{"id":19196,"date":"2024-11-27T11:54:06","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T11:54:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/?p=19196"},"modified":"2024-11-27T11:54:06","modified_gmt":"2024-11-27T11:54:06","slug":"massachusetts-did-well-with-a-democrat-in-the-white-house-the-party-may-be-over-under-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/?p=19196","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts did well with a Democrat in the White House. The party may be over under Trump."},"content":{"rendered":"
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Get Starting Point<\/span><\/p>\n

A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe times have significantly changed and we need to be alert to it and aware of it,\u201d said Jim Aloisi, a former state transportation secretary. \u201cThe Trump administration is not going to be particularly interested in doing favors for our congressional delegation or our governor,\u201d though it might be more sympathetic to businesses in the state, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aloisi said Massachusetts should consider planning for alternate sources of funding, such as adding tolls to infrastructure projects.<\/span><\/p>\n

Both Governor Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu were in Washington, D.C., last week <\/b>to discuss federal funding with officials there. (They also attended a White House celebration for the 2024 champion Boston Celtics.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Leaving a meeting with Healey on Capitol Hill, Representative Stephen Lynch of Boston warned that the state has federal money \u201cthat remains unencumbered . . . the checks haven\u2019t been cashed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want it in limbo,\u201d Lynch said, warning that the Trump administration \u201ccould try to retrench, pull back money.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In a brief interview, Healey said only that \u201cI certainly hope they don\u2019t\u201d try to take back any money already tagged for Massachusetts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Her administration is already moving \u201cas fast as we possibly can\u201d to make sure it completes federally funded efforts before the new Trump presidency ushers in \u201csome risks,\u201d said Quentin Palfrey, the state\u2019s director of federal funds and infrastructure, a new office Healey established to help Massachusetts compete for federal dollars. <\/b>Palfrey said that under Healey, the state has secured $9 billion from the federal government through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS & Science Act, signature spending efforts by President Biden.<\/span><\/p>\n

While it\u2019s too early to predict with certainty, <\/b>some in Massachusetts fear the state won\u2019t see funding on that scale again \u2014 particularly with Elon Musk, whom Trump has appointed to lead a new advisory panel, aiming to slash $2 trillion<\/a> in federal spending.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a transition at the federal level, and that obviously means that we need to move these projects forward quickly,\u201d Palfrey said. \u201cWe are working very hard to lock in the gains that we\u2019ve made.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In Boston, Wu\u2019s ambitious climate agenda<\/a> has relied on federal grants that <\/b>have supported everything from the purchase of electric school buses to workforce training. A spokesperson for Wu said the city is reviewing the status of each federal grant and \u201ccan\u2019t predict exactly how federal funding may change\u201d under Trump.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Boston Mayor Michelle Wu rode one of the city\u2019s 20 new electric school buses following a press conference in 2023.<\/span>Jessica Rinaldi\/Globe Staff<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Currently, billions of dollars flow to Massachusetts from Washington every year for programs ranging from Medicaid to food stamps.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bulk of federal money flows to states and cities in an automatic system based on complex formulas set by Congress, a process that would be difficult to alter without approval by lawmakers. Those include pots such as highway funds that are essential to red and blue states alike, and Congress would be unlikely to cut them off.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s discretionary funding, dollars awarded based on competitive grants, that appear most at <\/b>risk for Massachusetts under a Trump presidency. Few expect government run by Trump to award federal money dollars for climate change adaptations<\/a> at the scale that Biden has, for example.<\/span><\/p>\n

Federal funds are far too important to go without, said Doug Howgate, president of the watchdog group Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe order of magnitude between state and federal resources is so large that it\u2019s important for people to recognize that Massachusetts simply does not have the capacity to replace federal dollars,\u201d Howgate said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, he said, the state should prepare for a new era.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen administrations change, priorities change,\u201d he said. \u201cNever assume that cash is in hand until cash is in hand. Never assume that something that seems like a sure thing is necessarily a sure thing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

One particularly prominent project reliant on federal funds: replacing the aging Cape Cod bridges<\/a>. State officials say they have already secured more than $1.71 billion<\/a> in federal funding for the project, and members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation <\/b>believe <\/b>hard-fought funding for the first bridge is secure, even though the project is years from completion<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no anticipation that these funds are in jeopardy,\u201d said Representative <\/b>Bill Keating, who represents the Cape. And should anything threaten that funding, Massachusetts Democrats are prepared to fight for it, they said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe law is clear that the money has been allocated and encumbered and effectively is gone,\u201d Senator Elizabeth Warren told the Globe earlier this month. \u201cI recognize that Donald Trump does not believe that laws apply to him, but we intend to make sure that they do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, for some, there can be no guarantees under a Trump administration. Aloisi pointed out that funding for projects such as the bridges works through reimbursement \u2014 paying the state back for funds spent on a project, rather than providing the cash upfront \u2014 raising further uncertainty.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not like, \u2018Here\u2019s a check!\u2019 It\u2019s like, no, you do the work and then we reimburse you,\u201d Aloisi said. It wouldn\u2019t happen without controversy, but \u201cthey could easily say, we\u2019re taking reassessment of grants now,\u201d Aloisi added.<\/span><\/p>\n

The incoming Trump administration has also created uncertainty for projects that still need funding, including the second Cape bridge.<\/span><\/p>\n

David Tamasi, a Cape Cod native and longtime Republican lobbyist with Chartwell Strategy Group, said that despite the change in administration, \u201cthe sky is not falling\u201d for Massachusetts. The narrow split in the House will mean Republicans and Democrats have to work together on spending bills, he predicted.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, securing money for the Cape Cod bridge project will likely be more complicated under a Trump administration than it was with Biden in the White House.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t mean that it can\u2019t happen,\u201d Tamasi said. \u201cBut that\u2019s going to require skillful advocacy from the delegation and assorted stakeholders.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Elsewhere in the state, <\/b>State Senator Joanne Comerford has been pushing for years to restore rail service<\/a> between Boston, Greenfield, and North Adams, along the northern edge of Massachusetts, where trains carried passengers until the mid-20th century.<\/span><\/p>\n

The effort is still in early stages, but Comerford acknowledged that obtaining any necessary federal funds will be \u201cmore complicated, \u201cbecause we\u2019ll have a Trump administration.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI would have to be asleep to not be concerned,\u201d Comerford said. Still, she said, \u201cwe don\u2019t need an immediate turn. We can wait out an unfriendly administration. We can think about incremental approaches.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In Boston, Gail Latimore, executive director of the Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation, <\/b>said her community organization is heavily reliant on federal dollars, which has her worried.<\/span><\/p>\n

She said she is still waiting to hear back about a federal grant that would support green retrofits for affordable housing.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a lot of work that is in jeopardy if you do have an administration that doesn\u2019t believe in [climate change],\u201d Latimore said. Her organization might be forced to look more toward state, city, or philanthropic resources, she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps the only guarantee: Expect changes when Trump takes office.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAll we can do right now is kind of play the hand we have,\u201d Howgate said. And, he added with a laugh, \u201cmake sure we have a backup plan.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Tal Kopan and Jim Puzzanghera of the Globe staff contributed to this report.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

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Emma Platoff can be reached at emma.platoff@globe.com<\/a>. Follow her @emmaplatoff<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n