stimulus

Cities and towns are now beginning their FY 2013 budget planning and estimation processes.  There's no more federal stimulus dollars, and the economy hasn't bounced back as everyone hoped it would.  The state hasn't been able to provide much financial relief...it has reduced local aid and other program funding for the past handful of years.  When will the Administration and leaders in the State House come to fully understand that we need new revenues to invest in our communities for the health, education and safety of all our people?

One concerning trend is the decreasing level of revenue from economic growth, such as permit fees, commercial tax growth and excise taxes. The amount of that revenue has gone down two years in a row.

"Those are reflections of economic activity," Walters Young said. "When economic activity slows, the amount of money the government collects goes down. [Full Article: Wicked Local Natick]

It should not have been a surprise to anyone that the federal stimulus dollars provided to MA were going to be fully spent during the fiscal year 2012 budget cycle, if  not already spent in the previous year.  We were riding a temporary wave of economic recovery euphoria when for a couple of months tax revenues had been higher than last year.  Now that the stock market has declined dramatically, our current tax revenues have also declined.   In fact, MA tax revenue collections are lower than in fiscal 2008.

This report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities outlines the economic and financial challenges of the US and how the states have dealt with these fiscal realities and consequences.

Cuts to state services not only harm vulnerable residents but also worsen the recession — and dampen the recovery — by reducing overall economic activity. When states cut spending, they lay off employees, cancel contracts with vendors, reduce payments to businesses and nonprofits that provide services, and cut benefit payments to individuals. All of these steps remove demand from the economy.  [Full Report:  Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]

Marking today's one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Governor Deval Patrick and Congressman John Tierney today toured Reveal Imaging Technologies, a national leader in threat detection technology and recipient of nearly $80 million in ARRA contracts from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration to develop and deliver new explosive detection scanning devices. According to estimates, these contracts will have created or saved more than 500 jobs.

The Governor and Congressman touted Reveal Imaging Technologies as an excellent example of how ARRA funds are creating jobs and driving economic recovery during his tour of the facility and in a meeting with individuals and companies who have directly benefited from stimulus funding over the past 12 months. [Full Press Release: Mass.gov]

President Barack Obama challenged a group of 130 business leaders, union heads, economists and others to figure out ways to create jobs during a Jobs and Economic Growth Forum at the White House on Thursday… Tax incentives, an easier way to bring skilled talent into the United States and a better relationship between the government and U.S. businesses abroad were among the suggestions, although critics maligned the summit as a public relations stunt. During the day-long event, the President cautioned the attendees to devise cost-effective ideas, taking into account the increasing deficit and the billions in stimulus money that has already been allocated. [Full Article: Human Resource Executive Online]

Every organizer's challenge is to leverage a current public policy debate into a moment of political theatre in order to illustrate and illuminate a related injustice and to advocate for their proposed solution.

Props to two grassroots membership based organizations who have been smart and savvy enough to insert themselves into the debate around our share of the federal stimulus money, get some good press and do some good public education at the same time.

First the Disability Policy Consortium has forcefully reminded the Patirck Administration that 20 years of hard work improving access by the Commonwealth's disabled citizen activists improve access  to our public spaces might go down the toilet. All they have to do is comply with current law regarding accomodations for the disabled. 

Second, the the ON The Move Coalition, the T Riders Union and Mass PIRG held a cake sale at the front of the State House yesterday to point out that if somebody didn't do something soon about the $161 million hole in the T's budget Greater Boston T riders would be faced with drastic fare increase and draconian cuts. Hence a bake sale featuring home made cookies and cakes that raised $200. The T hasn't decided whether to accept it or not.

Pay attention to the state policy process kids. Federal $$$ are coming to town in about 17 different buckets, and who decides where it goes?

I recommend a very straight and sharp analysis of the current situation from Massachusetts Liberal Blog that problably mirrors what is going on in all the other 49 states.

My advice to worried advocates for the poor the elderly and the disabled and anybody else who is hoping the federal stimulus dollars will help restore programs that have been slashed by 9C cuts and the Governor's FY 10 budget proposal, was to quote César Chávez's advice to his workers during the grape boycott; "Keep your eye on the grape". He was warning his organizers not to get distracted by the glamour of boycott and keep their focus on organizing the workers picking the grapes.

Translated to advocacyspeak it means get yourself on record with our Congressional delegation during the debate, but keep talking about the impact of the 9C and the potential FY 10 budget cuts to the elected and appointed Massachusetts officials in the Administration and in the Legislature who will be deciding where the federal stimulus dollars go. 

All we need is transparency and accessability to the decision makers. Updates below the fold.