Delegates at the MTA Annual Meeting threw their support behind several initiatives that had been expected to reach the ballot in November. That included financial support, with delegates voting to authorize the use of MTA resources to advance two ballot questions and oppose two others.
Specifically, these were: $1 million to support a rent control ballot initiative; $2 million to fight passage of two tax-cut ballot initiatives; and $500,000 to retain gun-control protections.
Since that time, two of these proposals have been rejected by court rulings for inclusion on the Nov. 3 statewide ballot – the rent control initiative and one of the two tax-cut initiatives. The MTA remains opposed to the remaining tax-cut initiative – Question 5 – which would restrict state revenue. A third proposal, seeking to overturn gun protections, made it to the ballot as Question 9.
Rent Control
The state Supreme Judicial Court on June 24 rejected a ballot initiative that would have limited rent increases in most cases to no more than the inflation rate or 5 percent a year, whichever is lower. In its decision, the court cited as unconstitutional in a ballot question a proposed exemption for faith-owned properties. The ballot question was sought by the Keep Massachusetts Home campaign, a coalition of labor, housing, faith and community organizations working to pass rent stabilization measures and address the state’s housing affordability crisis.
Annual Meeting delegates voted to provide funding and support for the campaign as housing affordability remains one of the top economic issues facing educators and working families across Massachusetts.
Tax Cut Initiatives
MTA delegates agreed to provide $2 million to oppose two tax-cut ballot initiatives, including one that would have removed $4.8 billion from the annual state budget, while benefiting wealthy individuals. That proposal, put forward by the Massachusetts High Technology Council, was struck down in mid-June by the state Supreme Judicial Court, which found its summary “materially misstates” the scope of the tax cuts. The decision followed a legal challenge funded by the MTA and others, which argued successfully that the summary failed to disclose that the question would reduce capital gains taxes.
However, another tax-limiting proposal advanced by the same business council has made it to the ballot as Question 5. This question would make the state’s so-called 62F revenue cap more draconian and lead to painful cuts to public programs, including education, healthcare and local aid. More information on its impact is available at ProtectMassachusettsFuture.com. The MTA is among a coalition opposing this ballot question.
Gun Control
In 2024, Massachusetts passed stronger gun safety measures, including reducing untraceable ghost guns. This year, a proposal that would rescind these commonsense protections has been approved for the ballot as Question 9. In May, the MTA Annual Meeting delegates voted to designate $500,000 to assist in measures to control the proliferation of guns. This would require voting YES on Question 9 to stop the repeal effort. More information about the campaign – Yes on 9 – is at www.yesforasafema.com/. The MTA has consistently taken stances to support the safety of educators and students through gun controls. In 2022, a large contingent of educators participated in the March For Our Lives rally in Boston.
Expanding the Public Records Law & Legislative Stipends
In addition to the initiatives MTA committed resources to support, the MTA endorsed an additional two questions without committing resources to them. One is Question 1, which would expand the public records law to cover the office of the governor and the Legislature. Both are currently exempt from the public records law.
The second is a proposal that would have changed how legislators receive stipends for specific assignments, but the state Attorney General’s Office rejected it as unconstitutional in response to a Supreme Judicial Court ruling. The issue will not appear on the ballot.
