Category Archives: Information

Massachusetts Municipal Association’s Analysis of the Governor’s Municipal Health Care Reform Amendments

Posted on July 12, 2011 | Comments Off on Massachusetts Municipal Association’s Analysis of the Governor’s Municipal Health Care Reform Amendments

7/11/11

GOVERNOR, LEGISLATIVE LEADERS, MMA AND LABOR AGREE ON FINAL AMENDMENTS TO MUNICIPAL HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM ACT

FINAL ACTION EXPECTED TODAY TO ENACT A VERY STRONG REFORM LAW FOR CITIES AND TOWNS – A MAJOR VICTORY FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Late on Friday, July 8, Governor Deval Patrick, Speaker Robert DeLeo, Senate President Therese Murray, the MMA and a statewide coalition of labor unions announced agreement on four refining amendments to the municipal health insurance reform act that is on the Governor’s desk, paving the way for final action and approval today (Monday, July 11).

The Governor had been undecided about whether to sign the reform provisions as presented to him, and this agreement resolved the issue, allowing the Governor, legislative leaders and stakeholders to reach common ground.  Municipal health insurance reform has commanded center stage on Beacon Hill ever since the House of Representatives passed a powerful reform proposal in April.  The final product preserves the strong reform framework that House members embraced by a 113-42 vote.

The municipal health insurance reform provisions are attached as outside sections of the state budget.  The plan is for the Governor to return the municipal health provisions to the Legislature early on Monday recommending adoption of the amendments.  The House and Senate leaders have scheduled formal sessions for Monday afternoon, and have pledged to immediately adopt the amendments and return the reform act to the Governor, who will promptly sign the final version into law.

A description of the four amendments is provided below.

The final legislation that the Speaker, Governor and Senate President have all agreed on is a very strong reform act that removes ultimate health insurance plan design decision-making from collective bargaining, saves taxpayers money, preserves essential local services, protects municipal union jobs, guarantees equity with state employee health benefits, and provides municipal unions with more bargaining power than state unions.  It is a balanced and fair reform that would allow cities and towns to save $100 million in avoided health insurance costs, while providing a voice for municipal unions in the process.  Cities and towns will be able to use this reform to provide relief for local taxpayers, protect essential services, and preserve thousands of municipal jobs.

The MMA applauds the leadership of Speaker Robert DeLeo, Chairman Brian Dempsey, Vice Chairman Stephen Kulik, Governor Deval Patrick, Secretary for Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez, President Therese Murray, Chairman Stephen Brewer, Vice Chairman Steven Baddour, budget conferees Rep. Vinny deMacedo and Sen. Michael Knapik, Public Service Committee Chairs Rep. John Scibak and Sen. Katherine Clark, and all of the members of the House of Representatives and Senate who have advocated for reform this session.

Summary of Governor’s Final Amendments

The four amendments that the Governor will be filing are intended to refine and clarify several provisions of the reform.  The changes are being supported by the House and Senate leadership, the MMA, the Mass. Taxpayers’ Foundation, and a coalition of statewide and municipal unions.  These are intended to be the final changes, enabling the act to become law on July 11, 2011.

Shared Savings.  Under the reform act, cities and towns will set aside up to 25 percent of the first year’s savings to fund a mitigation plan to offset the impact of plan design changes (or entrance into the GIC) on retirees, heavy health care purchasers, and low-income employees.  The first amendment the Governor will file would calculate the one-time shared savings amount based on total savings achieved in the first year, not just the governmental unit’s share of the savings.  For a community with an 80-20 contribution ratio, this amendment would increase the one-time mitigation amount by 5 percent, adding a one-time cost of $50,000 for every $1 million of savings during the first year).

GIC.  The second amendment the Governor will file would set a threshold for unilateral decisions to transfer subscribers into the GIC.  Under the amendment, communities would demonstrate that transferring into the GIC would save 5 percent more than the savings that could be achieved by making plan design changes (increasing co-payments, deductibles and introducing tiered network plans) to existing insurance plans.  While the MMA prefers no threshold, the association agreed to the amendment recognizing that it is highly unlikely that any city or town would transfer its employees and retirees into the GIC without a savings advantage, as joining the GIC would result in a loss of control, and requires a three-year commitment to the state, plus administrative fees.

Retirees. Importantly, the final bill deleted a Senate-voted section that would have forced dozens of communities to increase the municipal share of contribution ratios for retirees, and instead replaced it with a reasonable provision that would have delayed any increase in the contribution ratio paid by retirees for a two-year period for any community that uses the reform act to implement plan design changes.  The third amendment filed by the Governor would extend that period to three years.  Thus, communities making plan design changes or joining the GIC under the new law could not increase retiree contribution ratios from July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2014, unless the contribution ratio changes were approved prior to July 1, 2011.

Plan Design.  Under the act that the Legislature sent to the Governor, cities and towns would be authorized to include co-payments, deductibles, tiered network co-payments and other plan design features no greater in dollar amount than the most subscribed plan in the GIC.  Unions have voiced concern that the “other plan design features” language could be stretched or misinterpreted to allow cities and towns to use this authority to strip employees of basic coverage offered in health plans (such as chiropractic or mental health services).  This is not the intent of the language, and thus the Governor’s amendment will clarify the language to “other cost-sharing plan design features”.  This amendment would refine the law, but would not impact the intended scope.

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Posted in Budgets, Information

Voluntary Water Ban

Posted on July 8, 2011 | Comments Off on Voluntary Water Ban

Email today from DPW –

The DEP recently contacted Ken to suggest Medfield issue a voluntary water ban since our stream flows are low.

Because this must be issued through the authority of the Water and Sewer Board, we thought you should be made aware.

Signs will begin appearing around town.

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Posted in Information, Water & Sewer

Weekly Political Report – Week Ending July 1, 2011

Posted on July 6, 2011 | Comments Off on Weekly Political Report – Week Ending July 1, 2011

Week Ending July 1, 2011

 

House and Senate Pass FY2012 Budget, Send Bill to Governor’s Desk

On Thursday evening the six-member conference committee that is tasked with reconciling the House and Senate versions of the FY2012 $30.6 billion state budget filed their compromise bill with the House clerk’s office. The total budget amount is the largest in state history and was crafted without the assistance of $1.5 billion in federal stimulus funds the state accepted last fiscal year.

 

The FY2012 budget reverses a $65 million local aid cut that municipalities had anticipated by giving any unspent funds left over at the end of the current fiscal year back to the cities and towns. In addition, the budget makes major revisions to how municipalities negotiate and share health care costs, overhauls the state’s indignant counsel system, and anticipates large reductions in state health care spending. As a result of the FY2012 budget, $584 million will remain in the Commonwealth’s rainy day fund.

 

The House and Senate passed the budget this afternoon sending it to the Governor for his consideration. Under the Massachusetts Constitution, the Governor is granted 10 days to review a bill after the Legislature passes a bill and sends it to him for consideration. On Monday of this week, the Legislature passed a $1.25 billion ten day budget to fulfill state spending starting July 1st.

 

Municipal Health Reform Included in FY2012 Budget

While the House and Senate differed significantly on the issue of municipal health care reform, the compromise bill filed would allow municipalities to enact plan design changes to employee health care coverage following a 30-day bargaining window. It would also require that 25% of the savings that municipalities realize be redirected back to employees. Municipal health reform was the major sticking point in House and Senate budget negotiations.

 

Home Foreclosures Decrease Sharply in May

The Warren Group, which monitors home sales in the state, said initiated and completed home foreclosures in May were down 65% over the year, a 58% drop compared to May 2010. This is the first month since the beginning of the year that the number of foreclosure petitions (454) is below 500 for the year.  Vincent Valvo of Banker and Tradesman magazine called the large decline in completed foreclosures encouraging, although he warned that delayed foreclosures may be masking the reality of the market.

 

 

John Nunnari, Assoc AIA
Executive Director, AIA MA
jnunnari@architects.org
617-951-1433 x263
617-951-0845 (fax)

MA Chapter of American Institute of Architects
The Architects Building
52 Broad Street, Boston MA 02109-4301
www.architects.org

 

 

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Posted in Information, Weekly Mass Political Summaries

Get what information I have via FB, Twitter, or this blog

Posted on July 6, 2011 | Comments Off on Get what information I have via FB, Twitter, or this blog
I try to share what information I get about the Town of Medfield  by virtue of being a selectman, via (1) my FaceBook account and I invite anyone in town to friend me, (2) on Twitter @Medfield, and (3) this blog.  Longer pieces get posted at the blog, but I often post a notice on the other two places to advise people that it is there.  My posts to Twitter and FB are usually identical (with another copy to the blog), as they are made via a service that posts to all three at once.  My problem is always one of time, as I have more than a full time job to do that pays my bills.
It is too bad that Mike, Ann and Mark would not agree to have the Town of Medfield e-newsletter put out by the former managing editor (for 15 years) of the Boston Globe on the volunteer basis, as Tom Mulvoy offered to do for the town, at no cost, as that would have gotten information to the people in a much more complete, in depth, and better way than I or the newspapers are able to do with our constraints.

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Posted in Information

Medfield College?

Posted on July 6, 2011 | Comments Off on Medfield College?
Oleana Foundation is looking to use the Medfield State Hospital site to start a college here in Medfield.  See http://www.oleana-edu.org/.   I picked that site up from the email address its executive director used, not anything by way of contact information he put forward in his email (a copy of the email appears below), when he emailed Mike, Kris, and Bob to update the town on what they are doing.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

7/05/2011 11:18AM

FW: College Project Update

Sullivan, Michael J.

MSH – Medfield State Hospital Reuse

“Michael Sullivan”

===========================================================

FYI, Mike

From: Vincent Rocchio

Sent: Friday, July 01, 2011 9:13 AM

Subject: College Project Update

Hi Everyone,

It has been a long time since you have heard from me, but our group has been

busy trying to advance our project of converting the Medfield State Hospital

into a new, four-year, faculty-residential Liberal Arts College.

There have been several developments. We have been working very closely

with Michael Dukakis, and he arranged meetings with Jay Gonzalez and David

Sullivan from Administration and Finance. We will be meeting with Michael

and a very large developer to explore the possibility of partnering on the

project.

At this juncture we would like to begin a “quiet campaign” of speaking with

select people in the town who could help us obtain community support. I was

hoping we might be able to meet soon and discuss such a plan in more detail.

Best,

Vincent F. Rocchio,

Executive Director

Oleana Foundation

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Posted in Information, Medfield State Hospital

Lyme disease – Walpole says no thanks

Posted on June 27, 2011 | Comments Off on Lyme disease – Walpole says no thanks

I reached out to through a former Walpole selectman to ask if Walpole would join with Medfield in culling deer to reduce Lyme disease.  The selectman had the Walpole’s Board of Health agent call me, and she said that their Board of Health got an invitation from the Dover Board of Health to join a regional effort to cull deer so as to reduce Lyme disease,  but then read the early May article in the Boston Globe magazine which said there is no scientific relationship between the number of deer and the amount of Lyme disease, and decided to not proceed.  She offered to take her Board of Health new information if any was presented.  I passed this information along to the Medfield Lyme disease study committee chair.

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/articles/2011/05/08/why_new_hunting_programs_arent_going_to_check_the_spread_of_lyme_disease/?s_campaign=8315

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Posted in Information, Wildlife Management & Lyme disease

Weekly Political Report – week ending June 24, 2011

Posted on June 27, 2011 | Comments Off on Weekly Political Report – week ending June 24, 2011

FY2012 Budget Still Not Finished, Governor to File Interim Budget

With less than a week before the new fiscal year begins, the six-member conference committee that is tasked with reconciling the House and Senate versions of the FY2012 $30.5 billion state budget still have not reached an agreement. Although the Senate held a Friday session in the event that an agreement was reached and filed with the Legislature by Thursday night, the House on Thursday adjourned for the week, precluding any chance of the Legislature passing a budget before the weekend. Under the Massachusetts Constitution, the Governor is granted 10 days to review a bill after the Legislature passes a bill and sends it to him for consideration. Although details of the negotiations have not been made public, the House and Senate budgets differed significantly on issues such as municipal health care reform, pharmaceutical gift ban repeal, the use of electro-shock therapy on disabled children and illegal immigration.  Larger issues are also being debated such as adding money to the rainy day fund and whether to include an automatic rollback of the state’s income tax.

 

While the budget conference committee continues its deliberations, Governor Patrick intends to file a temporary $1.25 billion 10-day budget. According to Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzales, the interim budget will be filed today in order to avoid payment disruptions after July 1st assuming a full year budget is not in place.

 

Governor Patrick Signs Storm Relief Bill

On Tuesday, Governor Patrick signed a $54 million tornado relief bill. The bill allocates $15 million to pay for emergency response, cleanup, shelter expenditures and other assistance related to the tornadoes. It also allows Western Massachusetts municipalities to execute short-term borrowing for emergencies without legislative approval and enables cities and towns to assess FY2012 property taxes based on the damaged conditions of properties.

 

Massachusetts Unemployment Rates Up in Parts of State, Down in Others

The unadjusted unemployment figures for labor markets across the state were released this week. The data showed that the unemployment rate increased in eight areas, decreased in another eight, and were unchanged in the remaining six labor markets. The new statistics show that the jobless rate was up geographic areas including Boston, Cambridge and Quincy. Lawrence-Methuen-Salem and Fall River had the highest unemployment rates in the state, at 11.4%.

 

Tax Collection Figures For First Half of June Up 9.3%

This week the Massachusetts Department of Revenue released the tax collection figures for the first 17 days of June. Tax revenues for this period were $54 million above state budget benchmarks. The state collected $1.2 billion in taxes during the month, a 9.3% increase compared to the same period in June 2010. According to Navjeet Bal, the state revenue commissioner, the gains were due to estimated payments that residents paid with their income tax returns and increased sales tax revenue.

 

 

John Nunnari, Assoc AIA
Executive Director, AIA MA
jnunnari@architects.org
617-951-1433 x263
617-951-0845 (fax)

MA Chapter of American Institute of Architects
The Architects Building
52 Broad Street, Boston MA 02109-4301
www.architects.org

 

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Posted in Information, Weekly Mass Political Summaries

Weekly Political Report – Week Ending June 17, 2011

Posted on June 20, 2011 | Comments Off on Weekly Political Report – Week Ending June 17, 2011

Week Ending June 17, 2011 Former House Speaker DiMasi Convicted On Wednesday, a jury convicted former House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi of using his office to rig software contracts in exchange for kickbacks. DiMasi, who was Speaker of the Massachusetts House from 2004 to 2009, was convicted on seven counts, including conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and extortion. The trial lasted six weeks and featured testimony from Governor Deval Patrick, current and former Massachusetts State Representatives and former House staffers. On Thursday, Judge Mark Wolf scheduled DiMasi’s sentencing hearing for September 8th. House and Senate Pass Storm Relief Bills This week the House and Senate passed a supplemental budget aimed at providing funding for relief from the June 1st tornadoes that hit Western Massachusetts. Both bills would allocate $15 million to pay for emergency response, cleanup, shelter expenditures and other assistance related to the tornadoes. In keeping with the version filed last week by Governor Patrick, both bills would allow Western Massachusetts municipalities to execute short-term borrowing for emergencies without legislative approval and enable cities and towns to assess FY2012 property taxes based on the damaged conditions of properties. The different versions will have to be reconciled before going to the Governor for his signature. Last Saturday the Governor filed a request with FEMA for a Presidential declaration of an emergency in parts of Western Massachusetts. Indication of Potential Gambling Compromise Last week House Speaker DeLeo (D – Winthrop) signaled that he hoped to pass an expanded gambling bill before the end of July. On Monday, after meeting with Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Murray (D – Plymouth), the Governor indicated his flexibility on the issue and referred to a potential compromise of three destination resort casinos and one competitively bid slot parlor license that he could support. Although the House and Senate and the Governor were generally in agreement about authorizing casinos in the state before the end of last session, the issue of whether slot machines should be allowed at the state racetracks ultimately derailed the bill’s final passage. Pension Reform Could Be Taken Up Before August Recess At the end of January, Governor Patrick filed legislation to increase the minimum retirement age for state workers from 55 to 60. His legislation would also require state employees to work until 67 in order to receive their maximum pension benefit. According to Governor Patrick, he received assurances from Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Murray this week that his pension bill could be brought to the floor during the summer. Massachusetts’ current retirement system supports 56,000 retirees and has 86,000 actively contributing employees. Massachusetts Unemployment Falls .2% in May Unemployment in the state was down .2% in May to 7.6%, according to a Patrick Administration jobs report. Although Massachusetts lost 4,000 jobs last month, the unemployment rate has stayed below 8% for the last two months, the first time it has done so since 2009. The highest job gains in the state this month were in professional services, construction and manufacturing industries. John Nunnari, Assoc AIA Executive Director, AIA MA jnunnari@architects.org 617-951-1433 x263 617-951-0845 (fax) MA Chapter of American Institute of Architects The Architects Building 52 Broad Street, Boston MA 02109-4301 http://www.architects.org

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Posted in Information, Weekly Mass Political Summaries

Fox 25 News Zip Trip on 6/24

Posted on June 15, 2011 | Comments Off on Fox 25 News Zip Trip on 6/24

On 6/24 Fox 25 News will be broadcasting from the Gazebo, doing its Zip Trip. They have asked me to join them at 6:50 AM – yawn – awfully early.

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Posted in Information

Weekly Political Report – Week Ending June 10, 2011

Posted on June 13, 2011 | Comments Off on Weekly Political Report – Week Ending June 10, 2011

Week Ending June 10, 2011

 

Government Reform Passes Unanimously in the Senate

On Thursday, the Senate passed SB 1900, Senate President Therese Murray’s (D-Plymouth) omnibus government reform bill. SB 1900 would establish a performance management system by requiring the Executive Branch to curb personnel costs and requiring each new governor to file a zero-based budget during the initial stage of his or her administration. The bill would also implement sunset provisions for agencies and authorities, expand electronic reporting by state agencies, require reports on cash intake and outlays and identify discrepancies between estimates and actual receipt and spending levels. Under SB1900, the state’s debt limit would be increased to $1.7 billion at the start of the next fiscal year and local aid to cities and towns would be paid in monthly allotments, as opposed to the quarterly payments currently in place. The bill now moves to the House, although Speaker DeLeo (D-Winthrop) has not indicated a timeline for taking up the bill.

 

Budget Conference Conducts 1st Meeting

The six-member FY12 state budget conference committee held its first meeting on Wednesday. The conference committee is tasked with forging consensus and producing a compromise budget bill which then goes to the House and Senate for up or down votes. Both House and Senate budgets relied on $800 million in savings from the MassHealth program, which could involve constraining provider payments and rates to achieve savings, according to the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute. The new fiscal year begins July 1st, giving the committee a tight schedule to finalize the budget, which must be voted on in each chamber and then reviewed and signed by the Governor.

 

Speaker Outlines Gambling Timeline

House Speaker DeLeo (D – Winthrop) on Monday outlined a timeline for passing an expanded gambling bill. According to the Speaker, his desire is to pass the bill in July. The Speaker made clear that he and Senate President Murray (D – Plymouth) have had only preliminary discussions with the Governor, and that he hopes to take up the issue following the passage of the FY2012 budget plan. The Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies held a hearing on the expanded gaming bills in early May. The Governor has said that the issue of gambling is much higher on Speaker DeLeo’s agenda than on his own. Although the House and Senate and Governor were generally in agreement about authorizing casinos in the state before the end of last session, the issue of whether slot machines should be allowed at the state racetracks ultimately derailed the bill’s final passage.

 

Tornado Budget Bill Referred to Committee

On Tuesday, Governor Patrick filed a $52 million tornado relief budget bill that would pay for emergency response efforts and expedite municipal borrowing authority for towns affected by last week’s tornadoes. The bill would allow Western Massachusetts municipalities to execute short-term borrowing for emergencies without legislative approval and enable cities and towns to assess FY2012 property taxes based on the damaged conditions of properties. Both Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Murray have expressed support for the tornado relief legislation. On Thursday, the House referred the supplemental budget bill to the House Ways and Means Committee.

 

Business Confidence in Massachusetts Falls

Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) measures business confidence in the state through a survey it sends out to its members. The AIM confidence index is currently at 51.7, a 4.4% decrease since May. A score of 50 is considered neutral and any rating below 50 signifies generally negative sentiments about business confidence in the state. AIM President Rick Lord attributed the drop to economic reports last month that showed disappointing growth and job creation rates in the state. The index has remained above 50 for the previous eight months. The index reached its all-time low in February 2009.

 

 

John Nunnari, Assoc AIA
Executive Director, AIA MA
jnunnari@architects.org
617-951-1433 x263
617-951-0845 (fax)

MA Chapter of American Institute of Architects
The Architects Building
52 Broad Street, Boston MA 02109-4301
www.architects.org

 

 

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Posted in Information, Weekly Mass Political Summaries