budget Archives - Pioneer Institute

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Looming Budget Crisis Reveals MBTA’s Dependency on Federal Funds

July 5, 2022

The MBTA is about to lose federal funding at a critical moment when ridership has not yet recovered. Will the state make up the difference?

Public vs. Private Employment in Massachusetts: A Tale of Two Pandemics

March 15, 2021

This report finds that Massachusetts state government employment has been virtually flat during COVID-19 even as employment in the state’s private sector workforce remains nearly 10 percent below pre-pandemic levels, and questions whether it makes sense to shield public agencies from last year’s recession at the expense of taxpayers.

Study Finds Massachusetts Graduated Income Tax May Be a “Blank Check” and Not Increase Funding for Designated Priorities

March 10, 2021

Advocates claim a proposed 4 percent surtax on high earners will raise nearly $2 billion per year for education and transportation, but similar tax hikes in other states resulted in highly discretionary rather than targeted spending, according to a new policy brief published by Pioneer Institute. That same result or worse is possible in Massachusetts because during the 2019 constitutional convention state legislators rejected — not just one, but two — proposed amendments requiring that the new revenues be directed to these purposes.