WHILE YOU WERE GRILLING — If you missed the news that Gov. Maura Healey signed the state’s annual budget this weekend, we forgive you. The first-term Democrat signed the $60.9 billion spending bill at noon on July 4th, a star-spangled version of the Friday night news dump. Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand said the governor was motivated to move quickly in light of the federal spending bill President Donald Trump signed into law on Friday and after the Legislature reached an agreement before the start of the new fiscal year for the first time in years. But the timing also meant legislators, lobbyists and advocates who might not be so happy with the changes Healey is calling for likely weren’t as tuned in. Several of those Playbook reached out to over the weekend hadn’t had a chance to look over the changes yet. Here’s what you might’ve missed: OUT — Bracing for a potential revenue downturn and the yet-to-be-determined impacts of the massive federal spending and tax package, Healey slashed $130 million from the already slimmed-down compromise the Legislature sent her last week, bringing the bottom line more than $1 billion lower than what she initially called for in January. Spending, however, is still rising by about 5 percent (above the rate of inflation). Over $27 million of that cut, state officials said, comes from an order from the administration to the Group Insurance Commission — the agency that administers health care for state employees — to eliminate coverage of GLP-1 weight loss drugs for state employees unless they’re medically necessary. The state is also delaying 2 percent raises for executive branch managers that were set to kick in in January, a move officials said helped shave $17 million off the FY26 spending bill. Cities, towns, nonprofits and others waiting on their disbursements will also have to wait a while longer. The state is delaying paying those out until the fall to see how revenues fare. There’s no set date for when the money will start flowing — and if the state is on shaky financial footing, payments could end up canceled altogether, according to Healey’s budget chief, Matthew Gorzkowicz. Healey tweaked a couple of policy riders, too — notably nixing the implementation of a provision that would require some employers to automatically enroll their employees in a retirement savings program. IN — But most policy riders, including a proposal that would no longer allow landlords to pass off payments to brokers onto renters, made it in. WHAT’S NEW — Healey is also extending the executive branch hiring freeze that began in May through the end of FY26. And a new supplemental budget Healey filed Friday would expand the executive branch’s ability to make cuts across the budget this fiscal year if revenues drop by $400 million from projections, or if new federal policies end up costing the state the same amount. That $130 million supplemental spending bill, which will need support from legislators, would set aside $100 million the administration could use to plug gaps that pop up early in the fiscal year, officials said. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. The Legislature could still override any of Healey’s vetoes with a two-thirds vote in each chamber. But both House Speaker Ron Mariano and Senate President Karen Spilka struck notes of support in statements Healey’s office provided Friday. Tips, scoops, thoughts on the budget vetoes? Email me: kgarrity@politico.com. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu visits Level Ground Mixed Martial Arts to highlight the city’s summer learning programs at 1 p.m. in Dorchester.
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DATELINE BEACON HILL
PLAYING DEFENSE — The governor (kind of) addressed some of the criticism the two Republican gubernatorial candidates have levelled at her in recent months on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large.” Watch.
WATCH — State Sen. Barry Finegold talks about the local implications from the federal budget bill, AI regulation, threats to Harvard’s federal funding, the state's rising unemployment rate and the need for increased housing production on WCVB’s “On the Record.” A link
FROM THE HUB
— Boston launches new business training, certification for disability inclusion by Dana Gerber, The Boston Globe: “The Mayor’s Commission for Persons with Disabilities is rolling out a new training and certification program for businesses that want to learn simple solutions to better accommodate and welcome disabled people. The program, called the Disability Inclusion Trained Business Certification, is open to all businesses. But the timing of the debut — the first 75-minute webinar training is slated for July 29, days after the anniversary of the signing of the [Americans With Disabilities Act] — is geared toward restaurants ahead of Dine Out Boston in August, a two-week event where restaurants across the city offer prix-fixe menus.”
****TREES!*****
— Cool Boston's hottest neighborhoods with more white roofs and trees, study says by Vivian La, WBUR: “Residents in Boston’s hottest neighborhoods could experience cooler summer temperatures if the city planted more trees and installed white roofs that reflect sunlight, according to a new study from Boston University. Researchers used summer temperature data and computer modeling to determine what combination of the cooling strategies would bring the most relief without breaking the budget.”
WHAT ELSE IS GAYLA CAWLEY GONNA WRITE ABOUT?
BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANGA RAG PAY WALL
THE RACE FOR CITY HALL
***PEOPLE WHO LIVE & WORK IN BOSTON SUPPORT MAYOR WU & KNOW WHAT SHE'S ACCOMPLISHED! FOLLOW THE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION! WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING FOR IN RETURN? THE NEWTON NEBBISH HAS NO EXPERIENCE IN MANAGING AN UNWIELDY ORGANIZATION...IS THIS "ON THE JOB TRAINING"?****
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — The United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1445 and the Massachusetts Nurses Association are endorsing Boston Mayor Michelle Wu for reelection, according to her campaign.
"The members of UFCW Local 1445 stand squarely behind Mayor Michelle Wu's reelection for a simple reason: She puts working people at the center of everything her administration does," UFCW Local 1445 President Fernando Lemus said in a statement shared by Wu’s campaign.
Wu “is committed to health equity and strengthening Boston's healthcare system,” said Katie Murphy, the president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association. “We support her evidence-based approach to addressing critical problems such as disparities in black maternal health, mental health, and substance use disorder.”
FACT OR FICTION — The Boston Globe launched a running fact check of campaigns’ claims in the Boston mayoral race that will be “updated as the race continues.” A link
PAC ACTION — Real estate money keeps flowing in Boston’s race for City Hall.
The Your City Your Future PAC that’s backing Josh Kraft took in another roughly $320,000 in late June, with big donations from Suffolk Construction CEO John Fish, who donated $95,000; and from Paul Edgerley, co-owner of The ‘Quin House and a former managing director at Bain, who donated $90,000.
The Bold Boston PAC that’s backing Mayor Michelle Wu also took in $32,000 recently — most of it ($25,000) from Howard Cohen, chair of the real estate firm Beacon Communities.
EYES ON 2026
****CARPETBAGGER CRYPTO SCAMMER JOHN DEATON LIED ABOUT EVERYTHING...VERY TIRING FACT CHECKING HIS LIES!
IF REPUBLICANS DIDN'T LIE NO ONE WOULD ELECT THEM & JOHN DEATON CERTAINLY PROVED THAT STATEMENT! JOHN DEATON VOTED 3 TIMES IN 20 YEARS...THAT'S HOW CONCERNED HE WAS ABOUT GOVERNANCE! JOHN DEATON STOOD AT ONE OF THE CAPE COD BRIDGES, SURROUNDED BY OTHER MASS GOP LIARS .....THEY LIED ABOUT SENATOR ELIZABETH WARREN & BLAMED HER FOR THE FAILURE TO FUND REBUILDING THE BRIDGES...EXCEPT IT WAS TRUMP WHO SLASHED FUNDING!
WILL "R" VOTERS EVER GET TIRED OF THE LIES?*****
— Former U.S. Senate candidate John Deaton talks ICE, immigration by Melanie Gilbert, The Lowell Sun: “The city of Lowell has already seen U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents deploy a show of force to arrest alleged illegal immigrants on its streets. But could the anti-ICE protests taking place in Los Angeles, which resulted in the deployment of Marines, happen in the Merrimack Valley and Boston region? Former Marine and U.S. Senate candidate John Deaton, a self-described centrist and moderate Republican, said the immigration issue needs a ‘common-sense approach.’”
PAY WALL
FROM HARVARD YARD
— Harvard professor union will ‘strongly’ oppose any deal between school and Trump, members say by Claire Thornton, The Boston Globe: “Harvard’s hundreds of unionized professors are pushing the university not to make any deal with President Trump in its deepening dispute with the White House, and they say they hope to flex their increasing organizing prowess to oppose threats to academic freedom. The work of Harvard’s professor union could be a test for the chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which has seen its membership on campus swell to about 300 this spring as faculty grew concerned about the ousting of Middle Eastern studies leaders and changes to DEI practices. The association has traditionally been more active at public universities, where US labor laws give its members collective bargaining rights they lack at private institutions such as Harvard.”
FROM THE DELEGATION
— Massachusetts Dems ready for mid-term fight after House passes ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ by John L. Micek, MassLive: “Heading into Thursday, it wasn’t a question of whether the Republican-controlled U.S. House was going to pass President Donald Trump’s domestic policy mega-bill, but how tight the margin was going to be when all the votes were counted. At midafternoon, lawmakers had their answer: The chamber approved the sprawling package of $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and deep reductions to social programs by a vote of 218-214, with two Republican defections, The Associated Press reported. And U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, D-5th District, already was girding herself for the next fight.”
DATELINE D.C.
— Republicans just cut Medicaid. Will it cost them control of Congress? by Lisa Kashinsky, Andrew Howard and Elena Schneider, POLITICO: “Republicans just delivered Donald Trump a ‘big, beautiful’ legislative win. Now they’re fretting it will lead to some ugly electoral losses. GOP lawmakers are warning that slashing spending on Medicaid and food assistance will cost the party seats in the midterms — threatening their razor-thin House majority — by kicking millions of Americans off safety-net programs.”
— The next megabill Congress needs to worry about by Benjamin Guggenheim, POLITICO: “Thursday’s historic vote passing President Donald Trump’s megabill ended a monthslong process of negotiation, infighting and compromise. It also started a countdown until Congress has to do it all over again. That’s because the super-sized domestic policy legislation includes a sharp cliff for tax cuts and deep safety-net restrictions — teeing them up to be the subject of fierce political battles in the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential election.”
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FROM THE 413
The nuclear industry LOBBIED INTENSELY & GOT THEIR MONEY'S WORTH!
PRIVATE MARKETS WILL NOT LEND TO THE INDUSTRY KNOWN FOR DELAYS & MASSIVE COST OVERRUNS! THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY IS EXEPT FROM ANY LIABILITY.... THE SCANDALS ARE OUTRAGEOUS!
SHOREHAM ON LONG ISLAND OHIO RICO TRIAL - REPUBLICANS BOUGHT CRUMBLING NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS & MUCH ELSE
NIKKI HALEY'S NUCLEAR SCANDAL:
South Carolina Spent $9 Billion to Dig a Hole in the Ground and Then Fill It Back In
— Local advocates seek removal of Healey provision dealing with new nuclear facilities by Chris Larabee, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Local advocates are urging the Legislature to remove a specific provision in Gov. Maura Healey’s Energy Affordability, Independence & Innovation Act that would repeal a 1982 referendum requiring voters at a statewide election to approve any new nuclear facilities in Massachusetts. … In the valley… a group of advocates are urging legislators, through testimony at the State House, to remove a single line from the bill in Section 45, which would repeal Chapter 503 of the Acts of 1982. Chapter 503, approved by 67.5% of voters in the state in 1982, requires the Legislature to issue a report on a proposed nuclear power plant or low-level radioactive waste storage or disposal facility and the approval of voters at a statewide election before construction could begin.” excerpt: Local advocates are urging the Legislature to remove a specific provision in Gov. Maura Healey’s Energy Affordability, Independence & Innovation Act that would repeal a 1982 referendum requiring voters at a statewide election to approve any new nuclear facilities in Massachusetts. The governor’s massive energy legislative package, laid out in bill H.4144, seeks to reduce energy costs for residents and businesses through a variety of measures, including requiring the Department of Public Utilities to review and reform all charges on energy bills, establish a cap on month-to-month bill increases, allow Massachusetts to procure energy directly and reduce the value of net metering credits for new and large solar hookups, among other provisions. In the valley, though, a group of advocates are urging legislators, through testimony at the State House, to remove a single line from the bill in Section 45, which would repeal Chapter 503 of the Acts of 1982. Chapter 503, approved by 67.5% of voters in the state in 1982, requires the Legislature to issue a report on a proposed nuclear power plant or low-level radioactive waste storage or disposal facility and the approval of voters at a statewide election before construction could begin. “There’s something for everyone in this bill and it’s really good, but then she sneaks in the nuclear,” said Deb Katz, a Rowe resident and member of the Citizens Awareness Network, which was created in 1991 by a group of concerned residents after lightning struck the Yankee Rowe nuclear facility. “That part is no good and they need to get it out.” In Healey’s summary, she wrote the provision is an opportunity to create energy independence in Massachusetts by opening the door to new nuclear energy opportunities, which already require “rigorous federal, state, and local approvals through formal siting and licensing processes.” The statewide ballot measure, Healey noted, is unique for nuclear energy and is a major limiting factor for the industry. “No other generation source in the state requires this statewide ballot initiative approval. This Act would repeal a 1982 law that mandates that any new nuclear facility receive approval through a statewide ballot initiative, eliminating a major barrier to the consideration of new small modular reactors that could improve reliability, stabilize prices, and decarbonize the region’s power grid,” Healey’s summary reads. “Since 2020, eight of the 14 states with a nuclear moratorium or similar provisions have either fully or partially lifted limitations on building new nuclear and three more states are exploring it.” Advocates, like Katz and Claire Chang, are also calling the proposed repeal an “affront to democracy,” as they say the governor is trying to repeal a measure that was implemented through the will of the voters. “The people voted overwhelmingly, 67%, for the referendum, which basically says the commonwealth needs to bring any new nuclear power before the citizenry and have them decide if they want new nuclear power or not,” Chang said. “There’s no reason to abrogate this, it’s fairly won.”
— Leverett orders workers, law enforcement not to cooperate with ICE by Scott Merzbach, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Town and school employees are being advised not to provide assistance toward any Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions or offer help to any other federal official who might come to Leverett tasked with removing undocumented immigrants. … The policy applies not only to police officers, firefighters and public works employees, but others who work for the town at Town Hall, and for the schools and library.”
THE LOCAL ANGLE
BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANDA RAG PAY WALL
PAY WALL
HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Bryan Bowman, Megan Wessenberg, Mike Rigas, Roselle Chartock, Melisse Morris, Vanessa Gatlin and Mike Ferrari.
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