Massachusetts

Governor sets aside $20 million in ARRA funds to keep firefighters employed

FALL RIVER – October 7, 2009 – Moving to help municipal fire departments impacted by budget cuts that have forced layoffs and vacancies resulting from attrition, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today announced he will release $8.1 million in federal stimulus funds to 13 municipal fire departments in the Commonwealth. The funds will be used to rehire 127 firefighters who were laid off because of budget reductions.    » read more »

BOSTON – Monday, October 05, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today announced that United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack has granted the Commonwealth’s request for federal disaster relief in 12 Massachusetts counties that suffered agricultural production losses due to this summer’s abnormally cool and rainy weather.    » read more »

Process to identify potential solutions already underway, will update FY’10 revenue estimates by October 15th

BOSTON – Friday, October 2, 2009 – Responding to a Department of Revenue (DOR) report that September state revenue collections fell $243 million below budget estimates, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today announced that his cabinet has already begun to identify potential emergency cuts to the Fiscal Year 2010 budget and will begin the process of adjusting tax revenue estimates for the remainder of the fiscal year. Year-to-date revenues are $212 million below benchmark.    » read more »

Governor, public health officials take part in administration’s statewide flu summit

WORCESTER – September 30, 2009 – Governor Deval Patrick today announced that the state has placed its first order for H1N1 vaccine with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Due to their vital public health role, the initial small shipment, set to arrive next week, will be used for health care workers only.

Additional vaccine shipments will arrive weekly through the end of the flu season and, in about six to eight weeks, the Commonwealth will have enough vaccine in the state to make available to the general public.    » read more »

Patrick-Murray Administration maintains commitment to health care reform in face of unprecedented budget challenges

BOSTON – Monday, August 31, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Patrick today announced that the Patrick-Murray Administration has successfully developed a plan to provide comprehensive health insurance to the 31,000 legal immigrants who were previously enrolled in Commonwealth Care and scheduled to lose their coverage because of budget reductions.

"We must maintain our commitment to the promise of health care reform in Massachusetts," said Governor Patrick. "This innovative solution ensures hard-working individuals and families have access to the care they need."    » read more »

WORCESTER – August 20, 2009 – The Patrick-Murray Administration today announced that the Massachusetts Department of Veterans’ Services (DVS) has been awarded a $500,000 U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) grant to assist veterans in training and employment in green industry professions. This grant was one of only 17 awarded nationwide, totaling more than $7.5 million dollars, to provide approximately 3,000 veterans with job training to help them succeed in civilian careers. The grants are administered by DOL’s Veterans' Workforce Investment Program (VWIP).    » read more »

On-time balanced budget includes $147 million in line-item vetoes to help protect investments in Education, Health Care, Life Sciences

BOSTON – Monday, June 29, 2009 – Amid the worst global economic decline since the Great Depression, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today signed into law a $27.046 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2010 that preserves the Patrick-Murray Administration’s commitment to education and health care, and makes targeted investments in workforce training, life sciences and other key areas that will strengthen the Commonwealth’s economic foundation as it emerges from the downturn.    » read more »

Law builds on recommendations of Governor's Public Integrity Task Force, answers calls to renew confidence in government

BOSTON – July 1, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, joined by House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Therese Murray, today signed sweeping ethics, lobbying and campaign finance reform legislation that institutes a strong ban on gifts to public officials, increases penalties for civil and criminal violations of ethics laws and expands the investigative and enforcement powers of a number of state authorities.

Coming directly on the heels of landmark changes to the state's pension and transportation systems, the law delivers on promises made by the Governor to restore public trust in government by bringing real reform to Beacon Hill.    » read more »

BOSTON– June 19, 2009 – The following is a statement from Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick:

“I pledged to veto the Legislature’s proposed sales tax increase unless the Legislature first enacted meaningful reforms in the pension system, the transportation network, and our ethics and lobbying rules. In the last 10 days, the Legislature has passed and I have signed legislation eliminating long-standing pension abuses. They have also passed what, at first review, seems to be a good faith effort at reforming our broken transportation system. I commend the House and Senate for their work on these reform measures.    » read more »

Governor Patrick to issue Executive Order to coordinate policy and resources for science, technology, engineering and math education

BOSTON– June 18, 2009 – Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. Murray today announced plans for an Executive Order creating the Governor’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Education Coordinating Council.

The new council, to be chaired by Lieutenant Governor Murray, will be the central coordinating entity for the Executive Branch as it seeks to increase student interest and achievement in STEM fields.    » read more »

Patrick-Murray Administration Receives $185M In Federal Recovery Act Funds For Water Treatment Projects; "Green Infrastructure" requirement promises savings, clean energy for municipalities

BOSTON – Monday, June 15, 2009 – Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. Murray and state environmental officials today joined U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson to announce more than $185 million in federal stimulus funding for Massachusetts, which will be used to finance more than 127 statewide drinking water and waste water infrastructure projects that will protect the environment and the public health.    » read more »

New budget closes total FY10 gap of $5.1 billion, maintains commitment to education & core services while reducing reliance on reserves

BOSTON– Thursday, June 04, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today released a new Fiscal Year 2010 budget proposal following a dramatic and unanticipated revenue decline between January and April.

The revised version of an already austere budget proposal reflects a revenue loss of $1.5 billion in the three months since the Governor filed his original recommendations, and is intended to serve as a blueprint for lawmakers currently negotiating the differences in their own budgets.    » read more »

Lt. Governor also unveils sexual assault guidelines; Legislation part of crime prevention package

June 04, 2009 -- NEW BEDFORD– Thursday, June 4, 2009 – Following a meeting of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Domestic and Sexual Violence in New Bedford, Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. Murray announced that the Patrick-Murray Administration will file a bill to strengthen protections for crime victims and witnesses today.

The legislation follows bills aimed at gun violence prevention and CORI reform, and completes the administration’s 2009 crime prevention package. The Lieutenant Governor also announced the administration has completed the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s Sexual Assault Law Enforcement Model Guidelines.    » read more »

But Some Early Gains Have Eroded with Cost Pressures and Delivery System Constraints

May 28, 2009 -- Bethesda , MD -- Even in the face of economic hard times, Massachusetts has sustained gains in insurance coverage and access to care stemming from its landmark 2006 health reform and coverage expansion. However, some of the early gains in reducing barriers to care and improving the affordability of care had eroded by the fall of 2008, roughly two years after the Bay State began implementing the legislation signed into law by Gov. Mitt Romney in April 2006.    » read more »

Application for Part 1 of Massachusetts’ State Stabilization Funds Approved Today

May 27, 2009 -- U. S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced that more than $666 million is now available for Massachusetts under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. This funding will lay the foundation for a generation of education reform and help save hundreds of thousands of teaching jobs at risk of state and local budget cuts. Massachusetts will be eligible to apply for another $328 million this fall.

Today's funding is being made available per Massachusetts's successful completion of Part 1 of the State Stabilization Application, which was made available on April 1st.    » read more »