Judiciary

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes:

• an additional $438,484 for battered women's legal assistance services at the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (0321-1600);
   
  
• $7.3 million for the lease of the Federal Courthouse at Post Office Square (0330-2202); and
   
  
• $401,075 for the maintenance and operation of the Berkshire court facilities as a result of the abolition of Berkshire county government (0330-2205).
  

The budget recommendation also includes a new account (0330-4304) that will provide the Administrative Office of the Trial Court with the flexibility to meet the funding needs of each of the seven court departments which it oversees.

To alleviate the backlog of appeals awaiting argument, the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation increases the number of Appeals Court justices from 14 to 18, and includes funding for the four additional Associate Justices (0322-0100).

 
District Attorneys

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes a $4.2 million increase over Fiscal Year 2000 to assist District Attorneys in addressing increased costs in such areas as evidence procurement and the implementation of the sex offender registry law.

 
Secretary of the Commonwealth

In anticipation of the Presidential election, the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an additional:

• $1.7 million for the Primaries and Elections account (0521-0000);
   
  
• $1.2 million for the Motor Voter Registration account (0521-0001); and
   
  
• $1.5 million for the Information to Voters account (0524-0000).
  

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation also includes an increase of $1.2 million for the Registries of Deeds in abolished counties.

 
Treasurer and Receiver-General

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation provides an additional $1.3 million for the Office of the Treasurer and Receiver-General. Of that increase, $579,000 will be used to upgrade the Office's information technology infrastructure as well as hire additional information technology staff. The recommendation also includes funding for additional staff training and for contracted legal consultants to assist the Office with managing issues associated with abandoned property, the unpaid check fund, cash management, and eminent domain.

Additionally, the Victim of Crime Compensation account will be transferred to the Office of the Attorney General. This transfer will eliminate an unnecessary level of bureaucracy from the compensation process.

 
Lottery Commission

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation for the State Lottery Commission includes:

• $500,000 to improve safety for lottery representatives working at customer service windows; and
   
  
• $951,000 for the ongoing replacement of technical infrastructure and the renewal of information technology leases.

The State Lottery Commission also generates and distributes revenues to cities and towns. In Fiscal Year 2001, the Lottery distribution will increase to $730 million and will not be "capped", allowing cities and towns to receive the full distribution of revenues.

 
Massachusetts Cultural Council

The Massachusetts Cultural Council is also budgeted within the Office of the Treasurer and Receiver-General and is funded through Lottery proceeds. The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommends an increase of $1.1 million - $700,000 for grants to nonprofit cultural organizations and $400,000 for grants to local arts councils.

 
Pensions

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation for pensions includes $100 million in a new line item (0612-1508) for additional funding of the State Pension Liability Reserve that may be necessary due to previously unknown liabilities resulting from the transition to new actuarial software.

 
Debt Service

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation for long term debt service payments is $1.3 billion. This includes a scheduled increase of $91 million and an additional $29 million for the MBTA Forward Funding initiative (0699-0015).

 
Additional Assistance

In Fiscal Year 2001, the Administration will redirect 10% of the funds currently distributed as Additional Assistance to provide an incentive for municipalities to expand the availability of moderately-priced housing (1599-0045). $47.6 million will be distributed in Fiscal Year 2001 through a new formula designed to reward the development of affordable housing. This formula will be developed by the Secretary of Administration and Finance, the Director of Housing and Community Development, and the Commissioner of the Department of Revenue, and submitted to the House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means and the Joint Committee on Housing and Urban Development by March 31, 2000.

 
State Auditor

The Administration's Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an additional $448,972 for the Office of the State Auditor. The majority of this expansion will fund ten new auditors to work on several projects: oversight of localities' administration of state grants, audits of counties being taken over by state government, and audits of social service agencies that contract with the Commonwealth.

 
Attorney General

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation transfers the Victim of Crime Compensation account (0810-0004) from the Office of the Treasurer and Receiver-General to the Office of the Attorney General. This transfer will eliminate an unnecessary level of bureaucracy from the compensation process.

The recommendation also includes $500,000 for on-going investigations and $100,000 for expansion of the Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Program (0840-0101) at the Victim and Witness Assistance Board.

 
Office of Campaign and Political Finance

In Fiscal Year 2001, the Administration is continuing its support of the Massachusetts Clean Elections Initiative by recommending an additional transfer of $10 million to the Massachusetts Clean Elections Fund. These funds will be available for distribution beginning in August, 2001 for the elections scheduled to be held in 2002. The Administration is also recommending an additional $175,000 to upgrade the Office of Campaign and Political Finance's technological ability to implement this program, ensure accurate candidate disclosures, and monitor the distribution and use of the Clean Election funds.

 
Executive Office for Administration and Finance

Family Friendly Program

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes $4.8 million to fund a package of "Family Friendly" employee benefits and policies that will allow the Commonwealth's Executive Branch agencies to attract and retain skilled employees while setting an example for both public and private organizations to follow (1599-3317). The Family Friendly program offers enhancements of the following benefits:

• increase unpaid leave from the current 12 weeks to 52 weeks for the purposes of birth, adoption, foster child placement, or serious illness of the employee or the employee's child, spouse, or parent;
   
  
• increase paid parental leave from the current one week to two weeks for the purposes of birth, adoption, or foster child placement, for both fathers and mothers;
   
  
• allow up to 12 weeks of accrued sick leave to be used due to birth or adoption;
   
  
• increase allowable use of accrued sick leave for serious illness of an immediate family member from the current two weeks to 12 weeks a year;
   
  
• allow up to ten days of accrued sick leave a year for necessary preparations and legal proceedings related to foster care of children in the custody of the Department of Social Services, such as foster care reviews, court hearings and training for pre-adoptive parents; and
   
  
• expand the current Commonwealth volunteer and mentoring program to allow for one day per month of paid leave for foster care activities.
  

The "Family Friendly" program will also provide the following new benefits:

• free tuition at Massachusetts state and community colleges and the University of Massachusetts to children who were in the custody of the Department of Social Services and were adopted by state employees after December 31, 1994;
   
  
• a new telecommuting policy to allow employees to telecommute on a case-by-case basis;
   
  
• a national child and elder care resource and referral service for executive branch employees;
   
  
• a pilot emergency care program to provide emergency care for children and elders; and
   
  
• the creation of private rooms in state office buildings to assist nursing mothers of newborns.
   
  

Transfer of County Government

Continuing the Cellucci-Swift Administration's commitment to the elimination of county government, Section 45 of the budget recommendation sets in motion the abolition of four additional counties. That section transfers the remaining functions of Suffolk county and the primary functions of Plymouth county to the Commonwealth on July 1, 2001, and the primary functions of Bristol and Nantucket Counties on July 1, 2002.

Sections 51 and 52 amend Chapter 64D of the General Laws to direct the 7.5% of the Deeds' Excise revenues generated in abolished counties to the Commonwealth's General Fund, rather than the County Corrections Fund. This ends the practice where revenues generated in abolished counties subsidize Sheriff operations in non-abolished counties. In addition, the Sheriffs' transition to county government ends the county government practice of diverting revenues generated by Sheriffs' operations to county government operations. Sheriffs will now be able to retain these revenues to be expended on programs that promote the successful reintegration of county inmates back to society.

As a result of the abolition of Berkshire County on July 1, 2000, Fiscal Year 2001 will be the first year that the Berkshire Sheriff's Department is a department of the Commonwealth. Responsibility for the maintenance and operation of the Berkshire court facilities also will transfer - from the County to the Administrative Office of the Trial Court. The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation includes $5.6 million for the Berkshire Sheriff's Department (0350-0400), and $401,075 for the maintenance and operation of the Berkshire court facilities (0330-2205).

Human Resources Compensation Management System (HR/CMS)

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes the first full year of implementation of the Human Resources Compensation Management System (1750-0120, 1790-0107). Developed and maintained jointly by the Information Technology Division, the Human Resources Division, and the Office of the State Comptroller, HR/CMS will:

• replace the Commonwealth's two payroll systems and institute one standard bi-weekly system; and
   
  
• enable managers to better utilize human resource information for planning and analysis to maximize individual and agency performance.
  

Operational Services Division

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes:

• $375,000 for STAR (1775-0111), or Statewide Training and Resources Exposition, a free trade show for state departments, cities, towns, and non-profit human and social service providers. STAR offers education workshops for public personnel and provides a forum for contractors to interact with their customers.
   
  
• $1 million for the Electronic Mall, or E-Mall (1775-0112), a new on-line procurement tool which moves the Commonwealth one step closer to the goal of a paperless procurement process. It will also lower the unit cost of purchasing products and commodities through collective purchases with other agencies, states, and communities.
  

Department of Veterans' Services

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes $640,000 to open, operate, and maintain the Agawam Veterans' Cemetery (1410-0620, 1410-0018); and $400,000 to fund an additional 267 recipients in the Veterans' Annuity Program.

Bureau of State Office Buildings

In an ongoing effort to decentralize the administrative costs of state government, the Administration is taking the first step towards reflecting the costs of building rent, utilities, and maintenance in agency line items. This is being accomplished by transferring the costs to maintain the John W. McCormack state office building, the Erich Lindemann building, the Charles F. Hurley building, the Springfield state office building, and the Pittsfield state office building from the central Bureau of State Office Building's line items (1102-3301, 1102-3335) to a new reserve account (1599-0044). Agencies will draw from the reserve in order to pay the true cost of their office space, and those charges will be built into their budgets in future years.

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recognizes a savings of $2.1 million due to the vacancy of the Leverett Saltonstall building. This is mainly the result of reduced cleaning services, maintenance, heating, electricity and water use. However, this savings is offset by the estimated $15 million in rent costs incurred in Fiscal Year 2001 by agencies formerly housed in the Saltonstall building.

Group Insurance Commission

The Fiscal Year 2001 funding recommendation reduces the premium and plan costs account (1108-5200) by $37 million from the Fiscal Year 2000 spending level to reflect an increase in the employee contribution from 15% to 20%, in line with the contributions of employees in other states.

 
Massachusetts Water Resources Authority

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget includes $1 million (1599-3250) for the development and evaluation of proposals to privatize the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). The proposals will be reviewed to determine if private operation of the MWRA would increase the efficiency of operations and long-term maintenance of the authority. If a proposal is found to be cost-effective, the winning contractor will reimburse the Commonwealth for the cost of the review.

 
Executive Office of Environmental Affairs

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation for the Executive Office includes:

• $716,676 for Recycling Coordination (2010-0100) to facilitate recycling in Massachusetts and the continued progress toward the statewide recycling goal of 46%;
   
  
• $3.6 million for the space rental costs of Environmental Affairs agencies relocated from the Leverett Saltonstall building (2000-0106);
   
  
• a new account (2000-0105) for the administration and operation of the Watershed Initiative, previously funded as part of the general administration account (2000-0100).
  

Department of Environmental Protection

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation also includes an additional $1.6 million for Clean Air initiatives (2220-2220, 2220-2221), including funding for the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) efforts to reduce mercury and acid rain pollution. This increase in spending will be funded by restructured emissions fees, which will target Massachusetts' largest air polluters, to be implemented in Fiscal Year 2001.

In support of the Department of Environmental Protection's efforts to create a multi-disciplinary approach to pollution prevention and remediation, the Administration recommends moving $3.5 million in federally funded personnel to the operating budget for the administration of DEP's federal grant programs (2200-0108). By providing this funding through operating budget appropriations, the Administration can eliminate a trust fund in which the department currently funds a portion of these positions, and the General Fund will be reimbursed for this spending through an assessment to the existing federal grants.

Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Environmental Law Enforcement

The Administration also recommends an additional $250,000 for implementation of the Upper Cape Water Supply Reserve (2300-0110), formerly known as the Massachusetts Military Reservation. This funding will be used to develop a management strategy for protecting the water supply and wildlife habitat, while allowing for continued military training on the reserve.

Metropolitan District Commission

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an additional $300,000 for improvements to Boston Harbor islands (2440-0031), targeting specific improvements to Peddock's and Lovell's Islands, and an additional $239,000 for skating rink improvements (2440-3001).

State Reclamation Board

In Fiscal Year 2001, the State Reclamation Board line items, totaling $5.8 million, will be transferred to new trust accounts (2520-0400 through 2520-0490). This change will provide a more uniform funding stream for the cities and towns that participate in the Mosquito and Greenhead Fly Control Program. Currently, these pest-control efforts are funded by municipalities using state appropriations as a pass-through mechanism. The transfer will allow cities and towns to fund the programs more directly, while ensuring adequate controls on spending and the same level of service.

 
Executive Office of Health and Human Services

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation at the Executive Office includes $10 million for step down services for children and adolescents at the Departments of Mental Health (DMH) and Social Services (DSS). These services will give DMH and DSS better options for placing children in care who require less intensive treatment than inpatient hospitalization but more structured settings than group homes or foster care (4000-0160).

As part of the Administration's commitment to fighting homelessness, the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation also includes $600,000 for winter overflow beds at homeless shelters (4000-0155) and $200,000 for a system to collect and analyze data on the utilization of homeless shelters (4000-0120).

In addition, $4 million for the Secretary's Targeted Cities initiative has been transferred from the Executive Office to the new Department of Children, Families and Learning in an effort to better coordinate early childhood services for children and their families (4130-0023).

Department of Children, Families, and Learning

In order to create a more comprehensive and integrated system of services and supports for young children and their families, the Office of Child Care Services will be reorganized and expanded in its mission and scope of services. The newly created Department of Children, Families, and Learning will be the lead agency administering the Commonwealth's early care and child development and related family support services. The Department will have the following objectives: 1) to support the healthy growth and development of children; 2) to promote early education and learning; and 3) to assist families in enabling children to become responsible and productive citizens.

To establish the Department, the programs and activities of the current Office of Child Care Services will be integrated with the following programs:

• Early Intervention;
• Newborn Home Visiting;
• state-funded Head Start programs;
• the Targeted Cities Initiative; and
• all child care resources.

The new Department will work in collaboration with local, state and federal agencies to better coordinate a system that is community-based, family-centered, and responsive to the needs of children and families. The Department will utilize resources more effectively and efficiently, be focused on prevention to the greatest extent possible, and be designed to maximize continuity of services and supports.

In addition to this reorganization, the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation includes two reserves to fund new initiatives: a $10 million reserve to increase rates for child care providers in response to a market rate survey to be completed in Fiscal Year 2000 (1599-0043) and an $18 million reserve for child care to enable TAFDC recipients to comply with changes recommended in the state's welfare reform law (4130-3800).

Division of Medical Assistance

The Division of Medical Assistance (DMA) administers the State's Medicaid program. The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendations include increased funding over Fiscal Year 2000 of $70.7 million for the following new initiatives:

• $29.4 million to implement a dental reform plan to improve members' access to basic dental services, primarily by increasing rates and thereby providing an incentive for more dentists to serve MassHealth members (4000-1504);
   
  
• $10.3 million in existing and new funds to implement a voluntary managed care program called Senior Care Options, that will provide high quality, accessible, and cost-effective care to all seniors who are eligible for both MassHealth and Medicare (4000-1505);
   
  
• $5 million to expand MassHealth coverage to uninsured adults who may work intermittently (4000-0865);
   
  
• $16 million to fund several provider payment adjustments for medically complex and high cost patients, including: $5 million to improve the community-based service options available to certain disabled individuals and seniors (4000-1001); $6 million to reimburse acute hospitals for patients with complex needs and lengthy stays (4000-1002); a $1.5 million rate add-on for pediatric physicians in training (4000-1003); and a $3.5 million rate add-on for primary care clinicians who contract with DMA at community health centers (4000-1004);
   
  
• $10 million to fund a payment adjustment for nursing homes in expensive labor markets and for nursing homes that meet or exceed quality standards (4000-1005).
  

Department of Transitional Assistance

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes several changes to the Commonwealth's welfare reform law to ensure that families will continue to successfully move from welfare to work:

• the addition of a work requirement for able-bodied families whose youngest child is two to five years old, so that these families - who are already subject to the two-year time limit on benefits - will be ready for self-sufficiency when their benefits end;
   
  
• an increase in the total work requirement from 20 hours to 35 hours for two-parent families whose youngest child is under two;
   
  
• authorization for the Department to require new recipients to participate in structured job search during their first 60 days of benefit receipt; and



• a change in the requirements associated with extension cases, so that families on extensions will make progress towards financial self-sufficiency.
  

In addition, the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation includes $4 million to fund an increase in the eligibility standard for rent arrearage payments to approximately 130% of the federal poverty level, which will enable more working families to avoid homelessness (4403-2110); and $378,000 for the Teen Living Program, to help more teen mothers retain their connections to school and needed services (4403-2119).

Department of Mental Health

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes:

• $2.3 million in additional funding to ensure that a practitioner, nurse, or experienced professional administers medication to children and adolescents in residential programs (5042-5000); and
   
  
• $700,000 for a comprehensive compliance program to expand the Department's revenue activity and safeguard ongoing revenue streams (5046-1100).

Department of Mental Retardation

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes:

• $5 million in additional funding to provide residential, day, and support services to individuals on the wait list (5920-4050);
   
  
• $6.95 million in additional funding to serve the new class of Turning 22 graduates who will be leaving the Department of Education's special education programs (5920-5000); and
   
  
• $5.6 million in additional funding for the transition of individuals with mental retardation currently residing in nursing homes to appropriate community or residential placements (5920-2000).
  

Department of Public Health

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes additional funding for the following programs: $136,000 for the batterers' treatment program (4513-1001); $310,000 for community-based domestic violence prevention programs (4513-1022); $190,000 for implementing a quality assurance system for the newborn hearing screening program; and $400,000 in increased spending from drug rebates for the HIV/AIDS drug assistance program (4512-0106).

In addition, $1.1 million for the First Steps program (4130-1000) and $29.7 million for the Early Intervention program (4130-4000, 4130-4001), formerly at the Department of Public Health, has been transferred to the new Department of Children, Families and Learning in an effort to better coordinate early childhood services for children and their families.

Massachusetts Commission for the Blind

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an additional $320,000 for the new class of Turning 22 graduates who will be leaving the Department of Education's special education programs (4110-2000).

Domestic Violence Prevention

In keeping with the Administration's long-standing focus on domestic violence issues, the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an additional $4 million for domestic violence prevention, including:

• $1.6 million at the Department of Social Services for shelter and counseling (4800-1400);
   
  
• $900,000 at the Department of Education for teen dating violence prevention (7032-0500);
   
  
• $438,000 at the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation for legal representation of victims of domestic violence (0321-1600);
   
  
• $328,000 at the Department of Transitional Assistance for additional domestic violence specialists (4400-1025);
   
  
• $260,000 at the Department of Public Health to serve non-English speaking victims of domestic violence (4513-1022); and
   
  
• $75,000 at the Executive Office for Administration and Finance to fund the analysis and integration of statewide domestic violence data (1599-0048).
  

The Executive Office of Health and Human Services will continue to encourage and oversee collaboration among the various departments providing domestic violence services.

Direct Care Salary Increases

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes $15 million to raise the salaries of direct care workers earning less than $30,000 a year, whose salaries are funded by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs, and the Department of Youth Services (1599-6899). In addition, the budget recommendation integrates $27.4 million into individual line items to reflect the implementation of the Fiscal Year 2000 salary reserve. Cumulatively since Fiscal Year 1997, this budget recommendation now includes a total of $92.9 million devoted to maintaining higher salaries for our lowest paid human service workers. An additional $10 million reserve specifically for child care providers is also included in the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation (1599-0043).

 
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Traditional line items for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) do not appear in this recommendation as a result of the forward funding legislation passed in Fiscal Year 2000. Previously, the Commonwealth provided funds to the MBTA for services provided in the prior calendar year. Under the new system, the MBTA receives a portion of the Commonwealth sales tax and funds its operations with this dedicated revenue stream. The budget recommendation includes a total of $56.5 million (0699-0015, 1599-9150) to assist the MBTA in retiring previous debt incurred under the old system.

 
Department of Labor and Workforce Development

The Administration's budget recommendation includes $320,000 for youth councils at local workforce investment boards (7003-1000). These councils, which are mandated by the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, will coordinate job search and training programs for youth ages 14 to 21.

 
Department of Housing and Community Development

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes an increase of $2.2 million for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (7004-9024). This funding will support rent and voucher increases in an effort to strengthen affordable housing throughout Massachusetts.

 
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation proposes changing the name of the Division of Registration to the Division of Professional Licensure to better reflect the agency's mission and avoid confusion with the Board of Registration in Medicine. The amount recommended for Fiscal Year 2001 includes an additional $305,000 for the Division of Professional Licensure to operate the Board of Dieticians and Nutritionists, the Board of Home Inspectors, and the Board of Hearing Instrument Specialists (7006-0040). In addition, the recommendation includes $250,000 for the Division of Insurance for increased supervision of financially troubled health maintenance organizations (7006-0020).

 
Department of Education

In Fiscal Year 2001 the Cellucci-Swift Administration will continue its strong commitment to education in the Commonwealth. The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes a $132 million increase in direct education aid to cities and towns, reflecting the Cellucci-Swift Administration's commitment to maintaining the investments made in education reform.

Included in the $132 million increase is $5.5 million to address the disparate wage differences that occur in the various labor market areas within the state. This represents the first year of a four-year commitment to raise wage adjustment factors in the foundation budget so that the salary levels upon which the formula is based are equalized.

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation also includes funding for the following new initiatives to improve the quality of education for students in the Commonwealth:

• $11.6 million for a new program to reduce the class sizes of students in kindergarten through third grade in districts where more than 30% of these students are from low-income families (7061-0022); and
   
  
• $300,000 for grants to school districts to promote respect, integrity, responsibility, civility and tolerance through the professional development of educators and the integration of texts and materials to further character education in public schools (7061-0023).
  

The budget recommendation also includes expansion for several existing programs:

• $54 million to fund the construction of 46 new schools (7052-0003, 7052-0004);
   
  
• $8 million for Regional School Transportation - completing the 3-year commitment to fully fund this initiative (7035-0006);
   
  
• $800,000 for the Attracting Excellence to Teaching Program to provide student loan assistance to teachers graduating in the top 15% of their class (7010-0016); and
   
  
• $452,000 for charter school start-up grants to help new charter schools with planning, development, and leasing or construction of a new facility (7010-0017).
  

In addition, the Administration is recommending a number of non-budgetary education initiatives, including:

• increasing the cap on the number of charter schools allowed to operate in the Commonwealth from 50 to 120, providing parents with more choice; and
   
  
• allowing parents the ability to remove a child from an under-performing school.
  

In addition to all of the above, the Administration is proposing several reorganizations affecting the Department of Education. This first entails establishing the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability. The Office will be responsible for conducting district and school performance evaluations as well as collecting, managing and reporting data on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) examination.

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation also includes comprehensive legislation intended to enhance the quality and effectiveness of the School Building Assistance program, and establishes the School Facilities Commission, the new agency responsible for administering the School Building Assistance program at the Executive Office for Administration and Finance.

Finally, the Administration is recommending that $106.9 million for the Early Childhood Education program (4130-3900) and $6.8 million for state-funded Head Start programs (4130-0022) be transferred to the new Department of Children, Families and Learning in an effort to better coordinate early childhood services for children and their families.

 
Board of Higher Education

The amount recommended for Fiscal Year 2001 includes a transfer of $3.7 million from the Department of Education Drop-Out Prevention Program to the Community College Developmental Education Program (7066-0014). Grants will be provided to community colleges for basic skills remediation programs. In addition, $1.9 million is included to operate new athletic and educational facilities on higher education campuses.

The Administration is also proposing to waive mandatory fees at state and community colleges for children and widowed spouses of Massachusetts police officers, firefighters and correction officers who are killed in the line of duty. Currently only tuition is waived under the Public Service Scholarship Program.

 
Executive Office of Public Safety

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation for Executive Office of Public Safety agencies includes:

• $28.2 million to fully fund the Police Career Incentive Reimbursement ("Quinn") program for local police officers (8000-0040);
   
  
• $4.5 million for the first year of a fully operational new agency - the Sex Offender Registry Board (8000-0125);
   
  
• $275,000 for improvements at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to expand testing, purchase new equipment, and hire additional staff to manage the demands of an increased caseload (8000-0105);
   
  
• a statutory change to allow local police departments to provide Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) to schools, housing authorities, and individuals requesting their own CORIs (Section 7); and
   
  
• $375,000 for snow removal at the Military Division (National Guard) armory sites, a service that will no longer be provided by the federal government (8700-0001).
  

This recommendation also includes funding for several new initiatives at the Department of Youth Services, the Department of State Police, the Department of Correction, and the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

Department of Youth Services

In Fiscal Year 2001, the Department of Youth Services will be transferred from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services to the Executive Office of Public Safety to align the agency with the goals and objectives of public safety.

Significant changes in the juvenile justice system have redefined the way the Department of Youth Services carries out its mission of public safety while providing supervision and services to youth placed in its care and custody by the courts of the Commonwealth.

Supervising more serious offenders until they reach the age of 21 has had a profound impact on the Department's ability to handle security and service challenges. The Department of Youth Services has collaborated with the criminal justice system, law enforcement and the community to accommodate their caseload diversity as well as expand the delivery of services by:

• implementing day reporting centers and electronic monitoring;
• working with state and local law enforcement officers on juvenile crime prevention and anti-gang activities; and
• participating in Community Justice Initiatives administered by District Attorneys' offices.

In addition to moving the Department to the Executive Office of Public Safety, the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation includes an additional $550,000 to fully annualize the cost of a new residential program scheduled to open Fiscal Year 2000 (8320-0300). This program will alleviate overcrowding at residential facilities by adding capacity for 20 additional youths.

Department of State Police

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation includes $4.3 million for the completion of a Fiscal Year 2000 recruit class, including the salaries for these new State Police officers (8100-0063, 8100-0000). This second class is part of the Administration's continuing commitment to crime prevention and public safety.

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation for the State Police also includes $275,000 for ten new dispatchers necessary to handle more than 2,000 emergency calls placed daily from cellular and wireless telephones (8100-0000).

In Fiscal Year 2001, funding for the DNA Unit of the Department of State Police Crime Laboratory will be transferred to a new appropriation (8100-0031). The $3 million recommendation for the DNA Unit includes $173,000 for four new chemist positions to support increased casework levels now that the DNA Unit and DNA Database are operational.

In support of the recent contribution of many citizen volunteers across the Commonwealth to participate in searches for missing persons, the Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation also includes $95,000 for a Civilian Search Team program to be administered by the State Police (8100-0000). Section 84 of this recommendation will exempt civilian members of the team from potential liability for their actions in order to encourage continued participation.

Department of Correction

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation for the Department of Correction includes $10 million for 250 new correctional officers (8900-0001). Although the Department anticipates that its inmate population will continue to remain fairly constant over the next few years, the number of officers necessary to adequately staff its facilities, known as the "relief factor", has increased due to expanded employee benefits such as vacation, sick and family leave time. These additional correctional officers will help the Department ensure that proper and safe staffing levels continue to be maintained around-the-clock at all state correctional facilities.

The recommendation also includes an additional $750,000 for the operational costs of a new detoxification treatment unit for females at MCI-Framingham scheduled to open during the second half of Fiscal Year 2001 (8900-0001).

Sections 78, 79, and 82 of the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation will allow the Department of Correction to contract with private businesses and organizations for the sale of inmate-produced goods. Inmates participating in this program will contribute a certain portion of their wages to offset the cost of their incarceration and to pay victim and witness assessments.

Registry of Motor Vehicles

The Fiscal Year 2001 recommendation for the Registry of Motor Vehicles includes $8.8 million for full-year funding of improvements and enhanced services recommended by the Celluci/Swift Administration in Fiscal Year 2000. This recommendation includes:

• $1.9 million for the operation and maintenance of an enhanced telephone system that will allow the Registry to answer more incoming calls and process additional customer transactions over the telephone (8400-0001);
   
  
• $700,000 to make credit card payments available at all Registry branch offices and mall locations (8400-0024);
   
  
• $530,000 to operate full-service branch offices in Lowell and Southbridge (8400-0001);
   
  
• $179,000 to maintain upgraded computer systems (8400-0001); and
   
  
• $54,000 to maintain line management systems at all branch offices to reduce wait time (8400-0001).

The recommendation also includes the following additional personnel costs (8400-0001):

• $2.9 million to staff extended hours at certain branch offices, from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.;
   
  
• $1.3 million for new phone center agents to answer more customer calls; and
   
  
• $1.1 million to reduce the wait time at certain overburdened branches.

In addition, the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes a new initiative to allow Registry employees to assume certain license testing and vehicle inspection duties previously conducted by State Police officers. Allowing civilians to fulfill these responsibilities at the Registry is a better way to allocate resources; it also allows the State Police to properly reassign 77 troopers to the field. This change is reflected by a $1.3 million increase at the Registry (8400-0001), and staffing and overtime adjustments at the Department of State Police (8100-0007).

 
Executive Office of Elder Affairs

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation for the Executive Office of Elder Affairs includes $2.2 million in increased funding. This increase includes:

• $900,000 for the implementation of 12 new supportive senior housing sites;
   
  
• $1.2 million for the completion of a new management information system; and
   
  
• $131,540 to certify and re-certify an increasing number of assisted living facilities and to process an increasing number of customer inquiries at the Assisted Living Certification and Ombudsman program.
  

The Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation also includes consolidating the Enhanced Community Options account (9110-1500) with the Managed Care in Housing account (9110-1603) into the new Enhanced Home Care Services account (9110-1501). This consolidation will provide home care case managers with greater flexibility than they have currently to refer clients to the most appropriate home care service. Lastly, the Fiscal Year 2001 budget recommendation includes the transfer of $843,651 from the Case Management account (9110-1633) to the Protective Services account (9110-1636) to accurately reflect the use of these funds.

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Executive Office for Administration and Finance
Fiscal Affairs Division
State House, Room 272
Boston, MA 02133
(617) 727-2081


Last updated on January 26, 2000