May 5,2002

Dear Colleagues:

The FY03 House budget debate will begin on Wednesday, May 8. There were 1555 amendments filed to the budget that have just become available to review. Below are listed the amendments applicable to higher education that MTA has filed as well as some of the higher education amendments that MTA will support. This is only a partial listing.

The letter that MTA sends to the House urging either support or opposition to amendments will be posted on MTA's web site the beginning of the week.

Debate on the budget is scheduled to begin Wednesday, May 8. Our immediate challenge is to convince House members to allocate necessary resources to stave off devastating layoffs and program cuts and to fund the higher education contracts.

It is essential that the state representatives hear from MTA members!

Proposed Higher Education Budget Amendments (Partial List): Collective Bargaining Agreements - Thirty-nine state employee contracts remain unfunded. Filed by Rep. John Slattery (D-Peabody), this amendment for $29.5 million will fund the negotiated increases. Included in this amendment is $14,622,000 for MTA higher education affiliates. The total amounts for each affiliate are:

MSP/FSU $8,865,000
MSP/Lowell $2,492,000
USA/Amherst $1,045,000
APA (State Colleges) $2,220,000

Campus Line-Items - three amendments have been filed increasing the budgeted line items for all public higher education campuses. The total increases for each higher education segment and their legislative sponsors are:

Community Colleges $29,115,134 Rep. Philip Travis (D-Rehoboth)
State Colleges $21,685,455 Rep. Anthony Verga (D-Gloucester)
University of Mass. $29,343,904 Rep. Ellen Story (D-Amherst)
Education Reference $ 5,000,000 Rep. Ellen Story (D-Amherst)
Materials (all higher ed campuses)

Health Insurance Premiums - by increasing the Group Insurance Commissionís budget by $29 million, this amendment, filed by Rep. Martin Walsh (D-Boston) would repeal the proposed one-third health insurance premium share increase for state employees and restore the employer and employee shares to their current levels of 85% and 15% respectively.

Other Amendments Supported by MTA (partial list):

Retiree COLA Base - this amendment, filed by Rep. David Nangle (D-Lowell), would increase the base pension on which retiree COLA's are calculated from the first $12,000 of pension income to $15,000.

Pension Liability Fund - this amendment, filed by Rep. Michael Cahill (D-Beverly), restores the $129 million being withheld from the teachers and state employees pension liability fund required by the current funding schedule law.

Retired State Employee Health Insurance Premiums - this amendment, filed by Rep. J. Michael Ruane (D-Salem), would repeal the proposed one-third increase in health insurance premium shares for state employees who have retired since July 1, 1994 and restore the employer and retiree premium shares to 85% and 15% respectively.

Pat Markunas
MSCA President

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