Statement of Karyn Polito on Supplemental Spending by the House

"Today I tried to amend the supplemental budget to remove $11 million in pay raises for public employees, but the leadership refused to accept the amendment and under the rules of the informal session I was not allowed even to request a roll call. There is something seriously wrong when $400 million in spending can be approved by the Legislature without a single word of debate or a recorded vote.

Over the period of time this bill has been making its way through the building, I have tried to call the public's attention to the manner in which business is conducted at the State House. Debate is discouraged, all the decisions are made behind closed doors without public participation, and when legitimate questions are raised, threats are issued to close prisons or shut down homeless shelters. Through my actions, I hope I have been able to shine a light on this dysfunctional and irresponsible process.

Now that the bill is moving to Governor Patrick's desk, I call on him to veto the public employee raises in the bill. Of all the new spending in the bill, the most egregious are the salary increases. Pay raises should not be considered now, when so many of our fellow citizens are either out of work or struggling to make ends meet. The veto is the only mechanism still left to instill responsibility in the process and protect taxpayers from inappropriately-timed spending."

Statement of Karyn Polito on EBT Cash Benefits

Karyn Polito, Republican candidate for state treasurer, released the following statement today concerning published reports in the Boston Herald today regarding the use of Electronic Benefits Transfer cards by recipients of Department of Transitional Assistance programs:

“People are fed up with waste and overspending in government. If I'm elected state treasurer, I'll make sure that EBT cash benefits are used for legitimate purposes, not for lottery, alcohol and other non-essential items. The Patrick administration should ensure that these funds are being spent appropriately on behalf of the state's taxpayers."

Statement of Karyn Polito on Supplemental Spending Bill

"Massachusetts faces a fiscal crisis. Governor Deval Patrick is asking us to add to the state budget by approving almost a half billion dollars in new spending -- without debate, without the possibility of anyone offering amendments, and without recording anyone’s vote on the matter. This is no time for business as usual. I registered my objection to the spending bill in the Ways and Means Committee. I am not a rubber stamp for Deval Patrick or anyone else. Because of the extraordinary financial situation we find ourselves in today, and because we are facing a multi-billion dollar deficit in the next fiscal year, I am asking that the Legislature return to formal session for the purpose of debating this spending bill. Alternatively, we can either wait three months for the resumption of formal sessions or consider a pared-down bill containing only the spending that is considered essential. To do anything else would be irresponsible."

Statement of Karyn Polito on Federal Financial Relief

"It is good news that the Commonwealth is on the verge of receiving a $655 million windfall from the federal government as part of a financial aid package for the states. Since the Legislature and Governor have already put in place a balanced budget for the current fiscal year, I believe the fiscally responsible course for us to take is to deposit the payment into the state’s Rainy Day Fund. The last thing we should do is to restore spending cuts that have already been made, especially at a time when we are still faced with a weak economy and enormous budget-balancing challenges next year. Adding $655 million of spending to our budget this year will only add that much more difficulty to dealing with the $2 billion shortfall expected next year.

I also believe it would be wrong to make spending decisions of this magnitude without a full debate involving all the members of the House and Senate. Therefore, I request that the Speaker and the Senate President call the Legislature back into formal session so we can discuss this important matter. We should not add spending in an informal session with no debate."

Statement of Karyn Polito Regarding the Final Expanded Gaming Bill

"It is unfortunate for Massachusetts residents that the Legislature could not find a way to look past special interests to come up with an expanded gaming bill that puts Massachusetts first.

The bill before us is a giveaway to racetracks and a disappointment to taxpayers.

Since the beginning of this debate, I have consistently said that the only right way to bring expanded gaming to Massachusetts is through an open and competitive bidding process that maximizes return for taxpayers. Sadly, this bill fails to deliver. What the authors of the bill call 'competition for slot machines' is actually a rigged system that closes the door to everyone but the tracks. Although I support the enhanced revenue, job creation and local aid possibilities expanded gaming represents, I can't approve of something that hands one of the most lucrative licenses our state has ever awarded to a favored special interest.

I encourage Governor Patrick to return the bill to the Legislature with an amendment establishing a real competitive bidding process for slot machine licenses, one that is open to everyone and that will generate the best deal for the Commonwealth."

Statement of Karyn Polito on Senator Kerry Tax Payments

"In the interest of fairness to all taxpayers, and in order to collect the revenue it may be owed, the state Department of Revenue should undertake an immediate investigation of whether Senator Kerry sought to avoid the payment of Massachusetts sales and excise taxes in the purchase of his boat, 'Isabel.' No person is above the law. For people to have confidence that the law is being applied equally, they need to be reassured that Senator Kerry is not receiving favorable treatment."

Statement of Karyn Polito on Recent Massachusetts Bond Ratings

“The recent bond rating by Moody's shows that what's good for Wall Street isn't necessarily good for Massachusetts taxpayers living on Main Street. While Beacon Hill politicians want to pat themselves on the back, the fact is they achieved that rating by taxing Massachusetts residents and raiding the Rainy Day Fund. That isn't something to celebrate. Ratings don't tell the whole story. What's more important to taxpayers is that we cut back on the excessive spending and borrowing that costs them too much money.”

Statement of Karyn Polito on Municipal Legislation Considered by House

"The 'municipal relief' bill passed by the House today is a sham. It does not contain the real money-saving measures that Massachusetts cities and towns need.

Most notably, the bill does not give city and town managers the ability to implement health care savings outside of collective bargaining. That change would save substantial taxpayer dollars. Without it, the bill is essentially meaningless."

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO CALLING ON THE LEGISLATURE TO SUSPEND SUMMER RECESS AND RETURN TO WORK ON BUDGET

"The state budget Governor Patrick signed into law yesterday is a ticking time bomb for the taxpayers of Massachusetts. It relies on too much borrowing and one-time gimmicks. It is almost completely lacking in any serious structural reform. These are critical times. For that reason, I am calling on House Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Murray to suspend legislative rules and hold formal sessions of the General Court throughout this summer dedicated solely to the budget. We need to evaluate every spending program in the budget. If a program is not working, it should be eliminated. If it is not a core service, it should be re-evaluated. The last thing we should do is to ignore the obvious problems in our budget and pretend that we've solved them."

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO ON THE STATE BUDGET

"The budget is held together with baling wire and bubble gum. Instead of dealing honestly with our fiscal problems, this budget puts off the hard and necessary decisions that confront us until after the next election. The truth is the spending cuts aren't big enough and there's too many one-time gimmicks and accounting tricks. The majority party is obviously backing themselves into another major tax increase next year by not cutting far enough. We need deeper, across-the-board spending cuts, and we need them now or we risk a much larger debt burden, higher taxes and even bigger cuts down the road."

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO ON GOVERNOR PATRICK'S PLAN FOR SPENDING CUTS

The U.S. Senate is considering legislation that will provide additional federal financial aid to state governments.

Until the Senate acts, this potential relief is merely speculative. As a contingency, Governor Patrick has proposed a three and one-half percent cut to this year's state budget, exempting local aid and debt service payments. My advice to the Governor is to go ahead and make the budget cut whether or not additional federal funding is forthcoming. I make this recommendation because next year's budget is going to be the worst we've seen in recent memory, with an opening deficit of more than $2 billion. It will make our current budget difficulties seem like a walk in the park. Making cuts now will prepare us for the necessary and hard decisions that are sure to follow.

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO ON STEVE GROSSMAN'S SUPPORT FOR BONUSES FOR PENSION FUND ADMINISTRATORS

"Steve Grossman's support for bonuses for pension fund staff highlights what's wrong with the current system. Our pension fund employees are well compensated with average salaries in excess of $100,000 a year to perform administrative and clerical tasks. It also sends the wrong message when a bonus is awarded in a year the fund loses money. This is one of the reasons why the people of Massachusetts have lost faith in their government. The bonus system at the pension fund is unnecessary and as Treasurer I will end it."

Yesterday, Karyn Polito released a policy paper saying she will not approve bonuses for pension fund staff. To read the policy paper, please click here: Eliminating Bonuses for Pension Fund Administrators.

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO ON STEVE GROSSMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS CANDIDACY FOR STATE TREASURER

“I welcome former Democratic National Party Chairman Steve Grossman to the race for Treasurer. Steve is a major fundraiser and leader of the Democratic Party in Massachusetts and nationally. My record is different. I’m a mom, a small business owner, and an independent voice in the Legislature fighting for lower taxes and less spending. I look forward to debating with Steve on who is best suited to act as a watchdog against the excesses of the one-party political machine on Beacon Hill.”

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO RELATIVE TO SENDING THE HOUSE GAMING BILL BACK TO THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

“I'm disappointed the House did not agree with my motion to send the gaming bill back to the Ways and Means Committee for consideration of a competitive bidding process for gaming licenses. As it is now, the legislation smacks of an inside deal for the racetrack owners. I think we can make it a better bill by including provisions that encourage innovation and competition, with the ultimate goal of maximizing jobs and revenue for Massachusetts residents.”

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO ON FURTHER EVIDENCE SUPPORTING 'NO PENSIONS FOR POLITICIANS'

Anyone looking for a reason to support my proposal for ‘no pensions for politicians’ can find about 164,000 reasons in today’s Boston Globe story about Democratic candidates in the 10th Congressional District.

The $119,000 and $45,000 state pensions cited in the story are evidence of how the retirement system works for the inside interests of politicians and against the taxpayers. Guaranteed lifetime retirement benefits should not be an incentive for people to make political office a career. And decisions to improve benefits over time should not be made by beneficiaries of the system.

Going forward, the road to real pension reform starts with taking away pensions from our state’s politicians.

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO FURTHER DEFINING THE NEED FOR ‘SUNSHINE’ IN THE TREASURER’S OFFICE

The need for additional transparency in the Treasurer’s office and in other statewide offices is clear and compelling.

That is why I have pledged to require investment managers, underwriters and other entities doing business with the Treasury or who seek to do business with the Treasury to disclose all political contributions their officers or senior managers made during the preceding 12 months. I also will require them to publicly disclose the identity of any middlemen they have hired to procure such business from the Commonwealth, along with how much they are being paid. All of this information will be kept in a public file at the Treasurer's office and it will be made available for inspection by anyone who wants to review it.

These reforms, along with some of the recommendations Charlie Baker has made today, will go a long way toward restoring public trust and confidence in government.

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO REGARDING A PROPOSED 'SUNSHINE' POLICY AT THE STATE TREASURY

The Treasurer's office is our state's fiscal nerve center. It's the office responsible for investing billions of dollars of taxpayer funds and keeping them safe. As such, it's also a place where we need to be especially cautious about even the appearance of any impropriety.

Our next state Treasurer needs to insist on complete transparency and openness when it comes to the business practices of the Treasury itself, the Lottery, the Pension Fund and all other operations.

If elected Treasurer, I will require full disclosure by anyone who seeks to do business with the Treasury.

This policy will require investment managers, underwriters and other entities doing business with the Treasury or who seek to do business with the Treasury to disclose all political contributions their officers or senior managers made during the preceding 12 months. They also will be required to publicly disclose the identity of any middlemen they have hired to procure such business from the Commonwealth, along with how much they are being paid. All of this information will be kept in a public file at the Treasurer's office and it will be made available for inspection by anyone who wants to review it.

STATEMENT OF KARYN POLITO IN RESPONSE TO COMMENTS BY LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR TIM MURRAY ON ‘NO PENSIONS FOR POLITICIANS’

“Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray’s short-sighted comments earlier today demonstrate why we need to stop letting those who make decisions about our retirement system derive a personal benefit from it.

The bottom line is that elected state officials should not receive the same retirement benefits that other state workers get. Our founding fathers never intended elected office to be a career with generous lifetime benefits. That’s why I have proposed a policy of ‘no pensions for politicians’ going forward.”

STATEMENT OF TREASURER CANDIDATE KARYN POLITO ON "OBSCENE" SICK LEAVE AND VACATION PAYOUTS BY THE PATRICK ADMINISTRATION

Every day seems to bring more stories of obscene waste and abuse in state government. The people of Massachusetts are tired of seeing their tax dollars squandered. As Treasurer, I will institute a "use them or lose them" policy with respect to sick time and vacation days. No more golden parachutes. Public service should not be a ticket to retirement riches.

State government needs to be more accountable, more responsible, and more disciplined. Let's start by getting rid of the gold-plated benefits. That's why I have proposed eliminating pensions for politicians. It's time we put people first and take the greed and selfishness out of our politics.