Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook:

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook:

PLAYING THE LONG GAME — The MBTA is far from the only major public transit agency struggling to recover from the ridership slump triggered by the pandemic. Nor is it the only one staring down a potentially massive budget shortfall.

Changing travel patterns and dwindling federal aid are stressing transit agencies and prompting talk of service cuts across the country, my colleagues report in a new look at the troubles facing the nation’s major public transit systems .

While San Francisco’s BART is considering an expansion of night and weekend service to boost its off-peak ridership, officials at other agencies are trying to cut their losses by appealing to state lawmakers to set aside more money in their budgets or even raise certain taxes to help keep their systems running.

It’s a bleak backdrop upon which to launch another push for free fares, even before taking into account the safety and service failures specific to the MBTA.

Yet Boston Mayor Michelle Wu argues that transit reliability and accessibility are linked. And she points to data from the first year of her pilot program making three key bus routes free to ride, which shows ridership was up and dwell times were down , to back it up.

“We can’t be in a society that says we’re going to try to fix the T and make it reliable, but only for those who can afford it,” she said at a press conference last week.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu speaks at a press conference on fare-free transit with Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley on April 24, 2023, in Boston. | Lisa Kashinsky/POLITICO

Wu stood with Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley outside Ruggles Station as they reintroduced federal legislation that would put $25 billion over five years toward supporting state and local fare-free transit efforts. But in a divided Congress, with little support from their colleagues, and without a surface transportation bill due anytime soon, that won’t go anywhere fast. For now, such initiatives will likely continue falling to cities and states.

Gov. Maura Healey pledged as a candidate to create a pathway to fare-free buses . But her first budget — and the spending plan approved by the House — only sets aside $5 million to study means-tested fares.

Still, Wu says Healey’s public commitments are a “tremendous change” over her Republican predecessor, who vetoed a low-income fare program passed by the Legislature.

Those looking to “free the T” are playing the long game , locally and federally. Pressley likened the push for free fares to the effort to cancel student loan debt. Three years ago, it was a progressive pipe dream. Now, after a public and private pressure campaign, it has the president’s approval (though remains tied up in court).

Transit systems across the state are already moving to eliminate fares. In Worcester, the WRTA advisory board voted unanimously last month to keep buses free through June 2024. The Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority eliminated fares on local buses. And Wu is working with Cambridge officials to expand her pilot program to include the Route 1 bus that connects the two cities, though that would require MBTA approval.

Public opinion is also on their side. A clear majority of residents backed free buses and fare discounts for lower-income riders in a MassINC Polling Group survey last year. In another MassINC poll last month on regional transit authorities, 77 percent of residents said they would be at least somewhat more willing to ride the bus if it were free.

“I think [means-tested fares] are going to happen. There is a real push and some really great work happening behind the scenes at the T … and the governor’s put it in the budget,” TransitMatters’ Jarred Johnson said on the most recent episode of The Horse Race podcast .

But political and financial roadblocks remain on the path to free fares, particularly if the feds and the state don't put up more money to prop up existing programs . "Can we both expand the bus network, invest in it and do free fares? I think that’s still a question that is up in the air,” Johnson said.

The state could get some more data on reduced fares if transportation officials follow through on offering discounts and free monthly passes for some residents affected by the upcoming Sumner Tunnel closure. Of course, that’s if the Blue Line functions appropriately.

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Today is my two-year Playbook anniversary! It’s been such a joy to land in your inboxes each morning. Here’s to more #mapoli adventures ahead. And a big thank you to the team that helps make this newsletter happen! Playbook truly benefits from your expertise and passion. Now, back to the news.

TODAY — Healey returns from D.C. and speaks at the Mass. Taxpayers Foundation’s annual meeting at 4:30 p.m. in Boston. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll attends the Brockton Housing Resource Center groundbreaking at 10 a.m. and the Salem Chamber of Commerce awards dinner at 6:30 p.m. Wu is on “Java with Jimmy” at 9 a.m., attends a Roslindale coffee hour at 9:30 a.m. and participates in a GBH event on diversity at 6:15 p.m. Rep. Richard Neal visits Barnes Air National Guard Base at 10 a.m. Rep. Jim McGovern is in Amherst in the afternoon.

Tips? Scoops? Birthdays? Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com .

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

— SUFFOLK SPECIALS: Democrats John Moran and Bill MacGregor are poised to join the Legislature after winning yesterday's state representative primaries in the 9th and 10th Suffolk districts, respectively. There were no Republicans on the ballot, setting up the May 30 general election to be little more than a formality.

West Roxbury's MacGregor emerged victorious over Robert Orthman of Roslindale and Celia Segel of Jamaica Plain in the 10th with nearly 46 percent of the vote, based on unofficial tallies . He's now on track to take over the seat previously held by Ed Coppinger , who left the Legislature for MassBio and endorsed MacGregor as his successor. MacGregor was considered the more moderate pick in a district where progressives are working to make inroads.

Moran, a South End consultant, was unopposed in his primary after his last remaining rival dropped out last month and endorsed him. He is set to succeed now-Veterans Secretary Jon Santiago in the 9th.

— “Hospitals and aid groups press state for improved ‘front door’ to emergency shelter,” by Jessica Bartlett and Samantha J. Gross, Boston Globe: “[H]ospitals and groups that work with migrants are pressing the state to expand access to emergency housing to help the city’s homeless families without drawing on critical hospital resources. … On Tuesday the Healey administration said it plans to spend $1.75 million on a new program called Immigrant Assistance Services. The money is enough for 800 individuals and families currently living in state-run homeless shelter placements and will include an intake and triage process to help immigrants with advice, legal services, and other supports.”

— “Panel urged to curb 'toxic' youth sports culture,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “The proposal, if approved, would amend the state’s Anti-Bullying Law by adding a section that requires the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to publish new guidelines for the implementation of a ‘social emotional learning curriculum’ for middle- and high-school athletic programs.”

— “Open enrollment for state workers' health insurance looms despite Harvard Pilgrim hack,” by Cassie McGrath, Boston Business Journal.

FROM THE HUB

— “City councilors and staff admonished that ‘comments are not to be posted’ on Globe stories using shared account,” by Emma Platoff, Boston Globe: “‘Comments are not to be posted’ on Boston Globe stories using a shared subscription for the Boston City Council, councilors and their staff were told Tuesday, in the wake of revelations that a shared council account had been used to lob a barrage of Internet attacks on public officials.”

THE RACE FOR CITY HALL

— “District 3 field taking shape as signature-gathering begins,” by Gintautas Dumcius, Dorchester Reporter: “Since City Councillor Frank Baker’s announcement two weeks ago that he won’t be running for a seventh term inside City Hall, the field of District 3 candidates has begun to fill in."

— ENDORSEMENT ALERT: The Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts has endorsed Neil Harrington for Salem mayor. Harrington, who’s held the job before, faces Dominick Pangallo in the May 16 special election.

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— “New Bedford has ‘unwavering’ support for South Coast Rail, but wants better deal for land, attorney says,” by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: “The city of New Bedford’s attorney said it has ‘unwavering’ support for South Coast Rail despite threatening to sue the MBTA on a claim it wrongly seized city property for the project, and suggested the city is primarily concerned with getting the best deal for the land.”

— “Box that hit woman at Red Line Harvard Station part of defunct biological agent detection system, MBTA says,” by WCVB.

GET READY FOR GLOBAL TECH DAY: Join POLITICO Live as we launch our first Global Tech Day alongside London Tech Week on Thursday, June 15. Register now for continuing updates and to be a part of this momentous and program-packed day! From the blockchain, to AI, and autonomous vehicles, technology is changing how power is exercised around the world, so who will write the rules? REGSITER HERE .

IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN

— “Healey playing catchup with latest offshore wind procurement,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: “The Healey administration made the best of a bad situation on Tuesday, issuing a draft of the state’s fourth request for offshore wind proposals that reworks the failed third procurement, pushes forward with a modest wind farm expansion, and provides some increased flexibility to future bidders.”

DAY IN COURT

— “Parents file lawsuit alleging civil rights violations after children were taken from Waltham home without warrant,” by Ivy Scott, Boston Globe: “A couple whose children were taken from their Massachusetts home by police in the middle of the night last year filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against four Waltham officers, four employees of the state’s Department of Children and Families, and the city of Waltham for violating the family’s civil rights.”

FROM THE DELEGATION

— “House Democrats take steps to force vote on clean debt ceiling increase,” by Rebecca Kaplan, CBS News: “Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee, introduced a special rule Tuesday that would allow Democrats to attach a clean debt ceiling increase to an unrelated bill.”

2024 WATCH

— DESANTIS HAS A FRIEND IN MASS.: Deep-pocketed auto-parts magnate Rick Green says he’s supporting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the GOP presidential primary, the Boston Herald’s Joe Battenfeld reports , giving the potential contender some financial backing in New England.

FROM THE 413

— “Former Easthampton schools chair believes Open Meeting Law violated in ‘ladies’ dispute,” by Will Katcher, MassLive: “A former leader of the Easthampton School Committee has accused the board of violating the state’s Open Meeting Law when it rescinded an offer to superintendent candidate Vito Perrone — which Perrone said was over his use of the word ‘ladies’ in an email to the board’s chairperson and clerk.”

— “Veterans Affairs inks agreement with Holyoke Veterans’ Home for funding,” by Aprell May Munford, Springfield Republican: "Veterans Affairs has awarded $164 million of a promised $263.5 million to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans Services for the construction of the new facility."

— “Sheffield voters ban 5G cell towers, approve $11.9 million operating budgets for town and schools and $40k to hire a smell expert,” by Scott Stafford, Berkshire Eagle.

WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD BE READING

— CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION: Frank Bellotti turns 100 today, and top pols and newspaper columnists are marking the milestone by looking back on the former lieutenant governor and attorney general's life and career.

“Bellotti transformed the attorney general’s office from a backwater political Democratic Party hangout to a non-partisan first-class law office,” the Boston Herald’s Joe Dwinell writes . Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen calls Bellotti “the best governor Massachusetts never had.”

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Secretary of State Bill Galvin , House Speaker Ron Mariano and former Govs. Mike Dukakis and Bill Weld are among the big names expected to celebrate Bellotti when he’s honored at Quincy District Court’s annual Law Day at 11 a.m., per the Patriot Ledger.

— “2 Massachusetts hospitals report no COVID-19 inpatients for 1st time since pandemic,” by WCVB.

— “Vermont allows out-of-staters to use assisted suicide law,” by Lisa Rathke, The Associated Press.

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

TRANSITIONS — WPRI’s Steph Machado is joining the Boston Globe’s Rhode Island team next month.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to former national climate adviser Gina McCarthy, Ben Ginsberg, Andrew Miga, Josh Irwin and Peter Brown of Peter Brown Communications.

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