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Daily Update 10/19: Responsible Budgeting

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Governor’s Daily Update
Schools, Jobs, and Civic Engagement
Monday, October 19, 2009

 

Today: Monday, October 19, 2009

  • This afternoon, Governor Patrick attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Millipore Corporation’s solar panel installation project in Bedford.

 

  • Later this afternoon, Governor Patrick attends a legislative leadership meeting.

In the Press:

 

Responsibly Managing the Budget by you.

Governor Patrick and Lieutenant Governor Murray discussed the FY10 budget with cabinet members in the Governor’s Council Chamber on Friday.

 

  • Responsible Budgeting – On Friday, in between meetings with members of his cabinet to discuss the FY10 budget shortfall, the Governor told the Associated Press that the potential for 2,000 state employee layoffs is real unless unions respond to the administration’s efforts to secure concessions that will help mitigate job losses and maintain services. “‘It’s not a threat; it’s just a description of reality,’ he said as he sat on a couch in his office, stroking his black Labrador Tobey as the puppy snored beside him. ‘Unless we get these accommodations, then we’re going to have to go very deep in head count reductions - and I don’t think anyone wants that to happen.’” Read the full story here.

 

 

  • Recovery Zone Bond Program – As part of the Patrick-Murray Administration’s Massachusetts Recovery Plan to secure the state’s economic future, Governor Deval Patrick has signed an Executive Order that will open the state’s Recovery Zone Bond Program. The Recovery Zone Bonds, authorized through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, support both public and private development efforts by offering favorable borrowing rates for projects within areas designated as “Recovery Zones”.  “Recovery Zone Bonds are a significant resource to the Commonwealth to stimulate economic activity, increase employment opportunities and mitigate the harmful effects of the national recession in areas with significant poverty, unemployment, rate of home foreclosures or general distress,” said Governor Patrick in the Executive Order.  Learn more here.

 

  • Commitment to Clean Energy – The economic downturn and competition from China have caused challenges for Evergreen Solar, the solar panel manufacturer Governor Patrick convinced to build its first full-scale U.S. manufacturing plant in Massachusetts. But the Commonwealth has stood by the company, with MassDevelopment approving a $5 million loan declined by Evergreen in 2007 but reactivated this year. Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles said: “This is one of the largest clean energy companies [in the state]…and it is a priority of the Commonwealth to help Evergreen in whatever way we can.’’ MassDevelopment head Robert Culver said, “This is what it takes to build a new economy,’’ pointing out that investment in Evergreen helped the state attract “one of the largest, if not the largest solar panel manufacturers in the country.’’ Read more in the Boston Globe.

 

  • On Blue Mass Group, Governor Patrick said: “I am proud of our work with Evergreen as well as with the many other companies we work with.  We want those businesses competing and growing jobs right here in Massachusetts.”

 

  • Today, Governor Patrick celebrated the installation of solar power at Millipore, one of Massachusetts’s leading life sciences companies, and a leader in clean energy adoption by Bay State businesses. Millipore is a “mentor” company in the Governor’s Clean Energy Challenge, a New England Clean Energy Council initiative that has signed up 100 Massachusetts firms committing to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions 10 percent over three years. Millipore CEO Martin Madaus serves as co-chair of the Climate Protection and Green Economy Advisory Committee, created by the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2008 to advise Secretary Bowles on measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions statewide. “Millipore is not only a leading employer in Massachusetts, but also a leader in creating our clean energy future,” said Governor Patrick. “Millipore is setting an impressive standard for energy efficiency and renewable energy, and showing other companies how to save energy and reduce their emissions through the Governor’s Clean Energy Challenge.”