Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Clerks eye changes to voting-reform law

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Clerks eye changes to voting-reform law

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NOT MAILING IT IN — Local clerks gearing up for this year’s municipal elections say universal mail-in voting isn’t working for everyone — and they want changes to the state’s sweeping new elections law ahead of next year’s state and presidential contests, too.

Some clerks are urging their towns to opt out of no-excuse mail-in voting for their spring municipal elections , citing the cost and burden on clerks’ offices with smaller staffs. Danvers and Foxboro have already nixed it, while Wareham is considering it . Voters would still be able to request absentee ballots.

Clerks weighing the costs and benefits of universal mail-balloting in typically low-interest local elections could face a different problem in state and federal contests. Mail-in voting proved popular in last year’s state elections, accounting for more than 45 percent of ballots cast in the September primary and more than 37 percent in the November general.

But voters’ embrace of mail-balloting and eagerness to return to the polls on Election Day meant that few people took advantage of expanded early in-person voting. Less than 5 percent of primary voters hit the polls early, and less than 8 percent of general-election voters.

Now municipal clerks' associations are aiming to late-file legislation to shorten early in-person voting. They say doing so would help election workers better juggle the demands of processing mail-in ballots and running Election Day polls.

“Vote-by-mail I think has minimized the need for a long period of early voting," Everett City Clerk Sergio Cornelio, who heads the city clerks' association, told Playbook. “I don’t disagree with it, and it’s OK to have it, but it’s a cost to the municipality which is an unfunded mandate from the state.”

They’re also floating changes to help streamline processing mail-ballot applications. Cornelio wants to merge the applications for absentee and no-excuse mail-in ballots. Northborough Town Clerk Andy Dowd, who leads legislative efforts for the town clerks’ association, wants to minimize the number of times voters have to apply for mail-in ballots and give them the ability to opt out of being mailed applications.

“We need some way to help us manage the volume,” Dowd told Playbook. “It’s a very labor-intensive process in Massachusetts, and it’s created a pretty significant burden. But clearly voters like it and we want to be able to continue to support the voters and make sure things are done correctly.”

Secretary of State Bill Galvin cautioned against tinkering with the new law, at least for now. Off-year elections aren't a reliable indicator of how people will vote in a presidential year, Galvin said. He also said he would be "more sympathetic" to towns opting out of early in-person voting for smaller municipal elections rather than culling vote-by-mail.

But the top elections official also acknowledged that clerks need more help from the state. “Financial support, improving procedures, simplifying processes — those are all things we should have conversations about" ahead of the next presidential cycle, Galvin told Playbook. “But changing the fundamentals? No, it’s too early.”

GOOD TUESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Winter had to show up at some point.

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey , Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and administration members tour Analog Devices in Wilmington at 10:30 a.m. and 88 Acres in Dorchester at 12:15 p.m.

Tips? Scoops? Wish the pig got more airtime on the first night of the Bachelor? I sure did. Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com .

PROPAGANDA! NUCLEAR IS NOT A SOLUTION!

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

— “Mass. lawmakers consider state funding for migrant housing, schools,” by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: “Top lawmakers are grappling to pinpoint how large the influx of migrants to Massachusetts may be as they mull over potential state funding for emergency shelters, as well as support for migrant children in local schools. But both House Speaker Ron Mariano and House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz on Monday signaled their chamber’s overarching commitment to help the migrant crisis, as they wait to see a potential spending proposal from new Gov. Maura Healey.”

— “State regulators probe spike in electricity rates,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “State utility regulators are looking into the skyrocketing electricity rates that are putting a squeeze on consumers this winter. In a filing, Department of Public Utilities Chairman Matthew Nelson said the review was prompted by ‘concerns about basic service rate impacts’ on utility customers and said the commission will be ‘exploring any opportunity to mitigate’ rate increases regulators approved this winter.”

FROM THE HUB

— “Boston Teachers Union is calling for audit amid payroll debacle that is short-changing thousands of teachers,” by James Vaznis, Boston Globe: “Boston Public Schools has yet to pay thousands of teachers and other educators millions of dollars in pay increases for the last school year and most of this fall — one of the most egregious in a growing number of payroll problems that has their union calling for an audit. The pay increases were part of a three-year contract ratified four months ago by the Boston Teachers Union, which had been working without a contract for a year.”

— HE KNEW HER WHEN: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu ’s new director of tourism, sports and entertainment, John Borders IV , has a long resume — one that includes befriending singer and actress Janelle Monáe when she was going dorm-to-dorm in college selling CDs out of her guitar case, the Dorchester Reporter’s Gintautas Dumcius reports.

— LISTEN: “ Citing 'dire, destructive' housing market, Wu makes her case for rent control in Boston,” by Amanda Beland and Tiziana Dearing, WBUR.

JOIN POLITICO ON 2/9 TO HEAR FROM AMERICA’S GOVERNORS: In a divided Congress, more legislative and policy enforcement will shift to the states, meaning governors will take a leading role in setting the agenda for the nation. Join POLITICO on Thursday, Feb. 9 at World Wide Technology's D.C. Innovation Center for The Fifty: America's Governors, where we will examine where innovations are taking shape and new regulatory red lines, the future of reproductive health, and how climate change is being addressed across a series of one-on-one interviews. REGISTER HERE .

THE CLARK CAUCUS

— “No. 2 House Democrat condemns violence after daughter charged with assaulting cop,” by Lisa Kashinsky and Kelly Garrity, POLITICO: “House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark is condemning violence against police after her daughter was arraigned Monday on charges that included striking an officer who was trying to arrest her over the weekend. ‘I condemn violence against everyone, whether that is against police or against community members as a result of any person or government entity,’ Clark, the second-ranking House Democrat, told reporters at an unrelated event in a Boston suburb on Monday afternoon. … Clark’s daughter, Riley Dowell, 23, was arraigned earlier in the day in Boston Municipal Court on charges of assault and battery on a police officer, resisting arrest, vandalizing a historic marker or monument and tagging property.”

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— “MBTA bus system ‘fails’ Greater Boston residents, report says,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: “The MBTA needs to purchase 200 to 600 electric buses and hire 740 additional drivers to meet the current demands of a Greater Boston population that grew 53% over the past 50 years while the region’s bus fleet decreased, a new report found. According to the report, released Monday by LivableStreets Alliance and the Institute for Transportation & Development Policy, the MBTA’s operating fleet of 1,121 buses is smaller than it was in 1972, when the agency operated 1,200 buses.”

— “WRTA cutting back on Friday trips due to drivers out on family, medical leave,” by Cyrus Moulton, Telegram & Gazette: “The Worcester Regional Transit Authority is cutting 112 one-way trips on more than a half-dozen routes Fridays, citing a lack of available drivers primarily due to [the] Paid Family and Medical Leave Act. ‘We’ve been trying to work this out for a while,’ WRTA Administrator Dennis J. Lipka said Monday. ‘We thought PFMLA when it first came in would get used a lot, but that then there would be some evening out.’ But Lipka said that prediction turned out to be ‘totally inaccurate.’”

PROPAGANDA! NUCLEAR IS NOT A SOLUTION! RADIOACTIVE WASTE IN PILGRIM? WHERE'S IT GOING?

A message from NextEra Energy:

MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS

— “Mass. lawmakers propose cannabis reforms, decriminalization of psychedelics,” by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: “When Massachusetts lawmakers rewrote the state’s marijuana laws in 2022, they focused largely on changing the legal cannabis industry. Now, it appears the emphasis will shift to consumers and workers. In advance of a late-Friday deadline for filing bills, state legislators last week submitted dozens of marijuana-related measures, including proposals to ban employers from firing workers over flunked THC tests, make it easier to wipe away old marijuana-related criminal charges, and require licensed cannabis facilities to allow workers to vote on unionizing.”

FROM THE 413

— “Labor board to hold hearing over Amherst teachers union allegations of school board retaliation against 2 members,” by Scott Merzbach, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Complaints brought by the teachers union alleging that the Amherst School Committee unlawfully retaliated against two school employees for protected union activity will be subject to a hearing after a state Department of Labor Relations investigation found a probable cause that violations occurred. … The complaint filed with the Labor Relations Board in 2021 contended there was retaliation against two employees at Fort River School after they raised concerns about the effectiveness of COVID-19 protocols between August and October 2021, and clashed with a former principal of the school. One employee was subject to a transfer to another school building before resigning, while the other was placed on leave.”

TODAY'S SPECIAL (ELECTION)

— “In race for Salem mayor, four men are running to serve remainder of Kim Driscoll’s term,” by Chris Van Buskirk, MassLive: “There’s the insider. The outsider. The former mayor. And a former city councilor. These are the four men running to serve as mayor of Salem for a truncated term last held by Lt. Gov. Driscoll, the first woman elected to the post who held it for 16 years before moving to a successful bid for lieutenant governor this past fall.”

— “DiLisio leads DeSimone, Davis, Barone in campaign funds for Attleboro mayor's race,” by Jim Hand, The Sun Chronicle: “Acting Mayor Jay DiLisio has a substantial financial lead over his opponents in the mayoral campaign leading up to a Feb. 28 special election. The election will determine who will serve out the remaining term of Paul Heroux, who resigned as mayor to become Bristol County sheriff.”

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THE LOCAL ANGLE

— “Groups urge schools to resist book bans,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “Civil liberties groups are urging state and local education officials to push back against ‘coordinated’ efforts to ban books, warning that pulling any controversial titles from libraries could run afoul of anti-discrimination laws. In a letter to the state’s public school districts, the Massachusetts chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders cited a recent uptick in library book challenges from parents and conservative groups targeting titles related to LGBTQ issues, communities of color, and other marginalized groups.”

MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

— 2024 WATCH: Former President Donald Trump will keynote New Hampshire Republicans’ state party meeting on Saturday in Salem, marking his first trip back to the Granite State since before the 2020 presidential election and since he declared his third run for the White House.

With New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary locked in on the Republican side, state Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley used Trump’s pending visit to reiterate his calls for the DNC not to go along with President Joe Biden ’s proposed calendar shakeup that would make South Carolina the first primary.

“The path to the White House runs straight through New Hampshire, and Republicans know it,” Buckley said in a statement. “The DNC’s plan to penalize New Hampshire and withhold resources from our state jeopardizes the entire Democratic slate in 2024.”

PROPAGANDA! NUCLEAR IS NOT A SOLUTION! RADIOACTIVE WASTE IN PILGRIM? WHERE'S IT GOING?

A message from NextEra Energy:

NextEra Energy is the first company committed to reaching Real Zero™, as in 100% clean energy. We’re not just offsetting carbon emissions — we’re eliminating them.

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

JUST CAME TO SAY FELLOW — The Harvard Institute of Politics’ spring 2023 resident fellows are former Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), Kristin Amerling, Negah Angha, Quentin Fulks, Matthew Raymer and Jason Rezaian. Former Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and former Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) join as visiting fellows.

— Mia McCarthy is joining POLITICO as a 2023-2024 fellow. She previously was a metro correspondent for the Boston Globe and is a Boston University alum.

TRANSITIONS — Amanda Torres-Price is now director of communications for the Massachusetts Teachers Association. She was previously deputy director of communications for 32BJ SEIU in Boston.

— Sarafina Chitika is now deputy comms director for Sen. Elizabeth Warren. She most recently was national press secretary for Sen. Raphael Warnock’s (D-Ga.) reelection campaign.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Boston City Councilor Brian Worrell welcomed son Elias Corban Edwin Worrell last Friday. Both mom and baby are doing great.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Roberto Jiménez-Rivera , DJ Napolitano , principal at Dewey Square Group, and Andrew Friendly. Happy belated to Jessica Spence of Rep. Jake Auchincloss’s office, who celebrated Monday.

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 .

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