Gov. Baker to detail accomplishments, future goals in speech

Forecasting his second year in the Corner Office, Gov. Charlie Baker stood by his vow to hold the line on taxes even as storm clouds gather for the state’s
finances, offering a series of proposed tweaks to state government – and reminders of his nuts-and-bolts approach – in his first State of the Commonwealth address last night.

Gov. Charlie Baker hailed what he called the spirit of bipartisanship on Beacon Hill as he detailed some of his goals for the new year in his first State of the State address Thursday.

Baker told WBUR that numerous issues he’ll speak about in his address – such as concerns over the state’s expected budget shortfall, energy solutions and its opioid crisis – are topics many MA residents have heard him discuss in the past.

The governor said the spending plan will also include an additional $72 million in education aid that is earmarked for public schools.

MMA President David Dunford said the Baker administration’s release of $100 million in Chapter 90 transportation funding that had previously been withheld, and a roughly $30 million account Baker created to make pothole and road fix funds available to municipalities after last winter are evidence of his commitment to local governments.

“To the taxpayers who may never ride the T but who write a $1 billion check to the system every year, I say you deserve to know that your support is delivering a reliable, affordable, transparent and efficient service”, Baker said.

Finally, he will take credit for overseeing the overhaul of technology at both the Health Connector and the Registry of Motor Vehicles where state officials went through a successful open enrollment period for health insurance and reduced wait-times for license renewals and other transactions.

Besides the opioid bill, Baker will also press lawmakers to act on bills that would raise the state cap on charter schools and make it easier for the state to tap into hydropower from Canada. Baker said doctors today “are far too casual about the addictive consequences of these medications” while parents, teachers and coaches “don’t know enough about opioids to protect their kids”. “But a state that places such high value on education should not place arbitrary limits on high-quality schools”.

“Some have lamented how boring we are, and I must admit, that makes me smile”, said Baker in one of his speech’s few colorful moments. “And it should not sit idly by while so many parents feel the pain of missed opportunity for their children”.

It is among a handful of movie projects about the terror attack now in the pipeline.

“This is a real human tragedy”, Baker said.