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Welcome Aboard the Massachusetts Business Cost Express!

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A hearty welcome to the New England Public Policy Center at the Boston Fed. They’ve just released a memo detailing some of the high costs facing Massachusetts’ business (PDF, or link). Their findings include: Massachusetts does not have right-to-work laws, which “[m]ost research has found…. [to] have a positive impact on employment and business formation” Based on Economy.com’s Cost of Business Index, “[a]ll New England states are ranked as having high business costs, with Massachusetts being particularly expensive.” Using a Forbes’ Regulatory Environment Index, “most New England states have relatively burdensome regulatory climates, although Massachusetts (29) and Vermont (35) are ranked toward the middle.” Pioneer is pleased to have the New England Public Policy Center on board our continuing efforts […]

Water water everywhere

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Managing Water Demand: Price vs. Non-Price Conservation Programs While the Commonwealth is blessed with an abundance of lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands such as bogs and marshes, our residents use enough water to strain the water supply just about every summer.  The United States Geological Survey reports that Massachusetts’ rainfall and groundwater levels are average this year.  Still, communities across eastern Massachusetts, in particular along the 495 growth corridor, are adopting a range of policies to manage water demand and promote conservation.  Oddly, they often ignore the most cost-effective policy tool for achieving conservation: water pricing. Last week Pioneer released a report by Professor Sheila Olmstead of Yale University and Professor Robert Stavins of Harvard University that sites fifty years […]

Storrow Tunnel, falling down. . .

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…and the Longfellow Bridge isn’t looking too good, either. This week, both the Globe and the Governor (see below) have confirmed what everyone else who drives, rides, walks or breathes already knew: the state of the state is shaky. And leaky. And rusty, potholed and occasionally scary. From the State House News: Responding to a question about the Boston Globe’s front page story on the 56-year-old tunnel’s lack of waterproofing when it was first built, Patrick said, “It’s another example of the persistent neglect of our transportation infrastructure that goes back many decades.” …Patrick said the problem points out the importance of paying attention to the upkeep of the state’s roads and bridges “an ongoing basis and not just on […]

Dinosaurs Becoming Extinct, Slowly

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Hurrah, the State Police have finally stopped giving driving tests to 16 year olds in Massachusetts!!! A full 15 years after the merger of the Registry Police with the State Police, the Commonwealth has finally figured out (as part of collective bargaining, of course) that we probably don’t need trained, armed (and highly compensated) officers giving these exams.

Thoughts on the State Budget

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The final 2008 state budget came out of committee and was signed by Governor Patrick a little over a week ago. Below is our partial response, composed by another of the extraordinary Pioneer interns, Lincoln Rathnam. (Again, though I would like to take credit, I can’t.): “The Massachusetts state budget for 2008 is praiseworthy in several respects but also gives us cause for serious concern. In May Pioneer called on the legislature to reject the governor’s proposed addition of $500 million in taxes and fees and to work towards a solution to the state’s public employee pension and retiree health care liabilities. The new budget begins to fund those liabilities. Citizens of Massachusetts can also be thankful that the legislature […]