THE PIONEER BLOG

Will Kauppila

Update on the State of the Green Line Extension

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The idea for the Green Line Extension (GLX) has been around for years, and its potential benefits have led many to call it a critical economic and environmental infrastructure project. So, when the first phase of construction began in 2012, it was met with great excitement. Fast forward to 2016, and much of that initial enthusiasm has been curbed with skepticism. Construction has been painfully slow, and project cost estimates escalated as high as $3 billion (now at $2.3 billion). Yet, despite concerns over the MBTA’s capacity to manage an operation of this scale and scope, the project is still very much alive. In May, a new, independent interim project management team commissioned by the MBTA Fiscal Management Control Board […]

Prasanna Rajasekaran

The Mysterious World of NCAA Apparel Contracts

/0 Comments/in , /by Prasanna Rajasekaran

The world of collegiate athletics is, besides great entertainment, a monumental cash cow. In April, the NCAA extended its March Madness TV contract with CBS by 8 years – adding $8.8 billion on what was already a $10.8 billion deal. This works out to another billion dollars per year – for about a month of basketball. The business of NCAA sports is as broad as it is profitable. On a micro level, schools with large sports programs earn huge sums of money through ticket sales, donations, and media rights. The larger sports-related industries – apparel, sports drinks, footwear – often contract with schools to provide their products at a discount, if not for free. The value of these contracts can […]

Eric Sporel

The Battle over Logan Airport—Will TNCs Prevail?

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Since 2011, transportation network companies (TNCs) have established themselves as a popular mode of transportation in the City of Boston. Given their convenience and low cost, TNCs such as Uber and Lyft have become local consumers’ first choice over taxis.

Thejasa Jayachandran

The New Game of Life: Tuition and Debt

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Back in 2005, the Milton Bradley Company launched a new version of the classic The Game of Life.  While similar in most respects to the game most of us grew up with, the updated version reflects today’s financial realities. Namely, you can choose a career and start with a salary or you can choose college and start out $100,000 in debt. College costs have skyrocketed over the last couple decades. Average tuition for a private, four-year institution has increased by more than one quarter in just the last 10 years. What’s more, this is not a symptom that is unique to private colleges. The Pioneer Blog has documented the University of Massachusetts’ tuition increases over the years for both in-state […]

Amy Dain

Addressing Greater Boston’s Housing Crunch

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Greater Boston’s housing crisis has emerged as one of the most pressing policy challenges for the region.  Building enough homes for the growing workforce and retiring baby-boomers has proven challenging.  In 2004, I conducted a study for Pioneer Institute of residential land use regulations in all of the communities within 50 miles of Boston to understand what was holding the region back from building enough houses. As policymakers consider new solutions to the decades-old challenge, I have been receiving a number of calls and emails for information about my research on zoning. I have been referring policymakers, advocates, and reporters to two reports: Residential Land Use Regulation in Eastern Massachusetts: A Study of 187 Communities.  This report covers the technical […]

Cameron Rohall

Volatility and Expansion at the MassCEC

/0 Comments/in , , , , /by Cameron Rohall

This blog entry was edited from its original version on July 28, 2016. In 2008, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Technology Center (MassCEC) was established by the state Legislature, and it opened its doors the following year. The center’s mission is to promote the development of clean energy in Massachusetts, improve quality of life, and gradually help the Commonwealth transition towards renewable sources of energy. Its legislative mandate enumerates 10 goals, including the development of jobs in clean energy, support for education and workforce training, and financing for clean energy companies and projects. In accordance with M.G.L. ch. 23J §2, 10, MassCEC is directed to focus on assisting low and moderate-income communities in all its programs, making clean energy investments a […]

Will Kauppila

Behind the Glitz & Glamour: Are Massachusetts Film Tax Credits worth the Investment?

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Massachusetts currently offers 14 different tax credits available to qualifying entities. Each incentive is subject to different awards and issuance processes based on the discretion of the state agency that oversees issuance. A tax credit is refundable for an entity who earns more in tax credits than it owes in taxes, which means that Massachusetts will pay back the difference with a refund check. It is transferable for an entity whose credits are valued higher than its tax liabilities, meaning that it can sell any surplus credits to another taxpayer that owes taxes. These tax credits are given to privately owned businesses and individuals who have either tangibly created new job opportunities for Massachusetts residents, or have had other positive […]

Lauren Corvese

Telemedicine: The Future of Healthcare

/0 Comments/in , , , , , /by Lauren Corvese

Telemedicine sounds a bit like science-fiction, but the practice is far from fictitious. Many Massachusetts doctors practice telemedicine every day, as it is quickly gaining popularity. Telemedicine involves providing healthcare services through technology, rather than in-person (think of a video call, like Skype). What seems like a logical step toward efficiency in healthcare has become a heated debate on Beacon Hill over how to pay for it. It’s hard to argue against the benefits of telemedicine. First is its convenience: with telemedicine there is no traffic, no babysitter needed, no time taken off work and no gas consumed. With much of the stress of in-person visits eliminated, patients are more likely to seek care.  It’s like a return to the […]

Editorial Staff

Pioneer Institute Public Statement to the MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board

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Earlier this week, Fox 25 News reported that Michael Mulhern, the executive director of the MBTA Retirement Fund, will be triple-dipping from taxpayer-funded pensions. A few days earlier, Mulhern announced his intention to resign from the fund in August. In addition to healthcare coverage, he is already receiving a $65,000 pension from the T as well as $86,000 in deferred compensation. The Fox 25 report revealed a further $167,000 in a retirement account set up during his time at the pension fund. Pioneer’s recent report “The Reckless Cost of Investment Mismanagement at the MBTA Retirement Fund” revealed that the MBTARF’s underperformance relative to the state pension board over 14 years has cost taxpayers and T employees $902 million. In a […]

Mary Connaughton

Public Records Reform: Our Take

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The public records bill that was signed into law by Governor Baker last week and takes effect January 1, 2017 contains significant improvements to existing law and will no doubt improve the Commonwealth’s poor national rankings for government transparency.  The legislators who crafted it have done the state a service. But there is more work to do – Massachusetts should hold the highest ranking.  Transparency, after all, measures the health and vibrancy of our democracy. Pioneer Institute has long supported many elements of the bill, including subjecting the MBTA Retirement Board to public records law and making its operations transparent, establishing a public records officer for every agency, promoting electronic records in response to requests, imposing stronger penalties on delinquent […]

Matt Blackbourn

Inconsistencies in UMass’ Reporting of Deferred Maintenance

/0 Comments/in , , , /by Matt Blackbourn and Greg Sullivan

In assembling the data for Pioneer’s UMass at a Crossroads series, which covers the improving academic profile of UMass students, the strategy of recruiting more out-of-state and international students to generate additional revenue, and the fiscal implications of UMass’ ambitious capital expansion, Pioneer identified inconsistencies in UMass’ reporting of deferred maintenance. Below is a brief overview of the disparate deferred maintenance numbers UMass has provided over the last several years, accompanied by discussion of the implications of these inconsistencies. (Note: endnotes/citations can be found in the papers, available here.) Disparities in UMass’ reporting of deferred maintenance Deferred maintenance refers to the postponement of maintenance of capital assets that are in need of replacement or renewal. It includes delayed repairs on […]

Editorial Staff

With UMass Tuition Hikes on Horizon, Key Issues for Legislators to Consider

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Pioneer Institute Public Statement Later this month, the University of Massachusetts’ Board of Trustees will again vote on tuition and fee increases. In the fall of 2015, UMass charged the 13th highest tuition of 172 public universities in the U.S., higher even than UC-Berkeley and UCLA, the two top-ranked public universities according to US News and World Report Rankings of Public Colleges. Longer term, the system’s manner of financing a multi-billion-dollar burst in facility capital expansion has come at the expense of attention to its deferred maintenance backlog, and places UMass in a precarious financial position.  The UMass Board, the governor and the legislature will need to begin asking hard questions in order to effectively discharge their fiduciary responsibilities to […]

Editorial Staff

Honoring the Service and Sacrifice of Our Veterans

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Memorial Day is a time to reflect on the men and women who have courageously defended the ideals and freedoms that Americans hold so dear. We also view it as a poignant reminder that we must ensure our children are learning about the important events and principles that have shaped our nation. For many years, we have been calling on our policy leaders to ensure that our future generations receive more instruction in Civics and U.S. History. In late 2012, a state commission recommended making passage of a U.S. History MCAS test a high school graduation requirement for Massachusetts public school students. The commission’s report cited a Pioneer Institute poll that found that the commonwealth’s parents, teachers, and legislators all support restoring the U.S. History MCAS graduation […]

Scott Haller

Fare Collection on the T is Unfair

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A recent disclosure by the MBTA reveals that the agency forgoes an estimated $35 million annually in ticket revenue due to poor fare collection practices on the commuter rail system alone. When the bus system and green line are included, this number inflates as high as $42 million. Yes, this is the same cash-strapped agency that couldn’t wait to shut the doors on the costly late-night service, a program which cost $14.4 million a year while providing services to 13,000 riders a night. Yes, this is the same transportation system that recently saw fit to raise fares an average of 9 percent to help fill a massive revenue gap. And yes, this is under the “no-excuses” contract in which Keolis, […]

Iliya Atanasov

Tough Decisions Needed to End MBTA Gravy Train

/0 Comments/in , , , , /by Iliya Atanasov

In the past 15 years, the MBTA has paid Wall Street firms an estimated $236 million in interest after gambling on synthetic swaps. Such financial derivatives are rife with risk and were among the most significant contributors to the global financial crisis of 2008. The T’s reform-minded leadership would do well to trim these exposures, with an eye to eliminating them as soon as  practically possible. Doing the right thing won’t be easy. As Pioneer revealed in its February 2016 paper entitled “The Reckless Cost of MBTA Financial Derivatives,” the T built up and then doubled down on an irresponsible derivatives portfolio in the 2000s. Tempted by small upfront premiums offered by investment banks, MBTA managers made bets that interest […]