ORANGE – State Sen. Jo Comerford visited Fisher Hill School Thursday to discuss the legislative and budget processes and provide an overview of her priorities for the next session of the Legislature.
Comerford, D-Northampton, who represents the Hampshire, Franklin, and Worcester district, is running unopposed for a fifth term, but told the Athol Daily News it is still important to meet with constituents from around the district, which comprises 25 cities and towns.
“I still want to meet the voters and hear what’s on their minds,” she said on Sept. 24. “I may not have an opponent, but I’m still campaigning.”
The event was organized by Indivisible North Quabbin, and Comerford told the 20 or so attendees, “I’m doing this all over our district because I want us to be strong, especially because some of the things we’ve been working on for a long time, like education funding, are coming to fruition. We need to know how to work together and raise our voices collectively and win.”
Comerford said it was important to her that she remain on the Senate Ways and Means Committee, which she now serves on as vice chair.
“I want to be where the money decisions are happening so that I can fight for our fair share,” she said. “We need regional equity; and we are gaining steam because of your decades of work. And now is the moment to really keep pressing. When you know what to do, you know when to intervene.”
Comerford pointed out that, unlike the federal government, the state cannot deficit spend. She said 61% of the state budget comes from taxes on Massachusetts residents, 25% comes from federal funds, and the remaining 14% from other sources “like unearned income, capital gains taxes and so forth.”
The federal contribution to the state budget, she explained, is down significantly and comes from cuts in federal grants that support transportation and education, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program [SNAP] benefits, and other “safety net” programs.
“It also has a direct impact on cities and towns,” said Comerford, “and also on businesses and nonprofits. So, we are down $3.7 billion….in federal spending for this year and next year.”
Comerford said she hopes to push a change in the way state funds are distributed throughout the Commonwealth. Among her priorities are changes in the distribution of funds through the state Chapter 90 program for local road maintenance; the calculation of reimbursements to cities and towns through the payment in lieu of taxes program, which reimburses municipalities for the loss of property taxes from state-owned land; and re-working the method of calculating Chapter 70 state education aid in order to make it more equitable for smaller cities and rural communities.
The senator said she wants area residents to join her in advocating for more representation from western Massachusetts on statewide boards and commissions and expanding virtual participation options for residents of her district in order to take part in legislative and public hearings.
She said many of the problems faced by western Massachusetts communities can be chalked up to “inequitable spending formulas, competitive disadvantage, lack of representation and lack of access to services. It’s part of what precipitated economic hard times, a population decline and a lack of opportunity.”
Greater participation and activism on the part of area residents is needed to change the situation, she added.
“When you say Boston doesn’t care about us, it’s not true. We’re just too far away,” she said. “So we have to build power, we have to name what we want, and we have to go get it. We can turn a pot of woes into a pot of opportunities.”