The Fiscal Year 2000
Budget - Chapter 127 of the Acts of 1999.
* Fully Funded Education Reform - The budget contains $245
million
increase for local aid to schools and meets the mandate of the Education
Reform Act of 1993 insuring that all schools systems have achieved a
foundation budget.
* Expanded Senior Pharmacy Program - The Senior Pharmacy program
is expanded from $30 million to $52 million and the benefit and income
limit levels raised to $1250 annually and 188% of the poverty level.
An additional $20 million was also allocated to help senior citizens
with catastrophic drug costs.
* Pay Raise for Human Service Providers - The budget contains a
$28 million salary reserve to increase the pay of human service workers
making less than $30,000 a year.
* Libraries - The overall allocation to public libraries is
increased
from $6.9 million to $9.9 million. The budget also allocates
$30,190,680 to help with the public construction of new libraries and $3
million to improve library automation.
* Tobacco - The budget places 70% of the $91.2 million in Tobacco
Settlement Funds into a trust fund. The other 30% will be used for
health related programs including funding for the Senior Pharmacy
Program and Community Health Centers.
* Forward Funding of the T - These outside sections change the
funding formula for the MBTA by placing the T on a budget and dedicating
20% of sales tax revenue directly to the authority.
* Local Aid Allocation to Cities and Towns (the so-called Cherry
Sheet) - The budget increases allocations to cities and towns.
* Senior Volunteer Program - The budget allows cities and towns
(at
local option) to abate up to $500 from local property tax bills for
seniors
who volunteer for their communities.
* Clean Elections - The budget allocates $10 million to start
funding
the clean elections ballot initiative.
* Regional Transportation Authorities - The budget allows RTA's
to
expand bus service to include night, weekend and holiday service.
Tax Cuts
* The income tax rate was reduced to 5.85% on January 1, 2000, will be
lowered to 5.80% on January 1, 2001, and finally lowered to 5.75% on
January 1, 2002.
* The exemption for renters was increased from $2500 to $3000.
* The investment tax credit for business was extended at the 3% level
until January 1, 2004.
* The definition of dependent was changed to include elderly and
disabled dependents. The benefit level will increase from $1,200
to $2,400 on January 1, 2001 and to $4,800 on January 1, 2002. As
of January 1, 2001 individuals will also be able to claim an additional
dependent (currently they can only claim one dependent benefit).
* The budget also creates a circuit breaker tax cut for low and
moderate income seniors that gives them up to a $750 tax credit if their
property tax exceeds 10% of their income. This tax credit will be
partially implemented January 1, 2001 and fully implemented January 1,
2002.
Year 2000 Budget | Year
2001 Budget | Senate Engrossed Bills
|
1999 - 2000 Bills Passed | 1999
- 2000 Bills with Amendments
|
Massachusetts State
Senator Brian A. Joyce Room 413A
State House,
Boston, MA. 02133
|
|
