| | | | |  | | By Lisa Kashinsky | | | TRADE TRIPS AND TAX TALKS — Maura Healey is hitting the world stage with solid approval ratings back home. Healey notched a 66 job-approval rating and a 64 percent favorability rating in an early June online survey of 500 registered and likely voters in the state conducted by center-left policy group Priorities for Progress. Both are slight upticks from the group’s March poll. The survey also shows majority support for proceeding with the governor’s proposed tax breaks even as the state’s fiscal outlook sours, according to the results shared first with Playbook. That includes the controversial cut to the short-term capital gains tax rate that could be a major sticking point in the tax-relief talks between the House and Senate that start today. Treasurer Deb Goldberg voiced support for the cut, which the House backs and the Senate doesn't, on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” over the weekend, saying: "That’s something that the Legislature should strongly consider, because we need to show folks that we understand that we are in inflationary times ... and that we can manage, which we are doing, and include a tax-relief package that is reasonable." Top Democrats have been undeterred in their pursuit of tax breaks — and in hiking spending in the still-unfinished state budget — even as revenues slow. The state’s mid-June revenue report showed collections outpacing the same month last year. But total tax collections are still running behind the state’s year-to-date benchmark. And it’s still unclear if and when the state will be asked to pay back the $2.5 billion in federal funds that the Baker administration incorrectly spent on jobless benefits. With Healey abroad, all eyes this week will be on House and Senate Ways and Means Chairs Aaron Michlewitz and Michael Rodrigues. The pair are helming both the tax talks and the budget negotiations that are poised to bleed into the new fiscal year that starts Saturday. Healey’s already bought lawmakers more time by filing an interim spending plan to keep the state running through July. The chambers just have to pass it — and could do so as early as today. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Healey isn’t the only Beacon Hill leader who’s currently out of the country. Senate President Karen Spilka is on a National Conference of State Legislatures-sponsored trip to Israel through Saturday. Is that another hint that we’re unlikely to see a budget this week? Perhaps! TODAY — Healey attends a business roundtable at Enterprise Ireland at 9 a.m. Acting Gov. Kim Driscoll speaks at a YouthWorks event at 11 a.m. in Worcester and a GBIO housing event at 7 p.m. in Boston. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is on WBUR’s “Radio Boston” at 11 a.m., visits the Upham’s Corner Comfort Station at 12:30 p.m., speaks at GreenFin23 at 1:30 p.m. at the Seaport Hotel Boston and at the GBIO housing event. Rep. Ayanna Pressley holds a roundtable and press conference on federal infrastructure funding at 10:30 a.m. at Chelsea City Hall. Sen. Ed Markey announces bills on LGBTQ rights at 11:30 a.m. at the Bolling Building in Boston. Tips? Scoops? Meeting up with the governor in Ireland? Tell me all about it: lkashinsky@politico.com.
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | |  | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | — “For migrant and homeless families in Mass., a new resource center in Boston and shelter at Joint Base Cape Cod,” by Samantha J. Gross, Boston Globe: “Governor Maura Healey Friday announced two new measures aimed at easing the crunch on Massachusetts’ overcrowded emergency shelter system: the opening of a temporary shelter for families at Joint Base Cape Cod and the creation of a brand-new central entry point for migrant and homeless families to receive resources located in Boston.” — “Galvin pushes to update lobbying laws,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “Secretary of State Bill Galvin wants to bar individuals convicted on federal charges from serving as state lobbyists for at least 10 years. A proposal, filed by state Sen. Michael Brady, D-Brockton, on behalf of Galvin’s office, would expand a state statute ‘automatically’ disqualifying people convicted of certain state crimes from registering as lobbyists to include individuals convicted of federal offenses. The move comes in response to a recent state Supreme Judicial Court ruling that cleared former House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi to lobby the state Legislature and executive branch, despite his prior convictions on federal charges.” — “Lawmakers seek to curb book banning,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “A proposal filed by a group Democratic lawmakers would, if approved, make Massachusetts one of only two states to effectively outlaw book bans because of ‘partisan or doctrinal’ reasons by setting new restrictions on receiving state funding.” — “As legislators renew push for plastic bag ban, much of Massachusetts already covered,” by Daniel Kool, Boston Globe: “[N]early seven in 10 Massachusetts residents live in a place with a plastic bag ban — and untold more shop at places that don’t offer them.” — WATCH: Veterans Secretary Jon Santiago on WCVB's "On the Record" talking about successfully battling the latest Covid-19 outbreak at the Chelsea Soldiers' Home and how he's working to reestablish public trust in the state's ability to serve those who've served. | | | | A message from American Beverage Association: At America’s beverage companies, we are committed to reducing our plastic footprint. That’s why we’re carefully designing our plastic bottles to be 100% recyclable, including the caps. Our goal is for every bottle to become a new one, so they don’t end up in nature. Learn more at EveryBottleBack.org. | | | | | THE RACE FOR CITY HALL | | — “Teachers union plans to sit out District 3 preliminary,” by Gintautas Dumcius, Dorchester Reporter: “A spokesperson for the city’s largest municipal union, which has more than 8,000 members, confirmed in an email to the Reporter that there are no plans to endorse a candidate in the Sept. 12 preliminary.” | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY. | | | | | | | PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES | | — CLOSURE COUNTDOWN: Not even the state’s top politicians will be spared from the upcoming Sumner Tunnel closure. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, who said she uses the tunnel almost daily while commuting from Salem to the State House, told reporters while touring the work site over the weekend that the administration “really want[s] to make sure folks understand” the available alternatives — including free MBTA Blue Line service and lower Commuter Rail fares on the Newburyport/Rockport Line — for when the around-the-clock closures start on July 5. — “Eng cites progress, but T speed restrictions on rise,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine. — “With long Red Line waits, seats intended as art at Downtown Crossing can be a pain in the rear,” by Daniel Kool, Boston Globe. — “Boston bike lanes plan draws opposition: The proposed routes would be ‘deadly’,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald.
| | WARREN REPORT | | — BURYING THE HATCHET: Vice President Kamala Harris sent out an online fundraising appeal over the weekend using Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s email list, asking donors to split contributions between the Biden-Harris and Warren reelection campaigns. It’s another sign the two have moved on from the senator’s mangled response when asked on GBH back in January whether Harris should again join Biden on the ticket. — “Markey, Warren seek reprieve for artist facing ouster from Provincetown dune shack,” by Lindsay Crudele, Boston Globe: “[Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Bill Keating] are urging the National Park Service to ease up on an order that 94-year-old artist Salvatore Del Deo vacate the Provincetown dune shack that he has helped maintain for 77 years.” — “Sen. Elizabeth Warren holds Holyoke forum: Calls for federal housing initiative, increase of Supreme Court justices,” by Jeanette DeForge, Springfield Republican. | | | | A message from American Beverage Association:   | | | | | IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | | — “Campbell at odds with Healey on offshore wind,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: “The Healey administration is proposing a very large procurement of up to 3,600 megawatts to not only make up for 2,400 megawatts worth of projects that were previously approved and now on the verge of being terminated but also push ahead with 1,200 megawatts of new wind. … [AG Andrea] Campbell, by contrast, is taking the temperature of energy markets and concluding that pushing for the maximum procurement now would lock Massachusetts ratepayers into 20-year contracts at a time when prices are at an ‘unprecedented high.’”
| | FROM THE 413 | | — “Easthampton residents move to recall mayor over superintendent search,” by Emily Thurlow, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “A group of residents is now looking to recall Mayor Nicole LaChapelle for her role in the search that failed to produce a permanent superintendent this spring.”
| | | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | | — NOT JUST MASS AND CASS: As Lowell officials plan to move ahead with a sweep of a homeless encampment, the Worcester Chamber of Commerce says a proposed moratorium on clearing homeless encampments in the state’s second-largest city would be bad for business, the Telegram & Gazette’s Marco Cartolano reports. — “As Boston’s own Sean O’Brien matches UPS at the bargaining table, Amazon could be next,” by Jon Chesto, Boston Globe. | | | | A message from American Beverage Association: America’s leading beverage companies - The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo - are working together to reduce our industry’s plastic footprint through our Every Bottle Back initiative. We’re investing in efforts to get our bottles back so we can remake them into new bottles and use less new plastic.
Together, we’re:
- Designing 100% recyclable plastic bottles – we’re making our bottles from PET that’s strong, lightweight and easy to recycle.
- Investing in community recycling – we’re marshalling the equivalent of nearly a half-billion dollars with The Recycling Partnership and Closed Loop Partners to support community recycling programs where we can have the greatest impact.
- Raising awareness – we’re adding on-pack reminders to encourage consumers to recycle our plastic bottles and caps.
Our bottles are made to be remade. Please help us get Every Bottle Back. | | | | | MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE | | — "‘It’s just stupid’: DeSantis stumbles in New Hampshire," by Lisa Kashinsky and Meridith McGraw, POLITICO: "[Ron DeSantis] got dragged into a tit-for-tat endorsement battle with Trump that generated some media attention but little measurable increase in support. His first visit to the state as a presidential candidate drew more headlines for what he didn’t do — take questions from voters — than the retail politicking he did. ... The super PAC that’s effectively running his operation has been off the air in New Hampshire since May — temporarily, its founder told POLITICO — while running a new ad in Iowa and South Carolina this week. And DeSantis’ visit to the state Tuesday is being met with backlash from a major Republican women’s group."
| | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH | | TRANSITIONS — Outgoing Boston School Committee member Lorena Lopera joins EdVestors as VP for advancement and external relations. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to former Lynn state Rep. Robert Fennell, Southwick state Rep. Nicholas Boldyga, Gloucester state Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante, Mattapoisett state Rep. Bill Straus, Kait Castillo, former MassGOP spokesperson Emmalee Kalmbach, Democratic strategist Adam Webster of Castle Point Partners and Adam Zieminski of Cafe Adam in Great Barrington. Happy belated to Erik Lin-Greenberg, who celebrated Sunday. Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
