| | | | |  | | By Kelly Garrity | DAYS LATE, DOLLARS SHORT — More than two weeks into the new fiscal year, the House and Senate are set to pass a budget that comes in just ever-so-slightly under the initial proposal Gov. Maura Healey pitched in January. There’s something for everyone in the roughly $58 billion spending bill. Top House Democrats finally get iLottery, after the chamber’s efforts to authorize online lottery sales were rebuffed by the Senate in budgets past. The policy, which some expect could help generate $100 million in new revenue, also made it into Gov. Maura Healey’s initial bill. And House leaders won what they say is record funding for the MBTA (a hefty $447 million) for beleaguered transit stem, including millions of dollars for an “MBTA Academy” to help with workforce training. Senate leaders get $117.5 million to make community college free for residents across the state, a top priority of Senate President Karen Spilka. Students will be able to benefit starting this fall. And the Senate's proposal for fare-free Regional Transit Authorities made it into the compromise bill. Top Senate Democrats also got the House on board with a number of provisions included in the Senate’s early education bill — some funded by policies pushed by the House. Both chambers, for example, wanted to set aside $475 million for the Commonwealth Cares for Children grants that originated during the pandemic to help child care providers make ends meet. The compromise makes those permanent, and pulls from a mix of funding sources, including iLottery and surtax revenue. Both chambers also notched some policy wins: District attorneys will see raises soon, as per the House’s pitch, and a couple commissions — one on combatting antisemitism in the Commonwealth and another that would revive a commission to change the state’s seal and motto — made it out of the Senate’s bill into the compromise. Who lost? The MBTA will see what lawmakers are touting as a record investment in the system. But the $447 million lawmakers are directing to there is still hundreds of millions of dollars shy of what the MBTA would need to balance its budget without digging into savings accounts. And funding for the emergency shelter system is still hundreds of millions of dollars short of what the Healey administration anticipates cost. ODDS & ENDS — The Legislature favored education in splitting the $1.3 billion in revenue from the so-called millionaires tax. The spending bill steers 58.5 percent ($762 million) toward education and 41.5 percent ($538 million) toward transportation — a more for education-heavy split than either chamber initially called for. — A policy Healey first included that would let people change the sex listed on state IDs, including included licenses, and birth certificates made it in. — Another that the House added during debate targeting the use of AI-generated content by political candidates and campaigns was dropped. Dive deeper with The Boston Globe and the Boston Herald. GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Both chambers plan to vote on compromise today, giving them enough to time to be able to override any vetoes Healey may try to make. Lawmakers crossed one more item of their end-of-session to-do list Thursday night, sending legislation that would overhaul the state's gun laws to Healey's desk. The Senate tossed one more bargaining chip on the table, approving it's own health care reform bill. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll speaks at a New England Hispanic and Minority Serving Institution conference at 9 a.m. Senate President Karen Spilka is on WBUR's "Radio Boston" at 11 a.m. THIS WEEKEND — Rep. Jim McGovern is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll is on “@Issue” airing at 5 a.m. on NBC10 Boston and again at noon, 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. on NECN.
| | | | CHECK OUT WHAT YOU MISSED IN MILWAUKEE! Watch the full event from the CNN-POLITICO Grill at the RNC HERE.
The program featured Bayer’s Jessica Christiansen, senior vice president and head of crop science and sustainability communications, as well as a conversation with Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.), Rep. G.T. Thompson (R-Pa.) and POLITICO’s Meredith Lee Hill for discussions about agriculture, food policy and how these issues will impact the November election. | | | | | |  | BIDEN WATCH 2024 | | | MORE CRACKS IN BIDEN’S BAY STATE SUPPORT — President Joe Biden is bleeding support from Democrats across the country, including from a handful of state lawmakers in Massachusetts. Six Democratic state senators — Jo Comerford, Jamie Eldridge (a Biden super delegate), Paul Feeney, Pat Jehlen, John Keenan, Jason Lewis and Michael Moore — penned a statement Thursday night calling on Biden to “pass the torch” to a new generation. “A growing number of Democratic congressional leaders are deeply concerned that if President Biden remains at the top of the ticket, MAGA Republicans will control the presidency and both houses of Congress. This would be catastrophic for Massachusetts and our entire nation,” they wrote. Earlier in the day, Rep. Jim McGovern, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee, said conversations within the caucus about Biden’s political future were ongoing. “It seems to me that there are indications that President Biden may decide to forgo the nomination. I don't know that for certain,” he said during an interview on the “Talk of the Commonwealth” podcast. “But that appears to be the direction all the chatter is moving in.” A new Suffolk Univeristy/Boston Globe out this morning shows it's not just the state's politicians; it's the voters, too, who want a new Democratic nominee. Sixty-four percent of the Democratic or Democratic-leaning voters surveyed said they'd prefer a new nominee according to the poll, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 5.9 percentage points among that demographic. JUST IN CASE — “Kamala Harris allies prepare her defense,” by Eugene Daniels, POLITICO: “Allies of Kamala Harris are engaged in a delicate, behind-the-scenes effort to make sure the vice president moves to the top of the ticket if President Joe Biden steps aside, according to five people involved in the project or with knowledge of the discussions. The endeavor, which has not been sanctioned by Harris or her team, has become more urgent as Joe Biden’s presidential campaign appeared to be teetering late Thursday.”
| | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | SURVEY SAYS — A new University of New Hampshire poll showed a dip Gov. Maura Healey’s approval among Massachusetts residents. Forty-five percent of the 509 Bay Staters included in the survey said they approve of the job the governor has done a year and a half into her first term, while 46 percent disapprove. That’s within the poll’s margin of error of +/-4.3 percentage points. Reality check: One poll isn’t enough to show a clear trend. A UMass Amherst/WCVB poll released last month had Healey’s approval at 54 percent, and her disapproval at a much lower 32 percent.
| | | FROM THE HUB | | | — “Most U.S. monuments celebrate white men. Boston hands out funding to broaden the focus,” by Mark Shanahan, The Boston Globe: “Expect to see some new and provocative public art around Boston in the coming months. Mayor Michelle Wu and the city’s Office of Arts & Culture have announced the first recipients — there are more than 25 — of grants that will fund temporary works of art celebrating people and events from the past that have historically been ignored or overlooked. The initiative, dubbed ‘Un-monument | Re-monument | De-Monument: Transforming Boston,’ is supported by a $3 million grant from the Mellon Foundation’s Monuments Project, which aims to create public artworks across the country that ‘more completely and accurately represent the multiplicity and complexity of American stories.’” — “New ballot boxes arrive to Boston jails this fall,” by Paul Singer, GBH News: “New ballot boxes will be available in Suffolk County jails this fall to kick off an expansion of voting opportunities for thousands of incarcerated people across the state beginning with primaries in September. Under Massachusetts law, people who are convicted of felonies cannot vote while they are in prison. But that doesn’t apply to the many people in jails who are waiting for their trials, or have been convicted of misdemeanors.” — “Residents demand transparency from Boston Police, Wu around officer’s demotion,” by Tori Bedford, GBH News.
| | CONVENTION ZONE | | — “Trump returns to the stage. And stays and stays and stays,” by Meridith McGraw, Natalie Allison, Alex Isenstadt and Lisa Kashinsky, POLITICO: “When Donald Trump emerged on stage with a bandaged ear he somberly — and emotionally — recounted how he survived an assassination attempt. And then, he veered straight back into MAGA mode. Over the course of a 90-plus-minute speech in Milwaukee — the longest acceptance speech by a presidential nominee in history — Trump boasted about meeting with the head of the Taliban and how he ‘got along very well’ with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. He went off on MS-13, immigration, on crime declining in Venezuela by 42 percent and on the media calling him a braggart. He called the streets of Washington a ‘killing field.’ And he cracked a joke about Hannibal Lecter: ‘He would love to have you for dinner.’ — “Excitement is ‘palpable’ among Mass. delegates at Republican National Convention,” by Diego Lopez and Arun Rath, GBH News.
| | IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | | — “Holyoke low-carbon cement startup strikes deal for Vineyard Wind 2,” by James Pentland, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Sublime Systems Inc. has announced an agreement to reserve 2,000 tons of its low-carbon cement for use in Vineyard Offshore’s planned wind farm. The reservation agreement depends on state approval of the company’s 1,200-megawatt Vineyard Wind 2 project in three states, but both parties were eager to announce the deal this week and hailed its potential benefits.” MEANWHILE — “Concerns mount over Vineyard Wind turbine failure,” by Anastasia E. Lennon, The New Bedford Light.
| | MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS | | — “More immigrants needed in Mass. to boost entrepreneurship, think tank says,” by Simón Rios, WBUR: “A local Boston think tank is calling on federal leaders to ease immigration restrictions, particularly for educated workers and students who represent an oversized share of entrepreneurs. The right-leaning Pioneer Institute's study argues restrictive policies are inhibiting economic activity in Massachusetts and across the country.”
| | | | Understand 2024’s big impacts with Pro’s extensive Campaign Races Dashboard, exclusive insights, and key coverage of federal- and state-level debates. Focus on policy. Learn more. | | | | | | | VAX-ACHUSETTS | | — “Mass. confirms first measles case since 2020,” by Lisa Creamer, WBUR: “Massachusetts public health officials announced Thursday that a resident was diagnosed with the first confirmed case of measles in state since 2020. The Worcester County adult had recently traveled abroad before getting diagnosed in early July with the easy-to-transmit airborne disease, according to a statement from the state Department of Public Health.”
| | FROM THE DELEGATION | | — “Senators Markey, Sanders seek subpoena for Steward CEO Ralph de la Torre,” by Robert Weisman, The Boston Globe: “A pair of US senators Thursday said they’ll ask a Senate panel next week to subpoena Steward Health Care founder and chief executive Ralph de la Torre to testify about his role in leading the national hospital chain, which filed for bankruptcy on May 6. The senators, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, said they’ll also ask the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which Sanders chairs, to investigate ‘financial schemes’ that left Steward with about $9 billion in debts. The committee is expected to vote next week on issuing the subpoena and opening the inquiry.” — “Elizabeth Warren spoke on affordable housing, the presidential race and supporting Black-owned businesses during Berkshires visit,” by Claire O'Callahan, The Berkshire Eagle.
| | WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD BE READING | | — “‘We’re taking the wrong kids’: High-needs students lose out in vocational school admissions,” by Mandy McLaren and Christopher Huffaker, The Boston Globe. — “How does Fall River diocese investigate abuse reports? A closer look,” by Dan Medeiros, The Herald News.
| | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Milton state Sen. Walter Timilty, Jordan Meehan, state Rep. Simon Cataldo and Google’s Catherine Cloutier. HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to former state Rep. Eugene O’Flaherty, Krista Zalatores, Mass. native and POLITICO alum and David Giambusso, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers to NBC10 Boston’s Mary Markos, Dracut state Rep. Colleen Garry, former MassDems chair Phil Johnston, Philip Deely, Sara Seager and Rachel Nieves. 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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