New year will bring new challenges

From The Beacon, December 2011

The Massachusetts Legislature has completed its formal sessions for the year, ending with the usual flurry of activity that had participants and observers moving at a frenetic pace. When the dust settled, 2011 was by all accounts one of the most productive years for the General Court in recent memory, with major legislation advancing on many fronts.

From the municipal perspective, the signature accomplishment was, of course, the passage of Chapter 69 of the Acts of 2011, the strong municipal health insurance reform law that was designed and launched by the House of Representatives in April, passed by the Senate in May and signed by the governor in July. Chapter 69 is the most important reform law to benefit cities and towns in the past 30 years, and when fully implemented it will save cities and towns, taxpayers, and municipal employees more than $100 million a year, all while guaranteeing high-quality health insurance for local workers and preserving countless jobs for teachers, police officers, firefighters and other key municipal employees.

The success on municipal health insurance was truly remarkable, yet the 2011 session contained many other acts to benefit the communities of Massachusetts. The notable examples include: the Legislature’s fiscal 2012 state budget, which restored $65 million in vital local aid to every town and city and added $80 million to the special education circuit-breaker program; the passage of a $200 million Chapter 90 program, the highest in state history; and the enactment of strong pension reform legislation without mandates on local systems, which will reduce local pension costs by $2 billion over the next 30 years.

These achievements are all critical to cities and towns. With the national economy still trapped in post-recession stagnation, with state government facing giant Medicaid bills, and with all levels of government fearful of dramatic federal budget cuts that could turn black ink into red, each of these legislative initiatives will be essential to the fiscal stability that communities and taxpayers need.

But as every local official knows, the “to do” list always seems to get longer, no matter how much gets checked off the ledger.

In that spirit, each fall the MMA Board of Directors devotes significant time to outlining the top priorities for the association, to give our staff and our policy committees guidance in terms of resource allocation and to allow the board to focus on what matters most during the coming year.

Here’s a look at the top issues and goals that the board has set for 2012:

• Fighting for local aid: The MMA’s top priority will continue to be fighting for local aid to fund essential municipal and school services. This will include incorporating the mid-year $65 million allotment of local aid into the base for fiscal 2013, increasing overall unrestricted general government aid by the same percentage that state taxes increase, and fully funding Chapter 70 education aid.

• Investing in local roads and bridges: The MMA will push for full funding and reauthorization of the Chapter 90 program to repair, maintain and build roads and bridges across the state, targeting a multi-year authorization of $300 million a year, and will work on the national stage to advocate for a reauthorization of federal surface transportation funding programs, including the SAFETEA-LU program that provides more than $500 million a year to Massachusetts.

• Restoring and protecting key special education funds: The association will push hard to increase funding for the special education circuit-breaker program and will seek to expand the program to include transportation costs for special education students.

• Enhancing local revenue capacity: The MMA will advocate for increased municipal revenue options, including closing the telecommunications property tax equipment loophole and closing local-option lodging tax loopholes on Internet sales and seasonal rentals.

• Ensuring sustainable programs and funding for environmental protection: The association will continue to work for adequate resources to administer and promote environmental protection and will oppose unfunded mandates that federal and state agencies propose in the Water Management Act, stormwater management, and other environmental programs. The MMA will also oppose any ballot measure or legislative proposal to cap local water and sewer rates.

• Educating and engaging local officials on the impact of federal budget cuts on cities and towns: Working with the National League of Cities and other leading groups, the MMA will advocate against federal budget cuts to local and state governments in key program areas, and will facilitate information sharing and greater understanding of how federal deficit reduction would impact local budgets and economic stability.

• Safeguarding and promoting successful municipal health insurance reforms: The association will continue to promote and facilitate the effective implementation of the new municipal health insurance reform law.

• Assisting cities and towns as they identify regionalization and efficiency opportunities: The MMA will promote the resources and municipal authority needed for the regionalization of local services, including removing collective bargaining impediments to regionalization and ensuring appropriate municipal authority to engage in such efforts.

It is important to set priorities and goals so that the MMA can marshal, focus and leverage all resources to achieve maximum results for cities and towns. These issues cover a broad range of measures and are designed to strengthen cities and towns and their ability to deliver essential services, reduce reliance on regressive property taxes, promote a stronger federal-state-local partnership, enhance our economy, and ensure stability and recovery for communities and taxpayers.

It goes without saying (but I’ll say it here) that the MMA will continue to work on dozens of other issues of concern to cities and towns, from ambulance payments to zoning, and everything in between. The MMA board’s priority list is meant to highlight those matters that naturally rise to the top due to urgency and magnitude.

So, yes, our “to do” list seems longer than ever, even though 2011 has been a productive year on Beacon Hill.

Finally, as we discuss the future and the need to fight hard to build and advance the needs of our hometowns, this is an appropriate time to remember Sheila Cheimets, who passed away on Oct. 30. Sheila was just 75 years old, and it is painful and hard to believe that she is no longer with us. She loved and contributed so much to the communities of Massachusetts and devoted countless hours to building the MMA into a strong and vibrant organization. She was the MMA’s top legislative leader and executive director during a time of great change and challenge for cities and towns, and she was a trailblazer everywhere she went.

In many ways, Sheila will always be a part of us. Her vision, tenacity, hometown values and integrity are part of our organization’s foundation and will continue in the work that we do with you and all local leaders.