Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The House on April 30 approved a $27.8 billion state budget for fiscal 2011 that remains deeply influenced by the economic recession and cuts the main municipal and education aid accounts by about 3 percent.
These accounts would be $153 million below the fiscal 2010 level of funding and about $159 million below what the governor proposed in his state spending plan, filed in January. This would mark the third straight year of deep local aid cuts.
• Link to Division of Local Services website for Cherry Sheet estimates based on House budget
The Unrestricted General Government Aid account (formerly Additional Assistance and Lottery distributions) would be funded at $899 million in the House budget, a cut of $37.5 million – meaning that every city and town would receive a 4 percent cut to this key Cherry Sheet program. Since the beginning of fiscal 2009, this account has been cut by $415 million, or nearly one-third.
Chapter 70 education aid would be funded at $3.93 billion next year under a plan that uses a state appropriation of $3.85 billion along with $75 million in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds from the federal government. At this level, state aid to schools would be cut by $116 million from the fiscal 2010 amount and $122 million from the amount recommended by the governor. (For fiscal 2010, the state budgeted $172 million in SFSF funds for schools.)
Most school districts would face a 4 percent cut next year under the House budget, which is in line with a local aid statement released by House and Senate leaders on March 12 announcing the intent to cut municipal and school aid by up to 4 percent.
The House budget would cut reimbursements for the Police Incentive Pay Program (Quinn Bill) from $10 million to $5 million. Full funding of the state’s 50 percent share would require an estimated $58 million. Neither the budget bill nor the House’s “municipal relief” bill includes any language clarifying municipal responsibilities when the state fails to fund its full share of the program.
The Cherry Sheet Payment-in-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) program would be level-funded at $27 million under the House plan.
Reimbursements for the local cost of veterans’ benefits would be increased by almost $10 million to account for higher-than-anticipated caseloads.
The House budget would increase reimbursements to regional school districts – including regional charter schools – by $2 million to $43 million. This amount would cover an estimated 57 percent of eligible costs.
Funding for the special education “circuit breaker” would increase by $2 million to $135 million, the same amount as proposed by the governor. This amount would cover between 35 percent and 40 percent of eligible costs. Additional federal IDEA funds from the economic stimulus act will still be available to school districts next year to help with special education costs.
The House budget would continue, for a third year, to rely heavily on temporary revenues, mainly economic stimulus funds from the law enacted by Congress last year and anticipated extensions. The revenue plan uses $1.4 billion in stimulus funds, including $1.3 billion in enhanced Medicaid reimbursements and almost $100 million in SFSF funds. About half of the Medicaid funds have not yet been approved by Congress, but are expected to be available for fiscal 2011.
The House budget did not include funding from the state stabilization fund, as the governor proposed, and did not include most of the tax initiatives in the governor’s revenue plan, including an extension of the sales tax to candy and soft drinks and a cap on the film industry tax credit.
House members did not have much success in winning amendments to add spending to the House budget committee recommendation.
The House rejected an MMA-supported amendment, filed by Rep. Barry Finegold of Andover, that would have increased the appropriation for the special education “circuit breaker” program. The House also rejected an amendment filed by Rep. Karyn Polito of Shrewsbury that would have used a share of any fiscal 2011 state tax collections above the current estimate to restore municipal and school aid up to the fiscal 2010 level.
The Senate is expected to take up and approve a budget bill by the end of May. Last year, the governor signed the fiscal 2010 budget on June 29.