BOSTON — Local lawmakers added hundreds of thousands of dollars for pet projects to the $28.2 billion budget approved by the House last week, including $150,000 for Gloucester.
The budget now goes to the Senate and requires the governor's signature before any of the spending requests become law.
Rep. Anthony J. Verga, D-Gloucester, went into budget week hoping, in his words, " to win the Lottery." While a number of his budget requests were not approved, he did obtain $100,000 for restoring the Main Pier at the Gloucester Maritime Heritage Center and $50,000 for the Historic Ports Initiative.
The Historic Ports Initiative, run by the Seaport Council, focuses on small Massachusetts ports that can host cruise ships with 100 to 200 passengers.
The initiative will pitch Gloucester to boutique cruise companies competing for market share as a "must" destination along the Gulf of Maine for the passengers of seven- to 10-day trips emanating from New York.
The House did not adopt Verga's request for a study commission to examine the way the state funds education.
Mayor Carolyn Kirk, in 2004 during her first term on the School Committee, presented her "lemon list" report on the inequities in the state school aid formula to the Legislature. At its core is evidence that Gloucester is one of about 100 communities that have yet to be restored to 2002 levels of state aid.
Verga couldn't be reached yesterday for comment. He said in a statement: "This budget reflects the real and unique challenges our state faces right now, and by doing our job, we know our constituents will continue to get the services they need."
Lawmakers had limited success on plans to overhaul special education funding.
Rep. Barbara A. L'Italien, D-Andover, got $2 million to help cities and towns pay to transport special education students to other school districts. She originally had pushed more ambitious plans to change the funding formulas that would have sent at least $12.8 million a year to local schools.
L'Italien said she didn't expect all of her special education requests to be approved during a tight budget year.
"We were trying to strike a balance between need to do this and the economic realities," L'Italien said.
However, L'Italien won a $2 million increase for the state Division of Autism. The House also approved her request for $200,000 for Melmark School in Andover for autistic children.
Rep. Michael Costello, a Newburyport Democrat, won earmarks in excess of $600,000. Among the items he won was $330,000 for the Newburyport shellfish purification plant, $100,000 for the Newburyport YWCA, $40,000 for the Newburyport Office of Economic Development, and $75,000 for Pettingill House, a Salisbury social service agency.
Costello also wrangled $2 million more for a state program to fund local police hires statewide.
Rep. Brian S. Dempsey, D-Haverhill, secured $100,000 for the Veterans Northeast Outreach Center in Haverhill, $80,000 for a homeless veterans shelter in Haverhill, and $50,000 for the YWCA of Haverhill. He also got $75,000 for Link House Inc., a Salisbury drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in Rep. Michael A. Costello's district.
Rep. William Lantigua, D-Lawrence, had a number of his $4.2 million in earmarks approved, including $100,000 for the YWCA of Greater Lawrence, $165,000 for Arlington Community Trabajando, a Lawrence affordable housing and economic development nonprofit group, and $115,000 for Food for the World Pantry.
Overall, the House budget included $210 million in new spending, despite warnings from budget watchdogs that the state couldn't afford it. Dempsey said the House budget reflected necessary spending.
"It's always a balancing act between meeting the demands of education, public safety and special-ed and balancing the budget," Dempsey said.
But Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, said the mix of new spending and increased reliance on the state's rainy day fund is troubling.
"This is not a realistic budget," said Widmer, who believes the Senate would have to reduce spending by "hundreds of millions" of dollars to be prepared for a drop in state revenues caused by an expected recession.
Rep. Bradley H. Jones Jr., R-North Reading, said he thinks the Senate is poised to add, not subtract, from the House budget. He pointed to Senate plans to vote on a $472 million tax hike tomorrow that expands upon the $392 million tax increase the House passed in April.
He also noted yesterday's state revenue report that showed collections bested expectations by more than $2 billion in April. Patrick administration officials cautioned the figure reflected the year on which the taxes were paid, 2007, and not the coming year. But Jones said it supports his contention that the Democratic-controlled Legislature has its priorities wrong.
"I think clearly there's much more data to suggest we have a spending problem and not a revenue problem," Jones said.
Edward Mason may be contacted at emason@gloucestertimes.com.
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