Thank You SPOA Members: A Big Win for Common Sense in the Boston Tax Shift Battle

Jan 1

Since our last update, the serious statewide implications of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's tax shift plan led to its demise. Thanks to your help and our advocacy, the state senators saw that the legislature normalizing the use of the home rule petition to work around the public process of a tax override would have set a bad precedent for all municipalities in Massachusetts. While refusing to trim her bloated budget, the faulty calculations used by Mayor Wu to justify this tax hike on the already troubled commercial sector, as well as Boston residents, further sealed its fate.

This is a big win for SPOA and those who believe in fiscal sanity. We would like to thank the following elected officials who resisted political pressure to vote against this dangerous bill in their respective chambers.

Massachusetts Senate

Sen. Nick Collins (D)
Sen. William Brownsberger (D)
Sen. Susan Moran (D)
Sen. Peter Durant (R)

Massachusetts House

Rep. Dave DeCoste (R)

Boston City Council

Councilor Ed Flynn (D)

Also, we have included an updated menu of media appearances where SPOA continued its advocacy against this bill in different news outlets. You can read more below:

Boston Herald. "Joint Revenue Committee chair speaks out on Boston Mayor’s tax shift bill ahead of third Senate appearance.” December 9, 2024.

MassLive. "State senator blocks Boston tax shift vote for third time Monday." December 9, 2024.

State House News Service. "New Valuations Shift Calculus On Boston Tax Bill." December 5, 2024.

The Boston Globe. "Amid contentious debate, Mass. Senate punts vote on Wu’s property tax proposal to Thursday." December 2, 2024.

Boston Herald. "After delay, Boston Mayor Wu’s tax shift plan clears the House, advances to Senate." December 1, 2024.

Boston 25 News. "Small property owners urge Mass. Senators to Reject Boston commercial property tax increase." December 1, 2024.

Dorchester Reporter. "House approves Boston tax bill, sends on to Senate." November 26, 2024.

7News Boston WHDH. "House vote sends Boston tax bill to Senate." November 26, 2024.

NBC10 Boston. "Boston property tax bill moves to state Senate." November 25, 2024.

NBC10 Boston. "Mayor Wu's Boston tax plan blocked by Republican lawmaker." November 22, 2024.

WBUR News. "Republican lawmaker delays vote on Boston property tax shift plan." November 22, 2024.

WBZ NewsRadio. "Boston Tax Bill Hits Snag In Massachusetts House." November 21, 2024.