2019 ATM Articles/Schedule

The 2019 Annual Town Meeting (ATM, TM) opens Monday, March 25, 2019 at 7:30 PM in Margery Milne Battin Hall of the Isaac Harris Cary Memorial Building. Unless otherwise noted, all sessions will start at 7:30 PM. 

More about New England's Town Meeting form of government is HERE. 

Links to all docs pertaining to 2019 ATM are HERE (to be continually updated, once TM is underway).

Town Moderator, Deborah Brown has forwarded the suggested schedule of Articles -- note that this is an estimate for planning purposes and subject to change, except where "DATE CERTAIN" is noted. (NB: no promises that an Article will be taken up on a particular date unless it has been designated "DATE CERTAIN"). 

The schedule will be updated after each night of TM and re-distributed on the TMMA email list. 

Any time it is proposed to take Articles out of order, a MOTION and explanation for the change will be offered to Town Meeting for approval.
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Monday, March 25, 2019

• Opening Ceremonies
• DATE CERTAIN: Ceremony Honoring Lexington High School and Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical High School Graduating Seniors 
• Introductory Remarks and Instructions
• Article 2: Election of Deputy Moderator (Barry Orenstein)
• DATE CERTAIN: Article 30—Reduce/Ban Polystyrene Materials (Citizen Article) 
• DATE CERTAIN: Article 31—Reduce/Ban Single-use Plastic Straws and Stirrers (Citizen Article) 
• Article 3: Cary Lecture Series
• Article 32: Capital Expenditures Committee-related Provisions (To petition the Massachusetts General Court to enact specific legislation concerning the Town's CEC -- see p.14 of the Warrant)
• Article 35: Amend Article III of Chapter 118 (Citizen Article)
• Article 36: Outcomes-based Approach to Town Building Projects (Citizen Article)

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

• Article 2: Report of the Town Manager (Items Referred Back to Board of Selectmen)
• Article 2: Report of the Capital Expenditures Committee
• Article 7: Creation of a Lexington Economic Development Strategy (Citizen Article)
• MOTION that this item be Indefinitely Postponed (ID'd)
• Article 8: Funding for Sustainability Actions (Citizen Article)
• MOTION that this item be IP'd
• Article 9: Sustainability Director (Citizen Article) 
• Article 39: Amend Zoning Bylaw – Limited Site Plan Review (Citizen Article, referring to MGL Chapter 40A, §3, "Dover Amendment Uses")
• Articles 33, 34, & 37: Rename “Board of Selectmen” to “Select Board” 
• Article 2: Town Manager’s Budget Report (First tab of The Brown Book, pp.i-xvi)
• Unfinished Business (from any previous nights)

Monday, April 1, 2019

• Article 2: Report of the Appropriation Committee
• DATE CERTAIN: Article 2—Report of the Minuteman School Superintendent 
• Article 2: Report of the Lexington Public Schools Superintendent
• DATE CERTAIN: Article 11—FY20 Operating Budget 
• Article 19: Appropriate for School Capital Projects (Section XI, p.XI-10)
• Article 5: Establish Qualifications for Tax Deferrals
• Article 10: Post Employment Insurance Liability Fund
• Article 12: FY20 Enterprise Funds Budgets (Water, Wastewater, & Recreation and Community Programs)
• Article 13: Departmental Revolving Funds (School Bus Transportation, Building Rental, DPW Burial Containers, Lexington Tree Fund, DPW Compost Operations, Minuteman Household Hazardous Waste Program, Regional Cache/Hartwell Avenue, Senior Services Program, Health Programs, Tourism/Liberty Ride, Visitors Center, Residential Engineering Review)
• Consent Agenda: A tool employed for Articles where no debate is anticipated,offering a streamlined way of dealing with a group of Articles (and their MOTIONS) with one vote. Questions are entertained, but not debate. Any TMM who thinks an item on the Consent Agenda requires debate may ask to have it removed from the Agenda and considered separately, in the usual way. Articles chosen for inclusion in a Consent Agenda all have the unanimous support of the Board of Selectmen, and where relevant, the Appropriation Committee, Capital Expenditures Committee, and/or Planning Board. Final word on inslusion of each Article rests with TMMs.
• Unfinished Business (from any previous nights)

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

• Article 4: Reduce Community Preservation Act Surcharge Rate (Citizen Article, relates to MGL, Chapter 44B, §16)
• Article 15: Recreation Capital Projects (Refer to embedded link for a description of the proposed projects, Section XI: Capital Investment, p.XI-4)
• Article 16: Municipal Capital Projects and Equipment (Refer to embedded link for a description of the proposed projects, Section XI: Capital Investment, p.XI-4)
• Article 17: Water System Improvements (Refer to embedded link for a description of the proposed projects, Section XI: Capital Investment, p.XI-4)
• Article 20: Public Facilities Capital Projects (except 20g, refer to embedded link for a description of the proposed projects, Section XI: Capital Investment, p.XI-4)
• Article 22: Specified Stabilization Funds
• Article 25: Prior Years' Unpaid Bills
• Article 26: Amend FY19 Operating, Enterprise, and CPA Budgets
• Unfinished Business (from any previous nights)

Monday, April 8, 2019

• Article 2: Report of the Community Preservation Committee
• DATE CERTAIN: Article 14—FY20 Community Preservation Committee Projects 
• MOTION that Article 14f be IP'd
• Article 28: Street Acceptance and Title (portion of Pehlam Road)
• Article 29: Civil Service Withdrawal
• Unfinished Business (from any previous nights)

Wednesday, April 10, 2019 

• Article 38: Amend Zoning Bylaw and Map, 186 Bedford Street (Owner Petition)
• Article 6: Cremation Facility at Westview Cemetery 
• Article 20g: Westview Cemetery Facility Construction 
• Unfinished Business (from any previous nights)

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No meetings during the week of Patriots' Day/school vacation (April 15-19). Holding Monday, April 22 and Wednesday, April 24, as needed.

State Legislation I'm Following

Regular readers of this blog know that I'm active on state and local education issues and have been for many, many years. I'm active on other issues that make a difference in our communities, too, like improving our revenue picture, ensuring environmental justice and addressing climate change; pushing for single payer healthcare; and affordable housing.

Especially in such politically polarizing times, I'm excited to have the opportunity to work collaboratively with others, especially those who are passionate to move our progressive values forward! All groups endeavor to be strategic. Certainly, different groups employ various tactics to achieve their goals. Being part of a diverse group of progressives strengthens organizations and sharpens activists' skills.

Likewise, there are many ways to organize around issues and many ways to organize on the issues. I decided some years ago to put my energy behind several groups*. Though, more and more lately, I'm leaving "non-partisan" groups behind for, what seems like, obvious reasons.

This post is probably much longer than it needs to be...

Here, then, are the issues I'm getting behind, which I have organized into some broad categories:

• REVENUE Without adequate revenue, our communities cannot thrive. Decisions made at the state level, beginning about twenty years ago, have reduced revenues by nearly $4 billion. Developing each fiscal year's Budget means we always begin from a deficit. Often repeated, because it's true: A budget is a moral document. We fund what we value. Certainly the State Budget is a statement of our shared values. If it's not funding things we value at an adequate level, why not? And what are we going to do about it? 

• Fair Share Amendment (Lewis S.16 | O'Day H.86)

• EDUCATION Key among the issues here are Foundation Budget Reform (K-12 public education funding), development and supportive legislation for Early Education and Care (0-5), and guaranteeing access to Vocational Education Programs for any students that want it. I'm also interested in following a Media Literacy proposal and two on Higher Ed: CHERISH and Debt-free College, plus a couple of proposals concerning Charter Schools.

• Foundation Budget Reform
• The PROMISE Act, Chang-Díaz, S.238 | Keefe/Vega H.586 Public Hearing before Joint Committee on Education, Friday, March 22, 10:00 AM, Gardner Auditorium

• Early Education and Care
• Affordable Child Care & Early Education for All, Friedman, S.288 | Gordon, H.470

• K-12 Education
• An Act to increase student access to career technical education schools and programs which are aligned with regional labor market needs, Brodeur HD.3279

• An Act relative to Media Literacy in Public Schools, Rogers, H.561

• An Act relative to Student Assessment Data, Jehlen S.296

• An Act strengthening Charter School Data Reporting, Lewis, S.306

• An Act relative to  the Financial Impact of Charter Schools, Jehlen, S.298

• An Act Implementing ESSA, Jehlen, S.299

• Higher Education
• An Act to guarantee Debt-free Public Higher Education, Eldridge, S.744 | Higgins, H.1221

• CHERISH Act, Comerford, S.741 | Garballey/Mark H.1214

• ENERGY |  ENVIRONMENT The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change latest report indicates we have only 12 years to drastically upgrade our energy policies if we wish to avoid the worst effects of climate change. We need advocacy for environmental justice in many of our communities, especially those with a majority of people of color and low incomes. We must work to rapidly reduce carbon pollution, reduce carbon-based energy production, address climate change and global warming, improve the environment, and oppose building new fossil fuel infrastructure. 

• Environmental Justice
• An Act relative to Environmental Justice and Toxics Reduction in the Commonwealth, Eldridge, S.464 | DuBois/Miranda H.761

• An Act relative to Environmental Justice in the Commonwealth, DiDomenico S.453 | Madaro H.826

• Renewable Energy
• An Act transitioning Massachusetts to 100% Renewable Energy (100% renewable electricity by 2035 and 100% economy-wide renewables by 2045), Eldridge, S.1958 | Decker/Garballey, H.2836

• AFFORDABLE HOUSING Working with advocates to support efforts to increase the amount of affordable housing, possibly through identification of dedicated funding to expand and maintain affordable housing, and/or other strategies to incentivize the creation and maintenance of affordable housing. Including housing production reform, rental voucher program reform, fair housing, and eviction sealing. CHAPA's Legislative Agenda is HERE.

• Housing Production Legislation, Boncore, S.775 |  Honan/Vargas, H.1288

• Eviction Sealing/HOMES Act, Boncore, S.824 | Moran, H.3566

• HEALTH CARE + PROTECTING WOMEN'S HEALTH AND REPRODUCTIVE CHOICES, including single payer, campus sexual assault, access to abortion, maternal health.

• Single-Payer Health Care System to establish Medicare for All in Massachusetts, Eldridge, S.683 | Sabadosa/Garlick, H.1194

• Comprehensive Reproductive Rights/ROE Act reforms our state's abortion laws for control of one's body, life, and future, Chandler, S.1209 | Haddad/Livingstone, H.3320

• CIVIL RIGHTS and SAFETY 
• Safe Communities Act, Eldridge, S.1401 | Balser/Miranda, H.3573

• ELECTION REFORM, especially for restoring voting rights to convicted felons: time for Early Voting, Same Day and Election Day Voter Registration, and Ranked Choice Voting; undo Citizens United.

• VotingRights
• Constitutional amendment relative to voting rights, Hinds S.12 

• Emergency Preamble to restore voting rights to prisoners incarcerated with felony convictions, Hinds S.405

• Ranked Choice Voting
• An Act to use of Ranked Choice Voting, Lewis, S.414

• Early Voting
• An Act to extend early voting for all elections, Chandler S.390 | Vargas H.681

• Resolutions to undo Citizens United, Eldridge, S.2163 | Gentile, H.3208

• An Act supporting parents running for public office, Jehlen, S.408 

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Image credit: State House as seen from walking up Beacon Hill from the Park Street T stop ~ mas

* Other professional and civic affiliations I've joined include: ACLU, LWV, Lexington Democratic Town Committee (LDTC), Lexington Town Meeting Members' Association (TMMA), Media Literacy Now, National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), National Parent Teacher Association (PTA), Planned Parenthood, Progressive Democrats of Massachusetts, Progressive Massachusetts

Citizen Articles Coming Up at Town Meeting

The 2019 Town of Lexington Warrant includes thirty-nine Articles for Town Meeting (TM) beginning March 25*.

TM Articles are described and organized as Financial, General, or Zoning Articles.

Ten of the Articles (25%) have been inserted by Citizens of the Town (inserted by an individual and 9 or more registered voters.) While that, in and of itself, isn't a crazy notable number (last year's ATM had 9 Citizen Articles), it's the nature of each Article and where they fall that strikes me, particularly.

• 5 Citizen Articles fall under the heading of Financial Articles (Arts. 4,6,7,8,9), beginning middle of page 5 of the Warrant
• 4 are General Articles (Arts. 30,31,35,36), at about the middle of page 13 of the Warrant
• 1 is a Zoning Article (39), near bottom of page 15 of the Warrant

Four of the Citizen Articles focus on environmental sustainability:

• Two are Financial Articles: 
• Article 8: Funding for Sustainability Action, has been inserted by Ricki Pappo, a TMM in Precinct 2 and Co-Chair of Lexington Global Warming Action Coalition. The Article seeks to establish a revolving fund or some other mechanism, from the earnings of projects promoted through the Sustainable Action Plan for the Town to invest in future actions proposed under the Sustainable Action Plan. This Article has been scheduled for an Info Session on Tuesday, March 19 and is an opportunity to hear from the maker of the Article and ask questions.

• Article 9: Sustainability Director, also inserted by Ricki Pappo and 9 or more registered voters, proposes that funds requested under this Article go to the salary and benefits for a Sustainability Director, whose duties will include recommending, developing, monitoring, and securing grants for programs designed to enhance Lexington's long term sustainability and resilience. TMMA Info Session scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

• The other two Citizen/Sustainability Articles are found under General Articles:
• Article 30: Amend Town Bylaws—Reduce/Ban Polystyrene Materials for all food serviceware and packaging in Lexington. This Article has been inserted by Lin Jensen, a Precinct 8 TMM and Lexington Green Teams volunteer -- it's included among the other Articles up for discussion at the Info Session scheduled for Wednesday, March 13.

• Article 31: Amend Town Bylaws—Reduce/Ban Single-Use Plastic Beverage Straws and Stirrers, also offered by Lin and among the Articles included in the TMMA Info Session scheduled for Wednesday, March 13.

• Note: Many local organizations are already going the way of eliminating one-time use plastic straws and stirrers, as well as polystyrene. Student/parent groups worked with the Lexington Public Schools to remove polystyrene and straws from the public school cafeterias. All of the Town's school/parent groups are going plastic-free for their events and community events, too. More of that history is HERE.

The remaining three (Citizen) Financial Articles are: 

• Article 4: Reduce Community Preservation Act (CPA) Surcharge Rate from 3% to 1% Pursuant to M.G.L. c.44B, § 16. This Article has been inserted by TMM Bridger McGaw of Precinct 6. No funds are requested with it, which seeks to reduce the current CPA surtax rate, thus providing an immediate tax break to all Lexington residents. Additionally, special considerations must be given to covering debt for previous CPA-funded projects, maintenance of historic properties, and future conservation land purchases. More about that to come at the TMMA Info Session scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

• Article 6: Appropriate for Cremation Facility at Westview Cemetery. Will see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate a sum of money for design engineering and architectural services including site work, value engineering, and cost estimating for plans and specifications to construct new Cremation Facility at the Westview Cemetery and for the payment of all other costs incidental or related thereto; determine whether the  money will be provided by the tax levy, by transfer from other available funds, by borrowing, or by any combination of these methods; or act in any other manner in relation thereto. Funds requested are unknown at this time. This article was IP'd last year pending further study. TMMA Info Session scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

• Article 7: Appropriate Funds for the Creation of a Lexington Economic Development Strategy is a proposal to see if the Town will vote to appropriate $100,000 to fund the cost of developing an Economic Development Strategy to be led by the Economic Development Office. The report will be submitted to the Town Manager and Selectmen and published on the town Website within six months of passage of this article. The funds will go toward the development of a holistic Economic Development Strategy to provide recommendations for changes to zoning, permitting, design guidelines, marketing, outreach, and development mitigation. TMMA Info Session scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

Four of the Citizen Articles fall under the heading of "General Articles":

• Previously mentioned, Article 30: Amend Town Bylaws—Reduce/Ban Polystyrene Materials.

• Previously mentioned,Article 31: Amend Town Bylaws—Reduce/Ban Single-Use Plastic Beverage Straws and Stirrers

• Article 35: Amend Article III of Chapter 118 refers to the Code of the Town of Lexington, which is an effort to improve debate and subsidiary motion procedures. It proposes revisions to Town Meeting's rules of debate, subsidiary motion, and/or amendment procedures to develop criteria for ensuring a minimum of debate has occurred before subsidiary motions can be offered or debate closed. TMMA Info Session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

• Article 36: Implement an Outcomes-Based Approach to Town Building Projects is an article seeking Town Meeting approval to adopt an outcomes-based building management process that emphasizes:
• Setting clear targets or outcomes for the performance of current and planned buildings in the areas of health, energy performance, energy management, and resilience;
• Assessing gaps against those outcomes; and
• Utilizing those outcomes for the beginning stages of future building development and in prioritizing operating/capital budget projects. 
• TMMA Info Session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19

Finally, the Citizen Article found within Zoning Articles:

• Article 39: Amend Zoning Bylaw-Limited Site Plan Review (Inserted by Jeanne Krieger, Precinct 3 TMM and member of the Zoning Board of Appeals, ZBA). This is a proposal to see if the Town will vote to amend the Zoning Bylaw to reasonably regulate land uses protected by MGL c. 40A §3 through site plan review, or act in any other manner in relation thereto. The changes proposed would provide for site plan review, to the extent possible, of exempt uses protected under the MGL c. 40A §3, pertaining to "Dover Amendment uses". TMMA Info Session scheduled for Tuesday, March 19.

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Image credit: Creative Commons, Isaac Harris Cary Memorial Building, 1605 Massachusetts Avenue, Lexington MA

* The 2019 Annual Town Meeting opens Monday, March 25 and continues the following Wednesday and every Monday and Wednesday thereafter until all of the Articles in the Warrant have been considered by the Meeting. There are no Meetings on April 15 or 17, as it is LPS vacation week.

Prepping for Town Meeting

Town Meeting Members Association (TMMA) will host two Information Sessions and a Bus Tour before TM begins*.

Info Sessions are scheduled for Wednesday, March 13 and Tuesday, March 19.

Both sessions will be held in Margery Milne Battin Hall of the Isaac Harris Cary Memorial Building ^ (1605 Massachusetts Avenue). Thus, they're public meetings. Warrant Articles below will be presented and staff available to take TMM questions. 

The Wednesday Session (3/13) is expected to begin at 7:45 PM, following Precinct Meetings at 6:45 PM and TMMA Annual Meeting at 7:15 PM. Articles to be covered include:

• Financial Articles:
• Article 6 (Crematorium, Citizen Article)
• Article 14 (CPA projects)
• Article 16e (Center Streetscape)
• Article 16f (Automatic Meters)
• Article 20g (Cemetery)

• General Articles:
• Article 30 (Styrene Ban, Citizen Article) 
• Article 31 (Straws Ban, Citizen Article)

Tuesday's (3/19) Info Session begins at 7:30 PM:

• Financial Articles: 
• Article 4 (CPA Rate, Citizen Article)
• Article 7 (EconDev Strategy, Citizen Article)
• Article 8 (Sustainability Revolving Fund, Citizen Article)
• Article 9 (Appropriate for Sustainability Director, Citizen Article)
• Article 11 (Operating Budget—with James Malloy, Town Manager and Dr. Julie Hackett, Superintendent of Lexington Public Schools)

• General Articles:
• Article 35 (Amend Town Code, Citizen Article)
• Article 36 (High-Performance Buildings, Citizen Article)

• Zoning Articles:
• Article 38 (186 Bedford Street, Owner Petition)
• Article 39 (Limited Site Plan, Citizen Article)

In addition to the Info Sessions, a Bus Tour has been scheduled for Sunday, March 17 at 1:00 PM. This is an opportunity for TMMs to visit several sites of note.

• Scheduled stops include:
• 186 Bedford Street (Article 38: Amend Zoning Bylaw and Zoning Map, top of page 16 of the Warrant)

• 201 Bedford Street, DPW equipment replacement (Article 16(i): Appropriate for Municipal Capital Projects and Equipment, page 9 of the Warrant; page XI-16 of FY2020 Town Managers Preliminary Recommended Budget and Financing Plan) 

• 758 Marrett Road (a drive through), Athletic Field Complex of Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School (Article 14(f) Appropriate the FY20 Community Preservation Committee Operating Budget and CPA Projects, top of page 9 of the Warrant)

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* Town Meeting begins Monday, March 25 and continues every Wednesday and Monday thereafter, excluding Monday, April 15 and Wednesday, April 17, due to public school vacation week.

^ Cary Hall is wired for broadcast on LexMedia. 

You'll find an Acronyms page HERE.

Getting to Know: Congressional Committees

Committees play an integral role in the function of Congress overall and in the legislative process, certainly. Committee work is where bills are shaped and where members of Congress make decisions about a bill's future in that process. Especially now that Democrats are in the majority in the House for the 116th Congress, we're seeing how that function is changing from the previous one.

The introduction of bills, speeches, and votes are important and a fundamental understanding of committees is crucial for any successful advocate. For monitoring work in education at the federal level, I try to stay abreast of the work of the following committees:

• House Committee on Education & Labor (@HELPCmteDems on twitter)

• House Committee on the Budget (@HouseBudgetDems)

• House Committee on Appropriations (@AppropsDems)

• Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (no Committee twitter account that I know of)

• Senate Committee on the Budget (@BudgetGOP: Official Twitter account for the (majority) Republican members of the Senate Budget Committee)

• Senate Committee on Appropriations (no Committee twitter account, so far as I know)

If you're on twitter, you may be interested in subscribing to my ED & DC list, as individuals and groups included on it follow the work of the above Committees closely, as well as to provide context for the greater, holistic picture; their work can aid to improve our understanding and advocacy efforts. Are there additional Committees you think I should consider adding to the above? What groups and individuals could be added to the ED & DC list?
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Image credit: View from Senate Park of U.S. Capitol Dome (amid restoration), April 2016

Family Values

A granddaughter of a Pennsylvania factory worker and coal miner, and of immigrants from Armenia, Ireland, and Italy, I was raised in working and middle-class neighborhoods by parents who came from large, extended families. My parents were musicians and teachers and from them I learned persistence, the value of hard work, the importance of service, and standing up for what I believe in.

When we moved to Lexington, as a young family twenty-five years ago, it was through the Town's affordable housing program. My husband was born and raised here and still had deep roots in the community. We purchased our forever home five years later.

The loss of our family's health insurance (following the tech bubble bust in the early 2000s), proved to make me a stronger advocate. As a working mom with three young children I was beside myself with worry, yet I successfully negotiated coverage for our family from my employer, even though I wasn’t working full-time and my employer was reluctant to do so. I’ve learned to navigate a complex system of special education services and I know the heartbreaking loss of a loved one to opioid addiction.

It’s my story that motivates me to speak up for progressive change—before governmental bodies, elected officials, and other organizations that make decisions affecting children, families, and our communities. From revenue options to workers’ rights, paid family and medical leave to improved funding for public education and public transportation, I champion quality public services and policies people need to overcome the challenges they face everyday.

My most powerful experiences have come from working on local and state level issues. I was twice-elected to serve on Lexington's School Committee, including as Chair, during the worst recession of our lifetime. Those experiences taught me the value of earnest questions and a soft heart. I've served on the Leadership Team of the Progressive Democrats of Massachusetts and as Governor Patrick's Parent Representative appointee to the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Both have taught me what it takes to both advocate for progressive change and to navigate the body to forward that agenda on the state level.

We're in the first year of a new, two-year legislative session. State legislators worked quickly to file their bills. Activists urge them to sign-on to the bills that move us forward. We will continue to work to move the issues, speaking out at public hearings and lobby days, with the understanding that we are driven by the the values that shaped us, as well as those we choose to live by.

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Photo credit: Personal family photo of great-grandfather Nubar, great-grandmother Rose Iskandarian, and grandfather Charles as a toddler, circa 1904.

Fund Our Future

Educator friends asked me to moderate two forums organized in Cambridge and Lexington in the past week for the Fund Our Future campaign. Fund Our Future is a new campaign to see public education in Massachusetts, from PreK-12 and higher education, funded at appropriate levels. Attendees are asked:

• What if all public schools and districts had all of the Chapter 70 dollars they deserved? 
• How do we access those dollars? 

The growing coalition seeks equity and fairness for every student and to end the systemic underfunding in Massachusetts gateway cities, urban districts, and communities of color.

Forums are being held in communities across the Commonwealth. Each is an opportunity to understand the state of funding public education in Massachusetts and to learn about options for revenue, plus two legislative proposals that attempt to fix the problem: PROMISE and CHERISH Acts.

The coalition is asking Governor Baker and the Legislature to invest, at minimum, $1.5 billion per year for public education, and to phase it in over five years: $1 billion for K-12 (in accordance with the recommendations of the Foundation Budget Review Commission, FBRC, 2015) and $500 million for higher education (in accordance with the recommendations of the Higher Education Finance Commission, HEFC, 2014).

CAMBRIDGE FORUM

Colin Jones, Senior Policy Analyst at MassBudget and Policy Center (MassBudget), focuses on early and K-12 education policy and finance. He presented *the funding problem* at both of the forums I moderated, beginning with the background and history of Chapter 70—how we got where we are today, what the funding gap looks like between some gateway cities compared to wealthier suburbs—and concluding with some of MassBudget's research on options for progressive revenue. Colin  briefly addressed the Governor's budget proposal on this matter (which phases in fewer dollars over seven years. Some other relevant links are at the end of this post).

André Greene, member of the Somerville School Committee, shared the impact of underfunding from the school and district level. He stressed the need for equitable funding for all students. With better funding there could be more and better materials in classrooms, as well as smaller classrooms. André also noted the importance of adequate capital investments, including for vocational education, and the need for increased MSBA funding to speed up school replacements and renovations in communities.

Senator Pat Jehlen of Somerville, formerly a member of the Foundation Budget Review Commission (FBRC), noted that language in PROMISE is identical to FBRC's recommendations. She had us visualize the *three-legged stool* of education reform and how badly out of kilter things are in the 25+ years after enacting those reforms, absent critical Foundation Budget updates (which she has written about HERE). Senator Jehlen stressed urgency in providing the means for every city and town to  offer an adequate education to every child, and that we are not fulfilling our obligation to educate all students as mandated by the Massachusetts Constitution (Chapter V, Section II).

LEXINGTON FORUM
Superintendent of Lexington Public Schools, Dr. Julie Hackett, formerly of Taunton Public Schools, talked about the inequities that follow in classrooms, schools, and districts as a result of underfunding. Taunton is a gateway city with a higher number of students who are economically disadvantaged and/or are not native English speakers. Student needs are higher as a result and funding education via property taxes has real limits for the city's meeting their Net School Spending level (NSS), as opposed to Lexington which can (and does) contribute well above their NSS level. This comment of hers has stuck with me:

In Taunton, we spent most of our time figuring out how to fund our learning; in Lexington we spend our time learning.

Max Page, MTA Vice President, has been a professor of Architecture since 2001 at UMass/Amherst.  He shared the importance of improved PreK-12 funding, in addition to the legislative proposals, the PROMISE and CHERISH Acts. He explained that our PreK-12 schools lack funding necessary for students to be adequately prepared for their future and the PROMISE Act will help to change that. In higher education, he said the financial burden has shifted from the state to students; infusing the state budget with $574 million gets us to the 2001 level for higher education and that we need our legislators to fund our future with the CHERISH Act.

ABOUT PROMISE AND CHERISH ACTS
PROMISE
An Act Providing Rightful Opportunites and Meaningful Investment for Successful and Equitable Education, the PROMISE Act currently S.D.101 (and H.D.434), is a proposal offered by Senator Sonia Chang-Díaz, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Education. She is also former Senate Chair of the Foundation Budget Review Commission (FBRC, 2014-2015).

By way of brief review, FBRC's final report recommended changes to the *four pillars* of our outdated financing system (10/30/2015, Senate), specifically, in the areas of:

• Health Insurance
• Special Education
• English Language Learners
• Low Income Students

The report concluded:

"...the good work begun by the education reform act of 1993, and the educational progress made since, will be at risk so long as our school systems are fiscally strained by the ongoing failure to substantively reconsider the adequacy of the foundation budget..."

PROMISE acronym excellence notwithstanding, I note (again) the Senate has acted on FBRC each year since the report was delivered to the Legislature in October 2015. The House has not acted. (Conference Committee came close before *time ran out* last legislative session...but hey, let's be honest and recognize THAT decision was a choice by House leadership—and a poor one, too).

It's more accurate to say that time has run out for a generation's worth of students. How many children have had to *bide their time* while the Legislature has failed to adequately address Massachusetts' public education funding system? It's well past time for the Legislature to act.

CHERISH
Senator Jo Comerford has introduced An Act Committing to Higher Education Resources to Insure a Strong and Healthy Higher Education System, currently S.D.740. CHERISH builds on the previous work of the Higher Education Finance Commission (HEFC, 2013-2014), predating FBRC. HEFC report concluded:

"...the Commonwealth must reform antiquated financing systems that promote inequity and inefficiency..."

CONCLUSION
I've said before and it bears repeating: We all have a stake in the solid education of all our people, least of which are countless situations where our personal interests, safety, and well-being depend on others' competence, empathy, and compassion.

MassBudget reminds us: Anyone who has set foot in a public school, driven on a road or across a bridge, or gone to a public park has been touched by the state budget. What we fund in our state budget reflects our values. Government isn't some big blob *out there*, government is us! No essential services would be possible without the revenue to pay for it—and it's important that we consider whether the state is raising revenue adequately and fairly. If the state budget isn't funding the things we want at the levels necessary to close gaps and prepare students, why not?

Two things to understand about our revenue system: 1). It's inadequate and 2). It's unfair. Decisions made beginning twenty years ago have left us with a budget gap of about $4 billion. Every. Year.

The education funding system established in 1993 has never been updated. It's inadequate. It's structurally broken. In 2015, FBRC made the necessary recommendations which have only been acted upon by the Senate. Four years later, we may be seeing movement toward taking action in the Legislature and in the Executive Office.

Please ask yourself and others:

• What if all schools and districts had all of the Chapter 70 dollars they deserve?
• How do we pay for it?
• What are one or two insights you have?
• What's one action you're prepared to take?
• By when?
• Who will you share it with?

The biggest insight I had after reflecting on the information presented in Cambridge and Lexington is that more education on how to fund public education appropriately is necessary! This post represents then, one of my actions to spread the word to more people. Please share it.

It was pointed out at the Lexington forum: If your elected Rep/s have co-sponsored either PROMISE or CHERISH, thank them. Especially in the House, ask them to go further and advocate for the bills to House leadership, as well. It's not enough to co-sponsor these proposals. They will not move ahead without your Rep's advocacy!

Another thing you can do is to urge local elected School Committee, Select Boards/City Councils, and public college campuses in your region to pass a resolution in support. More details on that HERE.

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Image credit: Word cloud generated, Part D, "Conclusion and Next Steps", Foundation Budget Review Commission, 2015

View past issues of Senator Pat Jehlen's excellent newsletter and sign up for it HERE.

Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents: Project Equity

Fair Share Amendment: S.D.1709 and H.D.3300 proposes a legislative amendment to the Massachusetts Constitution to provide resources for education and transportation through an additional 4% surtax on incomes in excess of one million dollars.

MassBudget Resources:

• Revenue Options
• Public Education Funding Reforms
• Five Things to Look for in the FY20 Budget
• Governor's FY20 Budget Analysis
• Funding Reforms to Help All Our Children Thrive (modeling used in Colin's presentations. Model 4 used in PROMISE)

Cross-posted on PDM