City Picks Up Quinn Bill Deficit Caused By State

The city of Woburn will pick up the state’s share of the Quinn Bill funding, now that the City Council Finance Committee has voted in favor of the appropriation.

Mayor Scott Galvin brought the matter forward at the City Council sub-committee meeting Monday night, asking aldermen to approve a $475,000 payment on the Police Career Incentive Pay Program from the city’s free cash account.

“We have always paid our share of Quinn, always,” said Galvin. “The state stopped paying their share of the Quinn Bill, which they paid for 10 years… When the state stopped paying their share, I didn’t think it was our responsibility to pick it up.”

Since then, Galvin said he reevaluated the decision with the help of the city’s attorneys.

“I felt, after consultation with our attorneys, that it is in our better interest to pick up the state share that they stopped funding,” said Galvin Monday.

The Quinn Bill was enacted in 1970 as a way to encourage police officers to further their education and receive criminal justice and law enforcement degrees from secondary education institutions. When police officers earn degrees through the Quinn Bill, they receive monetary incentives. For many years, the state paid half of the Quinn Bill incentives, while cities and towns picked up the rest.

“This is through no fault of the mayor,” said Alderman Ray Drapeau. “It’s really at the state level… The bill was passed, it should have been upheld. Now this becomes an unfunded mandate.”

“When is it going to stop?” Drapeau added. “We can’t keep absorbing their mismanagement of money.”

Drapeau thanked Galvin for bringing forward the appropriation request, which will “right the ship, so to speak.”

With Monday night’s appropriation of $475,000, the city has $5.3 million remaining in the free cash fund.

Alderman Richard Gately said the Quinn Bill must be funded, with or without the state, but he is concerned about what will happen in the next fiscal year.

“My fear is now, coming into this next fiscal year, we’re going to be in the same boat and money is going to be tighter,” said Gately. “I don’t want to see anybody in the city take a hit or a cut in pay.”