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THE EVERETT ADVOCATE–Friday, November 1, 2019 Page 25 cal Year 2019,” said Sen. Mike Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “While bolstering our Rainy Day Fund, we make a number of meaningful investments to increase educational opportunity, improve our state’s aging infrastructure, confront worsening congestion, reduce our carbon footprint and address public health issues relative to Eastern equine encephalitis.” A 6-member House-Senate conTHE HOUSE AND SENATE. Beacon Hill Roll Call records the votes of local representatives and senators from the week of October 21-25. SUBSCRIBE TO MASSTERLIST – IT’S FREE! Join more than 17,000 other people from movers and shakers to political junkies and interested citizens who start their mornings with a copy of MASSterList! MASSterList is a daily ensemble of news and commentary about the Legislature, Politics, Media and Judiciary of Massachusetts drawn from major news organizations as well as specialized publications selected by widely acclaimed and highly experienced editor Jay Fitzgerald. Jay introduces each article in his own clever and never-boring, inimitable way. Go to: www.massterlist.com/subscribe Type in your e-mail address and in 15 seconds you will be signed up for a free subscription. With no strings attached. $1 BILLION PLUS FOR EDUCATION (H 4157) House 155-0, approved the Student Opportunity Act that invests $1.5 billion, mostly in the form of Chapter 70 Aid for local school districts, in the state's public K-12 education system over the next seven years. The measure implements the recommendations of the Foundation Budget Review Commission which found the state was underfunding schools by more than $1 billion annually. “I am proud of the bill passed in the House as it is the result of countless hours of research, analysis and input from all stakeholders in the education field," said Education Committee chair Rep. Alice Peisch (D-Wellesley). “This bill ensures that students across the commonwealth have access to the tools necessary for academic and post-secondary success. It is a massive step toward a more equitable funding structure, which will provide the additional resources necessary to level the playing field.” “The new funding will mean smaller class sizes, more enrichment programs and electives, an increase in guidance services, more classroom aides, improved programs for English learners and special education students and greater ability for districts to foster caring, effective, innovative schools,” said Mass Teachers’ Association President Merrie Najimy. The Senate has approved a different version of the $1 billion plus package and a House-Senate conference committee will eventually hammer out a compromise version that wIll be approved by both branches and sent off to Gov. Baker. (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Rep. Joseph McGonagle Yes FREE FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN (H 4157) House 7-147, rejected an amendment that would provide grants to cities and towns to support the establishment of free full-day kindergarten programs in schools that do not offer it for free, and to support schools at a financial risk of losing an existing free full-day kindergarten program. Amendment supporters said a similar grant program was in effect from 2000 to 2017 but was then eliminated when state tax revenue went down $600 million. They said that gutting the grants left 83 percent of districts with free all-day kindergarten and 17 percent without it. They said the amendment is designed to ensure that every child in every school district has access to free all-day kindergarten. Amendment opponents said the grant program was intended to be transitional, not permanent. They noted that 17 percent of districts that were not offering full-day programs were doing it for reasons that were particular to their districts. They tended to be able to offer full-day programs but chose not to do so. (A “Yes” vote is for the grant program. A “No” vote is against it.) Rep. Joseph McGonagle No $780 MILLION BUDGET (S 2378) Senate 39-0, approved a $780 million fiscal 2020 supplemental budget to cover expenses and to fund various state programs and agencies that are running out of money. The package also sets the state's next primary election before Labor Day by making it on Sept. 1, 2020 and allows for five days of early voting ahead of the primary; allows farmers to cultivate hemp on land with agricultural preservation restrictions; and transfers $356 million to the state’s stabilization fund that would jump to $3.2 The Senate version costs $50 million more than the one recently approved by the House and unlike the House bill, does not decouple the Bay State from the federal tax code to allow corporate interest deductions. It also does not include $5 million the governor sought to fight fentanyl trafficking. “With today’s passage of this supplemental budget, the Senate is responsibly closing the books on Fisference committee will hammer out a compromise version of the budget that will be approved by both branches and will go to Gov. Baker’s desk. (A “Yes” vote is for the budget.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico Yes $250,000 FOR VISITOR INFORMATION CENTERS (S 2378) Senate 9-30, rejected an amendment providing $250,000 for the 11 Massachusetts visitor information centers. Amendment supporters said these centers are important places where visitors and tourists go to get information while staying in the Bay State. They argued the centers facilitate commerce and generate revenue for the state. Amendment opponents said the amendment is well-intentioned but noted that the House must hold the line on additional spending if it wants to put away money in the State’s Rainy Day Fund. They noted that there are other boosts for tourism in the budget including a $1.2 million increase in funding for regional tourism councils. (A “Yes” vote is for the $250,000. A “No” vote is against it.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico No $200,000 FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN’S HEALTH (S 2378) Senate 38-1, approved an amendment providing $200,000 for the Silent Spring Institute for research on links between environmental chemicals and women and children’s health. Amendment supporters said the Institute was created to examine elevated breast cancer rates on Cape Cod. They said the research is very important for Massachusetts residents who have elevated breast cancer risks because there are toxins in the environment. “I have a long-standing policy of opposing [earmarks],” said Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz (D-Boston) who opposed the amendment. “While some earmarks benefit wonderful organizations, overall I believe earmarking hurts our ability to plan long-term fiscal policy and undermines opportunities for fair, transparent, rigorous allocation of taxpayers’ dollars. I find other ways to go to bat for great organizations and causes." (A “Yes” vote is for the $200,000. A “No” vote is against it.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico Yes DOUBLE DEPENDENT TAX CREDIT (S 2378) Senate 10-28, rejected an amendment that would double a dependent tax credit, from $1,000 per year to $2,000, for families with children and those who care for an elderly or disabled relative. The break was first proposed by Gov. Charlie Baker in his version of a supplemental budget but was stripped from the House and Senate versions of the budget. Amendment supporters said the state has a more than $1 billion surplus and can afford to help working families with a reasonable tax cut. “A taxpayer with two children and a dependent elderly parent would be eligible for a $6,000 exemption under this proposal, up from $3,000, with tax savings rising from $150 to $300,” said Baker when he filed the proposal back in September. “This change is expected to reduce tax collections by $87 million per year and I recommend reserving $175 million to cover approximately two years at the higher exemption rate, which will give budget writers sufficient time to adjust to the revision in collections.’ Amendment opponents said it is not a good idea to implement a tax cut when the economy is flourishing. They argued when the state has excess revenues, the money should put it away in the Rainy Day Fund so it will be there when the economy eventually tanks. (A “Yes” vote is for the tax cut. A “No” vote is against it.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico No HOW LONG WAS LAST WEEK'S SESSION? Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature's job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session. During the week of October 2125, the House met for a total of 14 hours and 15 minutes while the Senate met for a total of seven hours and 20 minutes. Mon. Oct. 21 House 11:01 a.m. to 2:50 p.m. Senate 11:06 a.m. to 1:09 p.m. Tues. Oct. 22 No House session Wed. Oct. 23 House 11:02 a.m. to 9:21 p.m. Thurs. Oct. 24 House 11:02 a.m. to 11:09 a.m. Fri. Oct. 25 No House session No Senate session No Senate session Senate 1:21 p.m. to 6:38 p.m. No Senate session Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com

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