麻州長查理貝克簽署預算 381億元

麻州州長查理貝克（Charlie Baker）昨（十七）日簽署新會計年度的麻州財政預算，381億元，將改革地鐵（MBTA），收緊醫療保險開支，把持稅款及費用底線。

政治觀察家稱這是查理貝克的勝利時刻，他爭取通過了修訂版的地鐵管理架構改變。麻州議會也通過了他在三月份時擺出來，要彌平稅收及開支之間18億元差距的預算。

英文報章指出，這份預算的簽署，也象徵了政治勢力的轉移，查理貝克將開始為麻州政府裡發生的事，享有榮耀或遭責怪。

            昨日，查理貝克還公佈了他指派的五名新任地鐵（MBTA）財政控制局委員。

        查理貝克在簽署預算時，也否決了一些麻州議員們加進預算案的項目，不過和他要縮減麻州在醫療護理補助（Medicaid）上的開支來比，數額很小。

            麻州議會可以在三分之二同意下，推翻查理貝克的否決案。

            在查理貝克簽署的預算案中，有部份條款要退回給麻州議會做修改，其中一部分是如何支付為低收入居民擴大辦理的所得稅抵免。查理貝克建議延緩五年實施，而不是廢除企業稅扣減。

            在五年之後，受影響的公司可以用小額增加方式，在30年之內，扣除同樣額度的稅款，而不是照現行稅法要求的，在7年之內做大筆扣除。

            這樣可以讓州政府預算每年受影響的幅度小得多，估計在30年內可每一年少於二千萬元，而不是連續七年每年七千六百萬元。

華林功夫 7/18 教你自衛

自衛，防身？儘管肉身擋不了子彈，但社會新聞看得多了，許多人不免興起學點功夫，強身健體，在必要時自我防衛的念頭。

波士頓華林派第一位女師父余翠梅因應社區要求，將於七月十八日（週日）下午五點至七點，在摩頓市的麥當納（Macdonald）體育館，舉辦一場免費的“自衛”社區講座，為民眾提供有用的基本自衛技巧，了解如何辨認，避免危險狀況，同時學習獲取信心，保持健康。

該講座歡迎各界參加，報名可上網www.maldenrec.com。

Governor Baker, House Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Rosenberg Announce Agreement to Preserve Tax Break for Working Families

Governor Baker, House Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Rosenberg Announce Agreement to Preserve Tax Break for Working Families BOSTON – Today, Governor Charlie Baker, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo and Senate President Stan Rosenberg announced an agreement to preserve the increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit that was part of the legislature’s budget while maintaining the FAS-109 tax deduction, which was eliminated in the budget.  Under the compromise, FAS-109 implementation would be delayed for five years but the time a company can claim its overall deduction will be increased from seven to 30 years. The FAS-109 agreement funds the increase of the Earned Income Tax Credit to 23% as originally proposed by the legislature’s budget conference committee. The Governor, House Speaker and Senate President issued the following statements regarding the agreement:    “We all agree that expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit is a critical tool to provide tax relief to over 400,000 low income individuals and working families and my administration believes in providing a stable, competitive business climate to encourage economic development across the Commonwealth,”said Governor Baker. “In that effort, we have reached a joint compromise to extend the delay of the FAS-109 deduction implementation for five years and extend the length of the deduction’s life from seven to 30 years, minimizing the annual revenue impact on the state budget.  I am pleased the legislature is ready to act on these new parameters for the FAS-109 deduction by the end of July.” "I am proud to stand with Governor Baker and Senate President Rosenberg in supporting the EITC, a vital measure that provides much needed relief to the Commonwealth's families, without imposing any new taxes or fees and overburdening members of the business community," said House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo. "This agreement takes an important step in addressing income inequality in our state.  As one of  the original co-authors of the state Earned Income Tax Credit I am pleased we have increased the credit by more than 50 percent to help the hard working families of the Commonwealth," said Senate President Stan Rosenberg.  "I look forward to working with the House and the Governor to increase the EITC to our initial target of 30 percent of the federal credit."

Baker Appoints 5-Member MBTA Fiscal Management & Control Board

MBTA Fiscal Management and Control Board Appointed by Governor Baker Convenes First Meeting

Board Signals Commitment to Accountability, Reliability for MBTA Operations, Finances

BOSTON- Tuesday, July 21, 2015- The five-member Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB) appointed by Governor Charlie Baker convened its first public meeting today at the State Transportation Building in Boston.

The Board represents a key reform recommended by the Governor’s MBTA Special Panel following unprecedented winter weather that crippled service at the MBTA.

Joseph “Joe” Aiello serves as the Chair of the FMCB. Other board members include Brian Lang, Lisa Calise, Steve Poftak and Monica Tibbits-Nutt. Calise, Poftak and Tibbits-Nutt also serve as members of the MassDOT Board.

“The people of Massachusetts deserve a world-class public transit system, and I’m pleased the Fiscal and Management Control Board is immediately convening to signal our commitment to accountability and reliability for commuters,” said Governor Baker.  “Legislative leaders delivered on many of the reforms we requested, and I want to thank them again for their willingness to work with us to fix the MBTA. The hard work for these individuals begins today, but I am confident in their expertise and ability to get the job done.”

“Today’s meeting of the Fiscal and Management Control Board marks a major first step in our efforts to set the MBTA on a course of sustainability in its management, operations, and finances.  This past winter taught us two valuable lessons: first, how past financial practices and managerial decisions lead to a long list of maintenance needs that ultimately caused the transit system to struggle through the snow, ice, and freezing temperatures; second, without the T running at full service, we saw just how valuable and important the system is to mobility and our region’s economy,” said MassDOT Secretary and CEO Stephanie Pollack.  “Establishing the Fiscal and Management Control Board and getting the MBTA back on track is a top priority for Governor Baker and me, and is a crucial tool for transforming the T.  On behalf of the Baker-Polito Administration, I want to thank our partners in the Legislature for their assistance in creating the Control Board and I look forward to working with the members to start that transformation.”

By statute, the MBTA FMCB consists of five members, one with experience in transportation finance, one with experience in mass transit operations and three members of the MassDOT Board. The Chair is appointed by the Secretary of Transportation.

Governor Baker Appoints 5-Member MBTA Fiscal Management & Control Board

BOSTON – Governor Charlie Baker today appointed the five-member Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB) and designated Joe Aiello as Chair immediately after signing into law the Fiscal Year 2016 budget. A key reform recommended by the Governor’s MBTA Special Panel following unprecedented winter weather that crippled service at the MBTA, the FMCB is set to begin working immediately, holding its first meeting on Tuesday, July 21^st.

“Fixing the MBTA will be a complex task, but moving forward with a Fiscal Management and Control Board dedicated solely to the T’s operations and finances is an important step toward delivering accountability for taxpayers and riders,” said Governor Baker. “I want to thank the legislature for putting this board in place with other measures that will allow us to begin fixing the T. I especially want to thank the five talented individuals who have agreed to serve in this crucial capacity, and who bring decades of combined experience and different but complementary perspectives as they get to work fixing the status quo at the MBTA, and begin the process of delivering a world-class public transit system that the people of Massachusetts can be proud of, and deserve.”

“By signing this bill into law we now have two crucial tools to begin fixing the MBTA, a dedicated group focused solely on the T and new tools that will allow the MBTA to operate more reliable services, repair critical infrastructure and explore more efficient ways to serve our riders,” said MassDOT Secretary Stephanie Pollack. “Board members will be meeting on Tuesday, along with the expanded MassDOT Board, for briefings that will help them quickly begin their work to get the MBTA back on track.”

Governor Baker appointed in February a Special Panel to carry out an extensive analysis of the underlying functions of the MBTA’s governance, finances and capital planning which became apparent throughout historic snowfall and persistent freezing temperatures earlier this year. Among thepanel’s recommendations were the call for a FMCB to assume control of the MBTA, a reconstituted Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Board of Directors, lifting of efficiency restrictions at the MBTA, and a separation of the MBTA’s capital and operating budgets among a number of recommendations.

By statute, the MBTA FMCB will consist of five members, one with experience in transportation finance, one with experience in mass transit operations and three members of the MassDOT Board. Lisa Calise, Steve Poftak and Monica Tibbits-Nutt will also be serving roles on the MassDOT Board. The Chair is appointed by the Secretary of Transportation.

About the MBTA Fiscal Management and Control Board Members:

Joseph “Joe” Aiello (Chair) is currently a partner and Director of Business Development North America at Meridiam Infrastructure where he has worked since 2007, overseeing strategic development and investments in transportation, water and social infrastructure. Before joining Meridiam, Aiello served in several capacities for 13 years with DMJM Harris prior to its acquisition by AECOM Enterprises, Inc. where he was most recently President for the firm’s global, public private partnership business. Aiello also worked at the MBTA as Assistant General Manager of Planning and Budget and Assistant Director of Construction for Special Projects and Finance. He holds his B.A. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a M.S. in City and Regional Planning from Harvard University.

Lisa Calise is the Chief Financial Officer at Watertown-based Perkins School for the Blind, focusing on global services and education for those living with blindness and deafblindness. Before joining Perkins in 2010, Calise served the City of Boston for over a decade, most recently as the Director of Administration and Finance, and previously as Chief Financial Officer and Collector-Treasurer and Budget Director, implementing government efficiency programming. Calise also served in the White House Office of Management and Budget as a budget examiner. A Massachusetts native, Calise obtained her B.A. from Boston College and a Master’s Degree in Public Management from the University of Maryland.

Brian Lang currently serves as President of UNITE HERE Local 26, Boston’s hotel and food service union. Lang has spent a total of seventeen years representing the union’s 7,000 members, starting as organizing director and eventually being elected as president in 2011. Before joining the UNITE HERE Local 26 team, Lang was already involved as a union organizer for SEIU Local 285. His previous work experience as a meatpacker and a bellman has given Lang a strong understanding for the needs of hotel and food service employees that he uses to advocate for workers’ rights.

Steve Poftak is Executive Director of the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at Harvard Kennedy School.  Poftak was Director of Research and Director of the Center for Better Government at the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research.  He has led research projects and authored a number of papers on transportation policy, government efficiency, municipal finance, and job creation.  Previously, Poftak worked at the Commonwealth's Executive Office for Administration and Finance, where he managed the $1.3 billion capital budget, prepared the state's quarterly cash flow reporting, and monitored non-tax revenue receipts.

Monica Tibbits-Nutt is the Executive Director of the 128 Business Council where she has worked since 2010, advising communities in the 128 Corridor in transit planning and overseeing the operation of 12 shuttle routes with nearly half a million in annual ridership. Tibbits-Nutt also has experience with the MBTA, where she served as a Transportation Planning Consultant to the MBTA Advisory Board, and as Executive Director and Transportation Planner for TransitWorks, providing research evaluation for the MBTA and Secretary of Transportation. She holds a B.S. from the University of Southern Indiana and a Masters of City and Regional Planning from The Ohio State University.

吳志揚訪波城談職棒改革 政治盼藍綠放下鬥爭為民辦事

中華職棒會長吳志揚七月十五，十六日回波士頓舊地重遊，探望老師，參觀球場，與學生時期舊識歡聚，力邀眾人七月廿五，廿六日回台灣欣賞中華職棒明星賽，全壘打大賽，允諾絕對精彩。

國民黨前任黨主席吳伯雄的兒子吳志揚，去年在台灣九合一選舉中，出人意料之外的未能成功連任桃園縣長，後經推舉，今年二月四日，接任中華職棒聯盟會長，刻正世界各地巡訪，觀摩，有心重振台灣棒球風氣。

今年底吳志揚還將成為出任中華隊領隊的首名職棒會長，將帶隊打世界十二強棒球賽。

吳志揚這次來美，主要是應美國職棒大聯盟（MLB）新任會長Robert Manfred之邀，到俄亥俄州辛辛那提市觀摩第86屆明星賽。他認為辛辛那提市設計的各種活動，商品，展覽，直讓球迷從一踏足該市就感受到棒球無處不在，想不瘋狂也難的感覺，希望可以借取經驗，也在台灣創造出一個棒球城來。

七月十五，十六兩日，吳志揚重遊母校哈佛大學，和當年老師，也是哈佛棒球隊顧問的哈佛法學院東亞法律系主任安威廉晤談，說起運動法是未來市場很大的法律事務；參觀紅襪隊球場的周邊翻修，則是希望把棒球場周邊娛樂設施周全的情況，帶給台灣各職棒主場及主場所在地方政府做參考。

吳志揚透露，台灣正在推廣屬地主義，要讓某一城市居民認同某一球隊是代表該城市的球隊，就如他當年的促使桃猿隊落戶桃園，在台灣帶出球隊主場風氣，如今統一獅，兄弟象，義大牛等其他三大職棒，也依序在台南，台中，高雄設有主場，打球時的啦啦隊，吉祥物，廣告花招，都使活動內容豐富很多。

七月十五日晚，吳志揚的波士頓舊友獲悉他回來，由紐英崙中華專業人員協會董事長王世輝，紐英崙客家鄉親會會長周一男，新英格蘭台灣商會創會會長王本仁，以及吳志揚當年在波士頓唸書時好友蕭乃彰之妻，劉惠敏等人呼朋喚友，邀集了駐波士頓台北經濟文化辦事處副處長陳銘俊，教育組組長黃薳玉等不下四十人和他歡聚，談過去，說棒球。

吳志揚，洪秀華夫婦（中）臨別前，李小玉（右起）搞笑的用下巴夾
棒球，，王世輝，張重華，周萬欽，蔣宗壬，經文處副處長陳銘俊，
陳志清等人每人都戴上中華職棒球帽，以示支持。（菊子攝）

王世輝非常有心思，不但把當年波士頓棒球聯盟台商隊合照找出來，還把王建民加入美國職棒大聯盟的一套新手圖片（rookie card），送了一套給吳志揚做紀念。吳志揚也回贈出席者中華職棒帽子，棒球。

在九合一選舉中被稱為台灣縣市首長中最富裕的吳志揚坦言，目前他在新竹的中華大學，桃園的中原大學，台北的警察專科學校等三所學校教書，還在體育大學唸體育博士，想要為職棒建立制度盡力。至於政治，如果他能發揮所長，真正為台灣，為社會做事，他才會考慮。否則，既能帶給人快樂，榮耀感，不分藍綠都會喜歡的棒球活動，才是他更願意做的事。

圖片說明：

            中華職棒會長吳志揚（右二），洪秀華（左二）夫婦，請波士頓好友們戴上中華職棒球帽，拿著印有職棒徽號的棒球合影。（菊子攝）

            紐英崙中華專業人員協會董事長王世輝（右）送王建民加入美國職棒大聯盟的新手圖卡給中華職棒會長吳志揚（左）。（菊子攝）

        紐英崙中華專業人員協會會長周萬欽（右）送上該為年刊，請吳志揚（左）加入該會，和馬英九總統一起側身該會會員行列。（菊子攝）

            吳志揚（左二），洪秀華（右一）夫婦，和紐英崙客家鄉親會會長周一男（左一）會長夫婦競比說客家話。（菊子攝）

波士頓重建局公佈評估報告 將聘資產管理主任

波士頓重建局（BRA）昨（十六）日公佈獨立機構製作的“重鎚”營運評估報告，將採納新設房地產主任職位，增聘六名計畫員，透明化發展項目審核，翻修中華貿易大樓等來增加收入之類的行動建議。

            波士頓市在馬丁華殊（Martin Walsh）上任市長一職後，早於2014年已做過一次波士頓重建局的營運分析，這第二次的調查分析，行動建議是由麥肯錫（McKinsey & Co.）製作。

            據悉，麥肯錫的評估報告，批評BRA仍然活在紙張時代，是一個功能失調的官僚機構，許多事情都仰賴幾名位高權重的職員，用不成文的規定做決策。整個機構約220名員工，有70%都不清楚方向為何，整體士氣低落。

        麥肯錫發現，波士頓重建局甚至沒有一份市府擁有哪些房地產的完整紀錄，和舊金山（2000萬元，22人），溫哥華（1500萬元，20人），西雅圖（760萬元，15人）等城市相比，波士頓市（650萬元，1人）在主動計畫未來上的經費，人力，都遠落於後。

            波士頓重建局是個監管波士頓土地，物業發展的重要機構，過去18個月來，批准了將近50億元的新土地發展。

            馬丁華殊（Martin Walsh）上任後，包括逼走計畫長沈其樂，清除了不少波士頓重建局裡的前朝人馬，還下令做了兩次波士頓重建局營運狀況的深度評估，並推出新一波的波士頓總體發展計畫，稱為“想像波士頓2030“。

之前在波士頓重建局工作了六年，十八個月前才獲波士頓市長馬丁華殊指派，升遷為局長的高登（Brian Golden）表示，該局將採納麥肯錫的建議，聘用一名物業主任，令增聘五到六名計畫員，來辦理相關工作。該局資深建築師David Carlson也甫於昨日升為市區設計主管。

高登表示，他打算藉著最大化波士頓重建局物業的租金，來取得增聘新人所需經費。

麥肯錫估計，翻修並更好的管理中華貿易大樓，波士頓海事工業園（Boston Marine Industrial Park），應可為波士頓重建局增加6到8百萬雃收入。

在中華貿易大樓內，現有華埠主街，紐英崙華人歷史協會這兩機構，由波市府無償，或以極低租金提供會所用地，一旦波士頓重建局進行物業管理整頓，這兩機構的營運，勢必受到影響。