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In the News... Statement from our Chair: In preparation for the upcoming elections this year, the Yarmouth Democratic Town Committee is endeavoring to increase its associate membership. Many of you have supported the Committee’s activities and efforts in the past by holding signs, handing out literature, attending functions, or making contributions. According to Massachusetts State law, a Town Committee can only have 35 full members, but an unlimited amount of Associate Members. Full members are elected from the Associate Member ranks when a vacancy occurs. Associate members can participate in all functions from attending meetings to planning activities. Our functions have included public forums, candidate debates, fundraisers, and social gatherings. Please take a moment and contact us. We will be happy to send you an application for Associate Membership in our committee, or pass your request to the Town Chair in your community. If we are going to elect Democratic Candidates and promote Democratic policies, we need your help to generate momentum for election 2006. A DEMOCRATIC VICTORY starts at the local level. Come Join Us! Respectfully, Robert Isadore, Chairman, Yarmouth Democratic Town Committee Cleon Turner announces
his campaing for Re-elction for first Barnstable District State Representative Cleon H. Turner announced his campaign for re-election Monday, March 20 th ,2006 at the historic Liberty Hill Inn on Rt. 6A in Yarmouth Port before an overflow crowd of enthusiastic supporters. Cleon H. Turner, the first Democrat to represent Brewster, Dennis and Yarmouth precincts 1,2,4 and 7, addressed the crowd about the challenges and his successes as a freshman legislator. Elaborating upon his creation of the Caucus on Regional Schools, Representative Turner explained his thinking “outside the box” approach, which resulted in a standing room only crowd at the State House for the first meeting of the caucus. Representative Turner stated "In my first term, I have already returned more than 1.3 million dollars to the district. I filed legislation for Brewster regarding housing and got it passed. The Brewster town administrator was surprised that I got that bill passed in my first term because my predecessor had filed the same bill several times without success” Representative Turner filed and got passed legislation for Dennis to create a beach improvement fund. He pushed legislation for Barnstable County's septic loan program – which passed in the house – and was instrumental in passing house legislation for Brewster regarding private roads. Representative Turner is a former police officer and Dennis Selectman (for nine years – five of which he was chair). He is a practicing attorney. He has two children and two step children and lives in East Dennis with his wife Meg Hill. Representative Turner serves on the Joint committee on Housing, The Joint Committee on Public Health, and the Joint Committee on Election Laws. He can be reached at 617-722-2090 and 508-385-7385. “My promise during this campaign is to never mislead you to gain your vote. My promise when re-elected, is that I will continue to work aggressively for you.” Re-Elect Cleon H. Turner…He's working for you. For information contact Bob Isadore, Campaign Chair, 508-362-1696 or e-mail velore20@msn.com Municipal/County: Education: Personal: Romney Targets Cape in
Budget Vetoes In late June, Governor Romney signed the Fiscal Year 2005 Budget into law. Though he returned fewer vetoes than in years past, the Governor has chosen to veto certain funding that will deeply impact Cape and Islands residents in a negative way. I am in the process of circulating a letter to all members of the Cape and Islands delegation to garner support for overrides of several of Governor Romney's recent budget vetoes. The Governor chose to veto a $20 million salary reserve for human service workers which would fund a much-needed and highly-deserved pay raise for the first time in three years. Currently, these workers average $8-$9 per hour, and often have to work several jobs to compensate. These human service workers do some of the most important work in our communities, yet they are among the lowest paid. We are talking about a modest 2% salary increase here. I don't think that's an unreasonable request, but the Governor cut it. In a jab at Cape schools, the Governor also vetoed $6,870,000 in education funding. The Legislature had established this funding to provide one-time assistance for communities that have experienced rapid increases in enrollment, receive less than 20% of their foundation budgets through Chapter 70 aid, and have median incomes below the state average while property values are above the state average. Most Cape communities fit this description, and this relief funding would help alleviate shortfalls at many Cape and Island schools. The Legislature's support of this funding signaled an important acknowledgment that our current Chapter 70 formula needs fixing - a goal the Cape delegation has been pursuing for years now. With his veto, the Governor demonstrates that he continues to turn a deaf ear to the education needs of the Cape and Islands. It also raises questions about his credibility. He came to Barnstable High School in late April and claimed he would get more money for Cape schools, then turned around and used his veto power to cut our funding instead. Other Cape-specific vetoes include cutting $100,000
for the coastal water study program administered by the Coalition
for Buzzards Bay. This money funds the largest bay monitoring effort
in the Commonwealth, and is the primary source of long-term data
assessing the health of each of the bay's 30 major harbors and coves,
spanning ten municipalities. This funding would also allow the state
to leverage $45,000 in federal funds to help cities and towns on
Buzzards Bay with clean-up costs and to restore bay fisheries. By
vetoing this funding, the Governor is directly slowing the progress
towards the protection and restoration of Buzzards Bay in the wake
of the Bouchard oil spill. In the wake of last year's Bouchard oil
spill, the importance of a clean and healthy Buzzards Bay to the
people and economy of southeastern Massachusetts has never been
clearer.
Governor Romney also vetoed over $6.8 million from the Regional Office of Travel and Tourism, including earmarks for the Cape Cod Cultural Center, the Cape Cod Technology Council, and the Cape Cod Maritime Museum. With our regional economy's dependence on tourism, this type of cut has an outsized effect on the Cape. When it came to seniors, the Governor made a few choice skinflint vetoes. He eliminated a $5 million fund established to offset the co-payment costs of low-income elders and persons with disabilities who are enrolled in the Prescription Advantage program. This fund is intended to provide relief to the neediest individuals, those who cut their pills in half because they cannot afford the increasing costs of prescriptions. He also reversed the Legislature's repeal of language that would allow the state to make claims against the assets of the spouses of nursing home residents in order to recoup state funding of the cost of Medicaid. The Legislature recognized the harmful impact of this "Expanded Estate Recovery" language, but the Governor chose to keep the language, thus keeping the Cape's vulnerable seniors in jeopardy. Finally, Governor Romney vetoed MassHealth coverage for 3,000 of the neediest elder and disabled immigrants who do not qualify for federal Medicaid coverage. If this veto stands, these individuals will lose coverage on October 1, 2004. This will increase the burden on our free care pool and result in more costly uninsured emergency room visits. It strikes me that these last three vetoes are
particularly painful and petty, and target very vulnerable groups.
I do not understand the Governor's reasoning behind these veto decisions.
In a $24 billion budget, he has chosen to pursue an agenda of small
cuts that will translate into a lot of hardship and pain for the
people they affect, and not result in a lot of savings for the state.
I am confident that the delegation will join me in pushing for these
overrides of these harmful vetoes in the final weeks of this legislative
session.
The Budget Outlook Debate over the Fiscal Year 2005 budget concluded in the Senate a few weeks ago. Now members of the House and Senate will meet during the month of June to reconcile the difference between the budgets passed in both chambers. A final version of the budget should be on Governor Romney's desk by the end of June, well before the end of the fiscal year. Since I joined the Senate three years ago, the budget process has generally been a painful one, resulting in serious cuts to practical, useful programs and agencies that did considerable good for Commonwealth residents. The economy seems to be picking up again, however. There were fewer major cuts in the FY05 budget, but it will be some time before we can restore program funding to its prior levels, or increase it for such important causes as raising salaries for public defenders, child care vouchers, support for young parents, library technology, school transportation, Department of Environmental Protection enforcement, and AIDS education, prevention, testing, and counseling. We depleted many reserve accounts over the last few years to keep the cuts from going deeper than they already had. There will probably be a push to restore these reserves before we'll see huge turnarounds in funding for these programs. Though we have not been able to restore or increase funding for most programs that were cut over the last three years, we were able to sustain more level funding of programs. As the economy continues to recover, increases in tax revenues should allow us to restore funding for those many worthy programs, especially in the area of local aid to cities and towns. Arguably, cities and towns suffered the most from funding cuts over the last three years. These cuts have translated into real reductions in services at the local level, as well as increased fees to compensate for reduce state aid. During Senate budget debate, I introduced several amendments that were eventually adopted. The first amendment earmarks $200,000 for the Mid-Upper Cape Community Health Center. The Mid-Upper Cape Community Health Center has been open for less than a year and already needs to increase its medical services space. It is the only source of medical care for uninsured low-income residents in much of Barnstable County. It also serves as the only source of dental care on Cape Cod for uninsured adults. Another Cape amendment adopted by the Senate it would fund a $35,000 feasibility study for student housing at Cape Cod Community College. This study will allow the College to determine what public-private options are most suitable for on-campus housing to serve its students. The Cape has less affordable housing stock than any other part of the state. Due to the high property values and high cost of living on Cape Cod many Cape Cod Community College students have a difficult time affording housing while attending school. Students also compete for the same affordable housing stock with the broader community, which often results in students having to move several times per year. This housing study aims to provide a real solution to this problem. The amendment I have the highest hopes for would convert the Cape Cod Land Bank into the Community Preservation Act. If the amendment is included in the final version of the budget, Cape Cod Land Bank communities will have an opportunity to vote to adopt the new measure through a town ballot question. The existing 3% excise levied on property for the purposes of the Cape Cod Land Bank will be transferred to the Community Preservation Fund. In communities that adopt this provision, residents would not pay any additional excise, and would receive a state funding match which doubles the revenue derived from the 3% excise. It is estimated this could result in $12 million additional annual state matching funds for Cape Cod towns. This could result in long-term funding for municipal coffers each year that can be devoted to further protection of open space, investment in affordable housing, historic preservation and recreation. It's a wonderful opportunity for any town that adopts it. I firmly believe that the government has a mandate
to help those in need. While the fiscal crisis is far from over,
I am encouraged by what I have seen so far this year. I am confident
that, with revenues finally beginning to rise, the Legislature will
be able to restore funding to many programs that have been decimated
during the recent economic downturn. _______________________________________________________________________________________ Health and Human Service Priorities While most public attention on Beacon Hill has been focused on the same-sex marriage issue, preparation for the upcoming budget debate is well underway. The Governor has already released his budget recommendations, and the House will release its budget proposal in early April, followed by the Senate in May. In both chambers of the Legislature the proposed budget is created by their respective Ways and Means Committees. Each legislator receives a multitude of requests for funding from organizations, such as human service providers and educational institutions, that receive funding from the state. Each legislator then has a meeting with the Ways and Means Committee in order to outline what their funding priorities are. As I do every year, I advocated for funding for many ongoing Cape programs that focus on health care and human service needs.
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