Let me just state this from the get go — I've never been a big fan of Mitt Romney. I supported Robert Reich in the election, so the sobering realization that the voters of our fair state elected a Republican (and a Mormon no less) to lead us put me into a blue funk after the last gubernatorial election.

But since Gov. Romney signed the "trimmed down" state budget on Monday, my dislike of the man has turned to anger.

The Boston Globe said it best: "All of the plaudits to the Legislature and Governor Romney for approving a balanced budget on time should not obscure the fact that the new fiscal year dawns today with bleak prospects for students who rely on a healthful school breakfast, teachers hoping to avoid layoff, rape victims in need of crisis services and counseling, and many others dependent on services that will shrink this year or disappear altogether."

Yes, it's true. The $22.1 billion dollar budget Romney signed came with a giant albatross — $201 million in vetoes.

Calling them "distasteful but necessary cuts," the Governor:

– cut $23 million earmarked for additional assistance to cities and towns, including (but not limited to):

– an additional $542,806 from Northampton
– $209,365 from Amherst
– $102,258 from Easthampton
– $129,935 from Hadley
– $18,986 from South Hadley
– $18,367 from Plainfield's Chapter 70 education funding
– $111,000 from Springfield
– $73,000 from Chicopee

– wiped out nearly all funding for the Orange District Court
– trimmed $451,000 from the $3.1 billion the state spends on some local schools
– vetoed a budget rider that provided for early retirement for between 2,000 and 3,000 state employees, including many at the University of Massachusetts and state and community colleges
– made a cut $3.4 million to home care aid for the elderly
– cut $590,000 to the Councils on Aging
– cut $1 million cut from a congregate housing program for seniors
– cut $6 million from a program to help teen parents
– slashed the funding to Massachusetts' 19 rape crisis centers by 75%
– vetoed the expansion of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority
– eliminated all funding for cervical and breast cancer screening, cutting that line item from $2.8 million to zero
– eliminated all $654,942 for treating problem gamblers
– eliminated the entire $1 million appropriation for prostate cancer prevention
– vetoed all $7.6 million earmarked for the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corp., which provides legal aid to low-income residents in civil cases
– rejected a plan to let welfare recipients use time spent in training and education classes to satisfy a state work requirement
– vetoed an easing of the MCAS appeals process for special education students

More Cuts
Romney also slashed the budgets of eight district courthouses that he had targeted for closure. Romney, for example, vetoed $120,784 for the Ware District Court, lowering its budget to $40,261. The court's budget is now so low it's less than half the $88,000 annual salary of William P. Nagle Jr., former House majority leader who is now clerk-magistrate at the court.

On the bright side (if there is one), Romney only vetoed $50,000 from the $328 million budget for the five campuses of the University of Massachusetts. But that's because the legislature had already reduced the five-campus budget by 20 percent from last year.

Romney wanted to eliminate $14 million for university President William M. Bulger's office, but said he could not veto the money because it has no separate line item. Romney has called on Bulger to resign as president, saying the office isn't needed and citing controversy surrounding the president's brother, fugitive mobster James "Whitey" Bulger.

Instead, Romney vetoed $1.72 million for the "Commonwealth College," a special honors program for about 2,000 top students at the university's Amherst campus, and $1.1 million for a program at the university's Lowell campus aimed at developing strategies to reduce industrial pollution. Romney said the state can't afford the money for the honors program, launched under Bulger about four years ago to attract talented students to the university, or (as he called it) the "toxic-use reduction institute."

Protesters Arrested
After the cuts were announced, about 200 protesters stormed the doors of the House of Representatives, chanting "no more cuts" and waving signs that said "shame." The group included representatives of labor, peace, religious and youth groups across the state, including a sizeable contingent from Western Massachusetts.

Massachusetts State Police troopers arrested about 17 of the protesters who held hands outside the House chamber and refused to leave the Statehouse when the building closed at 6:00 PM. They were handcuffed and charged with criminal trespassing.

Activists called on the governor and legislators to raise taxes instead of cutting the budget. The annual spending plan contains no tax increases.

Planning Veto Overrides
Local legislators have already begun mobilizing for veto overrides. Vetoes can be overridden anytime before January 6, the end of the first year of the current two-year legislative session. A two-thirds majority is needed to override a veto.

Rep. Christopher Donelan, D-Orange, is contacting court advocates, urging them to immediately e-mail and fax House and Senate leaders. Donelan says there will be strong support to override many of the vetoes.

Ironically, though, one of the first budget provisions to be challenged will likely be Romney's veto of language allowing pay raises for House and Senate leaders without his approval. But State Reps. Peter Kocot, D-Northampton, Stephen Kulik, D-Worthington, and Ellen Story, D-Amherst, think that the Governor was absolutely right to include this veto. Kocot said that any attempted override of the pay raise approval plan would be "entirely inappropriate."

But (surprise surprise) it's one of House Speaker Thomas Finneran's priorities, and consideration of the pay-raise legislation has already been put on the House calendar for the next formal session.

Our Advice?
So what can we, the residents of Western Massachusetts, do about these austere and crippling budget cuts? We can join our voices in protest. Contact Sen. Stan Rosenberg and let him know how you feel. Call or e-mail your representative. But don't sit back and accept what's happening to our state and local services. It's up to all of us to fight for our quality of life here in the Pioneer Valley.

Send your friends a link to this page.

(Back to Viewpoints)