Thursday, May 30, 2013
One observer called the trend "upward political mobility" for officials in the Bay State, but that's perhaps not the case with outgoing Lt. Gov. Tim Murray.
As Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Tim Murray conducts his final full week in state government, he finds himself close to joining familiar ranks of several top elected Bay State officials in the not too distant past. Murray, like with recent governors William Weld and Paul Cellucci, will not finish his last elected term in office. After this coming Sunday, Murray, a Democrat, will become the new president and CEO of his hometown Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, a decision he announced last week. The decision once again raised questions about whether Gov. Deval Patrick will complete his term own term set to expire in early 2015. Weld, a Republican, left the corner office in the mid-1990s after he was tabbed by President Bill Clinton to be …
Friday, May 3, 2013
The $300 million transportation bond bill is now being sent to Governor Deval Patrick.
(From the Office of Senator Richard Ross) Senator Richard J. Ross (R-Wrentham) voted Thursday to pass a $300 million transportation bond bill financing improvements to the Commonwealth’s transportation system. The funds provided in this bond bill can be used by every municipality in the state for highway construction, preservation and improvement projects, and maintaining, repairing, improving and constructing town and county ways and bridges. The funding represents an increase of 50-percent from the fiscal year 2013 allotment. “This legislation provides much-needed funding to our cities and towns for transportation projects essential to keeping Massachusetts roads safe and efficient for residents,” said Senator Ross. “During such …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
While specific deductions would end, personal exemptions would double under the Patrick budget.
A recent analysis of Gov. Deval Patrick's proposed budget finds that it eliminates 44 tax breaks that benefit a large slice of Massachusetts taxpayers. Patrick's $34.8 billion FY2014 budget includes not only a 1 percentage point hike in the income tax – from 5.25 percent to 6.25 percent – but the end of such deductions such as the capital gains from the sale of a person's primary home, college tuition, and contributions to a health savings account. The analysis, by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, found that the eliminations would raise an additional $1 billion for the commonwealth. But Patrick's assistant secretary for fiscal policy, Gregory R. Mennis, told The Republican that that amount would be offset by the doubling of …
Friday, December 14, 2012
Rep. Dan Winslow said he was kicked off of Governor Patrick's Budget Office when he was delivering the Fluff.
When Governor Deval Patrick announced his plan to cut local aid as part of an effort to close a projected $540 million budget deficit, State Representative Dan Winslow (Norfolk-R) was quick to suggest that the governor go after the “fluff” before going after local aid. In a response to the Patrick Administration's statement that there was no fluff in the budget and to create a dialogue to find an alternative solution, Rep. Winslow delivered a pyramid of 10 containers of Marshmallow Fluff and 10 examples of fluff to cut to the Executive Office of Administration and Finance. Each of the 10 proposed ways to help cut the deficit was attached to a tub of Fluff in a Christmas card with a red bow. After delivering the Fluff, Winslow said he was…
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
The Wrentham Board of Selectmen will be meeting tonight.
1. The Wrentham Board of Selectmen are scheduled to meet Tuesday, Oct. 30, at town hall at 6:45 p.m. Among items the selectmen will discuss street lights for Thurston, Madison and West Streets. 2. Wrentham Youth Soccer will be meeting Tuesday at Sweatt meeting room at the Fiske Public Library Tuesday at 7 p.m. 3. The MBTA will be resuming services today with the exception of the Stoughton-Providence railway. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick said Monday night he hoped that it would be operating without delays. Check with the MBTA before traveling. 4. The final debate between Republican senator Scott Brown and Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren scheduled for tonight was cancelled because of Sandy. 5. If you have any photos from …
Thursday, September 27, 2012
The governor will take your questions Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
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Thursday, September 27, 2012
Governor Deval Patrick will answer your questions during our live chat at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. To join the chat, enter your name and question in the widget above. We will try to get to as many questions as we can within the allotted 45 minutes, but can't guarantee every question will make it into the chat.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Governor Deval Patrick speaks with Patch readers live at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. What questions do you want him to answer?
If you could ask Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick one question, what would it be? Patrick will join Patch on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. for a live chat with readers. Now's your change to ask the executive of the commonwealth your question about casinos, the JP crime lab, the economy, elections or whatever else you want to know Can't make it to the live chat? Leave your questions for Patrick in the comments to have them considered for the live Q&A session. We'll be sure to ask about the most popular topics when we chat Thursday. To join the chat, head on over to our homepage from 1:15 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Legislators decide to take the bottle bill amendment out of the jobs act.
The bottle bill will not make it to the governor's desk this year. The controversial proposal was included as an amendment to the Senate jobs bill but scrapped Monday in conference committee, according to an aide to its sponsor, Sen. Robert Hedlund (R-Weymouth). The jobs bill is expected to be laid before Gov. Deval Patrick today, July 31, the last day of the legislative session. The amendment had faced strong opposition in the House, with Speaker Robert DeLeo describing it as a tax. Hedlund disputed this view, saying that taxes can't be redeemed. The expansion to the 31-year-old law designed to promote recycling and reduce litter would have added plastic bottles used for water, juices, iced tea and sports drinks to the list of …
Monday, July 30, 2012
The governor on Saturday sent 'Melissa's Bill' back to the Legislature.
Gov. Deval Patrick set in motion a wave of criticism when he proposed an amendment to the "three strikes"/Melissa's Bill on the grounds it lacked sufficient provisions for judicial discretion. Warning of possible unintended "unjust consequences" that can arise from mandatory sentencing laws, Patrick wrote in a letter to the Legislature, "None of us is wise or prescient enough to foresee each and every circumstance in which the new habitual offender provisions may apply." On Monday afternoon, the House rejected Patrick's amendment by a vote of 132-23, according to The Boston Globe. Later on Monday, the Senate also rejected the amendment, according to WCVB, Channel 5. The bill's fate is up in the air, as the legislature's summer session …
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
The bill increases public aid while not raising taxes.
The House and Senate overwhelming passed a $32.5 billion budget last week. Gov. Deval Patrick has until July 8 to review and sign it, or to issue vetoes. The thrust of the bill is to shore up aid to public programs while at the same time not increasing the burden to taxpayers. Overall, the 2013 budget is about 3 percent higher than this year's, but considerably tighter than previous recent years. Here are some of the bill's highlights: 1. It includes no new taxes or fees. Instead, $516 million will be taken from existing funds, including $350 million from the state's rainy day fund, leaving it over a billion dollars in the black. Still, that's down from the $2.2 billion it had in 2008. 2. It tightens welfare. The bill would limit the…
Faith
9:06 am on Friday, December 14, 2012
Very creative! more ›