 | By Kelly Garrity | CASH CLASH — Buckle up for what could be a bumpy budget season. The House and Senate won’t just have to find common ground on how they’ll spread around billions of dollars in their FY26 budgets. Budget writers will also have to address gaping differences over how to split the roughly $1.3 billion surplus the state collected from the so-called millionaires’ tax. The Senate rolled out its plan on Thursday for how to divvy up the money that lawmakers are required to spend on education and transportation initiatives. The details: Democratic Senate leaders want to invest $613 million in education initiatives and $670 million for transportation infrastructure. Senators will have a chance to add amendments, including earmarks, to the bill when the chamber takes it up next week. That’s a leap from the proposal the House approved in April, which hewed closer to the blueprint Gov. Maura Healey filed in January. House budget writers called for a less even split: $353 million for education and $828 million for transportation investments, including $793 million to help pull the MBTA back from the steep fiscal cliff it’s facing. Why the difference? "It is always our goal, but we do not count down to the pennies, to try to equally invest the money in both education and transportation," Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues told reporters. Negotiations over the surplus spending bill will likely happen in tandem with debate between the House and Senate over their FY26 budget. That could send the typically protracted negotiations over spending even deeper into the summer. House lawmakers wrapped up debate on their FY26 proposal without much fanfare this week, tacking on $81 million mostly for local earmarks. The Senate is expected to unveil their package next week. GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. So, will we get an on-time FY26 budget this year? It’s “always our goal, yes,” Rodrigues said. But it would be a first since he and House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz started leading negotiations together. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll hosts a climate event at 9 a.m. in Watertown. THIS WEEKEND — Rep. Stephen Lynch hosts “Fight for the Working-Class Rally” at 10 am. Saturday. Auditor Diana DiZoglio speaks at the AFSCME Convention at 11 a.m. in Hyannis Saturday. SUNDAY SHOWS — University of Massachusetts President Marty Meehan i s on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. State Rep. Marcus Vaughn is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday. Senate President Karen Spilka is on NBC10 Boston Weekend Today at 9:45 a.m. Sunday. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Drop me a line: kgarrity@politico.com .
|  | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
| 2026 WATCH — Senate President Karen Spilka is running for reelection in 2026, she told NBC Boston’s Matt Prichard . — Mass. House moves to block vocational school lottery admissions by Christopher Huffaker, The Boston Globe: “State education leaders had taken steps to move to lottery-based admissions following criticism by advocates who argue the existing admissions process locks many marginalized students out. But after lobbying efforts from some of the vocational schools themselves, Massachusetts House lawmakers have now taken action to prohibit the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education from making any admissions changes before the 2027-28 school year and instead create a new task force to further study the issue.” ****GSEP CHANGES EXPLAINED!**** — Mass. orders utilities to spend less ratepayer money on natural gas pipelines by Miriam Wasser, WBUR: “Massachusetts officials are overhauling a natural gas program they blame for driving up customers' bills and encouraging utilities to make unnecessarily costly repairs. The program, known as the Gas System Enhancement Plan, or GSEP, gives gas companies a financial incentive to replace leaky natural gas pipelines. But state officials claim it ‘lack[s] any meaningful incentive for cost containment,’ and has resulted in overcharging ratepayers for work that could have been completed at a lower cost.” excerpts: Massachusetts has about 21,000 miles of underground natural gas pipelines, many of which are old and prone to leaks. While gas utilities are required by law to maintain a safe system and fix cracked or corroded pipes, a growing body of research in the 2010s showed leaks were far more prevalent than previously realized. Natural gas is primarily methane, which is a potent climate pollutant and extremely flammable. In parts of the state, approximately 2.7% of all gas traveling through pipelines leaks into peoples' homes and the atmosphere, a report from the Conservation Law Foundation found. In 2014, lawmakers created GSEP to boost efforts replace and repair pipelines. The program provided an attractive financing mechanism for utilities because it allowed them to recover costs for this work faster. The utilities took advantage of this and the program took off with gusto. Since its inception, spending under GSEP has ballooned about 21% annually, according to the state. One reason for increasing expense is exploding material and labor costs, which have more than doubled the repair cost per mile of pipeline since 2015. Another complicating factor: Thousands of new leaks are discovered every year, making the repair process like a big game of Whack-a-Mole. Gas utilities have charged ratepayers $6.2 billion for GSEP over the last decade, and the program accounts for one of the biggest surcharges on customer's monthly bills. The Massachusetts Attorney General's Office estimates that 8-11% of what customers pay monthly now goes toward funding the program. “Gas bills skyrocketed this winter, and ratepayers need relief," Attorney General Andrea Campbell said in a statement. Massachusetts state Sen. Mike Barrett, who co-chairs the legislative committee that oversees utilities, said one of the biggest problems is that companies have opted to replace leaking pipelines when less-costly repairs would have sufficed. Gas utilities make a profit when they build or repair infrastructure, so the more money they spend on pipelines, the more money they make. What’s more, a 2022 state law requires the phase-out of natural gas by mid-century as part of an effort to reduce planet-warming emissions. Barrett argues it makes little economic sense to spend billions on new gas infrastructure that the state hopes to decommission in the next two decades. By reigning in the program, Barrett said the Department of Public Utilities struck a good balance between pipeline safety, addressing climate pollution and keeping energy bills affordable. “You don't pay the gas utilities extra to keep them from blowing us up,” he said. — State Police appoint new academy head, announce training review ahead of first class since death of recruit by Sean Cotter, The Boston Globe: “The new head of the Massachusetts State Police made his first major shake-up on Thursday to an agency long beset by scandal and problems, directing an overhaul of the training academy where a recruit died last year under mysterious circumstances. Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble replaced the head of academy, commissioned an independent review of training practices, and, for the first time, split the incoming class of recruits into two smaller sessions. The Massachusetts academy has a much higher attrition rate among recruits than other police programs around the country.”
| | FROM THE HUB |
| — City watchdog finds evidence of possible corruption, misuse of grant money by Three Squares Main Street program by Niki Griswold, The Boston Globe: “An investigation by the Boston Finance Commission, the city’s independent watchdog agency, found evidence of possible corruption and misuse of federal grant money by the Three Squares Main Street program. Three Squares is one of 20 nonprofits that make up the Boston Main Streets network, which aims to revitalize and support each of the city’s neighborhood commercial districts. A report the Boston Finance Commission issued Wednesday showed that Three Squares provided altered bank statements to the city, changing the names of vendors and the amount the nonprofit supposedly spent in certain transactions, amounting to a difference of more than $32,000.” ***THANK YOU GBH! IMPRESSIVE ACTIONS TO PLANT TREES!*** — Boston wants more trees. Hyde Park and East Boston offer two windows into the future. by Abigail Pritchard, GBH News.
excerpts: Shirma Pierre loved the trees that surrounded her Hyde Park home. They provided her with shade and brought birds to her windows. But after a new homeowner next door cut some down, one fell in a storm and another was at risk of falling on her house, she was left with a lot of space and just one tree. “My beautiful canopy, my shade, so during the summer I could sit out there,” she remembered. Now? “I’m just in the brutal, hot sun.” “One of the success stories is really what’s going on in East Boston,” Mistor said. The city has planted more than 575 trees on East Boston streets and in parks, more than almost any other neighborhood. And there are concentrated efforts to get more trees in private ground, too. Both efforts are thanks to a nonprofit. Tree Eastie was founded by Bill Masterson in 2021. The volunteer-based nonprofit works with residents to plant trees in their yards — private land — and works with the city to plant on streets and in parks. “One of the success stories is really what’s going on in East Boston,” Mistor said. The city has planted more than 575 trees on East Boston streets and in parks, more than almost any other neighborhood. And there are concentrated efforts to get more trees in private ground, too. Both efforts are thanks to a nonprofit. Tree Eastie was founded by Bill Masterson in 2021. The volunteer-based nonprofit works with residents to plant trees in their yards — private land — and works with the city to plant on streets and in parks. | | MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS |
| ***HOMELAND SECURITY DOING WELLNESS CHECKS?*** — Homeland Security agents are now doing ‘wellness checks’ on immigrant children by Sarah Betancourt, GBH News: “Legal advocates say they’re worried the Homeland Security visits signal a return to law enforcement agencies with deportation authority managing immigrant child welfare.” excerpts:
Local immigration attorneys say they too have heard from clients who’ve been visited by Homeland Security. “They don’t have an order, they don’t have a search warrant or a judicial warrant or police order, and they are not [state] Department of Children and Families workers, so it’s kind of confusing on what kind of capacity they’re doing this,” said Karen Bobadilla, an attorney for De Novo, a legal services group that works with unaccompanied minors. Other advocates note that while tracking unaccompanied immigrant children’s welfare is vital, the changes have them worried. “We do believe it’s important that the federal government, through the Office of Refugee Resettlement, ensure that those children that have been released are safe, that their well-being is protected,” said Young of KIND. But she says it’s not a job for Homeland Security. “That’s a law enforcement check. That’s not a wellness check.” — Migrant families out of Lowell’s ICC by June 30 by Melanie Gilbert, The Lowell Sun: “The commonwealth’s migrant housing program started with a bang, but it is ending with a whimper. According to officials with the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, Lowell’s role in the response is coming to an abrupt end as of June 30.”
excerpts: Overall, the family demographic at the ICC was 80% Haitian migrants, 10% U.S. citizens and a small population of Venezuelan migrants. The Haitian and Venezuelan migrants were legally admitted to the country under Temporary Protected Status. But in February, the Trump administration revoked TPS for migrants from both countries on a rolling basis starting in April through September. CCA Strategic Communications & Public Affairs spokesperson Sarah Magazine said by email that the organization’s success was possible due to the “excellent work of the Lowell community to help so many families.” “Nearly 250 families have received shelter and care at the Lowell ICC since December 2023,” she said. “More than half have successfully transitioned to permanent housing with the support of the Lowell community.” | | THE RACE FOR CITY HALL |
| HOME RUN — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu nabbed a rare endorsement from Red Sox Hall of Famer David Ortiz, who said he’s backing her because “Boston deserves someone who shows up for all of us.” There’s also a video. **CARPETBAGGING NEWTON NEBBISH ON BALLOT** SIGNATURE MOVES — Boston mayoral hopeful Josh Kraft collected 6,500 signatures Wednesday with the help of more than 400 volunteers, according to his campaign. That’s well over the 3,000 signatures required for mayoral candidates to get on the ballot.
| | FROM HARVARD YARD |
| ****INTERESTING INSIGHTS!***
— Cracks emerge in Harvard’s resistance to Trump over DEI by Juliet Schulman-Hall, MassLive.
| | FROM THE 413 |
| — The Pittsfield School Committee has passed an $86.9 million budget for fiscal 2026 by Greg Sukiennik, The Berkshire Eagle: “The school budget, the largest part of the city’s spending plan, will increase district spending by $3.76 million, or 4.53 percent. Collectively bargained raises and increased special education and transportation costs are driving most of the increase, according to the administration.”
| | THE LOCAL ANGLE |
| — Worcester has named its next school superintendent by Jesse Collings, Telegram & Gazette: “The School Committee voted May 1 to name Deputy Superintendent Brian Allen the next superintendent, opting to forgo a more extensive search process. Allen will take over the position that will be vacated by current Superintendent Rachel Monárrez, effective July 1. Allen will still need to negotiate a contract with the committee before he can officially assume the role.” — ****SANDWICH BUDGET! MUST READ!**** Sandwich school officials say buildings are aging, deteriorating, as town meeting nears by Rachael Devaney, Cape Cod Times: “The Sandwich Public Schools proposed budget tops $40 million for fiscal year 2026 but School Superintendent Joseph Maruszczak has warned that deferred maintenance has caused infrastructure across the district to deteriorate and more money is needed.” — Human Rights Commission’s frustration with city manager escalates in Worcester by Brad Petrishen, Telegram & Gazette: “Members of the city Human Rights Commission have escalated their criticism of City Manager Eric D. Batista, remarking that long-running delays in administrative requests have called the value of their volunteer work into question.” PAY WALL ***TENET HEALTHCARE IN FRAMINGHAM!*** — Mass. DPH deems Framingham Union maternity services necessary by Tom Benoit, The MetroWest Daily News. excerpt: The state Department of Public Health has determined that Framingham Union Hospital's current level of maternity services is necessary to preserve access and health status for people in the hospital's service area. The DPH determination, written on April 24, comes after a public hearing was held April 9 at the Memorial Building in Framingham to allow residents and others to weigh in on Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare Corp.'s proposal to downgrade maternity services at Framingham Union. Tenet, which owns the hospital, has proposed shifting the status of the maternity services from a Level IIB Special Care Nursery to a Level I Well Baby Nursery. The DPH ruling is not binding; Tenet can still move ahead with its plans. Nevertheless, the DPH is advising that Tenet plan to instead shift Framingham Union's maternity services from a Level IIB nursery to a Level IB nursery, should maintenance on the Level IIB nursery be not feasible. The state is also requesting that Tenet to come up with a plan within 15 days to retain its current level of maternity services at the hospital. — 108 Fall River students who didn't pass MCAS get diplomas by Emily Scherny, The Herald News. ***INTERESTING READ!**** — New Bedford Police chief speaks out against corruption allegations by Jack Spillane, The New Bedford Light.
excerpt: New Bedford Police Chief Paul Oliveira sat down with me this week to talk about the stunning accusations made about him and the city in The Boston Globe’s “Snitch City” series. The recent Spotlight Team effort, presented in a relentlessly breathless film noir style, claims that Oliveira was the worst of the worst abusers of a troubled statewide confidential informant system long used to investigate drug trafficking crimes. | | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH |
| 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 T.W. Arrighi. Happy belated birthday to Jessica Bradley Rushing. HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to former national climate adviser Gina McCarthy, Ben Ginsberg, Andrew Miga, Josh Irwin and Peter Brown of Peter Brown Communications, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, Erin Mershon, The Boston Globe’s Shira Center, James Hannon, Natalie Akers, Ryan Evans, Todd Belt and former Lexington state Rep. Jay Kaufman. 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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