BEACON HILL REPORT
MLP partners with allied green industry organizations to ensure that the business needs of our members are heard in the Massachusetts legislative and regulatory arena .
Legislative Update Steve Boksanski and Warren Lent met with members of the Green Industry Alliance at the MLP office on November 19 , 2021 . They provided an extensive End of Session Report , including the priority issues for the GIA in 2022 . The group discussed strategies and tactics for moving our industry ’ s legislative goals forward . The following are highlights from the report :
◆ With formal sessions nearing an end for 2021 , the pressure was mounting for the Legislature to act on plans to spend some of the $ 5.4B that has arrived from the federal government under the American Rescue Plan Act . The House and Senate have passed different versions of these appropriations bills but did not reach consensus before the deadline . A compromise is expected before the end of the year .
While the intention is to get a consensus ARPA bill done , the Legislature is holding back on spending all the revenue with the hope of getting a better understanding of what additional funding may be coming from Congress via the bipartisan infrastructure bill and / or the soft infrastructure package .
With all this revenue flowing from the federal government one might expect that states were hit hard by the pandemic . Quite the contrary ,
Massachusetts finished FY21 with more than $ 5B , in surplus and the revenues continue to flow into the Commonwealth ’ s hands at historic rates . We literally have so much revenue we don ’ t know what to do with it all .
◆ With a limited scope of work for 2021 , focused primarily on the budget and recovery spending , the Legislature is leaving a lot on the plate for 2022 . However , redistricting maps were developed and approved by the Legislature and Governor Baker for all 40 Senate seats and all 160 House seats , without a great deal of controversy . Given the population growth to 7M residents of the Commonwealth we kept the same number of representatives in Congress and the shifting of state level districts will have almost no impact on the current numbers .
◆ MLP ’ s snow & ice liability legislation was introduced in the state senate as S1249 . Sponsored by Senator Bruce E . Tarr , the bill was assigned to the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development . The committee held a virtual hearing in late September where MLP members Doug McDuff , mclp , Brian Paige , mclp , and Joe Szczechowicz , mclp , along with Kevin Gilbride , ASCA Executive Director provided testimony . We are waiting to hear what action the committee will take . We remain optimistic , as last year the committee gave it a favorable recommendation . The bill , however , never made it to the Senate floor because , like so many pieces of legislation , it was delayed due to the pandemic .
◆ We see 2021 as a bit of a lost year that produced very little legislative action outside of the major priorities noted above . While we did see a spurt of activity recently , many committees are still deep into the hearing process and don ’ t seem quite ready to start moving legislation . With the statehouse closed and interactions with staff and members limited , there seems to be less pressure to act . We also sense that Speaker Mariano prefers this “ take it slow ” approach , especially with many new chairs at the helm .
MLP is a proud member of the Green Industry Alliance ( GIA ) along with the Massachusetts Arborists Association , Massachusetts Association of Lawn Care Professionals , Irrigation Association of New England , and the Golf Course Superintendents Association of New England . Brian Paige , mclp serves as MLP ’ s representative . If you are interested in becoming involved with the GIA ’ s legislative and advocacy activities , please contact the MLP Office ❖
Stephen A . Boksanski of BCB Government Relations , Inc . in
Boston is Legislative Agent for the Green Industry Allliance .
Representatives from green industry associations across the state met with the GIA legislative agents on November 19 , 2021 at the MLP office .
16 MLP Newsline | Winter 2021