BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts lawmakers are planning to hold their first hearing on Republican Gov. Charlie Baker’s proposed $42.7 billion state budget for the fiscal year that starts in July.
Top administration officials along with Attorney General Maura Healey, state Treasurer Deb Goldberg, Secretary of State William Galvin are among those invited to testify on Monday before the House and Senate Ways and Means Committees.
The governor has proposed an overall 1.5 percent increase in spending with no hikes in any broad-based taxes. The plan does recommend an increase in the real estate transfer tax and a new tax on pharmaceutical companies that sell opioid medications.
Baker also wants to boost the state’s share of public school funding by $262 million to help cover a proposed revamp of Massachusetts’ 25-year-old education funding formula.
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