Page 12 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, November 12, 2021 Rep. Ultrino honored as Legislator of the Year by Mass. Assoc. of School Committees M alden State Representative Steven Ultrino was publicly honored at last Monday night’s Malden School Committee meeting. He was presented the Massachusetts Association of School Committees Legislator of the Year Award by Executive Director Glenn Koocher. Rep. Ultrino was also honored by receiving an official citation from the City of Malden and the Malden School Committee acknowledging his statewide honor. Members of the Malden School Committee, Supt. Ligia Noriega-Murphy and Massachusetts Association of School Committees Executive Director Glenn Koocher congratulating State Rep. Steven Ultrino. Shown, from left to right, are Koocher, School Committee Members Jennifer Spadafora, Leonard Iovino and John Froio, Supt. Ligia Noriega-Murphy, Assistant Supt. Emily Pena, Rep. Ultrino, School Committee Member Adam Weldai, Mayor/School Committee Chair Gary Christenson and School Committee Members Robert McCarthy, Jr., Michelle Luong and Joseph Gray. (Advocate Photos by Steve Freker) Rep. Clark releases new data on the Child Tax Credit’s impact on Massachusetts families U .S Representative Katherine Clark recently highlighted a new fact sheet from the U.S. Congress’s Joint Economic Committee that outlines how the Democrats’ Child Tax Credit (CTC) is already meeting the urgent needs of Massachusetts families by helping parents make ends meet and positioning the economy for stronger growth for generations to come. “The American Rescue Plan’s tax cut for families is working! This pandemic and its economic fallout have brought many Massachusetts families to their breaking point but since Democrats passed the American Rescue Plan last March, the extended Child Tax Credit – one of the largest tax cuts for families in U.S. history – has helped provide support to over 70,000 children in Massachusetts’ Fifth District,” said Clark. “Through the Build Back Better Act, House Democrats are continuing our work to help families and our economy to recover and thrive. The Child Tax Credit and the Build Back Better Act put the needs of families first and are key to building a just, inclusive, and equitable America.” In October, new CTC data shows, 72,000 children received payments totaling more than $24.3 million in the Fifth District. Another monthly payment will be sent on November 15. These successes prove the need to extend the expanded CTC through the Build Back Better Act. As outlined in a newly released White House fact sheet, the historic investments called for in the framework would bolster financial security and spur economic growth in Massachusetts by reducing taxes on the middle class and those striving to break into it. The American Rescue Plan was signed into law in March 2020 to help families recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Build Back Better Act extends the tax cut for families by continuing to provide families $300 per month per child under six or $250 per month per child ages six to 17. Critically, the Build Back Better Act also includes permanent refundability for the CTC, meaning that the neediest families will continue to receive the full CTC over the long run. Malden Democrats endorse Fair Share Amendment A t its monthly meeting on October 9, the Malden Democratic City Committee voted to endorse the Fair Share Amendment, a proposal to amend the Massachusetts Constitution. This measure, if approved by the voters, would create an additional tax of four percentage points on the portion of a person’s annual income above $1 million. Revenues raised would be used for “quality public education and affordable public colleges and universities, and for the repair and maintenance of roads, bridges and public transportation.” The proposed amendment has received the legislative action required to send it to the November 2022 ballot for approval by Massachusetts voters. The grassroots organization Raise Up Massachusetts has led the campaign for this amendment since 2015. An earlier, similar measure was approved by the legislature, but it was prevented from getting on the 2018 ballot by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court due to a procedural issue; the current measure has followed a different procedure, which should prevent a similar challenge. According to the Raise Up Massachusetts website, “Independent polling conducted by MassINC in December 2020 found that 72 percent of MA voters support the Fair Share Amendment.” “I am very pleased that the Malden Democratic City Committee has endorsed the Fair Share Amendment,” said Malden-based organizer Keith Bernard. “This broad-based support is a reminder that with significant new revenue for education and transportation, the measure will have a very positive impact – not only on Massachusetts as a whole but especially on communities like Malden largely made up of working families.” Full text of proposed amendment Below is the full text of the proposed Constitutional Amendment. The source is a petition to the Massachusetts Legislature by State Senator Jason Lewis on January 18, 2019: “Article 44 of the Massachusetts Constitution is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph at the end thereof:“To provide the resources for quality public education and affordable public colleges and universities, and for the repair and maintenance of roads, bridges and public transportation, all revenues received in accordance with this paragraph shall be expended, subject to appropriation, only for these purposes. In addition to the taxes on income otherwise authorized under this Article, there shall be an additional tax of 4 percent on that portion of annual taxable income in excess of $1,000,000 (one million dollars) reported on any return related to those taxes. To ensure that this additional tax continues to apply only to the commonwealth’s highest income taxpayers, this $1,000,000 (one million dollars) income level shall be adjusted annually to reflect any increases in the cost of living by the same method used for federal income tax brackets. This paragraph shall apply to all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2023.”
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