‘Cleaning up the mess on Beacon Hill’ is one of many tasks Governor-elect Mitt Romney will face when he enters office this January, and students, taxpayers and cultural organizations could suffer the brunt of his endeavors, according to several of the state’s prominent leaders.
Further cuts to higher education may be a necessary action to reduce the $3 billion budget deficit, according to Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayer’s Association who attended a forum Friday afternoon to advise the new governor. He said an equal combination of tax increases, spending cuts mainly to social services and higher education and use of the state’s rainy day fund would offset the shortfall.
Widmer also suggested tapping into the state’s $500 million tobacco reserves, as well as revenues from casino gambling and lottery payouts, but said reducing funding of education and Medicaid is virtually unavoidable.
‘Education and local aid one-quarter of the state budget I think inevitably will be a target of cuts, given the size of the problem,’ he said.
In an effort to advise the new governor in a ‘changed and challenged commonwealth,’ public policy groups Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth and the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities sponsored the forum at the Omni Parker Hotel. Participants included Widmer, House Speaker Thomas Finneran and Boston University Associate history professor Bruce Schulman, among others who offered their expertise on various pertinent issues facing the state in its fiscal crisis.
Finneran cautioned against relying on limited funds such as tobacco reserves.
‘We may have some other ideas in the House about how to handle tobacco funds that have already been set aside,’ he said. ‘But I think a reliance on one-time revenues will only exacerbate the present difficulty.’
Responding to questions of remaining hostility from Romney’s campaign attacks, Finneran assured the audience of more than 200 that he would ‘put aside the campaign rhetoric, the gratuitous attacks [and] the ambushes that are so characteristic of the campaign, and try to govern.’ He said supporting the governor-elect would serve the greater good of the commonwealth.
Finneran acknowledged Romney’s ‘first-rate’ record and extensive background in finance, saying a governor with such a pedigree is unprecedented in Massachusetts history. He questioned, however, Romney’s ability to eliminate the budget gap without substantial tax increases or cuts to services.
‘I do think it will be a challenge for us to close and address this gap in one year,’ he said. ‘I think it would be wise for Mr. Romney to consider a four-year effort.’
Darnell Williams, executive director of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, warned against neglecting the needs of children, seniors, the homeless and working poor when addressing the fiscal situation. He pleaded with the administration and legislature ‘not to seek security, but look for opportunities in the commonwealth.’
Jill Medvedow, director of the Institute of Contemporary Art, defended the state’s cultural and artistic venues which employ 45,000 people statewide against legislative funding cuts. Stressing the proven connection between artistic creativity and academic and social advancements, she said the entire state would suffer if the arts lost funding.
‘In the absence of attention and leadership from the governor-elect and the legislature, what would be at stake in Massachusetts is a weakening of the infrastructure institutional and individual that nurtures and provides access to creativity,’ she said, referring to cultural endeavors that she said enrich the citizens of Massachusetts.
Medvedow also referred to the ‘cultural tourism’ as a means to stimulate the economy.
Schulman offered a historical perspective on the election results, showing an ever-present connection between government and business on the national and state levels, with the exception of Massachusetts.
‘[Massachusetts] politicians have recognized the huge wealth-generating capacity and remarkable creativity of the business community,’ Schulman said, ‘but they understood that public service needed to seek interests broader than keeping investors happy.’
With a shift from a legislative to corporate background in the corner office, citizens will primarily look to the governor for reassurance, Schulman said.
‘He needs to convince the people of Massachusetts that he’s going to bring the benefit of that unique background … without steep cuts,’ he said.