News: Healey does it herself

Thursday, September 12, 2024

Healey does it herself

Sep 12, 2024

POWER PLAY — What’s a governor to do with legislation she can’t get past bickering lawmakers?

One solution: Hitch it to a budget bill. That’s what Gov. Maura Healey decided to do with energy siting and permitting provisions her administration has been advocating for.

Healey tucked the tweaks into a supplemental spending bill that would close out the books on the fiscal year more than a month after negotiations between House and Senate Democrats reached one of their testier public impasses – with the bill’s lead negotiators trading barbs in separate impromptu press conferences as the clock ticked down on the final day of formal lawmaking.

“While a final bill has not yet reached my desk, these issues remain before a conference committee and I respectfully ask that you consider advancing these items in the coming weeks so that we can capitalize on the potential to grow our clean energy sector and advance our climate goals," Healey wrote in a letter to lawmakers laying out the spending proposal yesterday.

It’s one way to make sure both chambers actually act on the hotly debated legislation with formal sessions wrapped up. But the Senate’s lead negotiator on the bill warned yesterday that the governor’s play “has the effect of scuttling a very active negotiation.”

“Effectively, she has brought the prospect of negotiations to a standstill because the House stands to gain everything by doing little in negotiations with the Senate,” state Sen. Michael Barrett told Playbook.

Critics on both the left and the right weren’t happy, either. The conservative-leaning Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance’s Paul Craney described the move as “an abuse of power” and the Springfield Climate Justice Coalition’s Naia Tenerowicz called it “a slap in the face to the state-wide campaign to put gas in the past.”

Healey's strategy is one that came up in conversations with lobbyists and activists who were dismayed to see bills and amendments they were shepherding through the session left in limbo after lawmakers closed out formal sessions on Aug. 1. with few agreements. Some predicted a new fervor to attach policy riders to annual budget proposals that must make it through both chambers each year.

Healey has kept public criticism of the Legislature to a minimum, though she’s pressured lawmakers to return to move on her economic development bill. Asked Tuesday if there was a need for new leadership atop the chambers given the small number of compromises that made it to her desk during formal session, she gave an emphatic no and pointed to a flurry of recent bills that made it to her desk on maternal health, hospital oversight and liquor licenses in Boston.

But she is finding a workaround to get things done herself – er, almost. Her budget proposal still needs legislative approval. If last year’s negotiations (complicated by debate over emergency shelter funding) are any indication, there may still be a long way to go.

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn hasn’t said if he’s planning to make a bid for the mayor's office. But a new group is forming that’ll keep the rumor mill churning.

The group, “Veterans for Ed Flynn,” includes a “diverse group of Veterans across Massachusetts,” according to an announcement shared with Playbook. The aim is “to embolden and inspire Ed Flynn to continue his positive leadership in Boston,” DPA Communications’ Dominic Amenta, a spokesperson for the coalition and a Regan Communications Group alum, said in a statement.

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey hosts a signing ceremony for legislation renaming the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission at 12:30 p.m. at the State House. Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll attend ABCD’s 12th annual Hoop Dreams fundraiser tournament at 5:30 p.m. at TD Garden, and Driscoll attends the Neighborhood Developers’ “Raise the Roof” event at 7:30 p.m. in Chelsea. Attorney General Andrea Campbell joins Everytown for Gun Safety and a panel of Black women elected officials to discuss gun violence prevention efforts at 3 p.m. in D.C. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu celebrates the opening of the new Josiah Quincy Upper School at 10:30 a.m. in Chinatown.

Tips? Scoops? New compromises making it out of conference committee? Email me: kgarrity@politico.com

DATELINE BEACON HILL

— “Boston gets economic boost via 225 new liquor licenses after Gov. Healey signs bill,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: “Gov. Maura Healey signed legislation Wednesday that will add 225 liquor licenses to the city of Boston over the next three years, many of which would be targeted to minority neighborhoods with the aim of providing an economic boost. Healey, in a statement announcing the action, said the bill would ‘lower barriers’ for Boston restaurants and have ‘long-lasting positive impacts’ on the community.”

YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Attorney General Andrea Campbell is rolling out two new endorsements, backing Tamisha Civil for Governor’s Council in District 2 and Leigh Davis for the open 3rd Berkshire House seat.

BALLOT BATTLES

AD WATCH — The coalition backing the ballot question that would allow app-based drivers to unionize is out with its first digital ad in the two-month sprint to get its message in front of voters.

A union would give drivers “a stronger collective voice to fight for better pay and provide protection against unfair treatment,” the narrator says in the 30-second spot, encouraging viewers to vote yes on Question 3.

HAHVAHD YAHD

— “Harvard enrolls fewer Black students in first snapshot of impact of Supreme Court's ban on race conscious admissions,” by Suevon Lee, WBUR: “There are fewer Black students in Harvard University's freshman class compared to last year, the school announced Wednesday. The drop in diversity for incoming students, which mirrors the trend at other top schools in the region, comes a year after the Supreme Court ended the use of race-conscious admissions in higher education. The school’s numbers show a drop in new Black student enrollment to 14% from 18% last year, with little or no fluctuation in other race categories. The school did not report the percent of new white students enrolled. The percentage of students who did not self-report race doubled from 4% to 8%.”

DAY IN COURT

— “Ex-state senator Dean Tran convicted at federal trial on unemployment fraud, tax charges, prosecutors say,” by Tonya Alanez, The Boston Globe: “Embattled former state senator and one-time congressional candidate Dean A. Tran was found guilty by a federal jury on Wednesday of 23 charges for illegally collecting unemployment benefits during the pandemic and for failing to report rental income to the IRS, according to the US Attorney’s Office.”

— “SJC greenlights electric substation in E. Boston,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Beacon: “The Supreme Judicial Court put an end to a decade-long fight over an electric substation in East Boston, ruling unanimously that a state board did not exceed its authority in granting approval for the project and limiting the reach of a state law requiring agencies to consider the environmental burden of such facilities. The Conservation Law Foundation and the Chelsea-based advocacy group Greenroots had argued that the state’s Energy Facilities Siting Board approved the East Boston substation location – across the street from a school — without adequately considering ‘the equitable distribution of energy and environmental benefits and environmental burdens.’”

FROM THE DELEGATION

— “Ahead of U.S. Senate hearing, report details ‘Steward’s financial chaos’,” by John L. Micek, MassLive.

DEBATE DRAMA

— “‘Insulting and completely racist’: Haitians, advocates slam Trump’s debate rhetoric on migrants,” by Samantha J. Gross and Tiana Woodard, The Boston Globe: “In their first debate since Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic nominee, [former President Donald] Trump reiterated his promise to deport millions of immigrants and leaned into racist stereotypes, including one pushed by right-wing social media accounts that Haitian immigrants are eating people’s pets in a Ohio community. Advocates, immigration lawyers, and Haitian migrants themselves said they were offended by Trump’s comments and worried about the possible consequences, including the possibility for violence, of his harsh anti-immigrant rhetoric.”

MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS

— “Cannabis chair firing reveals inner workings of troubled commission,” by Walter Wuthmann and Beth Healy, WBUR.

FROM THE 413

— “UMass grad students turn to Amherst Town Council for help with contract,” by Scott Merzbach, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Graduate students at the University of Massachusetts are asking for Town Council’s support as they seek a new contract that calls for better pay and more affordable housing options — a cost-of-living campaign that has secured 860 signatures on a petition being circulated.”

— “Pittsfield has $2 million in leftover ARPA funds. Here's what Mayor Marchetti would like to spend the money on,” by Matt Martinez, The Berkshire Eagle: “With a deadline fast approaching, the city of Pittsfield has three months to decide how to spend $2 million of available American Rescue Plan Act funding. … Mayor Peter Marchetti said he intended to use the remaining money for city projects, hoping to relieve taxpayers wherever possible. Marchetti did not know exactly which projects would be contributed to on Tuesday, but said city officials were conducting a review to figure out which might be a good fit.”

THE LOCAL ANGLE

— “Mass. tourism destinations had a strong summer, despite ongoing labor challenges,” by Zeninjor Enwemeka, WBUR.

— “Weather for the history books: Leominster still rebuilding 1 year after raging floods,” by Craig S. Semon, Telegram & Gazette.

— “New Bedford Police hit the streets this week wearing their new body cameras,” by Frank Mulligan, South Coast Today.

— “New Bedford school projects must race to meet COVID-dollar deadline,” by Colin Hogan, The New Bedford Light: “The once-in-a-generation pot of COVID-relief dollars that landed in New Bedford’s schools — all $74 million of it — will soon be gone. Administrators are outwardly confident they can spend or encumber all the money before this month’s Sept. 30 deadline, but some projects have not yet completed the public bidding stage. This includes a $4.4 million school-based health center, for which the district is still awaiting public bids.”

— “Revere High School teacher cut during fight in hallway,” by Peter Eliopoulos and Phil Tenser, WCVB: “For at least the second time during this new school year, a Revere High School staff member was hurt on Wednesday during a fight among students. The teacher's arm was bloodied Wednesday morning after being scratched on a locker while they tried to intervene in a fight, according to Revere Public Schools. The superintendent declined to provide additional details. Revere police said in a statement that no weapons were involved in the fight.”

MEDIA MATTERS

— “WBZ President and General Manager Justin Draper to depart at the end of September,” by Aidan Ryan, The Boston Globe: “CBS Boston’s WBZ-TV President and General Manager Justin Draper is leaving the station at the end of the month, he announced to employees on Wednesday. Draper became the president and general manager of WBZ in 2021 and previously served as a financial controller at the station from 2006-2010. He has spent nearly three decades at CBS, including stints in Sacramento, Los Angeles, and Chicago.”

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to POLITICO’s Ben Schreckinger, former Massachusetts U.S. senator and U.S. ambassador Scott Brown, Waterville Consulting Principal Sean Curran and Paul Nutting.

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