11 September 2024
[Coverage Developing] Gov. Maura Healey filed a supplemental budget bill Wednesday to close the books on fiscal 2024, and also signaled to lawmakers that she is tired of waiting for them to reach compromise on clean energy project siting and permitting reforms.
The closeout budget for the fiscal year that ended June 30 would appropriate $714 million (a net cost to the state of $149 million after offsets) to cover deficiencies. It also puts $590 million towards "the state's future stability" by making deposits into reserve accounts, including by redirecting some capital gains revenues.
The bill additionally includes "several essential and timely provisions related to clean energy siting, permitting and procurement that were the subject of debate in the Legislature as part of a climate bill at the close of formal sessions in July," Healey said in her filing letter.
"While a final bill has not yet reached my desk, these issues remain before a conference committee and I respectfully ask that you consider advancing these items in the coming weeks so that we can capitalize on the potential to grow our clean energy sector and advance our climate goals," the governor wrote to lawmakers.
The House and Senate each passed legislation taking aim at the complicated process to approve clean energy projects and incorporating reforms meant to modernize the electric grid to accommodate more energy from cleaner sources. Both also loaded their bills with their own policy priorities and the sides have been unable to agree on a compromise, even though key House and Senate lawmakers worked with the administration to craft the language around permitting and siting reforms.
Fiscal year 2024 tax collections of $40.8 billion beat fiscal 2023's total by $1.636 billion or 4.2 percent and topped the fiscal 2024 benchmark that was revised downward by $1 billion in January by $967 million or 2.4 percent, the Department of Revenue announced last month. But all of that overage and then some came as a result of the state's new high-earner surtax, leaving a budget gap of $233 million.
Healey said Wednesday she wants to "strategically allocate" $225 million of the excess surtax revenue to support education and transportation initiatives as a way to help close the non-surtax revenue gap. "The supplemental budget will further our efforts to make life more affordable for people in Massachusetts – from child care to school meals to rent – while also advancing our clean energy economy, supporting public health hospitals, and improving our communities’ ability to respond to disasters,” Healey said. “We’re grateful for the Legislature’s partnership to lower costs, grow our economic competitiveness, and ensure a balanced and responsible budget.”
Source: State House News
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