messaging

Today, Governor Patrick will release the state budget, setting in motion a process of give and take that will unfold over a minimum of three months. During that period, many of us will be advocating against cuts -- to our programs, our favored line items, to the local aid that keeps our communities afloat.

ONE Massachusetts is offering trainings designed to help you make the case for more revenue in the state budget. We're asking the Governor and Legislature to take a balanced approach to the budget deficit, combining new revenues with federal and reserve funds to avoid cutting critical programs.

Much rides on how convincing our arguments are. How compellingly can we convey the critical importance of funding our communities. 

Our trainings will enable you to make the case for more funding and at the same time remind your audience of the critical role government plays in keeping our communities safe and healthy, fostering economic growth and expanding opportunity for everyone.

On Feb. 2, join us for a training at the Boston Teachers Union in Dorchester from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. On Feb 3, join us for an Insider Budget Briefing at our 30 Winter Street office from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Contact yawu@realclout.org to set up a training for your staff, board or colleagues.

We would all love to fully-fund each and every great public and nonprofit program that folks in our state work so hard on, and that make our state a better place to live. Unfortunately, each budget season, we find ourselves competing for a limited pool of funding for the good of our programs.

Lew Finfer, ONE Massachusetts Leadership Team member and Director of the Massachusetts Community Action Network, goes a step further. He integrates support for additional revenues into each of his budget requests.

Here is an example of a request Lew recently made to his network of advocates working on youth violence prevention and teen jobs programs:

The things that make Massachusetts a great place to live – including the public structures that many of you are fighting to support – are things that we are not able to do as individuals. In order to build safe, healthy communities, we must all work together to support our state.

Due to decades of deliberate tax and budget decisions, along with the national economic downturn, our state currently faces a $2-3 billion budget deficit. Because states are not legally allowed to run deficits, our state leadership must balance the budget using more cuts, tax increases, or a combination of the two options.

Last year, we saw big budget cuts across the board, but many cuts were reduced or avoided because they also raised the sales tax from 5% to 6.25%, bringing in over $700 million each year in new tax revenue.

The next time you set a meeting with your legislators, it is likely that they will ask you how they can justify voting for an increase for teen jobs and youth violence prevetnion programs (or even spare those items from cuts) in the face of a $2-3 billion deficit. They may even ask you what programs should be cut instead of the one for which you are advocating.

As you know, our nation now faces one of the most devastating economic times since the Great Depression. In Massachusetts, 9C cuts in FY 09 and impending cuts in the FY 10 budget have exacerbated the crisis.

These funding cuts put at risk the public structures that we all rely on and value, the public structures that make us a competitive state - attracting and keeping businesses and residents. We need to learn how to talk about these budget and revenue decisions in a way that is understandable to all, and to start seeking ways to address them as a group.

How we talk about these issues, and about government itself, can dramatically change our  conversations and help to rebuild people's confidence in what we can accomplish together.

At our next Insider Budget Briefing, Patrick Bresette will help us explore ways to communicate more effectively about public policy issues, to better engage our communities, and to move our friends and neighbors to create positive social and economic change.

Join us on Thursday, January 22nd at 5:30pm in the 9th floor conference room at 30 Winter Street.

Andover selectman incumbent faces challenge from newcomer

By Crystal Bozek and Courtney Paquette
Staff Writers

Eagle Tribune

ANDOVER — She has been on the Board of Selectmen for close to eight years, but Tuesday Mary Lyman will face her first challenger for her seat.

Lyman faces off against Peter Cotch, a local attorney, who said he is not satisfied with the way Andover has been run, saying officials have spent too much, leading to large budget shortfalls. Lyman, on the other hand, contends elected officials have tried their best, but are up against a wall as health insurance and energy costs continue to rise.

Cotch is running on a platform of opposition to any new taxes — whether they come in the form of a tax override or the Community Preservation Act.

This news clip from the Eagle Tribune could be from any town in Massachusetts. More than 40 years of anti-government messaging have convinced many a learned soul that if there’s a problem with their town, it’s the fault of the local officials – the townfolk who have stepped up to serve as local government. Of course this ignores the reality that 10 years of tax cuts in Massachusetts have resulted in deep cuts to the local aid and Chapter 70 education funds cities and towns have long relied on. And, as Lyman points out, it ignores the reality of rising costs of fuel and health insurance.