Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance made the following statement today regarding Speaker Robert DeLeo’s comments over the weekend on the Jon Keller show, in which he claimed the Massachusetts state budget requires additional federal money to fill a $2-$6 billion-dollar “shortfall.”

Speaker DeLeo’s comments come after several months of legislative sessions in which the Speaker and the Senate President refused to show  any desire or willingness to reduce state spending. Spending was so out of control that rank and file lawmakers used the earmark process to fund election year pet projects through several borrowing bills.

Speaker DeLeo was quoted as saying, “Without the assistance from Washington… which we are very much depending upon on, which hasn’t been forthcoming so far, we are very concerned.” You may watch the entire interview by clicking here: https://boston.cbslocal.com/2020/10/04/massachusetts-budget-deficit-coronavirus-aid-house-speaker-robert-deleo-jon-keller-at-large-wbz/.

“Last year, without the threat of a pandemic, State House leaders made Massachusetts the last state in the Union to pass an annual budget. This year, they are not letting a crisis go to waste. The Speaker is the only politician in Massachusetts that has had oversight of our budget for over ten years, yet he is unabashedly trying to shift the blame for our fiscal woes to an unpopular federal government. We may be in the middle of a pandemic, but politics are more at play than ever,” stated Paul D. Craney, spokesman for the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance.

“When Massachusetts State House leaders run out of ideas, they blame Washington. Since March, there hasn’t been any discussions from State House leaders on how to reduce spending. The only conversations they want to have is to raise taxes, borrow more, or wait for a federal bailout,” stated Craney.