Birds are chirping, my daffodils popped up (finally), and I busted out my tevas for the first time this year, which can only mean one thing:
It’s budget season in beautiful Massachusetts.
Despite a record sleepy start to the legislative session (the legislature didn’t pass any bills until 3 months into the session), the House jolted awake this week. Within one day of each other, the House both passed a $1.1 billion tax cut bill that includes a handful of giveaways to the top 1% and corporations, and released their long-anticipated budget proposal.
Frankly, I think I liked it better when they weren’t passing any bills.
State House Scoop
Tax cuts for wealthy & corporations pass Democratic supermajority-held House
Less than 48 hours after becoming public, the House passed a $1.1 billion tax cut bill (H.3770) on Thursday. Like Healey’s proposal, Speaker Mariano’s bill is an enormous giveaway to the top 1% and corporations, and crumbs for the rest of us. This bill passed with flying colors: 150-3. You can see how your rep voted here, but I’ll save you the click: the three reps who bravely voted against this disaster were Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven, Rep. Dan Sena, and Rep. Mike Connolly.
What’s in the tax cut bill
- Estate tax cut: This bill would double that estate tax threshold from $1 million to $2 million, benefitting just the wealthiest Massachusetts families. By raising the threshold for this tax on inherited wealth, our lawmakers are deepening the already atrocious racial wealth gap; one study in 2015 found that white families in MA have a median net worth of $247,500. Black families? $8.
- Short term capital gains tax cut: Just like in Healey’s proposal, this bill would slash the short term capital gains tax from 12% to 5%. This cut costs taxpayers $130 million annually, which goes right into the pockets of wealthy day traders.
- Tax cut for multi-state businesses: Not only did the Speaker keep most of Healey’s giveaways to the rich, he also added a new one: a tax cut for multi-state businesses, costing $79 million/year. The coalition who successfully lobbied for this cut includes Citizens Bank, Santander US, BNY Mellon, and Dunkin. I agree Mr. Speaker–giant corporations have had it too hard in this country for too long!
- Luckily, there are some good elements of this bill as well. Namely, it reforms the Reagan-era tax rebate law known as 62f: instead of returning surplus revenue back to taxpayers in the proportion they paid in (i.e. millionaires get a huge payday), this bill would amend the law such that these rebates are paid out evenly among taxpayers–a huge step in the right direction. The bill also includes modest tax breaks for renters, seniors, and families with dependents. But then again, why not make the whole package focused on relief for the people who need it most, rather than rich people and corporations? Instead of spending millions on tax cuts that benefit big businesses and stock traders, why not invest in public transportation, affordable housing, and healthcare?
A note on process
If this tax package doesn’t reflect your views and values, friend, there’s a distinct reason for that: it wasn't supposed to.
- This bill never had a public hearing. Gov Healey’s tax plan received a ton of input from the public during hearings--most of which opposed her tax cuts for the wealthy. However, the committee who held those hearings appears to have had no formal role in drafting Mariano’s bill. What was all that testimony for?
- We don’t have a record of the committee vote. House Ways and Means gave reps 60 minutes to vote on sending the bill to the floor. 24 reps voted favorably, and 8 reps withheld their votes. Who did what? We’ll never know–the House won’t give us their names.
- This bill was rushed to the floor in 48 hours. Lawmakers and the public had less than two days to read this $1.1 billion bill, and mere hours to consult with constituents and advocates before drafting and filing amendments to it. This is deliberate: the less time between the release of a bill and the vote, the harder it is to fight it.
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House unveils budget proposal
When the Governor released her budget proposal last month, we spent weeks decoding the bill and picking out the not-bad, the bad, and the downright atrocious. The House unveiled their version of the budget on Wednesday, and there are definitely some not-bad things in there! But it’s still early; the budget process is long and convoluted, and we expect 1,000+ amendments to be proposed before the House actually votes on the budget later this month. We’ll have ongoing coverage as the budget continues to evolve, but here are some things to watch for:
- No cost calls: The House is proposing making phone calls for people in state prisons and county jails free. The House took a step in the right direction by expanding upon Healey’s proposal to include country jails, and removing an arbitrary limit of 1,000 minutes per person per month. If it passes, this would be an enormous and hard-fought victory for criminal justice reform and abolitionist groups.
- Free school meals: Again going beyond Healey’s proposal, the House has proposed making the free school meals program permanent. This is also very good!
- Extending eviction protections: The budget revives Chapter 257, a pandemic-era policy that required eviction cases to be paused while a tenant has an application for rental assistance pending. The policy expired at the end of March, leaving folks vulnerable to eviction. The House could have acted upon this sooner to prevent unnecessary and unjust evictions, but it's better late than never.
- Fair Share Spending: The House opted to spend Fair Share revenue on funding higher ed scholarships and set aside another $69 million in capital investments for the MBTA. Both the Governor and the House have also proposed funding community colleges and means-tested fare funding for the T.
At Act on Mass, we love nuance. Just can’t get enough of it! To that end: there are some very real policy victories in here, and the advocates who fought for them should be extremely proud. At the same time, we could, and should, have so much more; the House spent 6xs more on tax cuts for the wealthy than on capital investments for the crumbling MBTA. If they're so worried about Massachusetts being "competitive" and an attractive place to live, wouldn't they want a public transit system that was safe and reliable? Wouldn't they want to make housing more affordable? Wouldn't they want the public colleges and universities to be fully-funded?
Where we go from here
As a wise man (and Yankee player, but we can forgive him) once said, it ain't over ‘till it's over. The tax cut bill now heads to the Senate. The House will vote on its budget the week of the 24th. After that, the budget heads to the Senate and finally the Governor’s desk. We’ll be keeping a sharp eye on these big pieces of legislation as they continue through the process, and will let you know what actions you can take along the way. Speaking of which…
Take Action
Contact your rep about their vote on the tax cut bill
If your rep was one of the 150 who voted in favor of tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, call and email their office to express your disappointment. Conversely, if your rep was one of the three who voted against it, be sure to reach out to thank them! You can find a call and email script here, or send a customizable prewritten email in just a few clicks here.
EMAIL YOUR REP ABOUT THEIR VOTE >>
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Thank you for making it all the way to the end of this meaty Scoop. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and have a very happy Patriots Day on Monday! If you're planning to watch the marathon, remember to bring an umbrella--it's supposed to rain. If you're planning to run the marathon, remember to... I dunno, stretch beforehand? Wouldn't know, the only time I run is to catch the T (especially since I know the next train won't come for another 30 minutes...).
That’s all for now! I'll be back in your inbox next week. For those of you celebrating this week and weekend, I hope you get to spend some time with loved ones.
Until next time,
Erin Leahy
Executive Director, Act on Mass
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