Agenda: Economy:

The Democratic Party understands that the state depends on the energy and skill of our private sector to create jobs and prosperity, and that government has an important role in expanding opportunity, assuring necessary infrastructure and helping dislocated workers manage through transition.

  • In the face of a global economy and advanced technology, workers need ongoing skill development and job training. We support increased public and private funding for business and labor to address the Massachusetts skills gap.

  • To remain competitive and help in areas of high unemployment, the state must be prepared to offer incentives for companies to retain and add good paying jobs. We support tax incentives for business when accompanied by commitments to good corporate citizenship and enforceable terms assuring continued investment in Massachusetts.

  • We recognize small businesses as vital to the economic growth and prosperity in this state, both through job creation and the opportunities of ownership. We support public efforts to ensure full and fair participation by women and people of color in the workforce and in business ownership.

  • We believe the depth and breadth of the knowledge-based sector of the Massachusetts economy is a key competitive edge in the global market. We champion strong federal research & development funding programs and assistance to smaller companies and start-ups seeking to commercialize promising technology.

  • We recognize that tourism is among our largest exports and we acknowledge the vital importance of tourism and business travel to communities and regions across the state. We must also safeguard the diverse physical and cultural heritage of this state, which enhances our ability to attract tourism to Massachusetts.

  • We support a well-planned commitment of state resources to ensure that our transportation infrastructure remains accessible, affordable, safe and reliable for all residents, whether living and working in urban, suburban or rural regions. We oppose the Logan Runway Expansion Proposal. We support creative and courageous leadership that understands the importance of alternatives such as the expanded use of regional airports, demand and gate management techniques to reduce over scheduling, and the development of a community-oriented multi-model transportation network.

  • We advocate increased job training and educational opportunities and we must ensure that support systems in child care, transportation, and health insurance are in place to enable people to work and to advance into more highly paid jobs. We support measures that reduce, not increase, the number of children living in poverty.

  • We support the modernization of public systems and recognize that the private sector can offer some solutions. We assert, however, that it is the public sector, not the private sector, which has the distinct capacity to deliver efficient, high quality service in many areas. We oppose misguided privatization schemes that place quality and continuity of service at risk and impose hidden costs in the form of reduced wages and benefits, as well as increased opportunity for corruption in the form of waste and fraud. We understand that serving the public interest involves maximizing efficiency and productivity without sacrificing the quality of service delivered to our citizens.

  • We believe the expansion of collective bargaining assures workplace democracy and is the best remedy to the critical problem of wage inequality that results in too many families not sharing in the economic bounty of this country. We strongly support the right of workers to strike and we oppose all state or federal proposals to diminish this right.
USEFUL LINKS ON THE ECONOMY