Will Brownsberger -- State Representative, Democrat, 24th Middlesex District

The two year formal legislative session, now ended, has been a mixed bag. Perhaps the best news about the session is that we got through it.

In 2008, Massachusetts passed a law prohibiting gifts by drug and device companies to doctors. I voted for the ban then. After revisiting the issue, I continue to support the ban. I will listen carefully to the arguments on the floor, but I expect to vote against repeal.

I’ve always wondered – why do we need a Governor’s Council? What duties do they perform that could not be covered by other existing bodies?  As far as I can tell: approval of gubernatorial appointments (including judges), prison pardons, and something about payments from the treasury. How much does this cost, in terms of salary, [...]

Will, There was an article in Saturday’s NYT entitled “In Budget Crisis States Take Aim at Pension Costs“.  It quotes a pension expert who finds that states like Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana and New Jersey are less than 10 years from exhausting their pension funds. However, as the article says “…paying public pensions straight out of [...]

What is the status of the health insurance bill?  I remain very concerned that this will be done in a way that allows municipalities to make unilateral changes in negotiated labor agreements — I gather that such a power is in fact a provision of the Senate bill, but NOT of the House bill.

In April, the House, with leadership support, passed two big steps in the right direction on financial transparency. The Senate, during budget debate, approved roughly the same measures, making their final passage highly likely.

The disappointing news last week was the response of some leaders that political influence is OK in probation. Probationary supervision is an important strategy for cost-effectively controlling crime and it is centrally important that we do probation well.

I saw today (boston.com) that the Senate voted to eliminate Evacuation Day and Bunker Hill Day holidays. I’ve lived here for more than 20 years and have been stumped why they still exist. We all know one is just an excuse for St Patrick’s Day partying by Boston people.  If you chopped out Patriots Day [...]

The House agreed last week to make important improvements in budget and tax credit transparency.

Will, As you well know many Towns and Cities are in crisis mode dealing with budget shortfalls. In Belmont we are looking at approx a $3.2m deficit assuming a $300k transfer from free cash is applied.  An Override is on the table but it is uncertain it will pass and the consequences of passing it [...]

I applaud your efforts toward transparency re: state contracting. I am a bit concerned, however, re: transparency as understood by the Pioneer Institute.

I remember how shocked I was when the cable broadcasts of the House and Senate sessions were dropped, and then I checked into it and found that long before I even moved to Massachusetts, which was in 1983, the legislature had voted to exempt itself from both Open Meetings laws and the Freedom of Information [...]

This from a lifelong Democrat and continuing true believer in government spending: The heart of our problem is a sense of entitlement to spend the taxpayers’ money.

Just read this Globe article today.; A growing group of dissidents in the Massachusetts House yesterday called on Speaker Robert A. DeLeo to open the chamber’s books, allow healthy debate on all bills, and subject the Legislature to the laws that cover other elected bodies – including laws on public records, open meetings, and competitive [...]

Thank you for your efforts on behalf of a more transparent legislature. While information is essential to democracy, it is the organized participation of informed people that is necessary to achieve the political and economic reforms that will move us toward a more just society. We are fortunate to have an honest and progressive voice [...]

There is a deep and passionate conversation going among legislators right now around the issue of transparency. There is a growing group of legislators who feel that the legislature needs to change the way it manages its own business.

This post relates to a fairly technical question that has been the subject of some confusion on the House floor: Exactly what information is available to the public about spending on legislative operations?

I found myself voting in the minority — with the Republicans and a small group of Democrats — on three financial integrity issues this week.

Above all, it’s too complicated. Complexity creates abuses and inequities. It also makes the system hard to evaluate and undermines confidence in the system.

The Ethics reform bill that we passed earlier this year imposes a number of new disclosure and procedural requirements.