How will the state government pave our way to an equitable recovery? What to watch this FY 2022 budget season.
As state lawmakers sprint from one budgeting season to the next, many in Massachusetts are still reeling from the effects of COVID-19. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 state budget will be a vital tool to sustain Massachusetts communities through the crisis. Faced with economic uncertainty, will state leaders craft a budget that meets the immense
The Pandemic Persists: Pain Points for the Children of Massachusetts
Policymakers have the responsibility and an opportunity to make smart and fair policy choices that will support children and families. This is particularly true now amid the twin health and economic emergencies that expose and make worse long-standing racial and economic inequities. COVID-19 and the economic downturn have hit hard, particularly in households with children
Unemployment Insurance Saved the Massachusetts Economy. How Can We Ensure It Will Be Strong for the Future?
More than any other economic program, Unemployment Insurance (UI) has helped the Massachusetts economy during the COVID-19 pandemic. UI enabled many families to remain safe at home and put food on the table when it was unsafe to go out and search for new work. It also saved us from an economic freefall in which
Statement on Senate Ways and Means Committee’s FY 2021 Budget
Read the statement by Marie-Frances Rivera, president of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget), on the Senate Ways and Means Committee’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 Budget.
Raising Rates on Unearned Income: An Equitable Way to Avoid Cuts and Support a Robust and Just Recovery
For each one percentage point increase in the state tax rates applied to unearned income, the Commonwealth could raise roughly $465 million a year to help fund a more economically just, robust, and racially equitable recovery. As is now clear, low-income communities and communities of color have been hurt far more deeply by the COVID-19
FY 2021 Budget & Tax Options
Two weeks ago, the Executive Office of Administration and Finance (ANF) provided updated revenue projections for the current fiscal year (FY21). ANF now estimates an FY21 tax revenue shortfall of $3.6 billion. This new estimate resets the baseline from which the Governor and Legislature must build their respective FY21 budget proposals. Drawing on a variety
