Costly Climate Bill released from Committee on Sunday Night, Roll Call on Monday & Automatic Pay Raises for Part Time Lawmakers Starting Now
The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance (MassFiscal) made the following statement today in response to newly elected Speaker Ron Mariano’s first act as Speaker.
On Sunday night at approximately 4:00 p.m., the Climate Conference Committee released their very controversial and costly bill, S.2995 An Act Creating a Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy. The bill is a wish list for the environmental lobby that is densely loaded with new and future unchecked regulations and will raise energy costs for residents across Massachusetts. Speaker Mariano scheduled roll calls to start on Monday at noon, giving lawmakers just sixteen hours to review the lengthy legislation and consider its implications. Monday also marks the beginning of the newest automatic pay raises for the part time lawmakers, bumping their salaries by nearly 6.5%. The automatic pay raise means Speaker Marino and Senate President Spilka will be earning $178,000 each.
“Speaker Mariano has shown that Robert DeLeo’s hyper-opaque, top-down approach to running the House of Representatives will continue under his leadership. If change were in the air, lawmakers wouldn’t be so quick to rush through a very controversial piece of legislation or give themselves pay raises in the midst of such extreme personal and economic suffering,” stated Paul Diego Craney, spokesman of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance.
“This is a great illustration of the divide in our country. Politicians and the professional government class shut down countless businesses, while never missing a paycheck. In this case, they’re even giving themselves a substantial and unjustified pay raises,” continued Craney. “They extend the legislative session so that the important work is done after the election, so voters cannot have their voices heard. The Speaker position is handed off without a contested election in exchange for automatic pay raises. This is how democracy suffers under an opaque process,” said Craney.
“It’s safe to assume not many lawmakers will have had a chance to read the costly climate bill they are expected to vote on today, or understand the implications. When consumers complain about higher energy costs and burdensome regulations, and businesses suffer even higher expenses, MassFiscal can say we warned that it started under DeLeo’s watch and was rushed to finished under Mariano’s,” concluded Craney.