Last week, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means (SWM) released its Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19) Budget proposal. With a total investment of $41.42 billion, the proposal continues to support vital government services, invest in our state’s strengths and confront obstacles to continued growth. I was especially pleased to see the proposed budget include substantial investments in public education, transportation, mental health treatment, and working families.
As you may know, my colleagues and I will be debating this budget proposal on the Senate floor next week. While this proposal includes significant investments and important policy initiatives, I look forward to strengthening the final Senate Budget during the amendment process. To that end, I’ve filed 24 amendments on several topics, including increasing access to mental health and substance use treatment, protecting medically complex and fragile children in the Commonwealth, securing a prevailing wage for quasi-state agency employees, and investing in community organizations and local initiatives throughout the 4th Middlesex district.