Archive for category: News & Updates

BOSTON – Thursday, July 14, 2022 – As part of a recently passed economic development bill, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed the most substantial tax relief package in a generation. In an effort to give back to all residents in Massachusetts, the House passed both one-time rebates and significant tax relief beginning in 2023.

“I was so proud to support this tax relief bill for the citizens of the Commonwealth,” said State Representative Richard M. Haggerty (D-Woburn). “The taxpayer rebate checks will help residents and families deal with rising inflation and the cost of gasoline. The permanent changes to our tax code will make our tax system fairer for residents and make our state more economically competitive. I am so pleased that this legislation will directly help seniors, families, and renters in my district.”

Taxpayer Energy & Economic Relief Fund

Following $500 million worth of premium pay bonuses for low-income workers that were issued in March and June of 2022 under the Legislature’s Essential Employee Premium Pay Program, the economic development bill passed by the House includes one-time rebates of $250 for a taxpayer who files an individual return, and $500 for married taxpayers who file joint returns that will be issued before September 30, 2022. These rebates are expected to be issued to about two million Massachusetts residents who reported earning between $38,000 and $100,000 for individual filers, and between $38,000 and $150,000 for joint filers in 2021. The one-time rebates will not be subject to state’s personal income tax.

Permanent Tax Changes

The bill passed makes significant changes to the Massachusetts tax code to provide structural relief to millions of residents across all income levels. These include:

•Increasing the Child and Dependent Care Credit from $180 per child to $310 per child, as well as eliminating the current cap of $360 for two or more children. This is expected to impact over 700,000 families.
•Increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from 30 percent to 40 percent of the federal credit. This is expected to impact about 396,000 taxpayers with incomes under $57,000.
•Increasing the Senior Circuit Breaker Tax Credit from $750 to $1,755. Currently, the Department of Revenue caps this credit at $1,170 due to cost-of-living adjustments over the $750 set in statute. Increasing it to $1,755 in statute is expected to impact over 100,000 taxpayers who own or rent residential property in Massachusetts as their principal residence.
•Increasing the rental deduction cap from $3,000 to $4,000. This is expected to impact about 881,000 taxpayers.
•Increasing the estate tax threshold from $1 million to $2 million and eliminating the “cliff” effect which would tax just the value of the estate that exceeds $2 million, not the entire estate. This is expected to impact about 2,500 taxpayers.

BOSTON – 7/21/2022 – Last Thursday, the Massachusetts Legislature passed a sweeping clean energy bill, An Act driving clean energy and offshore wind. The legislation bolsters green transportation, green buildings, and clean power production, including offshore wind, solar, storage and networked geothermal, while creating thousands of new jobs and economic benefits in the process. This bill builds upon the Next Generation Climate Roadmap bill, which was passed earlier this legislative session and overhauled the state’s climate laws by putting Massachusetts on a path to reach net-zero limit on greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

“This legislation makes clear the Commonwealth’s commitment to a clean energy future as well as our commitment to building a clean energy economy with high paying jobs,” said State Representative Richard M. Haggerty (D-Woburn). “This is yet another example where our public policy creates a path towards real energy independence, bolsters green job creation, supports moving our transportation sector away from fossil fuels, encourages clean wind energy, updates our electrical grid, and incentivizes all of us to move towards greener, cheaper energy policy.”

“At the beginning of this legislative session, we codified into law the goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions in Massachusetts by 2050. Today, and as the end of the session nears, the Legislature has again passed historic climate legislation that brings the Commonwealth closer to achieving that ever-important goal,” said House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano (D-Quincy). “This legislation will make Massachusetts a national leader in energy generated from offshore wind, while creating thousands of new jobs in the process. I want to thank Chairman Jeff Roy and each member of the conference committee, my colleagues in the House, as well as Senate President Karen Spilka and our partners in the Senate for prioritizing the well-being of our climate, and for working diligently to get this done.”

Offshore Wind
To incentivize the development of the offshore wind industry in Massachusetts, this legislation establishes a Massachusetts Offshore Wind Industry Investment Program, administered by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), consisting of annual tax incentives, grants, loans, and other investments through the fund, and assistance from MassCEC in accessing other state or federal economic investment programs. It also creates the Massachusetts Offshore Wind Industry Investment Trust Fund, which can be used to promote the manufacture, fabrication, and assembly of domestic supply chain components of the offshore wind industry; stimulate increased financing for permanent manufacturing facilities; advance clean energy research, technology, and innovation, and; prepare individuals for offshore wind careers by supporting workforce training at a range of educational institutions and through regional employment boards. With the goal of making the Massachusetts offshore wind bidding process more competitive, the legislation modifies the price cap to set clear criteria to allow for offshore wind project proposals that are cost-effective and promote economic development in the Commonwealth. Under this legislation, the price cap will be removed if three or more offshore wind developers submit bids, and if less than three companies bid a modified price cap would remain in place. Preference will be given to bids that invest in local manufacturing, provide employment opportunities for underrepresented populations, and mitigate environmental impacts. Ultimately, a contract would only be approved if deemed cost-effective and beneficial to ratepayers. The legislation also establishes a commercial fisheries commission to provide input on best practices for avoiding, minimizing, and mitigating impacts to wildlife related to offshore energy generation and transmission.

Solar Energy
To support the advancement of solar power, the bill permits agricultural and horticultural land to be used to site solar panels as long as they do not impede the continued use of the land for agricultural or horticultural use, eliminates the so-called ‘donut hole’ for on-site solar energy net metering to promote residential solar, and loosens the so-called single parcel rule to help expand solar on sites where it already exists. In addition to wind and solar power, the bill addresses other innovative sources of clean energy such as fusion energy and geothermal power. Acknowledging the harmful health and environmental impacts of utility-scale biomass power plant facilities, this legislation removes biomass from the list of energy-generating sources that are allowed to receive certain state incentives for generating clean electricity. To ensure that the Commonwealth has adequate storage systems to accommodate increasing amounts of clean energy that Massachusetts will be adding to its energy portfolio, this bill directs a study of how to optimize the deployment of long-term energy storage systems.

Grid Readiness
The legislation also modernizes Massachusetts’ electrical grid and energy storage infrastructure. It requires utility companies to proactively upgrade the transmission and distribution grid to improve reliability and resilience and accommodate the anticipated significant shift to renewable forms of energy.

Green Transportation
As the transportation sector is the largest source of fuel emissions in Massachusetts, the bill takes steps to encourage the use of electric vehicles, including expanding and codifying the state’s MOR-EV electric vehicle incentive program into statute, which provides rebates to individuals who purchase electric vehicles. Under the bill, the rebate amount will increase by $1,000, to $3,500 for passenger cars and light-duty trucks. Moreover, electric vehicle purchasers who trade in their emission-producing vehicles will be eligible for an additional incentive of $1,000. The program may include a point-of-sale rebate model for individual purchases that offers consumers savings at the point of purchase or lease. The bill also makes used vehicles eligible for rebates. Further, the bill directs the Department of Energy Resources (DOER) to conduct an outreach campaign to promote awareness about the MOR-EV program among consumers and businesses in underserved and low-income communities, as well as in communities with high proportions of high-emission vehicles. To expand access to electric vehicle charging stations, this bill convenes an interagency coordinating council to develop and implement a charging infrastructure deployment plan in an equitable and comprehensive manner. The Department of Public Utilities (DPU) would be required to set vehicle electrification and greenhouse gas emission requirements for electric vehicles for transportation network companies. In addition, to ensure that zero-emission vehicle charging remains affordable for consumers, the bill requires all electricity companies to submit proposals to DPU for how they will offer reduced electricity rates for consumers who charge their zero-emission vehicles at off-peak times. Finally, the bill takes historic steps to address emissions that come from MBTA bus fleets. Starting in 2030, this bill requires every passenger bus that is purchased or leased by the MBTA to be a zero-emission vehicle. By the end of 2040, the MBTA will be required to operate exclusively zero-emission vehicles. Underserved and low-income communities would be prioritized for the equitable deployment of these zero-emission buses.

Building Decarbonization
To tackle the difficult issue of emissions from the building sector, the bill creates a 10-municipality demonstration project allowing all-electric building construction by local option. Participating municipalities must receive local approval before applying into the demonstration project. The measure has two important provisos: first, each community must first meet certain affordable housing or multifamily development thresholds; and second, each must exempt life sciences labs and health care facilities from the all-electric requirement. The bill makes targeted enhancements to the Mass Save program, which provides rebates and incentives for owners and renters related to efficient appliances and other home energy improvements. Under the bill, priority for Mass Save projects will be given to those that maximize net climate, environmental, and equity impacts. Beginning in 2025, Mass Save funds will also be limited in most instances from going to any fossil fuel equipment. This bill requires DPU to conduct an adjudicatory proceeding prior to approving any company-specific plan under the DPU’s future of heat proceedings. In addition, the bill requires DPU to convene a stakeholder working group to develop regulatory and legislative recommendations for how Massachusetts can best align the Commonwealth’s gas system enhancement program with the state’s 2050 net-zero goal. The working group must submit its final recommendations to the Legislature by July 31, 2023.

Having been passed by the House and Senate, An Act driving clean energy and offshore wind now goes to Governor Baker for his signature.

BOSTON – Last Wednesday, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed legislation limiting the use of step therapy protocols, in which insurance companies refuse to pay for the prescription drugs prescribed by a patient’s health care provider until the patient first tries cheaper, and oftentimes ineffective, alternatives. The legislation establishes exceptions a patient can use to avoid their insurer’s step therapy protocol and requires both MassHealth and commercial insurers to provide a clear and transparent process for patients and their care team to request an exception.

“This is a healthcare bill designed to allow patients to get the life-changing care they need without needlessly going through all kinds of hoops before getting it,” said State Representative Richard M. Haggerty (D-Woburn). “This legislation will allow patients to utilize exceptions within an insurance carrier’s step therapy protocols and get the treatment or medication they need sooner.”

The legislation outlines four different circumstances that trigger the patient exception process, including:

1. The required treatment will harm the patient,
2. The required treatment is expected to be ineffective,
3. The patient previously tried the required treatment, or similar treatment, and it was ineffective
or harmed the patient,
4. The patient is stable on a current treatment and switching treatments will harm the patient.

Additional highlights of the legislation include:

• A requirement that MassHealth and commercial insurers adopt a “continuity of coverage” policy to
ensure patients do not experience any delay in accessing a treatment when requesting a step
therapy exemption.
• A requirement that MassHealth and commercial insurers approve or deny a step therapy exemption
request within three business days, or within one business day if a delay would cause harm to the patient.
• A requirement that commercial carriers annually report data related to step therapy exemption requests
and related coverage determinations to the Division of Insurance.
• The creation of a commission on step therapy protocols tasked with studying, assessing, and bi-annually
reporting on the implementation of step therapy process reforms made in this legislation.

“An Act Relative to Step Therapy and Patient Safety” (H.4929) passed the House of Representatives 153-0.

The legislation now heads to the Senate for their consideration.

BOSTON – Reading’s Erin Gaffen was honored this week, at an in-person ceremony, as a member of the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW) 2022 Class of Commonwealth Heroines. State Representative Richard M. Haggerty (D-Woburn) is proud to have nominated Erin for her continued contributions and dedication to the Reading community.

“I was so pleased to nominate Erin for this honor and for being able to recognize her efforts to keep Reading moving forward,” said Representative Haggerty, “Her commitment to her community, the School Committee as an institution, and her family make her worthy of this award. I offer her my sincerest congratulations.”

In 2018, Erin co-chaired the Yes For Reading campaign in town, which successfully advocated for additional financial resources for town services. The vote marked the first time since 2003 that Reading voters supported override funding. The added funds helped the town retain elementary, middle, and high school teachers; support athletic programs; add police officers and firefighters; increase library funding; and provide more support for elder services and the Department of Public Works. Then, in 2020, Erin jumped into the public’s eye again by running for School Committee. In her successful run for this position, she had strong support from across the political spectrum and would enter her new role just as COVID-19 began to wreak havoc on everyone’s lives – especially on students and teachers. As a member of the school committee the past two years, Erin has successfully navigated some of the most difficult decisions facing any local elected official in modern times. She has served her community with honor and distinction.

“Erin’s work on the Yes For Reading campaign helped to deliver critical financial resources to the town to preserve many essential municipal services, and she has continued to give back to the community as an elected member of the Reading School Committee,” said House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. (R-North Reading). “Erin’s volunteer and civic work is the epitome of what the Commonwealth Heroines Award is all about, and I join with my colleagues in the Reading legislative delegation in congratulating her on receiving this well-deserved honor.”

“I so admire Erin’s passion for lifting up our youth, whether it is through her work, her advocacy, or her engagement with our community,” said State Senator Jason Lewis. “She is more than deserving of recognition as a Commonwealth Heroine, and I look forward to seeing what she does next for Reading students and families.”

The Commonwealth Heroines are women who do not make the new but make the difference. Thousands of women in every community of the state perform unheralded acts on a daily basis that make our homes, neighborhoods, cities, and towns better places to live. Commonwealth Heroines use their time, talent, spirit, and enthusiasm to enrich the lives of others in their community. They are mentors, volunteers, and innovators who strive to protect and represent the interests of seniors, victims of violence, children, immigrants, and other vulnerable populations. They are the glue that keeps a community together. The Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women is an independent state agency that was legislatively created in 1998 to advance women of the Commonwealth to full equality in all areas of life and to promote their rights and opportunities. The MCSW provides a permanent, effective voice for the women of Massachusetts.

BOSTON – State Representative Richard Haggerty (D-Woburn) and State Representative Michelle Ciccolo (D-Lexington) are pleased to announce that the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed its Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) budget. This budget responsibly responds to the needs of residents and makes targeted investments to support families in the Commonwealth.
“This budget reflects our values by including the largest ever increase in funding for the city’s public schools at over $3 million. It also includes significant investments in health care, housing, and workforce development to help continue to grow our Commonwealth’s economy. Importantly this budget also bolsters the state’s rainy-day fund with a deposit of at least $785.7 million in fiscal year 2023 and includes no tax increases,” said Representative Haggerty, “I was so pleased to work with Representative Ciccolo to direct resources to local projects in our community including a substantial boost in funding for local schools, an expansion of children’s programming at the Woburn Public Library, and a capital investment in the Count Rumford Birthplace in North Woburn.”
Local projects funded
• $100,000 for the Woburn Public Library Foundation for enhanced children’s programing at WPL
• $25,000 for the Rumford Historical Association for maintenance and refurbishment at the Count Rumford Birthplace in preparation for the 250th anniversary of the Revolutionary War
Direct Local Aid
Chapter 70 Education Funds: $12,963,000 (31% increase over FY22)
Unrestricted Aid: $6,757,000
“This House budget truly supports the needs of the people of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and Woburn is particularly well served by the substantial increases in School Aid funding, early childhood education, workforce training, mental health services, and local aid,” said Representative Ciccolo, “I was thankful for Rep. Haggerty’s leadership and pleased to support his amendment requests that resulted in funding for the Woburn Public Library, and the Rumford Historical Association. This budget was passed unanimously by the House, and Woburn residents will be well served because of it.”
“The House budget responds to the economic challenges currently facing Massachusetts residents by balancing a focus on immediate needs such as workforce development, with a focus on long-term investments that are designed to grow our economy in a sustainable way,” said House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano (D-Quincy). “I want to thank Chairman Michlewitz for his indispensable guidance, as well as the Committee on Ways and Means and my colleagues in the House for their tireless hard work.”
“This budget builds off the successes of the last few years and prioritizes our residents,” said Representative Aaron Michlewitz, Chair of the House Committee on Ways & Means (D-Boston). “By reinvesting in the people of the Commonwealth we will continue to assist those recovering from this pandemic while making our economy stronger and more equitable for years to come. I want to thank Speaker Mariano for his leadership during this budget process, as well as my Vice-Chair Ann-Margaret Ferrante, and the entire membership for their thoughts and guidance over the last few months to make this a more successful and well-rounded budget.”
The FY23 House budget, funded at $49.73 billion, includes an unprecedented $912 million to fund early education and care (EEC). Continuing its longstanding commitment to invest in the workforce, the budget includes a $70 million in rate increases for subsidized child care providers across the Commonwealth, representing a $50 million increase over FY22. It also includes a new initiative funded at $10 million to pay for child care for early educators. Following the recommendations issued by the Special Legislative Early Education and Care Economic Review Commission, the budget includes language requiring the Department of Early Education and Care to base reimbursement on enrollment rather than attendance. Early education and care funding initiatives include:
• $16.5 million for Head Start grants;
• $15 million for child care resource and referral agencies;
• $10 million for EEC higher education provider opportunities;
• $5 million to provide additional navigation support and outreach to families;
• $3 million for early childhood mental health grants; and
• $1 million for Neighborhood Villages to provide bilingual workforce training, instructional coaching, and COVID-19 testing.
The FY23 House budget funds Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA) at $1.199 billion and Chapter 70 education funding at $5.988 billion, representing a $494 million increase over the FY22 budget and fully funding the second year of a six-year implementation plan of the Student Opportunity Act (SOA) which was enacted in 2019 to support equitable funding for our most vulnerable students.
The budget also provides $110 million for a year-long extension of universal school meals, providing immediate relief to families by saving them up to $1,200 every year from reduced grocery expenditures, according to The Feed Kids Coalition. Additional education funding allocations include:
• $440 million for Special Education Circuit Breaker;
• $243 million for charter school aid, fully funding charter school reimbursement;
• $77 million for regional transportation; and
• $22 million for homeless student transportation.
The House budget invests in higher education by allocating $653 million for the University of Massachusetts system, $337 million for community colleges, and $326 million for state universities. Building on Speaker Mariano’s priority to ensure Massachusetts residents from diverse backgrounds have access to meaningful educational opportunities the budget also includes a $25.5 million increase in scholarship funding over the last fiscal year for a new total of $156 million, and funds the community colleges SUCCESS Fund at $14 million and the STEM Starter Academies at $4.75 million.
The budget also includes large investments in youth engagement programs, job training and workforce development, including:
• $60 million for adult education to support English Language Learners and adults working towards their GED;
• $28.3 million for the YouthWorks jobs program to fund over 6,000 summer and year-round jobs for youth in low-wage-earning and fixed-income families;
• $25.7 million for workforce support for K-12 schools;
• $20.4 million for Career Technical Institutes to train workers and allow them to close skills gaps and meet the needs of businesses across the Commonwealth;
• $17 million for the Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund;
• $15 million for One Stop Career Centers to connect individuals with training and employers;
• $1 million investment in Learn to Earn; and
• $1 million for the 1199SEIU Training and Upgrading Fund.
Additionally, the House budget invests in programs across departments to support workforce equity in Massachusetts that help diverse communities and employers succeed. New initiatives include:
• $20 million for a loan forgiveness program within the Department of Mental Health to support their workforce;
• $15 million to support teachers of color, including $7.5 million for Tomorrow’s Teachers program to provide scholarships to people committed to teaching in public schools and $7.5 million for loan repayment for teachers of color;
• $10 million for loan repayment and bonuses for the homeless shelter workforce that continue to provide critical services to the most vulnerable populations; and
• $1 million for a public awareness campaign to ensure all communities can utilize these programs.
The Commonwealth’s commitment to MassHealth remains one of the largest drivers of the budget. In FY23, the House is providing $18.40 billion to fully fund its caseload, which has increased as more residents became eligible during the pandemic. The House’s FY23 budget accurately reflects this enrollment growth due to the federal extension of the public health emergency, showing the necessary increase in spending beyond what was included in the Governor’s budget proposal, while also factoring in the increased Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) reimbursement levels.
The budget prepares for the transition of individuals from MassHealth to the Health Connector when the federal public health emergency ends by providing $50 million for a Connector Care Pilot Program, which utilizes savings from the American Rescue Plan Act to fund subsidized health insurance plans for members that are between 300%-500% of the federal poverty level (FPL) for two years. It also invests $37 million to expand eligibility for the Medicare Savings Program to 250% FPL.
The House FY23 budget invests in the human services workforce who provide services to our most vulnerable, including $230 million for Chapter 257 rates for health and human service workers, $40 million to continue higher rate add-ons and ensure a smaller wage cliff between FY22 and FY23 for home health aides and homemakers, and $1 million for the Nursing and Allied Health Workforce Development program. Additional investments include funding for programming such as the Elder Mental Health Outreach Teams, the Safe and Successful Youth Initiative Expansion, nine Elder Supportive Housing Sites, and the SHINE Program. The budget fully funds Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children at $343 million, as well as Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled and Children at $137 million.
The House budget reflects the commitment to supporting health and behavioral health needs across the Commonwealth. Investments include:
• $10 million to expand emergency diversion boarding programs within the Department of Mental Health;
• $188.6 million for the Bureau of Substance Addiction Services;
• $12.5 million for behavioral health supports; and
• $48.3 million for early intervention services, with dedicated funding to help its workforce recover from the pandemic.
The House FY23 budget includes funding for housing and homelessness prevention, investing $150 million for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP), $140 million for Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT), $100 million for homeless individuals, $92 million for housing authority subsidies, and $59.4 million for HomeBASE.
The budget funds the Department of Developmental Services at $2.44 billion, aimed to support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. It includes $278.4 million for Community Day and Work Programs, $90.6 million for respite services, $42.3 million in autism supports and services, $33.9 million in transportation services, $13.9 million for the autism division, and $1.8 million for supportive technology for individuals.
To ensure every resident has equal access to the criminal justice system, the House’s FY23 budget includes a $824.6 million investment in the Trial Court, $39.5 million for the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, and increases for Prisoners’ Legal Services and Mental Health Legal Advisors. The budget also upholds commitments made by the Legislature’s criminal justice reform, such as $11.3 million for community-based residential re-entry programs and establishes an Employment Services Division within Probation funded at $2.2 million.
The budget also continues the House’s focus on environmental and climate protection by investing $349.7 million for environmental services, which include funding increases for state parks, environmental protection, and fisheries and wildlife. Additional measures include promoting electric vehicles and funding for environmental justice and climate adaptation and preparedness.
After three days of debate and over a thousand proposed amendments, the budget passed the House of Representatives 155-0 and now goes to the Senate for their consideration.