Gov signs 2013 state budget

BOSTON, Mass. (WWLP) - Governor Deval Patrick signed a $32.5 billion 2013 state budget Sunday that contains no new taxes or fees.  It draws $350 million from the state’s rainy day fund and makes significant investments in education, cities and towns and community colleges.

“This budget, like our past budget, is fiscally responsible and the taxpayers should care about that,” said Executive Office of Administration and Finance Secretary Jay Gonzalez.  “We are making some key investments in areas that are priorities for the governor and the Commonwealth as a whole.”

Governor Patrick vetoed more than $32 million in spending proposed by the Legislature, including $10 million to boost salaries for underpaid human service workers.  The Patrick administration says that money will instead go towards an effort to reform the entire human service system.

Provider’s Council CEO Michael Weekes represents a number of human service workers in western Massachusetts and hopes the Legislature will override the governor’s veto.  “We need to help those workers and having them pay for this reform effort, although it’s a good reform effort, but having them pay for it and bear the [cost at the] moment is not a good idea,” said Weekes.

Patrick also approved immigration reforms that increase penalties on forged drivers’ licenses, but he stopped short of requiring the RMV to verify a person’s legal residence when registering a car. Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition spokesperson Frank Soults had mixed feelings about Patrick’s amendment.

“This just means that they can breath a bit of a sigh of relief, but it doesn’t, again, it doesn’t mean that their lives are safe or that they can suddenly get driver’s licenses, there’s a lot more work to be done,” said Soults.

The governor’s vetoes will allow spending to be re-directed to an August sales tax holiday, homeless housing and youth programs. The Legislature can override the vetoes with a two thirds majority.