Thread by @act_on_mass

Yesterday the House unanimously passed their $56.2B FY24 budget. The budget process was quicker and quieter than normal. Finishing a day ahead of schedule, the House “debated,” “deliberated,” and “voted” on the $56.2B package and its 1,566 amendments in just three days. (1/11)

What’s in the budget? It’s tough to tell — the bill was largely crafted behind closed doors, and the 1,566 amendments were rewritten (or in most cases, entirely removed) by leadership into 7 categorical “consolidated amendments”. (2/11)

A consolidated amendment is a conglomeration of budget amendments in specific categories (education, labor, etc) crafted privately by leadership. Content can be rewritten or fully removed in consolidation, and it’s near impossible to further amend a consolidated amendment (3/11)

We don’t know much about what happened in the Speaker’s lounge, but here’s what we do know: Speaker Mariano and the House Ways & Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz have nearly sole discretion over what does/n’t make it into the budget. This part is key… (4/11) #mapoli

The House voted on leadership's 7 consolidated amendments. The ability to file amendments is the most power any rank-and-file legislator has — so naturally, the way to usurp this power is by stripping it and pressuring reps to vote yes on all consolidated amendments (5/11)

Perhaps the most egregious abuse of power, the Speaker has been known to withhold funding for a district if a rep has a record of “voting off” or disobeying leadership. This is one reason why so many “progressive” reps fall in line with conservative leadership’s vision (6/11)

Oh, not to mention that the Speaker and Ways & Means chair are not publicly elected. The Speaker has historically been a hand-picked successor with a vote as a formality. And then the Speaker gets to appoint his best friend as Ways & Means Chair. Ah, democracy… (7/11)

Let’s look at an example of how leadership kills legislation they don’t like in the budget process. Amendment 1 to the House budget was filed to implement a “kindness manifesto” for representatives to abide by (*holding my laughter*) (8/11)

On the website, it shows Amendment 1 was consolidated into Amendment E: Constitutional Officers & State Administration/Transportation. There is no mention of the manifesto in Amendment E. This is what we call “consolidating away.” (9/11)

Similarly to sending a bill “to study,” consolidated amendments are just another way leadership protects themselves from public scrutiny and concentrates power away from democratically elected rank-and-file reps. (10/11)

If this process sounds wrong to you, it’s because it is. The only way that's going to change is if we let them know we're watching.

Give your rep a call and tell them how you feel about the budget process: bit.ly/find-my-rep-MA (11/11) #mapoli