Over the weekend, both the House and the Senate met to consider overriding the Governor's vetoes on the FY 2017 budget. The Senate considered over 60 individual items; the House, over 100. As the Democrat National Committee meets this week in Philadelphia, voting is suspended until the weekend, when we expect work will continue on trying to restore cuts to the budget. Despite the governors reductions, many agencies and programs are still being funded at last year’s levels or in some cases getting even more funding than last year.

As you can imagine, a massive amount of data will be moved into our Legislative Scorecard over the next few days. You might be interested in checking in as we go along. Follow this link to view the Scorecard at www.MassFiscalScorecard.org.

We’ll let you know when we've accounted for all of the votes. If all goes according to plan, the legislature will adjourn for the remainder of the session on Sunday.

Governor Charlie Baker has signed a bill giving preference to American Veterans in public housing decisions.

The new law is a reminder that politics is a long game. In 2014, MassFiscal sent out millions of informational mailers telling constituents about legislators who voted against the opportunity to give veterans preference for public housing.

Fiscal responsibly means making sure limited resources are allocated appropriately, and we believe putting those who have sacrificed so much to our nation first is both appropriate and responsible.

MassFiscal is pleased to have played a role in this policy development, and specifically that the legislature finally acted on this issue after our advocacy efforts in 2014. We will continue to advocate for appropriate, responsible spending going forward. (Picture from www.twitter.com/massgovernor)

(BOSTON)—  Federal Election Commissioner Lee Goodman addresses MassFiscal members at a Policy Roundtable Discussion, to be held September 7 in Boston. Commissioner Goodman, appointed by President Barack Obama, served as the Chair of the Commission in 2014. Commissioner Goodman will address campaign finance law and freedom of speech issues.

The FEC regulates national campaign finance law as it applies to candidates for Congress, United States Senate, and President. 

“As Americans, we cherish our First Amendment rights. The laws regulating political speech are complex. The rights and responsibilities of a variety of players need to be fairly balanced,” Paul Craney, Executive Director of The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, said. “Our members can expect to learn a great deal, given Commissioner Goodman's experience and knowledge .”

Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance advocates for fiscal responsibility, transparency, and accountability in state government and increased economic opportunity for the people of our Commonwealth.

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