| | | | |  | | By Lisa Kashinsky and Sophie Gardner | | | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: TECH REENTERS THE CHAT — Both sides of the gig-worker-rights fight are shifting back into gear. Tech company trade group Chamber of Progress is sending a letter today imploring Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano to bring everyone to the negotiating table “to find common-sense solutions to meet the needs of gig workers,” according to a copy shared with Playbook. To the Uber-and-Lyft-backed group, that “solution” is keeping workers as independent contractors. Chamber of Progress was part of the coalition behind the ballot question to continue classifying drivers as independent contractors that was blocked by the state’s top court last year. Those efforts are being refueled by the new legislative session here, and by last week’s court ruling in California mostly upholding the state's 2020 ballot measure classifying Uber and Lyft drivers as independent contractors (though that's likely to be appealed). The Massachusetts coalition is backing two bills on Beacon Hill, one that largely mirrors last year’s ballot language and another that would create “portable benefit accounts” for drivers. But Uber and Lyft are still facing a lawsuit from the attorney general’s office arguing that the companies are breaking state law by not classifying drivers as employees. The original driver of that suit, Maura Healey, is now a potential legislative roadblock in the governor’s office. And the unions, drivers and progressive lawmakers on the other side of this fight aren’t backing down. Their approach this session is two-pronged: one set of bills would let drivers for ride-hailing apps unionize, along with setting other guarantees like a minimum wage, while another focuses on the classification issue. Chamber of Progress CEO Adam Kovacevich argues in his letter that the “ongoing legal dispute and the pending bills before the legislature highlight the urgent need for dialogue between gig companies, gig workers, labor organizations, and political leaders.” It’s doubtful Spilka and Mariano agree. The Legislature was loath to touch this issue last session. But if they don't act this time, we could have another ballot battle on our hands. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. We went to the St. Patrick’s Day political breakfast/roast so you didn’t have to. Scroll down for the highlights — and the low blows. But first, email us your tips and scoops: lkashinsky@politico.com and sgardner@politico.com. TODAY — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Rep. Stephen Lynch and Sen. Ed Markey make a public housing announcement at 10:30 a.m. at Ausonia Homes in the North End. Wu welcomes student athletes to City Hall at 4:45 p.m.
| | A message from NextEra Energy: Seabrook Station nuclear power plant generates safe, clean, emissions-free energy that has helped power New England for decades. A long-term power purchase agreement with Seabrook would help Massachusetts meet climate emissions goals and lower energy bills at a substantial value to consumers. An agreement that locks in prices over several decades would – even estimated against fluctuating natural gas prices – lower electricity bills, saving Massachusetts’ consumers between $890 million to $2.62 billion on energy costs over a 10-year period. | | | |  | FROM THE HUB | | — SOUTHIE NOT-SO-SMACKDOWN: Top pols gathered in Boston on Sunday for a Democratic unity breakfast the St. Patrick’s Day political breakfast hosted by state Sen. Nick Collins. The all-Democratic cast of characters pulled their punches against new Gov. Maura Healey but held little back when it came to the Republicans who no longer hold a spot on the stage — or the state's top offices. TAKE IT EASY — Healey was bracing to take a beating over the beleaguered MBTA. She and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll even brandished the “equivalent of a swear jar” so their roasters would have to pay up every time they joked about the T (or made a basketball reference). Yet just like the trains, the jokes didn’t come — at first. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's zinger: “In [Driscoll’s] town, the last time this many women got together to talk politics, they set them on fire. Here in Boston, don’t worry, we only set train cars on fire.” Healey didn’t collect enough green to give her yet-to-be-hired T general manager a signing bonus. But, she told reporters, “I’m sure there will be a lot more fodder to work with” next year.
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Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, center, waves to spectators while marching in the St. Patrick's Day parade, Sunday, March 19, 2023, in Boston's South Boston neighborhood. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) | AP | DEARLY DEPARTED — “Everyone’s favorite punching bag, Charlie Baker, isn’t here,” Senate President Karen Spilka said. “What jokes are even worth saying anymore without him here?” Apparently, a lot. Baker and incoming NHLPA Executive Director Marty Walsh’s lucrative new gigs provided plenty of fodder. Spilka even joked that Baker’s likely multimillion-dollar NCAA salary was one of the reasons he opposed the millionaires tax. THE ELEPHANTS NOT IN THE ROOM — Democrats who swept the state's top offices last fall also skewered failed gubernatorial hopeful Geoff Diehl and even former MassGOP Chair Jim Lyons. Wu joked about declaring a “Jim Lyons Day, for his unparalleled contribution to helping us drive all the Republicans out of the State House.” But it was Spilka who had the most fun at Republicans’ expense. She cracked jokes about her “cab driver” Diehl (who used to drive for Uber) and Lyons, who she said is “getting ready for his new job making license plates at Walpole” state prison — some dark humor about potential legal trouble ahead. Republicans could jab back, but they’re too busy being divided over, well, everything. Their big “unity event” on Saturday? No Lyons or Diehl in sight. And Lyons' former party finance chair, Rick Green, is off holding a fundraiser tonight — not for the nearly bankrupt MassGOP but for U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Alex Mooney (R-W.Va.). IS THIS THING ON — Here's what Healey really wanted to say when she recorded her Logan Airport greeting earlier this year: “Welcome to Logan Airport. Do you want to run the T?” she quipped. Another line left on the cutting room floor: “Welcome to Massachusetts, the birthplace of the American revolution: or as Tucker Carlson would call it, 'mostly peaceful chaos.’” TARGET PRACTICE — Wu also took some incoming over her controversial North End outdoor dining rules. And Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s rendition of “Walking on Sunshine” took some shots at the Legislature’s lack of transparency. Spilka stayed tight-lipped through the song. But Collins, in an earlier, pre-taped appearance on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large,” defended the Senate against DiZoglio's probe, saying the chamber is “already leading the way when it relates to transparency.”
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | — “Records show Healey interviewed candidate for T general manager in February,” by Samantha J. Gross, Boston Globe: “According to a copy of her February calendar obtained by the Globe, [Gov. Maura] Healey attended a Feb. 16 meeting about the search for a permanent general manager of the MBTA. On Feb. 27, she interviewed a candidate for the position. … Throughout the month at the State House, she met with leaders including Morning Star Baptist Church Bishop John Borders; Doug Howgate, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation; Marty Meehan, president of the University of Massachusetts; Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd; and state Treasurer Deb Goldberg. She also met with former governor Michael Dukakis.” — ‘SUPP, LAWMAKERS: Healey’s latest supplemental spending plan, a $734 million budget filed Friday, includes $171 million to expand free school meals for the 2023-2024 school year, $20 million for MBTA recruitment and $200 million to continue pandemic response efforts, including temporary staffing. Add this to the list of Healey’s bills that lawmakers have on their plates. — HONORABLE MENTION: Healey is one of USA TODAY’s 2023 Women of the Year honorees, alongside Michelle Obama, actress Goldie Hawn and retired SCOTUS Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Healey is being recognized for “being a trailblazing leader for LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive rights as well as for championing for justice and equality.” Read Healey’s WOTY Q&A with the Herald News’ Audrey Cooney.
| | | | A message from NextEra Energy:   | | | | | PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES | | — ‘DAY’-JA VU: Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll insisted on WCVB’s “On the Record” over the weekend that it will be just a matter of “days” before she and Healey announce their new MBTA general manager and transportation safety chief. We’ve heard that before — last week from the governor, to be exact. But Driscoll said “it’s not about going quick, it’s about taking the due diligence to find the right leader.” Maybe that’s why the T kept some of its speed restrictions in place through the weekend.
| | WARREN REPORT | | — “Elizabeth Warren: Fed chair has failed at both his jobs,” by Kelly Garrity, POLITICO: “‘My views on Jay Powell are well-known at this point. He has had two jobs. One is to deal with monetary policy. One is to deal with regulation. He has failed at both,’ Warren said during an interview on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press.’ The Fed is expected to raise interest rates again this week despite turmoil in the banking sector that has led to the collapse of two banks.”
| | MOULTON MATTERS | | — “Twenty years after the start of the Iraq War, Seth Moulton reflects on a generation shaped by the conflict,” by Tal Kopan, Boston Globe: “The 20th anniversary of that invasion brings complicated feelings for Moulton, the Democratic US representative from Salem. While his multiple tours gave him many of the skills, experiences, and connections he credits for success in politics, they also left a mark emotionally.”
| | MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS | | — “Northampton cannabis tax revenue dropping fast,” by Naila Moreira, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Even as a hotly debated limit takes effect on the number of pot shops allowed in Northampton, business for cannabis is down in the city. Tax revenues from adult-use marijuana sales have fallen a third from the peak reached shortly after the first stores opened, according to data from the Northampton mayor’s office.”
| | | | DOWNLOAD THE POLITICO MOBILE APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. The sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don’t miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. DOWNLOAD FOR iOS– DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID. | | | | | | | FROM THE 413 | | — “Westfield City Council squashes charter proposal for 4-year mayoral term,” by Amy Porter, Westfield News: “After four months of work by the Ad-Hoc Charter Committee, input during public participation, and lengthy debates among councilors during meetings, the City Council voted 9-4 on March 16 against sending the question of a four-year term for mayor to voters in November’s election.”
| | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | — “Bristol County sheriff seeking $300,000 for study on closing Ash Street Jail,” by David Linton, The Sun Chronicle: “Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux is seeking $300,000 in state funding to study closing the 135-year-old Ash Street Jail in New Bedford and renovating a housing unit in Dartmouth to hold its inmates.” — “Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum reopens after closing on art heist anniversary due to climate protest threat,” by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: “Extinction Rebellion Boston officials said they planned a non-violent, non-destructive demonstration about biodiversity loss for the 33rd anniversary of the art heist. The activists were planning to install original art pieces over the ornate frames kept empty since the heist.” — “Mass. struggles with cross-border vape smuggling,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “Massachusetts banned the sale of flavored and menthol cigarettes and vaping products more than three years ago, but smugglers still get those products into the state through the underground market. … More than 143,000 ‘electronic nicotine delivery systems’ were seized by state police and members of the [tobacco] task force in the previous fiscal year, the report noted.” — “Wellesley teachers vote no confidence in superintendent, School Committee as contract negotiations drag on,” by Adria Watson and Nick Stoico, Boston Globe. — “Quincy teachers union votes no confidence in mayor,” by Adria Watson, Boston Globe.
| | A message from NextEra Energy: Continued operation of the Seabrook Station nuclear power plant reduces electricity costs and boosts the state’s economy. A long-term power purchase agreement with Seabrook would contribute approximately $3 billion to the Massachusetts economy through utility bill savings, reduced energy costs and job creation/support. Seabrook has generated safe, reliable, low-cost, and emissions-free energy for more than 30 years. Seabrook’s operation will continue to provide baseload energy, with price stability, while Massachusetts scales up its renewable energy sources. Operating Seabrook would avoid nearly 50 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over a 10-year period and contribute to Massachusetts meeting its clean air goals. A long-term PPA will help Massachusetts meet its clean energy standard. Nuclear energy is carbon emissions-free and Massachusetts’ most cost-effective tool to combat climate change. The procurement of additional energy from Seabrook going forward would help the Massachusetts affordably and reliably meet its clean energy needs. | | | | | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH | | TRANSITIONS — Former Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito has been appointed to Clean Harbors’ board of directors. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Karlee Fain. Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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