Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The fiscal 2012 state budget bill that Gov. Deval Patrick files next week would increase the state appropriation for Chapter 70 education aid by $140 million, but would cut general municipal aid by $65 million (7.2 percent), the governor told local officials at the MMA Annual Meeting on Friday morning.
The governor said his budget would increase the special education circuit breaker account by $80 million and level-fund accounts such as payments in lieu of taxes, regional school transportation, charter school reimbursements and library aid.
The governor also said he would increase bond funding for the Chapter 90 local road and bridge program by $45 million, to $200 million, in fiscal 2012.
The governor said his budget would include $3.99 billion for Chapter 70, which is a new high for the state appropriation. Some $200 million in federal stimulus funds that were distributed through the Chapter 70 formula in fiscal 2011, however, are not available in fiscal 2012, although not all of these federal funds were spent by school districts this year.
Gov. Patrick also outlined a bill he said he would file Friday that would require all municipalities to either join the state’s Group Insurance Commission or offer an equivalent plan to provide health insurance for local employees.
Under the proposal, which would be effective for fiscal 2012, municipalities would be able to require expedited collective bargaining to negotiate a new health insurance benefit plan that is equivalent in “value and cost” to the benefits offered through the GIC. If the community and its unions do not reach an agreement within a limited period of time, the community would be required to go into the GIC or otherwise have health insurance coverage that is equivalent to the GIC.
The State House News Service reported that the governor said municipalities and unions would likely be given a window of 30 to 45 days to “coalition bargain” changes to their health plans before being forced into the GIC.
The governor’s proposal would supercede the state law that allows cities and towns to join the GIC if they receive approval from 70 percent of local unions.
The governor’s health proposal is quite different from what local officials and the MMA have identified as their top priority, which is giving communities the same authority that the state has to modify health insurance plans without going through collective bargaining. The MMA estimates this change would save communities $100 million per year statewide.
The governor said his bill would also require all municipalities to have eligible retired employees enrolled in Medicare as their primary source of health insurance coverage, a move that many cities and towns have already made.
In remarks during the MMA Annual Business Meeting today, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Murphy reminded local leaders that the governor’s budget and health insurance proposals are still subject to the legislative process. He said the local aid amounts in legislative budget proposals could be higher – or lower – than the governor’s, though Murphy did not offer any further details about what local officials might expect. The House and Senate will each pass their own versions of a state budget this spring before sending a final legislative budget to the governor for his signature in time for the start of the fiscal year on July 1.
On health insurance, Murphy said he’s glad that the governor and legislative leaders are all talking seriously about addressing the soaring cost of health insurance for municipal employees, a problem that “is just not sustainable.”
“We have to do something, and the window is short,” he said. “I’m optimistic that we’re going to get something done [this year].”
He added, however, “Whatever we get done, you’re not going to love it, and the unions aren’t going to love it. But what are you going to do? We have to do the best we can to resolve this issue.”
He suggested that the Legislature’s plan will differ from the governor’s.
Lawmakers had serious discussions about municipal health insurance last year, but they were not able to agree on a plan to help cities and towns control costs.
Also at the MMA Annual Meeting on Friday, the governor said his budget would include a new $9.7 million competitive “regionalization and efficiency” grant program to support one-time transition costs related to regionalization and other efficiency initiatives.
The governor added that he would file legislation to remove the property tax exemption on telecommunications equipment, which would generate an estimated $26 million in local revenue.
The governor is also proposing a new municipal procurement program within the state’s Operational Services Division to allow cities and towns to centralize procurement practices and leverage greater purchasing power.
He said his pension reform bill, which he announced Wednesday, would save cities and towns an estimated $2 billion over 30 years. The proposal, which has support from Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Robert DeLeo, would extend the minimum retirement age for most employees by five years and raise the age for receiving full retirement benefits from 65 to 67. It would also increase the period for averaging earnings, for the purposes of calculating the retirement allowance, from three to five years. The changes would not apply to current employees, however, only to new hires.
Acknowledging that times are tough for cities and towns, the governor told local officials from across the state at the MMA Annual Meeting, “I am confident that better days lie ahead so long as we all work together.”