Wednesday, November 18, 2015
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By George Donnelly (@geodonnelly) with Keith Regan
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Today: Last call for legislation - for a while
Today is deadline day, expected to be the last day of formal sessions before the Legislature takes its holiday break. A public records bill was voted out of committee yesterday, and a solar power bill passed by the House yesterday heads to the Senate. See below for both stories.
The Massachusetts Sentencing Commission holds its first public hearing, to solicit comment on the state's sentencing laws and proposals to change sentencing practices. Attorney General Maura Healey will offer opening remarks. 9:30 am, Gardner Auditorium.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, Boston Foundation President and CEO Paul Grogan and JPMorgan Chase & Co Head of Corporate Responsibility Peter Scher announce more than $1.2 million in joint funding for workforce development programs, Eagle Room, Boston City Hall, One City Hall Square, Boston, 11:00 am.
Ahead of tonight's Worcester rally, detractors trying to Trump The Donald
Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump is expected in Worcester tonight night for a rally and Boston.com says some of those who have promised to show up at the rally have no intention of actually doing so. A Twitter movement has some Trump detractors reserving the free seats for the rally at the DCU Center in the hopes of having Trump look out at empty seats. http://bit.ly/1PNE1X9
Ahead of the rally, the Telegram talks to local voters and finds a mix of apprehension and excitement about The Donald's arrival. Some say the recent theft of weapons from the Worcester armory has them skittish about joining a large crowd. http://bit.ly/1X7dvsh
Public records bill a study in compromise
Well, it finally arrived, and let's just say ... it could have been worse. The House Ways and Means delivered a watered-down Public Record Law that still keeps the most critical component - the capacity for records-seekers to recover court costs. The House will debate it this morning. The Massachusetts Municipal Association, perhaps the bill's most powerful critic, got some concessions and now is not opposing the measure. It would reduce the cost of getting records but give agencies more time to retrieve them. The Globe's Todd Wallack, who has championed public records reform with his coverage this year, has the pluses and minuses of the bill here: http://bit.ly/1PzaBxp
Cellphone while driving ban advances in House
The State House News Service reports this morning that a bill that would prohibit cellphones while driving, except in emergency situations, received initial approval in the House.http://bit.ly/1SXSj7H (paywall)
'Reservations' over Transgender Bill
The House chairman of the committee assigned to work on a bill to prohibit transgender people's access to sex-segregated public accommodations says he's trying to "work the details out" between lawmakers. "There are a lot of lawmakers who have reservations," Rep. John Fernandes, a Milford Democrat who co-chairs the Judiciary Committee told the State House News Service yesterday. http://bit.ly/1OQbtOj (paywall)
Two views of the same solar bill
The House voted to lift the net metering cap yesterday, a move that would provide more financial incentives for solar projects. For House Speaker Bob DeLeo, said this in a statement: "Today's efforts and those we will undertake later in the session will help foster a sustainable renewable energy industry while ensuring ratepayers are treated fairly."
But solar advocates are far from happy. From Ben Hellerstein, Environment Massachusetts State Director: "Under the guise of a minor lift to the solar caps, it would slam the brakes on solar by making major, unjustified cuts to the compensation for solar energy."
Why isn't the House passage of the cap lift a happy event for environmentalists? Perhaps the concern is perhaps best captured by Rep. Thomas Calter of Kingston: "The reality is that this industry is very fragile, by increasing caps by only two percent there is a real argument ... that investment capital and angel capital will dry up so that the projects that have been approved and are ready to go will be stalled." The House votes sets up the potential for a "frenzied back and forth" with Senate today, reports the State House News Service's Matt Murphy. "Despite the obvious challenges to arriving at a deal between the branches before the recess, the Senate's point-person on energy, Sen. Benjamin Downing, said his goal remains getting a bill to Gov. Charlie Baker's desk." http://bit.ly/1WYDKq5 (paywall)
'The case for accepting Syrian refugees'
That's the headline on Ryan Crocker's op-ed in today's Wall Street Journal. Who's he? The former ambassador to Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Kuwait. He writes: "After the fall of Saigon, the U.S. welcomed more than a million Vietnamese refugees, who quickly earned a reputation for achievement. Syrians would do likewise. As a former ambassador to Syria, I know how highly Syrians value hard work and education. They're precisely the people I'd want living next door to me and attending my children's schools."http://on.wsj.com/1S3SBJA (paywall)
For more on the refugee spat between Gov. Baker and Congressman Seth Moulton, and a sampling of our Congressional delegation's opinions on the issue, see Brian MacQuarrie's Globe story. http://bit.ly/1H8kKPb
City tax bills jump
With rising real estate values come higher tax bills, as Boston residents are learning this week. The average homeowner will see a 4 percent increase, reports the Globe's Tim Logan. The building boom has added 15 percent to the city's tax base. http://bit.ly/1NDp19K
DCF drops two-tier approach
The Department of Children and Families will no longer divide its cases into high-risk and low-risk categories, part of a number of changes announced at the beleaguered agency by Gov. Charlie Baker, the Globe reports. Other changes include faster screening of abuse reports and a formal policy around supervision of social workers. http://bit.ly/1QMdF8N
MCAS 2.0 carries the day
The state's Board of Education formally voted Tuesday to adopt a hybrid test that will replace the MCAS with a new test that incorporates elements of the PARCC approach, the Globe reports. The new hybrid test is expected to be ready for students in early 2017. http://bit.ly/1H7CnOX
Voters still love Baker, but not so much the T
Gov. Charlie Baker's popularity among voters remains sky-high but the same cannot be said of the MBTA, which only 28 percent of voters say has improved under his administration, according to MassINC poll results published by CommonWealth magazine. Baker enjoys a 63 percent favorability rating, and while more than half of voters support Baker's approach to T reform, only 37 percent think the T is ready for another winter. http://bit.ly/1QsW6eE
Has Beacon Hill done enough this year?
As the legislative session winds to a close, WGBH's Mike Deehan puts Beacon Hill's performance under a microscope and comes to the conclusion that infighting between the House and Senate has resulted in slow progress on some issues. Leaders say lawmakers will make up for the glacial pace - just 16 bills of substance were sent to the governor, most early in the session - when they return for the second year in January. http://bit.ly/1MjGmGU
At Romney's Bain, support for Clinton
Executives and employees at Bain Capital, who were largely in lock step behind their founder, Mitt Romney, during the 2012 presidential race, are now mostly supporting Democrat Hillary Clinton, the Boston Business Journal reports. Although only nine Bain employees have made donations to date, all of the support has gone to Clinton and all but one of those who donated has given the maximum allowed, $2,700. http://bit.ly/1MB24Er
TODAY'S DAY: It's Mickey Mouse's Birthday.
REMEMBER: To send your tips to me at gdonnelly@massterlist.com. Op-eds and other commentary invited for publication on Massterlist.
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