In a letter to Senate Ways and Means Chairmen Michael Rodrigues, Aaron Michlewitz and Administration and Finance Secretary Michael Heffernan, the chief fiscal 2021 budget planners, MTF President Eileen McAnneny outlined the array of options available to legislators to help address the public…

McAnneny, of the business-backed taxpayers foundation, says the CARES Act is "insufficient to mitigate the economic impacts of the pandemic." In her testimony earlier this month, McAnneny highlighted the role that federal funds can play by pointing the $7.4 billion in American Recovery and…

The virtual meeting began Thursday with presentations from Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center President Marie-Frances Rivera and Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation President Eileen McAnneny, each of whom detailed the forecasts they provided earlier this week at a hearing designed to help state…

The Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation projected a revenue decline of $4 billion for the state's fiscal year 2021 budget. A Senate working group that had been studying tax code changes indicated it will struggle to make recommendations while the pandemic is ongoing.   https://www.nepr.net/…

MTF’s new analysis highlights the implications of our revised forecast on the MBTA, the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), and other purposes supported by dedicated tax revenue. We estimate that compared to the original consensus estimate, the MBTA will receive $53 million less in…

Massachusetts budget watchers are predicting a steep drop in revenue in the face of the coronavirus economic shutdown. Democratic House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz said the House typically holds its budget debate in April, a timeline he said is no longer feasible. Massachusetts…

MTF has revised its FY 2021 tax revenue forecast to include the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. We project a decline of $4.4 billion or 14.1% from the January 2020 benchmark. The forecast assumes new virus cases peak in April, abate in June, and economic re-engagement can begin in early July.…

Eileen McAnneny, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, predicted the state budget to be hobbled by a $4.4 billion drop in tax revenues in the fiscal year that begins July 1, and even that could change depending on how long it takes to get people back to work. Sales tax collections…

One of the panelists, the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, projected that tax collections in fiscal 2021 will drop by $4.4 billion, or 14.1 percent below the benchmark that top budget officials agreed to back in January. The report from the foundation states that sudden and massive layoffs are…

Tax revenue gains that lawmakers had hoped to use on education and transportation this year have been decimated as the economy has ground to a halt because of COVID-19. Revenues are now projected to fall by $4.4 billion — or 14.1 percent — below the benchmark reached in January, according to a…