Wednesday, November 23, 2022

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook:

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PROGRAMMING NOTE: Massachusetts Playbook will not publish on Thursday and Friday for Thanksgiving. I’ll be back in your inbox on Monday, Nov. 28. Have a great holiday and keep in touch: lkashinsky@politico.com .

TAKING HER TIME — Maura Healey is lagging behind her predecessors in naming key members of her gubernatorial team.

At this point after their elections, Charlie Baker and Deval Patrick had not only named their transition team leaders (which Healey has) but also their chiefs of staff (which Healey has not). Within his first two weeks as governor-elect, Baker also named two Cabinet members .

Baker, a Republican, also met with Democratic legislative leaders within a week of his 2014 election. Aides to Healey, House Speaker Ron Mariano and Senate President Karen Spilka would not confirm Tuesday whether the three have met — or whether Healey has spoken to either of the two individually — since her election two weeks ago.

Healey also hasn't formally met with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, despite appearing publicly with her post-election. Wu summited Beacon Hill to meet with Baker on her first full day as mayor, which, because of her truncated transition, was just 15 days after she was elected.

Healey has, however, announced key roles on her transition team, which is being led by Lt. Gov.-elect Kim Driscoll, the Salem mayor, and directed by Danielle Cerny, previously a deputy chief of staff to former Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo. Healey's campaign said Tuesday that more than 750 people have applied to work in her administration.

The governor-elect is allowed to take her time. Mitt Romney back in 2002 waited until early December to announce his first Cabinet picks and key advisers. And Healey is working on two transitions — the attorney general met with her successor, Andrea Campbell, on Monday as she prepares to hand off her current job.

Things will likely pick up after Thanksgiving. But for now, her slow rollout has some Beacon Hill insiders wondering if things are a bit too quiet given that Healey’s election seemed all but certain weeks before her official coronation.

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. President Joe Biden and his family landed on Nantucket last night to continue their tradition of celebrating Thanksgiving on the island. And they might revive another — a family discussion on whether their patriarch should run for president. Biden has said he intends to seek a second term and that he'll announce a decision early next year.

The Bidens arrive on Nantucket for Thanksgiving. | AP

THE REST OF THIS WEEK — Suffolk University polling director David Paleologos is on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Sen. Ed Markey is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday.

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

— “Mass. launching emergency intake center for migrants, homeless people,” by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: “A temporary emergency shelter and intake center will open in Devens next month as the Baker administration responds to an influx of migrants to Massachusetts, exacerbating strain on already limited housing options and other existing resources. Up to 60 families or 125 individuals can be housed for several days at the Bob Eisengrein Community Center, which will be run by the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and a shelter provider. People receiving help will then be directed to emergency assistance sites or ‘more permanent housing’ solutions, the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development said Tuesday.”

— “Candidates Seeking Recounts In Two Rep Races,” by Chris Lisinski, State House News Service (paywall): “Kristin Kassner of Hamilton, who challenged [state Rep. Lenny Mirra], and Andrew Shepherd of Townsend, who bid for an open Nashoba Valley seat, submitted petitions asking for district-wide recounts in their contests, according to a spokesperson for Secretary of State William Galvin.”

ADDED:

Andrew Shepherd seeks recount in
1st Middlesex District

1 of 2 House races decided by only 10 votes

Candidates in two Massachusetts House races, each apparently decided by only 10 votes, want elections officials to take another look at the thousands of ballots cast.

Andrew Shepherd of Townsend, who bid for an open Nashoba Valley seat, and Kristin Kassner of Hamilton, who challenged a sitting North Shore incumbent, submitted petitions asking for districtwide recounts in their contests, according to a spokesperson for Secretary of State William Galvin.

The recounts — and, as a result, a final decision in both districts — might not wrap up for several weeks. Galvin spokesperson Deb O’Malley said the secretary cannot order the recounts until after the Governor’s Council, which is scheduled to meet next on Nov. 30, certifies election results.

In both cases, the candidate seeking a recount appears to have fallen less than a dozen votes short. With nearly 20,000 votes counted in the 1st Middlesex District and more than 23,000 in the 2nd Essex District, the microscopic margins would both be well below the threshold — one half of one percentage point of all votes — required for a recount.

https://www.lowellsun.com/2022/11/23/andrew-shepherd-seeks-recount-in-1st-middlesex-district/

— “Superintendents say pandemic's educational impact goes deeper than realized,” by Katie Lannan, GBH News: “State and local education officials said Tuesday that schools face a twin challenge in getting students back on track both academically and socially, and that staffing issues further complicate those tasks. Almost three years after the arrival of COVID-19 first disrupted schooling in Massachusetts, lawmakers on the Education Committee gathered at the State House to receive a status update on efforts to mitigate the pandemic’s impact on students.”

— “Bill would allow defaulted loan holders to keep licenses,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “Massachusetts residents who default on their college loans would not have their license or professional certification revoked under a bill awaiting action by Gov. Charlie Baker. The proposal, approved by the state Legislature on Monday, would block state agencies or boards of registration from denying or revoking any license or professional or occupational certificate or registration based on an individual’s default on an educational loan.”

— “Police commission suspends just 9 cops while thousands more meet standards,” by Matthew Medsger, Boston Herald: “A state board reviewing police officers for certification has identified just nine out of an initial round of thousands who cannot meet a set of standards, according to a report made Tuesday. More than two hundred others still have not been certified, though their review remains ongoing. ‘There are no officers decertified at this point. The Commission discussed in Executive Session the approval of 6 Preliminary Inquiries and the approval of 9 suspensions,’ a spokesperson for the Police Officer Standards and Training Commission said Tuesday. ‘An officer who is suspended by POST cannot conduct police duties and functions.’”

— “Almost $2 billion in tax refunds returned to Mass. taxpayers,” by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: “That translates to roughly 2.4 million tax refunds issued, as the Baker administration continues to dole out nearly $3 billion in excess state revenues as required by a 1980s tax cap law known as Chapter 62F.”

— REGIONAL APPROACH: New England Council President and CEO James Brett is adding to the local lobbying efforts to land the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health headquarters. Brett is already involved in the coalition working to bring ARPA-H to the Bay State . But in a solo letter to HHS Sec. Xavier Becerra, ARPA-H Director Renee Wegrzyn and DARPA Director Arati Prabhakar this week, Brett made the case for New England writ large given the region's “unparalleled resources."

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PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— “GLX manager Dalton gets 6-month contract extension,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: “The MBTA has extended until mid-2023 the contract of the manager overseeing the Green Line extension into Somerville and Medford. The move appears designed to keep John Dalton under contract during the upcoming change in administrations so that he can be redeployed on another project or assignment if that’s what Gov.-elect Maura Healey decides to do.”

— “Orange Line delays at shortest since 2019, says train-tracking group,” by Daniel Kool, Boston Globe: “Delay times on the Orange Line have hit a new low — in a good way. A round trip on the line, which underwent a monthlong shutdown and renovation this summer, is the fastest it has been since 2019, according to data analyzed by TransitMatters, a transportation advocacy group that tracks MBTA ride data.”

A message from Delta Dental of Massachusetts:

HEALEY WATCH

— “AGs seek extension of remote opioid addiction treatment,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “A federal rule in response to COVID-19 allows doctors to use remote telehealth services to prescribe buprenorphine as an opioid use disorder treatment, but the temporary regulation is set to expire once the federal COVID-19 public health emergency is rescinded. Attorney General Maura Healey has signed onto a letter from 45 states attorneys general calling on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to permanently extend the telehealth option.”

FROM THE DELEGATION

— “Supreme Court backs House effort to obtain Trump tax returns,” by Kyle Cheney, POLITICO: “The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for a House committee to obtain several years of Donald Trump’s tax returns from the IRS, a significant win for lawmakers that brought to an end a three-year court battle. With no noted dissent, the court upheld the August ruling of an appeals court panel that unanimously cleared the way for the House Ways and Means Committee to obtain the former president’s tax returns. … Some committee members called on Ways and Means Chair Richard Neal (D-Mass) to get his hands on the returns without delay. … Neal vowed that the committee ‘will now conduct the oversight that we’ve sought for the last three and a half years.’ But he didn’t give any indication of when he might get the information.”

— “Biden extends pause on student loan payments amid legal limbo for debt cancellation,” by Michael Stratford, POLITICO: “President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced an extension of the pause on federal student loan payments and interest into the first half of 2023 as his plan to cancel student debt for tens of millions of Americans remains blocked in court.”

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a leader in the push to cancel student loan debt, called the extension “essential given the cruel efforts by Republican officials and far-right judges to halt this critical relief in the courts, despite President Biden’s clear legal authority and decisive action.”

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MAHTY MONITOR

— WATCH: WPRI’s Kim Kalunian sit down with Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to talk about inflation , job training and whether either might run for president. Raimondo said running in 2024 is an “absolute no because President [Joe] Biden intends to run” but didn’t rule it out beyond that. Walsh laughed off the idea of sharing a ticket with Raimondo down the line, saying he would “ask for a big job in the administration” instead.

THE LOCAL ANGLE

— “Are 'personal attacks' protected speech? ACLU and Taunton City Council seem to disagree,” by Daniel Schemer, Taunton Daily Gazette: “Debate over what is and isn’t allowed to be said during the City Council’s public input period has not let up, thanks to a letter from the ACLU's Massachusetts Chapter criticizing the format and restrictions. … The council suspended public input at its Oct. 4 meeting after an incident the week prior where a member of the public called out a councilor by name, Lawrence Quintal, over allegations of harassment through social media. The following week, at the Oct. 11 council meeting, public input was reinstated, but with new interim conditions. … Regarding publicly criticizing councilors in a meeting, the ACLU’s letter says, ‘this is not a legitimate basis for curtailing public comment…’”

A message from Delta Dental of Massachusetts:

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HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Keith Boynton, Tory Stephens, Joel McAuliffe and Matt Stromski.

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY — to Sonia Ballard and Mass DPH’s Alison Cohen, who celebrate Thursday; Leah Regan and Allie Strom, who celebrate Friday; Ben Gubits and Bob Dunn, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers Catherine Carlock of the Boston Globe and Andy Hoglund.

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