Gov. Baker Proposes $40.5 Billion State Budget, Braced for Uncertainty

BOSTON, MA — Offering up a $40.508 billion state budget Wednesday, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker deferred to a quote from Patriots coach Bill Belichik when it came to the looming uncertainty surrounding the Affordable Care Act — "It is what it is."

Baker filed his Fiscal Year 2018 budget proposal the day after a State of the Commonwealth speech that praised bipartisan compromise and touted his administration's successes so far.

The years ahead are especially murky for budget-writers trying to tackled funding challenges in the state's MassHealth system while Congress and a newly elected president Donald Trump busily work to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. Baker told reporters the state is ready to adjust that budget if necessary.

State of the Commonwealth: A Call to Compromise [Full Text]

Among the new proposals in this year's budget, Baker introduces a hospitality tax on online rentals, such as AirBnB (something that's supported by the company), and introduces a steeply higher fee for businesses who don't comply with state health coverage requirements. According to The Boston Globe, that fee could bring in as much as $300 million per year, but has been criticized as a tax by businesses. It is considered a check on Massachusetts' rising mediecal costs.

The governor's proposal would also switch MBTA retirees' pension fund management to the state retirement board. Baker's office says this "will benefit these retirees by increasing returns and lowering administrative costs." Read more from the Globe here.

Additional pieces of the budget include, according to the governor's office:

• $4 million for new “Learn to Earn” Program, credentialing the unemployed for high-demand jobs
• $10.5 million more for workforce development programs
• $11 million increase in funding for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program, geared toward assisting the homeless
• $10.7 million increase for state Home Care Program, which assists low-income seniors
• $1.1 million increase to investigate cases of elder abuse
• $2 million to expand law enforcement’s efforts to arrest and convict drug traffickers, part of the war on opioid deaths in Massachusetts
• changes at Bridgewater State Hospital, including moving Corrections officers out of the facility and "significantly" expanding the size and scope of the hospital's clinical programs through a $37 million in funding, with legislators' support

Baker's budget next goes to the state Legislature. The 2018 Fiscal Year starts July 1.

Image via Mass. Governor's office