An editorial in the Worcester Telegram today highlights a great example of how, in its haste to look as though it is “doing something,” the Legislature can sometimes pass laws that have unintended and negative consequences.
In response to a slew of ethical indisgressions by Beacon Hill leaders, the Legislature this year passed an ethics reform law that was supposed to restore integrity to the institution by banning public officials from accepting gifts, increasing the penalties for breaking ethics laws and other changes. These were positive steps forward.
However, the legislation also includes a requirement that cities and towns must subject every one of their full-time and part-time employees—including volunteers—to take a yearly online test that is supposed to teach them the state’s conflict-of-interest rules.
Since this law passed, I have heard from local town officials who are very concerned about the prospect of taking employees away from their jobs to complete this task. They are also concerned about the potential cost of meeting this requirement during a time when cities and towns barely have enough in their coffers to make ends meet.
Throughout Massachusetts, city and town officials are struggling to find places to cut and ways to streamline their operations so that they can continue providing very essential services to Massachusetts residents. It is in the state’s best interest to offer a helping hand in that endeavor, not make it more difficult by instituting unfunded mandates such as the new online ethics test requirement.
For too long, the state has called on local communities to bear the brunt of tough fiscal times, while at the same time increasing burdens on them in other areas. Local aid payments to cities and towns have decreased and could go even lower in the coming weeks. Legislation to provide financial relief to municipalities, including several bills I’ve filed myself, have remained in committee and have not seen action on the House and Senate floors. There has been no pension reform and no changes to onerous public bidding laws.
Sooner or later, state government will have to deal with the consequences of this behavior toward cities and towns. I hope that through the continued advocacy of city and town officials, myself, and like-minded legislators, we can turn this around.
Thank you to all those who posted comments on the blog yesterday. What do you think about this issue?
