Patrick announces cuts

[0:04] ..." For me introduce you a true friend of central Massachusetts. Our distinguished Governor Deval Patrick. "...

[4:08] ..." supported that unique strength in my administration. By investing more money in public schools than ever before in the history of the commonwealth. And by rebuilding our public college in university campuses. I'm going over to"...

[4:50] ..." So that we are offering a path into the into a secure middle class for every young person in our community. The readiness project which you may have heard about our ten year plan for the"...

[10:11] ..." have increased three months running. And the S&P just ranked greater Boston housing market -- leading indicator of economic help for the healthiest in the nation. CNBC. Has ranked Massachusetts is the eighth best state to"...

[14:34] ..." help of the stimulus funds we will hold harmless are finding in higher education. We will not cut local aid. Local communities. Local communities are the front line of both our economic and our social life."...

[0:01]" In judgment as a stable honor and privilege. For me introduce you a true friend of central Massachusetts. Our distinguished Governor Deval Patrick. "

[0:17]" Thank you so much. Sharon Levy thank you for the generous introduction thank you are ladies and gentlemen for having me here today. I want to acknowledge the may care constant Constantine and looks nice to be with Humana met the city manager Michael O'Brien. Damascus from the with the chambers good to be with you again. He can indeed -- was to chamber president again to be with you congratulations. On the on the wonderful occasion you have -- today I appreciate that. I also want to acknowledge the members of my cabinet and of my senior team who were here packages -- stand up there all around the room today. Thank you for being here and for your service. We're good afternoon again. I thought I would use the time that we have together can you hear me all right. Yes in the way back to you AME okay louder. Louder OK. I thought I would use our time to -- better. It yet we have to get Jordan up here with -- radio waves. To to make a couple of points about economic development strategy here in the commonwealth. To address some of the government of state government's current budget challenges because the two are in fact linked. And that is Jordan's -- to leave a little time for questions or comments that may be on your mind. We all know that our nation and our commonwealth are in the midst of the worst economic depression since the Great Depression. Many have only the barest appreciation. How close we were just a year ago. At this time to a full blown depression. With the potential of the banking industry not yours. But the industry. To collapse and drag the whole economy into the hole with -- kudos to the Obama administration to chairman Bernanke and the bed. In the previous administration. And to many many others for pulling us back from the brink and that is no joke. If you noticed today. What folks are talking about is what kind of recovery how fast the recovery. When experts just a year ago this time we're talking about whether there was a future for an economy like ours. Meanwhile the crisis continues in many homes in many workplaces. And in many lives. Until we get people back to work our work is not done. More than anything else we need jobs. But government does not create jobs you do. Government's role is to create the conditions in which you want to invest and to create those jobs. Our commitment an approach. Is to work with you to collaborate. Public and right. To create the strongest economy we can and the most jobs we can coming out of this recession. So recovery from Massachusetts means investment and jobs. And I job growth strategy has -- problems that derived. From the commonwealth values and I'll say more about that in a minute. But those problems are education. Innovation. Infrastructure investment. And regional clusters. First education. Because it is our international calling card. Our students if -- have scored first in the nation on the date the achievement test in each of the last three years. And in the top ten in the world on math and science measures. We are recognized around the world for our highly educated work force. And the concentration of brain power that are at many universities and colleges attract in this region. We have supported that unique strength in my administration. By investing more money in public schools than ever before in the history of the commonwealth. And by rebuilding our public college in university campuses. I'm going over to the CBU mass medical school right after this to tour where we recently announced a ninety million dollar life sciences investment. -- An example of the kinds of job creating investments we're making. All across the commonwealth thanks to bonding authority the legislature enacted last year. We are also focused on closing the achievement gap and strengthening vocational. And technical training. So that we are offering a path into the into a secure middle class for every young person in our community. The readiness project which you may have heard about our ten year plan for the next generation of it reform. Builds on our current success is because good as we are. We cannot fuel our future on the fumes of the past we must constantly improve. Second. We have invested time focus and a little money in the innovation industries IT. Life sciences clean energy clean tech health care. Because they to reflect unique strengths. Traditions and opportunities here in Massachusetts. That concentration of brain power in the universities as well as the abundance of venture capital. Combined to make invention itself. A part of our economic character. Our emphasis has been on keeping those new companies in Massachusetts. When they're ready to commercialize. And to produce their goods and services. And that's strategy is working by the way. In the life sciences for example there was is 7% increase. In employment in the last year. While unemployment was sliding in the direction in almost every other sector. Just this week Massachusetts one more clean tech grants from the Department of Energy than any other state one out of every four awarded. Further recognition of that growing sector here in the commonwealth. We have only 200 mobile telecommunications. Companies in the commonwealth today. And we are third or fourth largest -- in the United States today for videogame developing. Example no examples of the new hot areas of our IT sector. These innovations sectors at the very ones. That by leading independent indicators are leading Massachusetts out of the recession faster and stronger and the rest of the United States. That is not by accident. And most of these fast growing companies are small. And medium size businesses which. Fact implied a whole range of other policy choices before us. There. Thanks to the powerful combination of state bonding and federal stimulus funds for which I think the legislature and the congress every day. We are investing in our physical infrastructure. That is not glamorous or sexy work it often doesn't grab headlines and let you are delayed in traffic. But it is essential. Because the level of neglect is shocking. And the importance. To our economic and quality of life is critical. Our administration has put more money in roads rails and bridges. In broad band expansion. In public college campus restoration. In public and affordable housing and in parks and recreational facilities than any other administration before us. Some five and -- half billion dollars committed. In the last three years. I know that we started that investment before the federal stimulus dollar dollars began to flow. And our position to continue it after the stimulus funds run out. Which means jobs today and value over the long term. And finally. Knowing that the cost of living especially housing. In the Greater Boston area in particular. Is it is a problem -- challenge. And that the reservoir of workforce talent he's just as great outside of the Greater Boston area that is inside. We have worked to incentivize investors. To Grohl all around the commonwealth. Emphasizing. Regional growth is both smart and fair. It's smart because we can compete for manufacturing and production jobs. If we market those lower costs outside of the Boston area to companies looking to expand. That's how we persuaded Liberty Mutual for example to open an expansion office and Springfield. With some 300. New employees. Since last year. And I top universities to partner with some of our top companies on the new high performance computing center in Holyoke with a power is cheaper. The fairness reason for this prong of our strategy is pretty simple. I am governor of the whole state. The people of central and western Massachusetts. And of the south coast indicate. And of the Merrimack Valley deserve their chance and an opportunity. As well. So that is our strategy for growth. Education. Innovation. Infrastructure. And regional clusters. And slowly but surely he is working. Federal stimulus funding alone has created or retained over 23000. Jobs that's direct jobs. Not counting the indirect jobs. Or any of the either direct or indirect jobs. That relate to our own infrastructure by other investments. This week the Boston -- metropolitan -- was ranked fourth in the nation. For clean tech -- job activity. Home sales have increased three months running. And the S&P just ranked greater Boston housing market -- leading indicator of economic help for the healthiest in the nation. CNBC. Has ranked Massachusetts is the eighth best state to do business in the nation up from fifteenth. Just a year ago. And the associated industries of Massachusetts report business confidence has increased five of the last six months. And most importantly as I said independent analysts believe. We are positioned to recover faster and stronger and the rest of the nation faster. And stronger. Meanwhile. Tax receipts of lack and the state operating operating budget is under serious stress you know that. That is difficult but not entirely surprising. State revenue looks backward. To past economic activity not forward to growth. We have always been over reliant on capital gains over most of the last decade or more. And the bottom fell out of that is you know starting about a year ago. We have effectively and successfully managed through rapidly changing in fact unprecedented circumstances. For up to a year now. We have closed a cumulative budget gap of more than eight billion dollars just to give you some sense of perspective that's about a third the size. One year's budget. And we have reduced headcount by nearly 1700. People. Working in partnership with the legislature we have delivered three budgets that are responsible balanced. And on to time by the way which is not something that many of the State's consent. In the last year we made nearly a billion and -- half dollars in spending cuts. We also seized the opportunity. To make governor government more efficient. For example we ended abuses in the state pension system. We abolish the turnpike authority. We tightened ethics and lobbying rules. We reduced your auto insurance premiums every single one of you by introducing competition into the market. And we put civilian lakers' on state construction projects all reforms. That you and others have been talking about for more than twenty years but it we have delivered. And because we responded promptly and creatively each time. We were faced with a new decline in our revenues adjusting spending. And implementing personnel controls starting more than two years ago or about two years ago. We even ended the last fiscal year with a modest. 120 million dollar surplus. But we are out of the woods yet. Due to ongoing volatility in the national economy and its impact on tax receipts. Two weeks ago we revised our revenue estimate for fiscal year 22 and this fiscal year down. By another 600 million dollars we aren't alone by the way. All but two states in the country have had to take similar measures. But that doesn't make any of the choices any easier. And one of our community budget forms in Braintree this spring. One of the participants of fellow named Paul said our balance sheet should reflect our values. And he was right. We should be justice concerned about our commitment to our values as we are about the value of our commitments. Those values. Creating jobs at good wages. In every region of the commonwealth. Offering a world class education. To our young people. Delivering quality affordable health care to our residents protecting. And supporting the most vulnerable those values. By the values to which we as the commonwealth. Are committed. So as I meet my statutory responsibility to bring the budget in line. I do so according to my moral responsibility. To those values. So today. I will file a plan that will close this current budget gap and keep faith with those values. And let me start with some things as a result that we will not do. We -- not cut our record investment in our students and our schools -- chapter 78. We will not shortchange our children's future. In the same vein with the help of the stimulus funds we will hold harmless are finding in higher education. We will not cut local aid. Local communities. Local communities are the front line of both our economic and our social life. And they are struggling as it is especially as lottery performance. Fails consistently to meet projections. We have filing legislation for some extra tools to help local communities manage the costs and the revenues. In the meantime we have already filed our municipal partnership act to. Which would provide ways for local communities to reduce health care costs for their workers and capture other savings. It is already had all the committee hearings it needs. It's time to move it. And so I -- again calling on the legislature to enact the municipal partnership act two into law. Cities and towns need these tools especially. Going into an even more challenging fiscal year next year. We have protected health care reform the landmark effort. That is insured over 97%. Of our residents and served as a model for national reform. And we have protected human services. And limited the impact on public safety mitigating as much as possible the effect. On seniors. And our most vulnerable neighbors. Now to protect these priorities. We have had to make some very difficult choices in other programs and services. First I am reducing spending. By 352. Million dollars including 277. Million dollars from the executive branch agencies. That will affect. The level and quality of many of the services that you and others expect from your government. Second. We have to once again ask our employees to do more with less. Nonunion employees including myself will take another nine to furlough days without pay. That is in addition to the furloughs taken in the last fiscal year. In order to limit layoffs in the impact they have both on the employee and his or her family. And and -- the services offered. I have asked employee unions to work with us on contract revisions. To hold the workforce together through these trying times. So far. They have not agreed. While we will keep talking we cannot talk indefinitely. So I have directed my cabinet. To prepare layoff plans to achieve an additional 35 million dollars in savings. In total we are regrettably having to prepare to eliminate up to 2000 additional positions. And third. We will seek to expand our authority. To spread the spending reductions -- crop across the whole of government. Including non executive branch agencies the legislature and the courts. We must share in the sacrifice. And the rest of our state government must -- chin and reduce spending. A little under 5%. I watch you do know that we have gone the extra mile as well. The Quinn bill once vital program to encourage police to continue their training. Is a program we must begin to phase out. We have reduced the remaining funding further. And will file legislation to permit municipalities subject to collective bargaining agreements. To discontinue their own share of -- funding if they choose. Meanwhile I have asked -- Cameron of the Massachusetts coalition of police. And Kevin -- our secretary of public safety. Two co chair a special commission to recommend an alternative program. But which government can defer the education expenses of public safety officers. Who wish to obtain a higher -- degrees in public safety related fields. We are also submitting legislation today. To eliminate Bunker Hill today and evacuation day as paid holidays unique to Suffolk County. Traditions whose time has passed. -- details of our plan will be available on our website at NASA dot gov later today. But I wanna take a minute and thank -- team for their thoroughness. And their creativity in working through this latest set of challenges. Each member of the cabinet and my staff has been right on point. I -- especially recognized secretary Gonzales. Undersecretary Berkowitz in their teens. Who have worked late nights and early mornings -- weekends and holidays right alongside the lieutenant governor and me. To meant to marry to marry prudent management and it and accounting will our values. I also want to thank our citizen advisers. That's what I call the folks who show up in the office. We stand on the sidewalk with their signs. Or send their emails and other messages. For their input. Whether one of the administration's community forms on the budget we held across the state this brain. In any of our on -- farms during meetings in my office -- on the street. Morris citizens have cheered more feedback on this budget than any of our history a trend I and to continue. As mentioned before. They haven't been that did not easy budget choices for some while now. And this round was no different. Worthy programs in good people will be affected and have been effective. Many of my own initiatives. Will be delayed. These cuts are not abstractions. They have a real impact and I know that. We also realize that recovery will come and when it does we have to be ready. That was the message we shared with business and civic leaders like you from all across the commonwealth. And our economic summit just this past Tuesday. And it is one that we have governed on from the start. That must continue and it will. Yes. The state government's tax collection collections are down. But the at this year's tax collection collections are based largely on last year's economic activity. The public sector is present in many respects. Is largely the private -- past. And there's plenty of reason to be optimistic. About our common future. If we stay the course and remain true to our values. I am confident we will remain re emerge from this crisis. Stronger. Than before. Until we do. We will continue to find strength in each other -- thank you so much for having me today."