Archive
Welcome to our collection of archived content published before 2018, back to 2010. If you have any issues finding specific content or would like older content not currently posted here, please contact info@massbudget.org.
Publications from before 2018
Examining Tax Fairness
Overall, the Massachusetts tax system is regressive, collecting a larger share of household income from lower-income households than it does from upper-income households.
Effects of Raising Rates and Exemptions on the State Income Tax
This Facts At A Glance examines a tax reform option that would make changes to the way the Commonwealth taxes wage and salary income as well as investment income. The Department of Revenue recently examined this reform option and estimated that the proposal’s combined changes would generate between $1.33 billion and $1.41 billion (middle of range = $1.37 billion) in new revenues in its first full year after implementation.
Nurturing Kids, Supporting Families: Early Education & Care in the Massachusetts State Budget
Quality Early Education & Care can help prepare children for success in school and in life–while also giving parents the flexibility they need to find and keep jobs. This brief discusses the different ways our Commonwealth invests in Early Education & Care.
Tax Policy Proposals in the Governor’s FY 2014 Budget
In his FY 2014 budget, the Governor funds new investments in education and transportation and reduces cuts to other programs using revenues generated through a series of changes to tax rates, income tax deductions, and business taxes.
Investments and Revenue in the Governor’s Budget
In his budget proposal for FY 2014, the Governor introduced three major policy proposals: 1) increased support for education; 2) fixes and improvements to strengthen our transportation system; and 3) new revenue to fund these and other priorities.
Health Care in the Governor’s FY 2014 Budget
This budget brief describes the Governor’s budget proposal for MassHealth (Medicaid) and other subsidized health coverage programs. It is the first in a series of FY 2014 fact sheets that will be published by the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI) and produced by MassBudget in partnership with the MLRI.
Tax cuts that continue to haunt Mass.
Tax cuts from the late 90s and early 2000s have kept us from investing in our children, our communities, and the future of our economy.
Early Education & Care in the Governor’s FY 2014 Budget
The Governor’s proposal invests in early education in two broad ways: by expanding access to early education options and by seeking to improve the quality of programs offered.
Budget Monitor: the Governor’s Budget for FY 2014
Education and Transportation receive significant new funding in the Governor’s budget. To pay for these, and other things, the Governor has proposed broad changes to the tax system, including raising the income tax and lowering the sales tax.
A First Look at the Governor’s Proposals on Education, Transportation, and Revenue
In recent days, the Governor has proposed: 1) increased funding for education; 2) fixes and improvements to our transportation system; 3) a revenue plan to pay for these initiatives. We analyze how they would affect Early Education & Care, K-12, Higher Ed., Transportation, the Sales Tax, and the Income Tax.
Who is Affected by the Minimum Wage?
A minimum wage increase would directly raise the wages of all workers who earn less than the new minimum wage, and economic models suggest that it would also help lift wages for other low-paid workers. This paper also examines how many children live in families with a minimum wage worker and how many would benefit from an increase.
Declines in Spending on Early Education & Care in Massachusetts
Under pressure from the recession and the large revenue losses that followed the tax cuts of the late 1990s and early 2000s, spending on early education and care has fallen by 25% since 2001.
A Preview of the FY 2014 Budget
Squeezed by the weak national economy and the tax cuts of the late 1990s, Massachusetts will once again face a significant budget deficit in FY 2014. $1.2 billion is the conservative estimate we develop in our new “Budget Preview.”
In 7 Charts: Today’s State of Working Massachusetts
To mark the close of 2012, MassBudget presents a snapshot of the current economic landscape, along with some of the long-term trends affecting workers and their families.
The State of Working Massachusetts 2012
Even now at the close of 2012, workers across Massachusetts are still hampered by the lingering effects of the “Great Recession.”
Adjusting for Personal Income: When, Why, and How
When we commit to doing things together through our government, we also commit to paying for them together through taxes. Discussions of budgets and taxes are ultimately about what we want to accomplish and what share of our resources we believe it is appropriate to spend to achieve those goals.
Public School Funding in Massachusetts: Where We Are, What Has Changed, and How We Compare to Other States
Per-pupil spending in Massachusetts is relatively high, but that the share of our total resources being devoted to education is actually lower than in most states.
The Rise and Fall of Local Aid in Massachusetts
Total aid to cities and towns declined by $1.7 billion between 1982 and 2012. Like so many other programs in the state budget, it has been squeezed by the large revenue shortfalls that followed the income tax cuts of the late 90s.
MassBudget Brief: What Are 9C Cuts?
On October 29, 2009, Governor Patrick exercised his authority under state law to make spending cuts to the state’s FY 2010 budget. This MassBudget Brief explains the nature of the Governor’s 9C authority and when use of this authority becomes necessary.
Youth and Work: in Massachusetts and Across the Nation
Here in Massachusetts, close to 1 in 7 young people is unemployed. Nationwide, 6.5 million “disconnected youth” are out of school and also out of work.
Breakfast and Lunch Participation in Massachusetts Schools
Are free and reduced-price school meals getting to all the kids who need them? That’s the question that motivated Breakfast and Lunch Participation in Massachusetts Schools—part of a joint project involving MassBudget, the Center for Social Policy at UMass Boston, and the Mass Law Reform Institute, supported by the EOS foundation.
Funding for Dept. of Children and Families and Children at the Dept. of Mental Health, FY 2009 – FY 2013
Funding for children through the Department of Children and Families and the Department of Mental Health has been cut significantly since the beginning of the Great Recession in Fiscal Year 2009.
Massachusetts Ranks 25th in Taxes in FY 2010
State and local taxes in Massachusetts are roughly in line with the national average, according to data released today by the census bureau. Massachusetts ranks 25th among all states—meaning there are 24 states with a higher level of taxation and 25 with lower rates.
Massachusetts Leads the Nation in Health Insurance Coverage
Massachusetts continues to lead the nation when it comes to health insurance coverage. In 2011, the proportion of people in the state who lacked health insurance coverage was 4.3 percent, compared to the U.S. average of 15.1 percent.
Child Poverty in Massachusetts Unchanged, Most Children Have Health Insurance
Children in Massachusetts fare better than in much of the rest of the nation, as child poverty in the Commonwealth remains unchanged and health insurance coverage is widespread.
2011 Poverty Rate Remained Level in Massachusetts While Rising Nationwide
The overall poverty rate in Massachusetts was 11.6 percent in 2011—roughly the same as in 2010. By contrast, the overall U.S. poverty rate did show a significant increase, from 15.3 percent in 2010 to 15.9 percent in 2011.
Median Household Income Dropped in Massachusetts and the U.S. in 2011
Median household income in Massachusetts fell to $62,859 in 2011, a decline of 1.7 percent from 2010. This is the second year in a row that the median income has dropped in Massachusetts.
Budget Monitor: The FY 2013 Budget
There is no revenue from new taxes in the FY 2013 budget. Instead, Massachusetts fills its roughly $1.3 billion budget gap through a combination of temporary revenue, cuts, and savings.
