#2021-5 February 12, 2021

Speaker Mariano Names House Leadership Team

On Thursday, House Speaker Ron Mariano (D- Quincy) named his senior leadership team, assembling a group that includes four women and one member of color to help shape the agenda for the House as Democrats look to focus, in part, on the state’s COVID-19 and vaccination response.

Speaker Mariano, who succeeded former Speaker Robert DeLeo in December, has tapped Representative Claire Cronin (D- Easton) for the majority leader job, a position Mariano held under DeLeo.  Representative Cronin served as House Chair of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary last session, successfully guiding a major police reform bill through the legislature.  Cronin was first elected to the House in 2012.

Representative Kate Hogan (D-Stow) will serve as speaker pro tempore, the third highest position in House leadership.  Representative Hogan, who had been a division leader, replaces Representative Patricia Haddad (D-Somerset).  Representative Michael Moran (D-Boston) was appointed assistant majority leader position, otherwise known as the majority whip, while Representatives Joseph Wagner (D-Chicopee) and Sarah Peake (D-Provincetown) have been selected as second assistant majority leaders.

The new team of division leaders includes Representative Jim O’Day (D-West Boylston), Representative Ruth Balser (D-Newton), Representative Frank Moran (D-Lawrence) and Representative Thomas Golden (D-Lowell).  Representatives O’Day and Balser, in particular, bring a more progressive streak to the new House leadership team.  Representative O’Day, for example, is the House sponsor of the Association-opposed constitutional amendment to add a surtax on income over $1 million.

Speaker Mariano is expected to ask the Democratic caucus to ratify his appointments on Friday when he also plans to roll out the full slate of committee assignments.  Representative Aaron Michlewitz (D-Boston) is expected to retain the chairmanship of Ways and Means, but the changes in the House leadership creates openings on several high-profile committees, including the Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy.  A complete report on the committee assignments will appear in the next Beacon Hill Report.

Senate Creates Committee Focused on Post-Pandemic Future

This week, Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) announced the creation of a Senate committee focused on issues the Commonwealth faces post-pandemic.  The new Senate Special Committee on Reimagining Massachusetts: Post-Pandemic Resiliency is modeled on some of the working groups President Spilka established since taking the reins of the Senate, like the COVID-19 working group Senator Jo Comerford (D-Northampton) led last session.

While the committee will not be assigned specific bills to review, it may hold virtual listening sessions focused on different regions of the state or solicit testimony from residents and industry-specific stakeholders.  Spilka said the activities of the committee will be determined by its yet-to-be-named chairperson.

Last week, President Spilka and Speaker Mariano jointly announced they plan to create three new standing committees to provide “sustained attention and policy expertise” in the areas of COVID-19 oversight and emergency management, racial equity, and cybersecurity.  The Joint Committees on Advanced Information Technology, the Internet and Cybersecurity; COVID-19 and Emergency Preparedness and Management; and Racial Equity, Civil Rights and Inclusion are expected to join the 29 other pre-existing joint committees once both branches adopt joint rules for the two-year lawmaking session.

State Opening Tax E-File System Today

State officials announced that they will begin accepting electronically filed income tax returns today, consistent with the IRS opening date for federal returns.  The Department of Revenue referred people to its website, which includes taxpayer and preparer resources, including FAQs, free e-file options, and information on locating free tax help.

The department also has a Where’s My Refund? application where people can learn about their refund status.  Returns for Massachusetts taxpayers must be filed electronically or postmarked by midnight on Thursday, April 15.