $12 million. I also note that a few days ago, there was a story about food stamps in Massachusetts. We have lead the nation in the past few years in expansion of our program. I am proud to say that, working with the department, I included language in a past economic development bill that made it easier for that program to add participants. There are a couple of things we have been working on in my office. First, we are compiling a list of places that may be able to help. I will get that list out soon. In the Community Coalition office, the Target Hunger people have been working on coordination of services and my office is trying to be helpful on this front. Lastly, I am working with area agencies to try to make it easier to get food from the food bank to our area. I will have more on this in a week or two.

Broadband. In the next month, Commissioner Gillette from the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) will be in our area holding an informational hearing. She was key to passage of the broadband bill this session and I am happy that she is coming out here. We are working to implement that bill and passage of the bill has lead Verizon to expand their coverage of DSL services to many towns that didn’t have service in the past. I have heard from happy customers in Florida and just received word that Verizon has opened up Rowe. This is good news. Lately, however, I have seen stories from people in areas that haven’t had services complaining that Verizon is rolling out DSL and not FIOS, or fiber to the home. While we all want fiber to the home, it is foolish to complain about DSL services when people have been on dial up in the past. Is it optimal? No, but it is far better than the service we have received in the past.

Electric costs. Last fall I organized a forum concerning electricity costs and capacity in Western Massachusetts. I promised to conduct follow up meetings and report back with another forum. I didn’t do so. The problem was that our meetings took several turns over the past year. The Legislature passed several bills concerning electricity and green jobs and communities. The direction we were going in after the forum has changed based on these bills. I am now talking to local groups about a follow up local agency or group to monitor our electric needs. I will have more on this in the future weeks. I am also looking at alternative energy. Within the next week or so, I will be traveling to upstate New York to look at the windmills that dot the towns of Ellensburg, Chateaugay, and Clinton. People seem to live with these in their back yards and I am interested in the prospects of wind in Western Mass.

Wall Street. While this is not a local issue, it has everyone talking about it. And it affects our budget and our ability to fund local programs. I have been watching this closely as it has several immediate effects on state government. First, a federal bailout to the tune of $700 billion will impact the ability of the next President to enact new programs or fund existing ones. We are borrowing $2 billion a week to run government now and our payment on debt service is one of the largest line items in our federal budget. We must get a handle on this if we are to stay strong and viable as a world power. Second, the Freddie Mac-Fannie Mae “takeover” by the federal government impacts state government in that it impacts capital at local banks. While our area banks are strong, some of the larger banks in the state were impacted when their investments in these organizations were devalued. We need to be aware of this and its potential impact on the business community. Third, while we could not let these large companies fail without putting our entire economy in jeopardy, we need to put systems in place in order that this not happen again. Since the financial services sector of our economy in Massachusetts is one of our strongest, we need to take care to strengthen it while not impeding its ability to grow. This is something that will take a lot of my time and attention in the committee in the coming year.

One last thought on this issue: When I was growing up in the 50’s and 60’s, our country was strong because of the American worker. We took raw materials and through hard work and innovation, we added value. For example, we took iron ore and made cars, or refrigerators. We took a wooden box and through innovation and technology built a television or radio. This “value added” made our economy run and gave us jobs that could support a family. The financial industry was important, but it was most important as a tool to finance our value added jobs. Today, many on Wall Street have decided that making money off of money is more important than the creation of goods.
It seems that new financial instruments are created that create ways to invest, but we have forgotten why we invested in the first place. We need to correct this.

Church Closings. My initial statement on this subject was simply this: Churches are important to our communities as centers for activities, charities, and socialization. If the Diocese is going to close churches, it would be a good idea to communicate with local leaders in order to plan accordingly. For example, St Francis is on one of the most visible approaches to North Adams and there are more considerations as to what happens with that building than whether it is cost effective for the church to close. I had no idea that this would be so controversial. I was scolded by some church officials for not respecting the separation of church and state. I was called by people who thought I wanted to spend state resources on keeping the churches open. However, I also received a lot of phone calls thanking me for speaking out. There are a lot of people that are very worried about their particular church.

This is a touchy issue. Here is what I know. We cannot sustain all of the churches in our area. We need to close some of them. The Bishop will be criticized regardless of which one closes. However, there may be other alternatives if we all work together and I want to explore these. I have not done so in a public manner because I am sensitive to the separation of church and state and this should not be politicized. However, I have talked to a lot of the people working to save their parishes and I have talked to the Bishop. I had a long and frank discussion in Springfield. I will continue to work with all of the groups to see what we can do to resolve these issues.

This is a long post, but there is a lot going on. I will update these and many other issues in future posts.

Winter Heating Assistance Forum

2008-08-23T12:06:00.002-04:00

As everyone knows, this is going to be a very hard winter. Oil prices have driven heating oil prices up as they have gas prices. Even though prices have fallen lately, prices are still almost double last year's price. There is no magic bullet to making this better, but there is a lot of activity on this. Our congressional delegation is making a push to double federal assistance for the Low Income Heating Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). This is the major federal program to help with heating in the winter and is the one that people go to the Community Action office to apply for. The Bush administration has not been helpful in increasing this program and some in Congress have tried to halt this increase as leverage for increased drilling rights for big oil in Alaska. I hope that our delegation is successful in getting more money for this program. I have been active in this area in the past. I have testified in Congress on this issue and have lead the Council of State Governments efforts to increase funding. It is very effective. Money is designated for each state and the money flows right through to those in need.

On the state level, we appropriated $10 million in our budget to supplement the federal efforts.

I have heard from a lot of people that are very nervous over their ability to heat their homes this winter. I have also heard from oil dealers who are paying for oil when they take delivery and then can't get paid by customers when they make home deliveries.

As I said, there is no easy answer or magic bullet to cure this problem, but there are a lot of services out there that can help. On September 3rd, I am bringing them together at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) in North Adams for a forum to provide information to people concerned about heating this winter. Community Action (BCAC) has committed to the forum as has Citizen's Energy, the Oil Heat Association of Massachusetts, the Federal Department of Energy, the state Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), our local utilities, and the Center for Ecological Technology (CET) our local energy efficiency experts. We will have the Community Coalition participating and giving us advice on their new program for energy efficiency. We hope to have more people participating and are still awaiting answers from others. We have asked everyone to bring information and brochures detailing their programs.

I am hopeful that we will be able to let everyone know of all the local options for heating assistance and develop an action plan for our area. Aside from getting information to people, I would like to explore a pre-registration system for LIHEAP. I am hoping that we can pool our resources and begin to raise more money to supplement governmental efforts. I am also hoping that we can discuss creation of a local entity patterned after the Citizen's Energy model. I am also hoping that we can duplicate this effort in the Franklin County part of my district.

Below is the press release from my office on this. I hope that the word gets out and that we can get information to as many people as possible.

Bosley Announces Heating Fuel Assistance Forum

Chairman Daniel E. Bosley announced today the news of a forum on home heating assistance to take place Wednesday, September 3, 2008, at MCLA’s Church Street Center in North Adams. The event is scheduled to run from 5:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. and will consist of several speakers from various government organizations and private companies that service the Northern Berkshire region.

“As fuel costs continue to rise and cause deep strain on family budgets across the northeast, this forum will serve to clarify the process for applying for assistance and to delineate the options each and every homeowner can take to reduce energy costs. Deadlines to apply to some programs are as early as the end of September and this event will be a great opportunity to think about winterization and the various application processes, said Bosley.”

The forum will have speakers from the respective fuel providers as well as from non-profit organizations such as the Berkshire Community Action Council, the Center for Ecological Technology, the Citizens Energy Corporation among others.

This event is open to public. If you wish to speak or provide information at a booth please register by Wednesday, August 27, 2008, by contacting Daniel Hunt via phone at (617) 722-2370 or email at Daniel.hunt@state.ma.us

Dairy Bill is law!

2008-08-22T07:57:00.002-04:00

The Governor signed the Dairy Stabilization bill last week. It is chapter 310 of the acts of 2008. Here is the press release that we put out last week. Congratulations to all involved and especially to the farm community that worked so hard to make this happen. As Senator Stan Rosenberg pointed out at the time, this was a very speedy conclusion to our work. State government in the past two years; placed money into a supplemental budget, filed legislation to create a task force and had that task force meet in extensive sessions over the winter. We then submitted a report for the task force. That report was written as legislation. Again legislation was filed and passed to give relief to the dairy farm community. A lot of hard work was done and that work needs to continue into the future. However, this was a big step towards stabilization of prices for our local farmers and that means a great deal.

Representative Daniel Bosley (D-North Adams), Representative Stephen Kulik (D-Worthington), and the House of Representatives enacted An Act Relative to the Preservation of Dairy Farms today. This legislation stems from a report to the legislature from the Massachusetts Dairy Farm Revitalization Task Force. The bill is consistent with the report’s recommendations, which called for an income tax credit for farmers, the creation of a Massachusetts Dairy Promotion Board, and a linked loan program, among other programs.

“This bill is the right first step towards ensuring the economic viability of dairy farmers throughout the Commonwealth. After filing the emergency declaration and allocating $3.6 million in relief to dairy farmers last May, I am pleased that we were able to offer temporary solutions through this bill. With rising gas and feedstock prices, the cost of production is rapidly increasing and the tax credit portion is crucial because it provides relief and stability to dairy farmers and their families when they need it most” said Bosley.

The main part of the bill is a tax credit that is mirrored after similar legislation in South Carolina. The 90% refundable tax credit allows farmers to take a credit when the federal milk marketing order price for the applicable market drops below a trigger price established by the Commissioner of Agricultural Resources. The Department of Agriculture is charged with developing regulations to ensure that the cost of the tax credit to the state ranged from zero when milk prices are sufficient to cover Massachusetts farmers’ production expenses to no more than $4 million.

“This comprehensive bill provides many tools that will help our dairy farmers to be economically viable and competitive in an increasingly complex segment of our state’s agricultural economy. Our dairy farms provide thousands of acres of open space, recreational land, and water recharge areas that contribute to both our quality of life and the protection of natural resources. Additionally, a thriving dairy community is important to Massachusetts as more and more people realize the value of local foods as more being more nutritious, sustainable, and better for our environment and economy” said Kulik.

Other portions of the bill include: allowing the Department of Agricultural Resources to establish a program and regulations to permit the use of discount coupons in the sale of milk, extending from 2 to 10 miles, the span that individuals may drive farm equipment without registration, authorizing farmers who have an APR to qualify for farm viability technical assistance and implementation funding and creating a commission to study and recommend options for updating farming technology to promote energy conservation

Members of the task force from the legislature included Representative Bosley, Representative Kulik, Representative Lewis Evangelidis of Holden, Senator Stanley Rosenberg of Amherst, Senator Stephen Brewer of Barre, and Senator Michael Knapik of Westfield.

Stone Hill Center at the Clark

2008-08-07T07:32:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite places on earth is the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Ma. It has a magnificent art collection and is home to the new Stone Hill Center where exhibits of Winslow Homer and John Singer Sargeant are being showcased. The building itself is quite a site, being designed by the Japanese architect Ando. The building also houses the Williamstown Art Conservation Center. In an area like the Berkshires with so many cultural attractions, the Clark stands out as a special place that combines our cultural attractions, our sense of history through the conservation of our past art works, and our recreational and environmental beauty of the Berkshires. This picture was taken August 7, 2008 (yesterday) from the deck of the Stone Hill Center overlooking the hill down towards the main campus. This is a beautiful location that combines outstanding art with the natural beauty of the area.

Mountain Mists

2008-08-03T11:21:00.002-04:00

From the town of Florida near the eastern summit of Route 2 on the Mohawk Trail on a cool early summer morning. You are above the mists that fill the valley along the Deerfield River.

End of Year II

2008-08-02T13:14:00.002-04:00

Here is my press release on the end of the session accomplishments. Sorry these are so long, but I want to keep people informed.

Bosley Announces End of Session Accomplishments

As the Legislative session drew to an end these past few weeks, Representative Daniel Bosley (D-North Adams) played a key role in passing major legislation through the House of Representatives that impacts both the Commonwealth as a whole and secured critical funding for Berkshire County. Down to the wire, as versions of various bond bills passed between the House and Senate, Bosley kept his district in mind as thousands of earmarks were included in these bills.

One bill that Representative Bosley has been heavily involved with is aimed at expanding broadband service throughout the Commonwealth. Currently there are 63 towns in Massachusetts where there is only partial broadband service, and 32 have no access at all. This digital divide slows and deters economic development, threatens public safety and health, hinders municipal business and restricts creativity in the classroom. The bill created the Broadband Institute and dedicated $40 million for the purposes of increasing high speed internet access to communities across the state. According to Bosley, “this is the culmination of years of work to bring up the telecommunication infrastructure up to speed in my district. Now merchants will have faster access for their electronic transactions and business owners will no longer be at a competitive disadvantage.”

Representative Bosley was also able to obtain $54.5 million for the construction of a new, free-standing Center for Life Science and Innovation building at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. As part of the science and technology upgrades to the college, the existing science rooms need to be retrofitted. The last major upgrade at MCLA was 30 years ago and this funding will go a long way to level the playing field in the Science and Technology field. Bosley said that, “this project will continue the pipeline needed to feed the growing demand in the science and technology sectors. In staying true to the Commonwealth’s renewed commitment to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), the new science center will be able to offer the next level of education for young people in the western part of the state.”

As the House Chair of the Regional Transit Authority Caucus, Bosley was integral in obtaining language to alter the funding mechanism for Regional Transit Authorities (RTAs) and secured funding for two major projects in the district through the transportation bond bill.

The bill included $9 million for planning, engineering, and construction on a significant portion of Route 116 in the Town of Savoy. This road has not been repaved since 1992. “Following this winter, Route 116 was laden with potholes to the point where it was dangerous to drive on. Year after year, the town has spent tens of thousands of dollars to patch the road. I am pleased that we were able assist the town to secure funding to completely re-engineer and re-construct the road to ensure its safety for the future,” said Bosley. There was also a $750,000 earmark for the City of North Adams to resurface four major roads that lead into the city. As preparations for the Hadley Overpass Bridge are underway, this will ensure the city can offer well-maintained alternate routes when construction begins.

In addition to that, there was language included in the bill that charges the Secretary of Transportation and Public Works and the Secretary of Administration and Finance with exploring the Commonwealth’s participation in the federal Toll Credit program, a program under which states that collect tolls for the maintenance and improvement of the federal highway system are given credit for part of those expenditures. There is a mechanism which appropriates any currently unused federal dollars that the state can access through the toll credit program to be used to fund improved financial practices and accountability at the Regional Transit Authorities.

According to Bosley, “the current reimbursement funding to the RTAs is costing citizens of the Commonwealth millions of dollars in unnecessary interest charges each year. As gas prices increase, the use of public transportation has similarly seen increased ridership. The switch to forward funding will help ensure sustainable funding for RTAs and allow the Commonwealth to become more cost-effective.”

The Small Town Road Assistance Program had some language changes that are pertinent to the district. Of particular note, eligibility for the program was expanded to include communities with 7,000 or less (it is currently set at 3,500 or less). It also repeals the law that requires communities who receive STRAP grants to repay 30% of the grant within 10 years. “These changes in the STRAP program are important to my district because more communities will qualify for the program and they will no longer need to worry about the 30% repayment before applying,” said Bosley.

This past winter, Bosley served as a member of the Massachusetts Dairy Farm Revitalization Task Force. The task force produced a report at its conclusion and its recommendations, which called for an income tax credit for farmers, the creation of a Massachusetts Dairy Promotion Board, and a linked loan program, among other programs, are embodied in An Act Relative to the Preservation of Dairy Farms.

“This bill is the right first step towards ensuring the economic viability of dairy farmers throughout the Commonwealth. After filing the emergency declaration and allocating $3.6 million in relief to dairy farmers last May, I am pleased that we were able to offer longer lasting solutions through this bill. With rising gas and feedstock prices, the cost of production is rapidly increasing and the tax credit portion is crucial because it provides relief and stability to dairy farmers and their families when they need it most,” said Bosley.

In his position as the House Chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, Representative Bosley worked in tandem with House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi (D-Boston) to produce legislation focused on promoting and developing the state’s clean energy sector. The Massachusetts Clean Energy Technology Center will promote workforce training in the clean energy sector and provide support to existing clean energy companies in the Commonwealth through the establishment and administration of job growth grants.

The bill establishes two types of job growth grants to be administered by the center: the clean energy seed grant and green jobs initiative grant. The clean energy seed grant will award funding to clean energy researchers and companies, non-profit and community-based organizations that seek to expand their organization and grow jobs. The green jobs grant initiative will award funding to higher education institutions and vocational technical schools to facilitate workforce development efforts.

"This Green Jobs bill will create the workforce and develop the industry needed to service this demand. It's going to put thousands of people to work throughout the entire state and create sustainable economic development in an industry that has great potential for the Commonwealth,” said Bosley.

The bill is revenue neutral. Under the bill, $43 million from the Massachusetts Alternative and Clean Energy Investment Trust Fund and $5 million from the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust Fund will be transferred to the center to administer grants and facilitate economic growth. In the FY ’09 budget, $3.95 million was allocated to fund a clean energy industry study, operations at the center, and three different green job programs that will be administered by the Secretary of Environmental Affairs, including Senator Benjamin B. Downing’s (D-Pittsfield) “pathways out of poverty” workforce development grant to train low and moderate income individuals for jobs in the clean energy sector.

One of Representative Bosley’s bills that passed through the legislature this session was a bill that establishes a Creative Economy Council within the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development. The council will be tasked with formulating statewide strategies to enhance, encourage, and develop the creative economy in the Commonwealth.

“Coupled with the state’s existing creative economy sector, this council will help to create a comprehensive and sustainable infrastructure to cultivate a real strength of the Commonwealth.” Bosley said. “Many local artists, collaboratives, and organizations throughout the state are looking for ways to expand their businesses. By helping them accomplish this goal, we are creating more jobs, diversifying our state’s economy, and bolstering our tourism industry.”

The creative economy has also become a significant outlet for students graduating with art, design, and music degrees from colleges and universities throughout Massachusetts. With a culturally rich district, Bosley appreciates and acknowledges the impact this sector has on the economy.

In the environmental bond bill, Representative Bosley maintained two earmarks that preserve and expand on the pristine landscape of the Berkshires. One of them was $600,000 for the study, preliminary design, site preparation and associated costs of the Greylock Glen Environmental Center in the town of Adams. “I am grateful that we were able to assist the Greylock Glen project with this funding. Recently, the entire project has been moving forward and funds for the study will only serve to expedite this ongoing process.” In addition to that, $3.35 million was earmarked for phase II inspections and emergency repairs to the Notch reservoir and Mount Williams Reservoir Dams in the city of North Adams.

Upon enactment by both branches, these bills will be laid before the Governor to be signed into law.

In addition to this press release, I am very pleased that $50 million was included in the general bond issue for the cultural facilities fund that I created in the 2006 economic stimulus bill to fund the next few years repairs of our facilities around the Commonwealth and $10 million was kept in a fuel assistance fund. More on my plans to help people in the district this winter in an upcoming post.

End of Year Rush

2008-07-19T09:06:00.003-04:00

In Massachusetts, our Legislative year ends on July 31, on the second year of our term. That doesn't mean that we stop working. Far from it. There are still informal sessions every few days where noncontroversial matters or home rule petitions are heard and passed. There are projects and hearings and work on committee deliberations and initiatives. There is an opportunity to get back to the district more often and meet with constituents. There is time to tour businesses and meet with groups. I plan on holding an informational hearing on winter fuel prices and what, if any, our options and opportunities are to deal with this crisis. So the time is busy but the schedule is more flexible. That is good because after being in the Legislature for twenty-two years and being a chairman for the last seventeen, my time in Boston as opposed to the district grows each year. It is good to get back more and recharge my batteries, so to speak.

More on the district in a future post, but with two weeks left in the session, I have a full list of things that I need to get done. We are close but need to get the broadband bill, to bring service out to unserved areas in Western Massachusetts, finalized and passed. We need to complete the work on the the dairy stabilization bill that so many rural Legislators worked on. I have passed the Creative Economic Council bill in the House and would like to see action in the Senate. I have a few local bills such as an expansion of the Adams Fire District and completing the land transfer for the North Adams Armory to the City of North Adams. I am still hopeful for some movement on an Optometry bill that I have filed for years.

I have a bill to create a creative index for our schools to spread best practices at challenging our school kids to be more innovative and creative. We are hopeful of finalizing in committee and then passing the Green Jobs bill filed by the Speaker of the House. We have several capital bond issues that have important initiatives or projects for my district. For example, the science building at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams is in the higher ed bond bill. There is money to refinish Rt.116 in the town of Savoy in the transportation bond. As co-chair of the regional transportation caucus, I would like to see forward funding passed for the RTA's. As a member of the IT advisory board, I am interested in the bond to modernize our state IT system. That is a pretty daunting list and I know that there is more
There are other bills that I think are important to finish before the end of the year such as the health care cost containment bill that the Senate President filed. This is a very good bill and contains initiatives on e-health management which is something I have written about for a number of years. And of course, there are a number of budget vetoes that I feel we should override. These are small local earmarks that are important for my district. I think of these as additional local aid that gives a boost to local initiatives that would not be funded if they weren't included as earmarks, yet are so important to our districts.

So we have two weeks in which to accomplish this. I will let you know at the end of the session on our success in getting this list done.

FY 2009 Budget Highlights for the District

2008-07-13T11:28:00.002-04:00

The following is an amalgam of the press releases sent out concerning the fiscal year 2009 budget and its impact on the district. This was a pretty good year for Western Mass and I am happy with the various programs that we were able to bring back to our area. I took the lead on some of this, but on the ones where the lead sponsor is named, you can bet they did a lot of heavy lifting on these and deserve the credit. We are fortunate to have a great group of Legislators from Western Massachusetts that work very hard for their constituents and we work well as a group.

With the conclusion of the Conference Committee late Thursday evening, State Representative Daniel E. Bosley (D – North Adams) commented on the FY 2009 spending plan, saying; “This has been a very tough budget process due to a billion dollar deficit from the beginning. Fortunately, through diligence these past few months, we were able to secure funding for many programs in the 1^st Berkshire District and across the Commonwealth that are vital to the prosperity and economic development of the state.”

The City of North Adams received an earmark of $150,000 for the North Adams Armory. This funding will be used to replace the deteriorating heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system and offers the final touch to the other construction work that has been recently been performed on the building.

Another significant success for the entire Berkshire Delegation was $400,000 for the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition for teen pregnancy prevention programs, of which $250,000 is to be allocated equally to school systems in the cities of North Adams and Pittsfield. “With increasing rates of teen pregnancy across the Commonwealth, it is imperative that the Coalition continue receiving funds to implement and expand their teen pregnancy preventions programs in the Berkshires,” said Bosley.

The Councils on Aging received a $73,000 boost to its overall budget, which is now capped at $8,615,068. As the lead sponsor of this amendment during the initial House budget debate, Representative Bosley was instrumental in securing this funding increase and made a passionate speech on the house floor during the debate. This allotment allows the formula grant to increase from $6.50 per elder to $7 per elder, which is significant considering that it is a tight budget year and the COA has been advocating for this increase for the past two budgets.

In addition to that, Representative Bosley, the House Chair of the Regional Transit Authorities Caucus, alongside the entire western Massachusetts delegation, secured $57,888,391 for RTAs across the Commonwealth, a $2.6 million increase from FY ’08. This funding would ensure that proposed service reductions that threaten to affect consistent transportation and will allow RTAs to provide quality, reliable and cost-effective service for seniors, workers, the disabled and the general public.

In addition to that, $50,000 was earmarked for public safety on the Deerfield and Upper Connecticut River. The main intent of this earmark is to protect property owners along the river in the Town of Charlemont. With two major rafting companies and multiple places to launch a raft or tube, there have been issues of trespassing and property damage to those who reside on the river. These funds will be used in conjunction with the Charlemont Police Department.

Representative Bosley, working with members of the Aviation Caucus, was able to assure that the budget language repealing the aircraft sales tax exemption was not included in the final conference committee budget. Bosley was the original sponsor of the legislation establishing the exemption. The exemption has been a catalyst for economic development throughout the state and is especially important for Harriman And West Airport in North Adams and the related companies and jobs that support it.

Finally, through the efforts of the Berkshire Delegation, the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation received $250,000 to continue leading the Berkshire region in economic development initiatives as a vital tool for small businesses inquiring about expansion, relocation or start-up.

According to Bosley, “considering the projected economic recession looming for the next few years, this was a particularly tight budget year for the Commonwealth. In spite of this, Berkshire County faired well and I am pleased that many programs received level or increased funding.”

In addition to those achievements, Representative Bosley and the other members of the Berkshire delegation – Representative Smitty Pignatelli (D-Lenox), Representative Denis Guyer (D-Dalton) and Representative Chris Speranzo (D-Pittsfield) - were able to secure funding for the following local and statewide programs that directly affect the Berkshires:

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $42,000 to help fund the Turner House Living Center For Veterans in Williamstown

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $200,000 for the Western MA Enterprise Fund to provide workforce training in Western MA

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $30,101,348 for Adult Basic Education, an increase of $1,000,000 from FY ’08

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $200,000 for the Bay State Games which is crucial funding for the annual events held in Williamstown and North Berkshire County

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $200,000 for the North Quabbin Community Coalition for the support and implementation of four model community coalitions and community capacity building activities, of which the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition is involved.

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $200,000 for the Small Business Association of New England’s layoff aversion program

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $1,260,697 for the Small Business Technical Assistance program, which offers community development organizations grants to provide technical assistance or training programs to businesses with 20 employees or fewer

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $14,465,462 for the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, an increase of $564,462 from FY ’08. In that amount, a total of $350,000 is for the Berkshire Wireless Learning Initiative, and of that, $100,000 is allocated for the Berkshire Compact, which assesses and evaluates the higher education resources available to Berkshire County residents

· The Berkshire Delegation was able to secure $9,456,459 for Berkshire Community College, an increase of $295,520 from FY’08

· Rep. Bosley was able to secure $6.5 million for the Cultural Facilities Fund, which provides capital grants and feasibility and technical assistance grants to promote the acquisition, design, repair, rehabilitation, renovation, expansion, or construction of nonprofit cultural facilities in Massachusetts. Since its inception in 2006, many cultural organizations in the Berkshires have been fortunate to receive grants from the program.

· The Berkshire Delegation was able to secure $75,000 for the Berkshire County Housing Authority’s Housing Services and Mediation Program

· Working with the lead sponsor, Represenative Guyer, $61,300,000 was secured for regional school transportation, an increase of $3,000,000 from FY ’08

In addition to those achievements, Representative Bosley worked alongside the entire Franklin County Delegation to secure funding for other important local and statewide programs, including:

· The Franklin County Delegation was able to secure $200,000 for the Western MA Enterprise Fund to provide workforce training in Western MA

· Working with the lead sponsor, Representative Kulik, $200,000 was secured for Buy Local programs across the Commonwealth

· Working with the lead sponsor, Representative Kulik, $50,000 was secured for the Senior Farm Share Program

· The Franklin County Delegation was able to secure $5,500,000 for the Education Pothole account to fill in inadequacies in the budget

The final Conference Committee Report will be sent to the Governor.

Happy Birthday America

2008-07-04T08:03:00.002-04:00

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

hen in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Corporate Tax Reform

2008-07-03T22:47:00.004-04:00

This week the Conference Committee on the Combined Corporate Tax Reform issued it's report and the Legislature has sent the bill to the Governor's desk. It is a pretty good bill that will raise revenues for the Commonwealth, create a tax system that will tax in a fairer manner, and give corporations some long term relief from rates in out years.

Much has been written about the so-called Bosley Amendment to the bill. Most of this was kept in the final version of the bill. Water edge election, Fas 109 changes, as well as taking discretion from the Department of Revenue that make tax policy more transparent and predictable are all in the bill. The only major piece of the amendment missing was the 80-20 provision. That was a disappointment, but as a whole, the conference committee did a good job at separating fact from fiction and did a very good job.

Since the Boston Globe wrote an editorial this week concerning the 80-20 provision that contained a great deal of information that was either not true or misconstrued, I wrote the following letter to members of the House. For further info concerning the corporate tax reform, there are previous posts here discussing the bill.

Dear Colleagues,

In response to today’s Boston Globe editorial regarding the corporate tax reform bill,
currently in conference committee, I would like to offer some further observations
regarding the bill.

Leaders in the Senate, House, and Administration agreed upon the water’s edge provision
in the bill – whereby the taxable income of a unitary group is computed based on their
business within the continental United States. Also agreed upon was an 80/20 provision
– something that numerous other states practice – that simply clarifies that a unitary
group that has 80% or more of its payroll, sales, and property outside of the United States
is not subject to state taxes.

The language in the House version of the bill was drafted to accomplish two goals. The
first is to try to avoid any negative interference that our state tax policy may have on
international trade agreements or tax treatises. If, for example, we did not institute a
water’s edge provision and began to identify taxable income of a unitary group that a
European government also identified as taxable income, it would be difficult for both
parties to avoid reactionary public policy that may negatively affect trade agreements or
diplomatic relations. This would inevitably lead to lengthy and costly lawsuits,
effectively negating any increase in revenues that the state may be able to collect by
including foreign profits as taxable income. This would also not be a positive
development in a time when the Commonwealth is trying to compete on a global scale
with significant investments in the life sciences and clean energy.

The second goal of the house language regarding the water’s edge provision is to ensure
that there is no discrimination solely based on where a company is incorporated by
adopting language that only includes water’s edge income without regard to where the
taxpayer is incorporated. The House language simply abides by the agreed upon water’s
edge principle by making sure that income earned overseas will not be taxed in
Massachusetts simply because the corporation is incorporated somewhere in the United
States. For example, a company incorporated in France with 80% of its payroll, property,
and sales there would be exempt, yet a company incorporated in any state with the same
80% of its payroll, property, and sales in France would be taxed in Massachusetts. The
House language levels the playing field by removing the incentive to incorporate abroad
by assessing taxation based on the agreed 80/20 provision and apportionment formula,
not the location of incorporation.

Today’s Globe article, using figures presented by the Department of Revenue, asserts that
by including the House water’s edge language, the state could be losing a significant
amount of potential tax revenue due to a perceived tendency by corporations to establish
foreign subsidiaries to represent 80% of their payroll, sales, and property so as to avoid
state taxes. DOR uses the state of Minnesota as an example and extrapolates their
revenue loss estimates due to the use of 80/20 in that state by simply multiplying the
recorded revenue effect in Minnesota by how much larger the Massachusetts economy is
in comparison (DOR estimates one third larger). They come up with a potential loss for
Massachusetts state revenues of $140-$170 million. Aside from the significantly
anecdotal nature of this analysis, the state of Minnesota also did not share the same
apportionment provision in their combined reporting, using only property and payroll to
calculate taxable income rather than property, payroll, and sales as is proposed in the
House language. DOR compared apples to oranges. Minnesota has since changed their
apportionment formula to include all three factors and have found that their revenue
projections for the next three fiscal years do not record a loss, but rather a significant gain
in state tax revenues from their new water’s edge provision using the three pronged
apportionment - $95.9 million in FY09, $75.7 million in FY10, and $78.3 million in
FY11.

In addition, the example of Illinois’ experience with Wal-Mart where the company made
an attempt to consolidate its taxable income on foreign soil and thus keep the state of
Illinois from collecting over $25 million in state taxes is misleading. Wal-Mart paid the
state of Illinois the $26.4 million in taxes/fees that it owed, subsequently appealed the
state’s decision, and lost. Essentially, they were caught with their hand in the cookie jar
and paid up. Their ability to regulate their state tax laws is the same that would exist for
the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. Were a similar situation to arise in the
Commonwealth, DOR already has the ability to pursue corporate tax evasion should it
arise. In fact, the House language strengthens this ability because it establishes
transparent and predictable tax law for companies, so that there is no misunderstanding as
to how companies are supposed to interact with and pay the state.

The Globe’s editorial says, “Closing the loopholes carved out by big corporations’ tax
attorneys can offset the revenue loss from a lower rate and generate additional funds to
cover the rising cost of healthcare, education, and infrastructure maintenance. Plus it is
the fair thing to do.” The truth is that eliminating the water’s edge provision, as it is
written in the House, and providing DOR with the overarching discretion that the
Administration has called for, is a way for the state to raise money by going after the
business community. The Administration’s version of this bill does not address the
question of fairness, but rather the question of how much money the state can squeeze out
of the business community. The Administration’s version of the bill gives DOR overly
broad discretion to reach back and interpret the regulations for combined reporting on a
case-by-case basis. This makes the state an unattractive place to do business, because a
lack of predictable tax regulation makes it very difficult to project long-term costs,
profits, employment, and sales. The House combined reporting language provides
taxpayers with long term clarity, removes DOR from policy decisions, and strengthens
their ability to regulate our state’s tax policy.

I look forward to working with you on this important matter. Please do not hesitate to
contact my office with any questions or concerns that you may have.

Sincerely yours,

Daniel E. Bosley
Chairman
Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies

Berkshire Eagle Editorial

2008-06-13T20:38:00.001-04:00

This is my op-ed piece from June 13, 2008.

The Berkshire Eagle has editorialized a number of times in the past that the 1997 electricity deregulation legislation has been a failure. Nothing could be further from the truth. The legislation intended to lower the cost of energy, invest in renewable and clean energy resources, bolster the reliability of the state's electricity infrastructure, and strengthen consumer protection and education.

The Division of Energy Resources (DOER) estimates that Massachusetts consumers have saved $5 billion due to deregulation when compared to where prices would currently be had the state not implemented electricity restructuring. This amount couples the initial mandated 15% rate reduction for all customers plus the benefit of 9000 megawatts (MW) of new energy supply in the New England region that was encouraged by the move to retail market competition. This new capacity includes 450 projects in renewable energy and energy efficiency over the past ten years, funded by the Renewable Energy Trust Fund (RETF), an entity created in the 1997 legislation. These projects represent over 236.4 MW of renewable energy projects in Massachusetts, enough electricity to power 236,000 homes throughout the state each year. In addition to this direct investment in renewable energy, the restructuring act paved the way for energy efficiency and renewable energy to be introduced into active energy markets. This resulted in further investment in these energy sources, a decrease in the state’s reliability on fossil fuels, and reinforced the reliability of the entire grid.

In just the past decade, digital televisions, bigger homes with central air conditioning, faster computers, and all encompassing cell phones have changed the amount of electricity we consume. Demand for electricity in the New England region is rising at a 500MW per year rate. The restructuring act established strong consumer education and outreach mechanisms to help deal with this growth in demand. DOER and RETF have extensive public education platforms that they use to better educate consumers on their options for electricity service as well as state programs to increase energy efficiency and develop their own small scale renewable projects. In addition, the restructuring act requires electricity providers to ensure the transparency of the terms of service for each customer - allowing individual families and businesses to consider their levels of electricity consumption based on efficient and transparent information.

While electricity prices remain relatively high throughout the state, this is due much more to soaring prices of natural gas and oil - factors beyond individual state control - and the Commonwealth's lack of diversity in energy generation sources, than it is to the deregulation of the market. That being said, the state can and will do more. The restructuring act has saved ratepayers billions of dollars that would have otherwise been lost under a vertically integrated system. However, despite its success in doing so, the 1997 restructuring act was never meant to be a silver bullet for lowering energy costs – it was meant as a first step. Increasing reliability, educating ratepayers, lowering costs, and protecting our environment are all ongoing goals for energy policy in Massachusetts. The restructuring act was the successful beginning of a long process, one that has brought us to numerous clean energy legislative initiatives this session. We are building on the momentum of the 1997 legislation by instituting the Speaker's green energy bill, which will further bolster the clean energy industry by significantly increasing the amount of renewable energy and energy efficiency that electricity companies are required to provide to their customers. It also empowers individuals and businesses by strengthening consumer education and choice, through initiatives like the SMART meter pilot program and net metering. Furthermore, we are currently working on a green jobs bill that will parlay our continued emphasis on clean and renewable energy into good paying jobs for Massachusetts residents throughout the state. Had we not done the 1997 electricity restructuring act, there is no way that we would be on the cusp of the groundbreaking energy legislation that will be passed this session, reinforcing the Commonwealth's status as a world leader in creative and innovative public policy.

Dairy Farms

2008-05-20T08:32:00.003-04:00

When I first took office in 1987, there were approximately 800 dairy farms in Massachusetts supplying all of the milk demand in the state. Today there are about 165 farms left and they produce about 6-7% of demand. Milk pricing is one of the most regulated industries in America. At a time when we are witnessing huge price increases in the cost of milk at the store, the payment to dairy farmers in dropping almost as fast. As the price goes down, the cost of production has gone up as farmers are struggling with higher costs. We have seen the price of fuel increase dramatically and the cost of feed has gone through the roof as corn is used for ethanol as opposed to feedstock. This is particularly frustrating as corn is not a good fuel stock. So while 25% of the corn crops are diverted from feed to fuel, it is less than 1% of our fuel supply.

Last year, the Legislature passed a bill to establish a commission on dairy farms. The administration, Legislature, and industry issued a report earlier this year that recommended a series of reforms and changes that would benefit the industry. I understand that the Senate is taking this up soon and I hope that the House follows soon thereafter in order to stabilize this industry. It is essential that we keep some milk production in state as this shores up the regional industry as well as give us a fresh milk supply. It also saves thousands of acres of open space and water recharge areas. Not only that, but it preserves an historic industry and a way of life in many small towns.
The picture attached is one that I took on a small farm in Hawley (pop. 336). I call it "Hide and Go Moo".

Life Science update

2008-05-20T08:23:00.002-04:00

The Life Science bill will be out shortly. Sen. Jack Hart and I have been working diligently to put together a strong bill for Massachusetts. I will post more about this soon. There was a story in the Boston Globe today about some concerns from the industry that Legislative earmarks may have weakened the bill. Two points on this: First, if we weren't diligent and gave some direction while spending one billion dollars of the taxpayer's money, the story would have been that we were just throwing a pile of money at the industry with no safeguards that the money would be spent in the public interest. Second, almost everyone who was quoted in the story as voicing concerns over earmarks had asked us to earmark money in this bill or previous bills.

More to come shortly as we work to get this done before the upcoming bio conference in San Diego.

River Lights

2008-04-28T09:04:00.003-04:00

Here in the North Berkshire community, we are pretty proud of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMoCA). It has inspired a lot of artists to come to this area and our offerings grow every year. This past Saturday night, there was an exhibit along the Hoosac River as it wends past the museum. Artist Ralph Brill and others came together to light up the river area. Here are a few of the pictures I took from this. In one, LED lights are changing colors and netting strung across the river catches the radiance. In another, lights behind a screen catch the ripples on the screening like it caught the ripples of the water. It was very interesting and beautiful. I should say that the pictures don't do justice to the exhibits. You really had to see the movement, witness change of colors, and hear the river. But they give you a taste of what we saw.

Moreover, there were hundreds of people out on this early spring night, catching the artwork and catching up with one another. It was a great event that I hope grows each year. Congratulations to everyone who worked on this project.

Tax Policy

2008-04-28T07:58:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago, the House of Representatives passed a tax measure that created a system of combined reporting for corporate tax payments and a system called "check the box" as a determinate as to how one files in Massachusetts in the same manner as their federal tax filings. It also, over a number of years, lowered the corporate tax rate. This would do two things. It would provide a boost in state revenues this year and it would give in-state corporations a tax break over a number of years while eventually getting to a rate that was revenue neutral.

I filed an amendment to this that gave some specificity and predictability to the bill. I didn't think it would be very controversial. It was not meant to advantage the state or corporations as to the tax filings, but was meant to give everyone a clear understanding of what was expected of them. Well, I was wrong. There has been a tremendous amount of controversy over this amendment. That is unfortunate as I believe that we need corporations to pay their share in taxes, but we need a system where everyone knows what the rules are.

I have heard that this amendment was passed in the "dead of night". The amendment was filed along with other amendments early in the day and as a matter of fact, I was asked about it throughout the day's deliberations. A large number of progressive legislators sat in the Speaker's office along with the chairman of the Revenue Committee and myself and had a lengthy discussion of this bill. I was ready to debate or explain this if necessary on the floor, and we knew that if there were questions, the Senate had yet to take this bill up and we would have plenty of time to work on any issues before a bill was enacted into law.

I have read all sorts of comments on this since, mostly on blogs, but also email and newspaper comments. Much of what I have read isn't true. Corporate tax policy is very complex and arcane. There are no "loopholes" in the law, only tax policy. When we reform policy in an area that is so complicated, it isn't easy and a lot of issues surface. In this instance, we layered tax policy on top of existing tax policy and that has many different ripple effects on existing tax policy elsewhere in the statutes. We need to account for this. That is what I attempted to do in my amendment. The following is a reply to a post on Massachusetts Liberal's blog site. I don't know who the blogger is who runs this site, but he or she is fair and intelligent. This is my reply to their post on this issue.

“There are three basic arguments that I will try to make as succinctly as possible. That said, this is corporate tax policy and it is incredibly complex and arcane. That is one of the problems. We had an opportunity to change our tax policy, closing opportunities to game the system while making it much fairer and simpler through the tax commission, but that was not to be. So what we are now attempting to do is place a combined reporting statute on top of all other tax law in Massachusetts and it is a difficult fit.

I had no idea that this would be controversial. It was an amendment was in the hands of the clerk all day long and no one raised any objections until late in the day. And it is an amendment that seeks, not to give business or the Department of Revenue (DOR) an advantage over the overall goals of the legislation, but seeks to provide specificity to the policy therein. Most businesses that I have talked to have thrown up their hands and said that they understand that combined reporting is coming. But they aren’t sure what that means, as there are no specifics behind the original proposal. That troubles them and troubles me as it gives enormous power to DOR to set not just regulations over tax collection, but over tax policy. That concerned me and many of my colleagues in the House. I was attempting to provide transparency and predictability to our combined reporting bill. Now to the three issues:

First, there are very few tax attorneys among those who are criticizing this bill and we have heard a lot of rhetoric. Take, for instance, the Wall Street Journal article concerning Wal-Mart. What is lost in the rhetoric is that Illinois disallowed this tax shelter scheme and collected the taxes from Wal-Mart. It is now in court and I believe that Illinois will win. My amendment states that the corporation can claim 80-20 foreign status if 80% of their receipts, payroll, or property is sourced outside the US. In a state where we go after income derived in state from out of state taxpayers that may have made money here, I doubt we are going to accept that a foreign “paper” corporation is the source of payroll, receipts and property located within the boundaries of the state, or the country under combined reporting. Also, this “safe harbor” for legitimate outside taxes that have no nexus under combined reporting is something that DOR agrees with in principle. They have, however, failed to suggest alternative language.

There are other reasons for placing some percentage within the bill. Other states have similar provisions. Some have suggested that foreign countries take a dim view of our going after taxes they think are rightfully theirs. It may cost us more in time, audits and personnel to go after the taxes than they are ultimately worth. There are other issues that have been raised, such as apportionment (which tries to get to the policy of apportioning tax from different states with different tax policies), but this seems to be the focus for everyone’s ire.

Second is my suspicion of DOR numbers. I am very leery of their numbers for good reason. In this bill, their revenue figure for the administration’s proposal was tens of millions greater than their figure for House generated revenues even though the language of the bill was identical coming out of committee! This is not the first time this has happened, raising, I think, legitimate questions about their numbers. In the Life Science bill, my committee asked for an analysis of extending the Governor’s tax breaks without the yearly limitations included in his bill. We asked several times and were told they could not answer the question nor should they as the Governor’s bill limited tax credits to $25 million per year. Not only is it not their role to refuse a request based on policy, but it calls into question the honesty in delivering numbers in a timely and accurate manner. After being requested again by House Ways and Means, a report was sent to us on the effect of the administration’s suggested tax credits. In looking at the numbers, it was immediately apparent that the numbers were suspect. One company had given us a figure, based on their tax liability that was larger than the DOR number for every life science company eligible for this credit. The second set of numbers we received were just as bad. I believe that the Department of Revenue based on their responses, is more interested in setting policy than enforcing it. It is the responsibility of the Governor and the Legislature to set tax policy. The Department of Revenue should provide revenue analysis that is not tainted by politics or policy. In these cases, it appears that this may not be the case and that troubles me. However, people shouldn’t take my numbers at face value either. I believe we need an independent budget office to give us honest estimates without political pressure from any side. We need an office like the Congressional Budget Office – bipartisan and independent to study all our fiscal and revenue proposals for their cost and financial impact. This is the only way we can get numbers that are beyond question.

Third, it is clear to me that this issue is not about tax fairness, but increased taxes. If that is the issue, we should stop using the words “closing tax loopholes” and have an honest discussion on what a fair tax is for corporations. But that discussion should also be about what we want our economy to look like. If we are closing tax loopholes, should we open another seven of them in the life science bill? More importantly, we need to look at corporate tax policy in the context of cost here in Massachusetts. I hear very few businesses complain about taxes in Massachusetts. But we have the highest electric rates in the continental United States, the highest health care costs, the second highest unemployment insurance rates, much higher than US average wage rates, land development costs, regulatory costs, housing costs and transportation costs to name some of the factors of doing business in Massachusetts. We are still down over 90,000 jobs behind our 2000 figures and we are making it increasingly difficult to do business here. We need to take that into account.

A good friend of mine who passed away many years ago used to ask me, “Is it the first straw or the last straw that broke the camel’s back? It is the synergistic accumulation of straw.” If we pass this bill without clarification and predictability, business will not pack up en masse and leave the state. But they will make decisions based on what their costs are in other states versus the ability to be successful here. That is a shame as there are a lot of good reasons to build a business here. But we never get to those reasons as our above the line costs make decisions easy for firms to locate elsewhere. I am not suggesting that we roll back taxes for businesses. I am suggesting that we should be intelligent with our tax policy and if we are going to tax businesses with increased policy such as combined reporting, we let them know what the rules are with precision, specificity, predictability, and transparency. After closing “loopholes” several times over the last four years, we need to let the business community have a level of comfort that they can plan based on the law. That was the amendment that I filed attempted to do.”

The entire post can be seen here: http://baystateliberal.blogspot.com/

South Africa

2008-04-13T12:38:00.003-04:00

One of the most incredible places I have been is South Africa. The people were wonderful and the scenery was magnificent. I was there on an international trade mission with the Council of State Governments a few years ago with Gov. Ruth Ann Minner of Delaware, Anthony Brown, who is now the Lt. Governor of Maryland, Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden, and many others. We met with federal officials in Pretoria, and with state officials in KwaZulu Natal. We met with officials at McCord Hospital in Durban concerning health problems in South Africa. HIV/AIDs is epidemic in KwaZulu Natal and the people at McCord are working to find ways to treat and educate people on health issues. It is a huge task that they tackle with great resolve and compassion. In Cape Town, we met at the American Consulate and found how the US was trying to help the new post-apartheid government.

Massachusetts has a sister province relationship with the East Cape Province that looks at long term goals of strengthening both parties. Massachusetts is trying to bring health care solutions, among other goals, to this very poor area. South African Partners, a non-profit in Boston has been working very hard to bring these two areas together and coordinate our efforts in Massachusetts.

This is one of the most amazing trips I have been on. Everyone I met wanted to learn and be given the tools to help each other. It was an emotional trip to a beautiful country. For all that we, as state officials could give in technical advice on how to govern or what trade opportunities there are for South Africa, I felt we received so much more in return by learning about human nature. There was such a wonderful grace and resolve in the people that we met. It was inspirational.

While in KwaZulu Natal, we met provincial officials at the Phinda game reserve. We were there for almost two days. Very early in the morning or late in the day, we took rides throughout the reserve to see some of the native land. These are a few pictures of the animals that we saw.

The Creative Economy

2008-04-12T21:57:00.007-04:00

I have been doing a lot of work over the last few years on the "creative economy". Everyone seems to have a different opinion on the definition of the term creative economy and a lot has been written about these. While many feel that this encompasses our cultural facilities and outlets, I feel that the term is far more expansive than just our artistic community. Clearly this is part of it, but we have been very creative in our economy since the beginning of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. We don't have natural resources such as oil fields or precious metals. We don't have vast expansive corn or wheat fields. What we have are more colleges and universities than anywhere else on a per capita basis. We have used our ability to be creative and innovative to spur a creative economy in Massachusetts. That has been good for us.

In the health care field, we (the citizens of Massachusetts) created the first vaccine in the 1790's. Mass. General Hospital was the first to use a general anesthesia. We played a large part in mapping the human genome and have the largest cluster of life science companies in the US. Recently, UMass professor Craig Mello was awarded a Nobel Prize for his work on RNAi. This is phenomenal.

In the field of telecommunications, we have the telephone being invented in Boston and the first commercial use of fiber optics. We also saw the invention of the power transformer, first mutual fund, first safety match, first computer (Dr. Vannevar Bush at MIT, no relation) and much much more. We are number one in the number of small business innovation research grants per capita in the US, and we have the greatest number of patents filed per capita in the nation.

It is our ability to be innovative and creative that fuels our economy. I believe our educational institutions and our vast array of cultural facilities lead to this creativity.

There are two bills that I filed this year that, I believe, will help to keep this creative economy thriving. The first is a bill establishing a creative economic council within the Mass Office of Business Development (MOBD). The administration, to their credit, has already hired someone to lead this effort in anticipation of the bills passage. When the bill passes, it will establish an advisory board to help shape policy concerning the creative economy. The second bill establishes a working group within our educational system to develop a creativity index in our schools. I have every confidence that this bill will pass also. Not only should we encourage creativity, but also we need to identify best practices and spread these across all of our schools. I recently wrote an editorial in the Boston Globe with Dan Hunter, the executive director of the Massachusetts Advocates for the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities (MAASH). The following is that editorial. I believe this effort is as important as our push to improve our science and math skills. The hard sciences are important, but we have proven in Massachusetts time and again that our ability to innovate in these hard sciences is what drives our economy. I hope you enjoy the editorial.

Creative thinking in the classroom

The following appeared in the Boston Globe on February 23, 2008

Op-Ed by Dan Bosley and Dan Hunter

All the third-graders at Chase Street School in Somerset were on the floor under their desks - painting. They had been studying the Renaissance and the works of Michelangelo. And now the children were painting their own vision, Michelangelo-style.

Years from now, will they remember the facts of the Renaissance, facts that can be measured by a standardized test? Or will they remember how it felt to be in Michelangelo's skin and the challenge of articulating their individual vision?

They are likely to remember the art of creativity, something that is not measured on today's standardized tests.

Standardized tests use individual student performances to provide one measure of school achievement. This is valuable. But, because the tests are the only public measure of school success, schools have an incentive to "teach to the test" and to educate children to be test takers.

Is this all children need to learn? Are we adequately preparing them for the future? We have moved into an economy driven by ideas and innovation. Are we giving students the opportunity to develop creativity - the ability to generate ideas and then to critically evaluate potential?

According to a coalition of researchers, 81 percent of corporate leaders in America say that "creativity is an essential skill for the 21st-century workforce." In addition to creativity, these business leaders look for such skills as collaboration, problem solving, critical thinking, and oral communication.

We have proposed a bill that creates a new measure of accountability for schools in Massachusetts. With the Creative Challenge Index, a commission - comprising legislators, and business and community leaders working with the Department of Education and education leaders - would establish an index to measure how many opportunities schools provide for students to engage in the practice of creative work - taking a project from inspiration to revision to fruition. Through the index, schools can be rewarded for creative opportunities.

Schools that provide opportunities for creative work in the arts, music, drama, and dance would rise in the Index. So would schools that engage students in a broad range of creative activities, such as science fair projects, debate club, fashion design, filmmaking, or architecture.

The Creative Challenge Index would establish incentives for schools to foster creative skills through arts education and other innovative educational opportunities.

Students need this practice not only to succeed in our new economy, but to realize their potential as human beings. Indeed, many citizens value arts education and the practice of creativity.

"Coming from a technical job function, creativity is part of the essence of what we have our employee performance reviews based upon," said Nancy L. Barnes a logistics engineering technical manager. "The concept of 'creativity' stems from being able to explore in an art medium at a younger age and continuing to foster those skills throughout a child's 12 years in school."

Stephen McNulty, a Boston police officer, said, "All the aspects of music performance have transferred as critical skills. It also gave me the adaptability and confidence to succeed in this very different career. Everyone should have such an opportunity. Who would have thought that my choir director and music teacher would have such a profound effect on my life?"

John Langton of Waltham said, "I'm a computer scientist and work in R & D. Many of the skills necessary in the workforce require the ability to think creatively and constructively. The ability to write well and perform creative problem solving is indispensable in the real world, and intrinsically artistic."

Creativity is indispensable in today's world. Children need to practice creative skills in schools to become the source of innovation to drive the economy in the future. The Legislature should pass the Creative Challenge Index.

To be creative means asking, "How do you see the world and how do you see it in a way that no one else does?" Those questions lead to innovation - whether you are Michelangelo working under the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel or a Somerset third-grader painting under your desk.