State Democrats expect delayed jobs bill to be sent to governor’s desk next week
Image | Courtesy of State House News Service
Representatives and Senators held their first conference committee meeting on Monday for the economic development bill.
Democrats plan next week to finish their work on a stalled jobs bill designed to supercharge the state's economy, especially the life sciences and climate technology industries.
More than three months after they ended scheduled formal sessions for the term without a deal in place, negotiators announced Thursday an "agreement in principle that resolves the differences between the House and Senate versions of the economic development bill."
They provided no details about the scope of the final package nor which of the many high-profile policy riders survived private talks. It was also unclear Thursday afternoon when the compromise bill itself would emerge.
"We are confident that the conference committee report will be filed soon, so our chambers can bring it to the floor next week and send the bill to the Governor's desk," lead negotiators Rep. Aaron Michlewitz and Sen. Barry Finegold said in a joint statement around 1 p.m. "We are gratified by the cooperative conversations that have resulted in an affordable, inclusive, strategic blueprint for strengthening our statewide economy, outpacing our competition, and ensuring opportunity for our fellow residents."
Legislative leaders were unavailable to take questions about the agreement or the process that lawmakers will use to consider it.
Thursday's announcement also tees up a major clean energy bill to reach Gov. Maura Healey next week. The Senate on Oct. 24 approved the 139-page compromise on a 38-2 vote. With House Republicans also pushing for a recorded roll call vote, House Speaker Ron Mariano opted to wait and pursue action simultaneously on the energy bill and the economic development bill, rather than call in Democrats to form a quorum at an informal session.
Both branches adjourned Thursday for a four-day holiday weekend and plan to return Tuesday. The House intends to meet in an informal session, so it appears unlikely the pair of compromise bills will emerge for votes until at least Wednesday.
The original House and Senate economic development proposals combined billions of dollars of borrowing authorization with a suite of policy changes, ranging from raising the age of juvenile jurisdiction to local-option happy hour to project labor agreement requirements.
The final compromise will determine the duration and amount of ongoing state support to the life sciences industry, which elected officials view as a cornerstone sector to the Bay State's economy, and outline similar investments in the burgeoning climate tech field.
It will also impact the fate of a proposed professional soccer stadium on a parcel of blighted land along the Mystic River in Everett. The Kraft family, which owns the New England Revolution, and their allies have been moving to build a new stadium there to host the team, which currently plays at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.
The Senate bill included language clearing the way for that development, which needs legislative action because the land is in a designated port area, but the House version did not.
Negotiators also weighed a suite of new regulations on ticket resales, including limits on ticket purchasing software and fees.
Other decisions legislators will make via the final accord include whether to allow cities and towns to offer discounted alcoholic beverage promotions, a practice banned in Massachusetts for decades, and whether to increase the age for Bay Staters to be tried as adults for many charges from 18 years old to 19 years old.
Both branches approved their original drafts of the wide-reaching package in the summer. The House voted 155-2 on June 27, and the Senate voted 40-0 on July 11.
Democrats were unable to find consensus in the final weeks allotted for formal sessions this term, and they entered a stretch of lightly attended informal sessions on Aug. 1 with no deal in place.
Joint legislative rules call for only informal sessions through the remainder of the term, and borrowing -- like the billions of dollars in bond authorizations in the original House and Senate bills -- requires roll call votes, which can only take place during formal sessions.
Top Democrats previously suggested they were open to calling lawmakers back to Beacon Hill for a rare late-term formal session, but they did not immediately indicate Thursday when or how that might happen.
Two weeks ago, the Senate adopted an order allowing the chamber to record roll call votes on any outstanding conference committee reports, effectively circumventing the joint rule. Republicans introduced a similar order in the House, but Democrats objected to it.
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