Mass. Politics: Redistricting Plan, Gambling Bill and Pension Reform

Editor's note: The following political report was published on Medfield Board of Selectmen chair Osler Peterson's blog, "Medfield 02052."

Massachusetts Legislature and Gov. Patrick Approve Redistricting Plan
Last Tuesday, both the House and Senate voted in favor of the revised legislative maps drawn by the Joint Redistricting Committee, and this past Thursday, Governor Deval Patrick signed the redistricting bills into law. According to the House and Senate Chairs of the Redistricting Committee, Representative Michael Moran (D-Brighton) and Senator Stanley Rosenberg (D-Amherst), the committee is still considering how to merge the state’s 10 Congressional districts into 9.

Gambling Bill Negotiators Close Meetings to Public
Last Tuesday, the six members of the conference committee tasked with negotiating a consensus gambling bill voted unanimously to close their meetings to the public. The committee members are hoping to complete all negotiations before the seven-week legislative recess that begins on Nov. 16th. Representative Joseph Wagner (D-Chicopee), Chair of the conference committee, indicated last week that he will oppose the Senate proposal to prohibit lawmakers from working in the casino industry for up to a year following their departure from public office.

House Passes Pension Reform Legislation

This past Wednesday, the House voted unanimously in support of major pension reform legislation. The bill aims to save the state $5 billion over the next 30 years by raising retirement ages and reducing benefits for future public employees. The Senate’s version of the legislation, which passed in mid-September, differs substantially from the House version and will require a conference committee process to reconcile the two versions. The House appointed Reps. John Scibak (D-South Hadley), Brian Dempsey (D-Haverhill) and Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) to the six-member conference committee that will try to reach agreement on the legislation.

House and Senate Pass Supplemental Budget

This week the House and Senate passed nearly identical versions of a $52 million supplemental spending bill. The budget bills allocate an additional $39 million to the state’s “housing first” homeless shelter program, $10 million for Tropical Storm Irene assistance and $308,000 for veterans services to prepare for troops returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill also includes a provision requested by Secretary of State William Galvin that moves up the date of the 2012 state primary election from Sept. 18 to Sept. 6. The bills are based on a $161 million spending bill proposed by Governor Deval Patrick, but do not include many of the spending initiatives sought by the governor.

Massachusetts Business Confidence Slips again

According to an index calculated by the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, business confidence in Massachusetts continued to decrease in October. The index shows weak consumer spending, problems in the housing market and a lack of confidence in national political leadership. The results were compiled before positive economic developments in Europe and the United State were reported. This year, Massachusetts has gained 37,900 jobs dropping the unemployment rate to 7.3 percent compared to the national rate of 9.1 percent.