<

p>In Connecticut, every bill had to be analyzed as to its potential fiscal impact by an independent budget office.  The fiscal impact statement was part of almost every floor debate, as I recall.  In the Massachusetts Legislature, the House and Senate Ways and Means committees supposedly perform that function.  But they aren’t independent and I never heard anyone cite a Ways and Means assessment of a bill’s fiscal impact.

<

p>Instead of the creation of a new department with concomitant new jobs?

<

p>

ECO-DEV REORGANIZATION: At 1:45 p.m., the House adopted a Ways and Means amendment to S 2380 relative to economic development reorganization.

Question came on ordering the bill to third reading.

Rep. Dempsey thanked the Speaker for his leadership on this issue. We talked about creating a new sector in our economy, gaming, and the need for all of us to work together to look at other sectors like manufacturing, health care, biotech. We need to do as much as we can to improve the business climate. We have spoken to leaders in the business community on a strategy to move Massachusetts forward during a difficult economic time. We create an economic policy council, put together performance measurements for quasi-publics and embrace regional economic development organizations with entry points at the Mass. Office of Business Development. We look at putting together a Mass. Marketing Partnership to coordinate our efforts. This coordinated approach will help us grow our economy. We look at quasi-publics that have been successful, the Community Development Financing Corp and the Economic Stabilization Trust and coordinate those to streamline our approach and we create the Mass Capital Growth Corporation. We look at quasi-publics with similar functions like MassDevelopment and HEFA and try to bring those together to streamline their activities as well. It’s hard to embrace tax changes but we embrace several to attract startups and new companies. We change the net operating loss carry-forward from five years to 20 years and create a 3 percent capital gains investment policy and we look at expedited permitting. We will continue to look at other ways to move Massachusetts forward. there are many amendments. I look forward to the debate.

Bill ordered to third reading at 1:52 p.m.

<

p>The quasi-publics lack any real oversight and accountability. The lege is (once again)  trying to create private developer sub-municipalities, which will have governmental powers over unwilling owners and tenants.

<

p>We’re slipping towards government of, by, and for the corporations, and We, The People are too bewildered to stop the slide. Disaster capitalism at its worst.