By Bob Katzen
The Senate 38-0 approved a $513 million fiscal supplemental budget to help close out the books on fiscal year 2023 that ended on June 30. The House has already approved its own $693 million package. A House-Senate conference committee will eventually hammer out a compromise version.
Provisions in the Senate version include $180 million for fiscally strained hospitals; $60.3 million for staffing at the Department of Transitional Assistance; $100 million for the state’s pension fund; $40 million for a settlement of a court case related to police promotion discrimination; and $75 million for school districts with extraordinary special education costs.
“As we fully emerge from the pandemic, the Legislature has addressed several sectors of state government with crucial funding to continue to keep the economy of the commonwealth on a firm footing,” said Sen. Mike Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “The passage of this supplemental budget today utilizes robust tax revenues to its fullest effect, making substantial investments in health care, special education, unemployment assistance and disaster relief funding. Those investments will keep Massachusetts as a leader in the key economic sectors for decades to come.”
(A “Yes” vote is for the $513 million supplemental budget.)
Sen. Patricia Jehlen Yes