The Massachusetts House and Senate have been out of formal session since August 1, but this week both houses reconvened in informal sessions to allow those members who will not be returning when the new session begins in January to offer farewell remarks to their colleagues. I went to Boston to hear about a dozen of my House colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, give their goodbye speeches.
The Governor will swear in all of us, both new and returning legislators, on the first Wednesday in January at the State House when we take our oaths of office.
Mark your calendars: My Chief of Staff, Maura Cassin, and I will hold public office hours at Miss Sweets, Inc. on Wednesday, December 19, between the hours of 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.
All are welcome to come, visit, and share their thoughts or concerns on state matters with me, and then do some Christmas shopping at Miss Sweets. Miss Sweets is located at 4 Russell Road and has a fine variety of fudge, chocolates, coffees and other treats. There is plentiful parking and it is handicap accessible.
Maura and I are also available to meet with constituents at our district office located at 64 Noble Street in Westfield. No appointment is necessary, but calling ahead to 568-1366 is recommended in case we are at the State House.
My current cable show is an encore presentation of my show “From the State House to Your House” that features a very special guest, Santa Claus. Saint Nick was good enough to take some time away from the busy North Pole and come visit me in Westfield to tape my show. It’s family-friendly and child-appropriate. No politics are discussed. It’s a great interview with Kris Kringle. I hope you will watch it.
The show runs on Channel 15 on Sundays at 4:30 p.m., Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m., Thursdays at 10:30 p.m., and Fridays at 2:30 p.m.
Janice, Quinn, and I are hosting my annual FREE ICE SKATING PARTY at Amelia Park Ice Arena on Sunday, December 23, from 4-5 p.m.. All are welcome. Refreshments will be served.
I am asking every one who comes to bring one non-perishable food item for the Greater Westfield Food Pantry. If you would be interested in helping sponsor the event with me to help defray the costs of ice and skate rental, publicity, and refreshments, please contact me at 568-1366. All sponsors will be acknowledged at the skate party. Thank you.
You may have read or heard on the news about the impending “fiscal cliff” that the federal government is approaching if it cannot find a way to bring its spending into alignment with its revenues by the end of this calendar year.
Here in Massachusetts, the Governor and the Legislature are required by law to have a balanced budget, unlike our counterparts in Washington, DC. When news was received that state revenues were coming in far less robustly than predicted, the Governor and his Executive Office of Administration and Finance met with the House and Senate Ways and Means officials to begin working on a way to address the budget shortfalls through mid-fiscal-year 9C cuts to executive branch agencies.
The State House News Service summarized the problem in their advances for the week of December 2:
“On the budget front, disappointing state tax collections have ripped a more than $250 million hole in the fiscal 2013 budget as the midpoint of the fiscal year approaches. The revenue shortfall is being compounded by the likelihood that the fallout from the drug lab problems could require tens of millions of dollars, and possibly more, of state spending that was not anticipated when the budget passed in July.
“The Patrick administration is inching closer to an internal agreement over a long-term transportation financing plan, which will represent a major fiscal bill that will compete for attention with the state budget in early 2013.
“Hearings in North Dartmouth, Lynn and Attleboro are planned next week, wrapping up a series of required public meetings to solicit feedback. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Board meets Wednesday in Boston.
“Tax increases or some other type of new assessment are expected to be part of the mix to address a financing gap loosely estimated in the billions of dollars.
“And add another tax issue to the fire: in addition to fiscal cliff tax hikes now a month away, Massachusetts employers are calling on Gov. Deval Patrick and legislative leaders to freeze unemployment insurance rates for the fourth straight year. Without a freeze, employers here will see a 25 percent rate hike, from $745 per employee to $929 per employee, according to Associated Industries of Massachusetts. AIM’s John Regan says a $400 million balance in the Massachusetts Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund at the end of 2012 is “more than enough to forestall the statutory rate increase.”
I did not want to finish this column without acknowledging that December 7, 2012 is the 71st anniversary of the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by the Japanese Empire. The Westfield Veterans Council held their annual remembrance ceremony with honored Pearl Harbor veteran and Westfield resident Bob Greenleaf on Friday in the park on the South side of the river by the new bridges.
Have a great week.
Representative Don Humason and his Chief of Staff Maura Cassin may be reached at their Westfield District Office, 64 Noble Street, Westfield, MA 01085, (413) 568-1366.
Representative Don Humason may be reached at his Boston office, State House Room 542, Boston, MA 02133, (617) 722-2803.
Email address: [email protected]
Website: www.DonHumason.org
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not the staff, editor, or publisher of the Westfield News.
