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2008 Review As 2008 draws to a close, there is no more important time in the Council's 31-year history for your membership investment than now. This year, as the economic tide turns in Massachusetts and across the nation, pressure is mounting on our elected state officials to look for ways to combat a slowing economy. Historically, it is in times of economic crisis that the opportunity for meaningful systems change presents itself. In 2009 the Council will lead a charge for meaningful reform of key aspects of the state's tax, public education and other policies that are often passed over during more tranquil times. A summary of our 2008 accomplishments is available by clicking here. CEO Survey You can help shape this effort by participating in our annual survey (last chance!). The Council distributed its 2009 CEO Survey earlier this month and in response to the current economic situation and recommendations made by the Council Board of Directors, we are pursuing an increasingly focused agenda dedicated to action within the following public policy areas: education, regulation, economic and tax policy. The 2009 CEO Survey is reflective of this and as a result is more focused and concise. Once again this year the CEO Survey results will be linked to MassTrack (see MassTrack section below), which assesses the support of each member of the state Legislature on how they vote on public policy priorities identified in our survey. Our 2008 Legislative Scorecard was released prior to last month's elections and our annual Municipal Rankings was released in late November. This year MassTrack has helped quantify compelling sound public policy decisions among state and local officials, as more than thirty-two cities and towns adopted expedited permitting and each of the top five cities and towns was represented by a top scoring legislator. Please click here to help direct the Council's 2009 agenda by participating in this important survey. Governor's Clean Energy Challenge On November 20, Governor Patrick announced the Governor's Clean Energy Challenge (click to view related press release and MHT article), an effort co-led by the Mass. High Tech Council and the New England Clean Energy Council (NECEC) to encourage Massachusetts businesses to voluntarily reduce carbon emissions by 10% over the next three years. The announcement came at the NECEC's Green Tie Gala where the Governor recognized the Mass. High Tech Council's efforts on environmental issues and lauded the Council's energy program for a decade of strong results and laying the groundwork for this ambitious environmental program. Energy diversity and carbon reduction are not just important for the environment, but also are critical to the economic competitiveness of global technology companies. The Governor's Challenge builds on the Council's strong work over the past decade saving Massachusetts companies more than $50 million and helps meet our shared goals for carbon emissions reduction. Multiple Council members have signed on to become anchor participants in this program and we are currently finalizing details of a partnership to provide an incentive for additional members participating in the Governor's Challenge. Details of this added incentive will be announced soon, in the meantime, for more information on the Governor's Challenge please email Daniella DeChristopher at daniella@mhtc.org. TIMSS The 2007 Trends in International Math and Science Study (TIMSS) results were released December 9 and Massachusetts students showed that they can compete with the world's best in math and science. This quadrennial test provides the most current measure of worldwide student achievement in math and science. Two years ago, the Council helped lead a Board of Education effort to have Massachusetts participate as its own "nation" by securing funding through the Department of Education to measure the Commonwealth's 4th and 8th graders against other nations. Massachusetts and the U.S. ranked as follows among 68 participants:
The TIMSS results released by Governor Patrick show significant improvement over the 1999 results and demonstrate that Massachusetts students and teachers can match up with the world's best in math and science. This dramatic improvement in ranking from 1999 is a resounding endorsement of education reform, and the increased accountability, standards and competition it has delivered to school districts across Massachusetts. Excitement about the announcement was tempered somewhat by the fact that Massachusetts' performance at the 'Advanced' level (the highest international benchmark category) still lags behind our competitors. In science, 22% of Massachusetts 4th graders met the 'Advanced' benchmark, compared to 36% of students in Singapore; in math, 22% were 'Advanced,' behind Singapore (41%), Hong Kong SAR (40%), Chinese Taipei (24%) and Japan (23%). Math and science are the 21st century skills that drive technological innovation. Singapore and Korea have been standard bearers in math and science education during the past decade and it is crucial that we have a clear sense of how the U.S. and Massachusetts students are faring in comparison to their global peers. The Council is dedicated to continued improvement in educator quality and vital systems change. Click to view TIMSS report and related Boston Globe article. Council Opposes Proposed $110 Million Unemployment Insurance Hike in 2009The Patrick Administration recently issued the November 2008 Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund Report. Unemployment Insurance assessments for Massachusetts employers are projected to increase by more than $110 million in 2009 and $612 million by 2011. The Mass. High Tech Council continues working in support of long-term fundamental changes to the entire UI system and remains committed to our goal of making Massachusetts' benefits commensurate with the rest of the country. Requiring 20 weeks of employment to qualify for benefits instead of the current 15 weeks and changing the 30-week collection period to 26, as it is in 48 other states, would mitigate the cost burden facing Massachusetts employers and correct one of the most glaring competitive disadvantages facing the Commonwealth. As we did in 2008, the Council will fight for a 2009 rate freeze. Despite current economic conditions, higher unemployment and a greater reliance on unemployment benefits, the Unemployment Insurance trust fund is adequately funded at its current 2008 rate with a projected year-end balance of $1.137 billion. Employers should not be burdened with an additional payroll cost at a time when job retention is critically important.
Increased Synergy Seen As MassTrack Evolves The 2008 MassTrack (www.masstrack.org) Municipal Technology Rankings (click to view) and Legislative Scorecard (click to view) were recently released. The Legislative Scorecard issued prior to the election and the Municipal Rankings which followed in November are showing evidence of compelling good policy. Increasingly evident is the interconnectedness of the rankings. Last year cities and towns adopting 43D/expedited permitting saw a significant upswing in their ranking, and this year an additional 30+ municipalities enrolled. Additionally, legislators who support the Council's technology agenda and score highly in our rankings are executing good policy at the state and local level. Each of the top five municipalities is represented by a legislator who achieved one of the top two MassTrack scores in the House and Senate. MassTrack Legislative Scores - Top 5 Towns
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