Against a backdrop of federal funding maybe being frozen or not, State Sen. Cynthia Stone Creem and State Rep. Alice Hanlon Peisch shared updates and answered questions at the Wellesley Select Board meeting on Jan. 28 (see start of Wellesley Media recording). This was an annual visit from the legislative delegation, which is also in regular communication with town officials throughout the year.
“These are really trying times,” Creem said at the start of her remarks, referring to uncertainty regarding federal funding that flows to states and municipalities for addressing a variety of needs. Peisch followed by noting that the Governor’s recently submitted budget was crafted “assuming all federal appropriations would continue,” and that the state legislature cannot completely come up with replacements if significant federal dollars disappear under the new administration in Washington, D.C.
Select Board members stressed the importance of state funding to Wellesley, including through earmarks that support food insecurity, economic development, and other programs.
State monies are especially important in light of funding uncertainty at the federal level combined with there being “more good asks than there is reliable funding and sustainable funding that we can ask residents to support” at the local level, Board Chair Colette Aufranc said. Select Board members had questions on everything from climate change to procurement laws to hybrid meetings and transportation funding, she added.
Board member Lise Olney thanked the legislators for their work in helping to get the state’s climate bill passed recently, and asked for insights into what might lie ahead on the greenhouse gas emissions reduction front.
Creem said she’s been impressed with gas company cooperation in supporting a transition to cleaner energy sources, though wondered how changes at the federal level might affect progress here. “Now we’re at the point of saying ‘How can we push you along by 2050?'” she said. “Can we make sure you’re not gong to be replacing the gas lines?… We’re going to try to incentivize them” to come up with plans for geothermal heat, etc.
Creem said legislation has been filed to align transportation and climate advances, to require better information from gas companies on leaks and planned fixes, and to support reforestation. She’s been disappointed at the state’s progress on using federal money to install EV chargers (“We’re coming from behind on that,” she said). Creem also cited challenges of funding all the work that needs to be done given competing interests (say MBTA upgrades vs. investments in regional transportation systems) and the requirement for a balanced budget.
Board member Tom Ulfelder acknowledged procurement laws aren’t a glamorous topic, but he said it’s an issue worthy of review because they have “an enormous impact on municipal capital projects,” particularly for HVAC installations like those recently done at the new elementary schools and Town Hall. This is of growing importance as towns like Wellesley move to electrify more buildings and find themselves dealing with complicated systems. The current procurement setup results in sub-bids that don’t quite sync up and can cost communities money and leave them wrestling with change orders along the way. He’d like to see a way for municipalities to get bids covering all components and having all those components work together. Peisch said that renewed municipal relief legislation in the works should address this problem, and noted that the Massachusetts Municipal Association is also pushing for this.
This meeting was held in person, but Peisch acknowledged concerns about the expiration of the remote meeting allowance at the end of March. The remote and hybrid meeting accommodations went into effect during the pandemic, and while there are pros and cons, they do provide town employees, elected officials, and members of the public more flexibility. Peisch said that she and Creem are pushing to make the formats a permanent option, though added that not all parties across the state are supportive.
Peisch also confirmed that Wellesley should be in good shape regarding MBTA Communities zoning compliance, as the state readjusts in the wake of a court order. Wellesley, like others near public transportation stations, needed to file a plan to make it easier to build multifamily housing. There remains uncertainty on the public housing front, though the passage of a bond bill would mark the state’s biggest investment ever in housing.
Peisch also touched on bills filed this or last session that shouldn’t require funding, so likely won’t get mixed up in some of the confusion swirling around that. This includes a bill filed with the Attorney General that would require all school districts to set policies banning use of electronics from bell to bell (“I think this has very widespread support…,” she said). Peisch also continues to pursue legislation that would allow municipalities to publish legal notices on digital platforms without having to do so in print newspapers, as the current outdated law requires. “We really need to put these ads in outlets that people are reading so that they see them,” she said. The town is also looking to address this legal notice issue through at Town Meeting article.
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