Rep. Brad Jones Answers Reader Questions

Question 1

What would you say are some of the biggest areas of friction in the state legislature?

Naturally I think there are the partisan differences present on a host of issues including: taxes, local aid, and illegal immigration, to name a few.  There are also institutional differences and rivalries between the House and Senate, and between the Legislature and the Executive Branch.  Perhaps the biggest “area of friction” during the past session and this current one remains the issue of expanded gaming.  Another debate that generated a lot of passion involved changes to our municipal health care paradigm – which was recently resolved with a strong balanced reform being put into place.  I think if revenues continue to improve and perform strongly, that the debate about rolling back the sales and incomes taxes to 5% will intensify.

Question 2

What can a state rep do to improve the economy for Massachusetts?

A State Representative can accomplish very little to improve the economy, individually.   Collectively, however, a State Representative can work with like-minded colleagues to propose, support and advance policies that can have a direct benefit for the economy.  I think pushing for stability in our tax structure, a clear and efficient regulatory framework, and targeted investments in our infrastructure can help facilitate economic growth.

Also on an individual basis, a State Representative can obviously push to support projects within his or her districts which are positive for the economy.  Sometimes those projects may require legislative assistance or advocacy at the state level.

Question 3

North Reading is performing its annual review of town-owned land.  Under what circumstances do you support the sale of municipal land?

The question brings back memories from my six years on the Board of Selectmen –  though now I have no role in the sale of town-owned land unless a parcel requires legislative approval to be sold.   

I think every parcel is unique.  First and foremast, larger parcels that might someday meet a town need should be, in most instances, retained by the town.  I think smaller parcels are more advantageous to return to the tax rolls.  To name a couple, if a parcel can be sold to an abutter to enlarge their own parcel, perhaps making their lot a little bigger or allowing them to address sewer needs, then those are strong reasons to dispose of parcels. 

The bottom line is that the town needs to complete its evaluation, decide what parcels might be disposed of, and then evaluate the desire of any applicant to purchase those parcels at auction. 

Question 4

Is there anything that state lawmakers can be doing in Massachusetts to bring the price of gas a little bit back down?

If you buy a gallon of gasoline anywhere in the United States, part of the price per gallon is for the federal, state, and sometimes even local excise taxes.  The national average for those taxes is 49.5 cents per gallon, while in Massachusetts the total per gallon comes to 41.9 cents.  This figure is made up of the federal per gallon excise of 18.4 cents; the state’s 21 cents per gallon gas tax; and the state’s 2.5 cents per gallon underground storage tank (UST) fee which is used to cover the costs of leaking or ruptured underground storage tanks and gas station fuel spills.

In effect, the only thing we could do to reduce the price per gallon would be to reduce or eliminate the state gas tax and UST fee – at maximum reducing the price by 23.5 cents per gallon.  In the past, during times of rapid price escalation, my colleagues and I have proposed a temporary suspension to do just that. 

To provide some context, the state spends well more than the 21 cents per gallon on road and transportation maintenance and improvement efforts annually.  As such, it is unlikely this tax will or could be reduced on any permanent basis. In fact, most of the debate on the gas tax centers around whether it should be increased.  The UST fee generates about $75 million per year, though only about $30 million of this is then sent back to gas stations for clean-ups.  The remainder is used in the state’s General Fund to support the state budget. So, this fee could be reduced to actual costs incurred, but the savings would only amount to about 1.5 cents per gallon.

While the law of supply and demand could reduce the costs of gasoline, that law is not as applicable to gasoline as perhaps most other commodities.  Increased utilization of public transportation and car pooling can reduce the demand for fuel, but so much of the price is determined by factors beyond our state’s control that the price impact is minimal.