Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Ballot campaigns grab their clipboards

Thursday, May 2, 2024

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Ballot campaigns grab their clipboards

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SIGNATURE MOVES — Lawmakers punted on their chance to take action on this year’s slate of potential ballot questions, but not without offering a glimpse into which concepts they could back down the line — and which ones they really won't get behind.

Here’s where the six initiative petitions stand as their proponents head back out to collect another 12,429 signatures by mid-June:

AUDITING THE LEGISLATURE

The war over whether Auditor Diana DiZoglio should be able to probe the Legislature raged on in the pages of the panel's report . DiZoglio “lacks the objectivity required" to conduct such a review, the committee's Democratic members wrote. Letting her office audit the Legislature “would undermine the well-contemplated balance of constitutional powers” between branches of government.

What’s next: DiZoglio told Playbook her team was “fully prepared" for this after lawmakers regurgitated “bogus talking points” during a “charade purported as a legislative hearing” in late March . Now, she said, “We are ready to get back out to a local grocery store near you.”

REPLACING MCAS AS A GRADUATION REQUIREMENT

Lawmakers also followed their leaders in raising concerns that removing MCAS as a high school graduation requirement “without creating a uniform alternative … runs the risk of exacerbating inconsistencies and inequities” in learning across districts.

What’s next: " The MCAS itself is not a standard; it is a test that measures some of our academic standards," the heads of the Massachusetts Teachers Association that's pushing the ballot question fired back in a statement saying educators have started collecting more signatures. Meanwhile, the Committee to Preserve Educational Standards for K-12 Students is pledging a “vigorous” opposition campaign.

LETTING TRANSPORTATION NETWORK DRIVERS UNIONIZE

While lawmakers said “there is merit to the subject” underlying the question, they cited the complicated dynamic between this proposal and the Uber and Lyft-backed push to classify drivers as independent contractors.

What’s next: Union organizers and app-based drivers rallied in East Boston Wednesday and held “ballot initiative training” sessions in English and Spanish to prepare volunteers to start the next round of signature gathering. The group is still holding out hope for a legislative solution, too.

Union members and Uber and Lyft drivers rallied on Wednesday in support of efforts that would let app-based drivers unionize. | Kelly Garrity/POLITICO

CLASSIFYING APP-BASED DRIVERS AS INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS

Lawmakers felt it best not to get involved in this one partly because of the thorny legal fights ahead . The Supreme Judicial Court is hearing challenges to the Uber and Lyft-backed ballot measures on Monday. And the trial in the driver-misclassification lawsuit the attorney general’s office filed against Uber and Lyft is set for later in the month.

What’s next: Flexibility & Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers is collecting signatures for all five versions of the petition as it waits for the SJC to weigh in — though the group still intends to place just one question on the ballot.

PAYING TIPPED WORKERS MINIMUM WAGE, WITH TIPS ON TOP

Beacon Hill wants more evidence on what kind of impact this will have on the state’s restaurant scene. And lawmakers seem inclined to seek alternative options . The Legislature “would be well-served to work with the Attorney General to support enhanced prevention of wage theft, sexual harassment, and assault in tipped wage industries,” their report reads.

What’s next: One Fair Wage, the group behind the ballot initiative, is launching another signature drive at noon today .

LEGALIZING PSYCHEDELICS

Lawmakers say it’s complicated. The question wouldn’t just decriminalize certain psychedelics , it would also set up a system to regulate and tax them. Plus, it could open new loopholes for an unregulated psychedelics market, and would require new permits and zoning for licensed facilities.

What’s next: “We were prepared for this so we’re ready to go collect more signatures immediately,” said Jennifer Manley, a spokesperson for the ballot campaign.

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS . Tips? Scoops? Email us: lkashinsky@politico.com and kgarrity@politico.com.

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey details the findings of an economic analysis of the impacts of her ClimateTech Initiative at 10:15 a.m. at Via Separations in Watertown, attends the wake for Billerica Police Sgt. Ian Taylor, speaks at the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce annual meeting at 6 p.m. at the BCEC and joins Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll for a Youth Villages event at 8 p.m. at the Fairmont Copley Plaza.

Driscoll speaks at MASSCAP’s 60th anniversary event at 11:45 a.m. at the JFK Library. Sen. Ed Markey introduces the Warehouse Worker Protection Act at noon at the Capitol.

A message from the Drivers Demand Justice Coalition:

Uber and Lyft are threatening to limit the rights and protections of Massachusetts rideshare drivers. But drivers have a different vision: one that empowers drivers to shape their working conditions and that gives them the chance to unionize. Drivers can’t get there alone – we’re urging lawmakers to ensure collective bargaining rights for rideshare drivers by passing the Rideshare Driver Justice bill this session, before it’s too late. Rideshare drivers need the freedom to unionize now!

DATELINE BEACON HILL

MARK YOUR CALENDAR — The Senate is releasing its take on the fiscal year 2025 budget on Tuesday.

— “Healey’s hiring cooldown off to bad start: $14.2M added to Massachusetts public payroll,” by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “Nearly 200 employees joined the ranks of Gov. Maura Healey’s administration in the month after strict hiring measures were put into place across the executive branch to control costs amid flailing state revenues, according to a publicly available database. The 199 workers who started their jobs between April 4 and April 28 collectively added more than $14.2 million to the $3 billion state payroll through yearly salaries alone with the highest-paid worker, a chief nursing officer at the Department of Public Health, taking home $159,120, a Herald analysis of state records shows.”

— “‘They should be protected’: Massachusetts bill could help spotlight missing Black women and girls,” by Tiana Woodard, The Boston Globe.

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FROM THE HUB

CALLING FOR A CEASE-FIRE — Boston city councilors on Wednesday passed a resolution put forward by Tania Fernandes Anderson that calls for an “immediate and permanent” cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages by Hamas.

“Our message is simple: all life is precious, and the time has come for us to stand up and call for an end to senseless violence,” Fernandes Anderson said on the council floor.

Councilors Erin Murphy and Ed Flynn voted against the resolution, with Flynn saying he believes the council “is not the right body to address this.” But council President Ruthzee Louijeune argued that “there are times that we can’t turn away.”

And Ben Weber, a Jewish councilor who had floated his own cease-fire resolution earlier this year, said that while Fernandes Anderson’s text “was not perfect, it represents an important step towards reconciliation” within the city’s Jewish and Palestinian communities.

The council’s third run at passing such a resolution comes as pro-Palestinian protests at Boston area colleges continue to pose challenges for university leaders and local elected officials.

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a former Boston city councilor, applauded members for their “courage and solidarity.” But the Jewish Community Relations Council called it a “troubling outcome to the months of debates and negotiations around the Boston City Council regarding how to responsibly support a ceasefire in Gaza.”

RELATED — “How Boston-area schools are handling campus encampments,” by Roberto Scalese, WBUR.

— “Boston City Council approves petition to slash fire cadet training,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald.

— “After fleeing, Haitian migrants find a temporary home in JP,” by Mandile Mpofu, The Bay State Banner.

A message from the Drivers Demand Justice Coalition:

Massachusetts faces a choice between two realities for the future of rideshare work:

Allow Silicon Valley executives to deceptively lock drivers into a limited set of rights, while leaving taxpayers picking up the tab on key worker benefits.

Or:
Pass the Rideshare Driver Justice bill to empower tens of thousands of Massachusetts rideshare drivers with the freedom to unionize – allowing them to collectively bargain with rideshare companies to improve pay, benefits, and safety.

Rideshare drivers have a roadmap on how to improve our lives and our communities. It starts with the legislature allowing us the freedom to unionize. Rideshare drivers are currently struggling with pay below the state minimum wage. And because we don’t have the freedom to unionize, taxpayers pay for a range of benefits that the companies are denying us. Drivers and our communities are at a critical crossroads. It’s time to pass the Rideshare Driver Justice bill.

YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — State Sen. William Brownsberger is endorsing Allison Cartwright for Suffolk County Supreme Judicial Court clerk, joining colleagues Lydia Edwards and Liz Miranda and a bevy of local elected officials in backing the longtime attorney who he called “supremely qualified for this position.”

SURVEY SAYS — The Republicans vying to take on Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren have yet to make their mark on likely GOP primary voters. Of the 99 respondents to a mid-April Suffolk University/Boston Globe poll of 500 registered voters who said they were likely to cast ballots in the GOP contest, the vast majority, 86, said they were undecided. John Deaton and Robert Antonellis each got four votes. Two people said they would vote for Quincy City Council President Ian Cain . And just one said Aaron Packard .

Warren, meanwhile, leads an unnamed Republican nominee by 20 points in the survey — 53 percent to 33 percent. The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

— “Milton ousts Select Board chair who backed rezoning plan,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Beacon: “Milton voters who in February rejected a rezoning plan developed to comply with the MBTA Communities Act returned to the polls on Tuesday and gained control of a key town board by ousting the chair and replacing him with one of their own. According to unofficial results, John Keohane defeated the incumbent Michael Zullas by 122 votes – 3,434 to 3,312. Zullas was the only member of the five-person Select Board up for reelection.”

— “Early look at House and Senate races in Central Mass.: Which incumbents face challengers?” by Kinga Borondy, Telegram & Gazette.

— “Two Republicans to challenge state Rep. Pat Haddad. Who else is running for office?,” by Dan Medeiros, The Herald News.

DAY IN COURT

— “Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira to face military justice proceeding,” by Lolita C. Baldor, The Associated Press: “Teixeira, of North Dighton, Massachusetts, faces two charges in the military justice system, including obstructing justice and failing to obey a lawful order, Air Force officials said. Prosecutors will present evidence during the military proceeding on May 14 at Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts.”

FROM THE 413

— “Civil rights group calls on Springfield to hit reset button on schools chief search,” by Matt Szafranski, Western Mass Politics & Insight: “The intrigue and protest that has consumed the selection process for the superintendent of schools in Springfield reached a new level Wednesday with an outside call to restart the process. Lawyers for Civil Rights, which advocates for communities of color and immigrants, penned a letter to the School Committee urging it to abandon the current search and start over.”

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THE LOCAL ANGLE

ANOTHER ONE — A second district attorney in as many weeks has paid the state thousands of dollars for violating the conflict of interest law. Cape and Islands DA Robert Galibois paid $5,000 for “using public resources to attempt to cast himself in a favorable public light” after being cited last year for “failure to report a motor vehicle crash” and for promoting a campaign donor’s rental apartments to his staff, according to the Ethics Commission.

— “Schools look to incentivize employee retirements, departures,” by Monica Sager, The Eagle Tribune.

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

TRANSITIONS — Emily Jones has been promoted to deputy director of the recently rebranded Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Massachusetts.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to SHNS alum and chief of external affairs for A&F Matt Murphy, former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, Boston Herald alum Alexi Iafrato and Push Digital’s T.W. Arrighi. Happy belated birthday to Jessica Bradley Rushing.

NEW HORSE RACE ALERT: STABLE COINS — Host Lisa Kashinsky dives into the role of crypto in the state's U.S. Senate race. CommonWealth Beacon's Gintautas Dumcius joins hosts Jennifer Smith and Steve Koczela to talk about Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden 's ethics fine. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud .

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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