Yep...and that's what's getting the play. It's extemely rare for the Board to vote on anything that isn't unanimous-consent, as they usually won't even schedule a vote in the first place if the whip count isn't guaranteed. This one went down as heavily-divided 3-2 decision. The insider-ball read on that I'm seeing from Comm Mag and a couple other statehouse media outlets today is that it's an overt shot across Baker & DeLeo's (but moreso DeLeo's) bow that the perennial punts on any revenue-side action and lame-o "Reform Before Revenue" excuses out of Mr. Speakah's maw have run their course. And next time they better go big or go home at finally substantially addressing that piece before pulling this service cuts hostage act again, or they won't have the votes. DeLeo might be unmoved by such messaging up in his don't-need-to-give-a-shit ivory tower, but Baker/Pollack just got rudely reminded that patience is wearing thin with their diminishing returns on crisis management (which may also reflect mounting frustration with the Admin. on the state's overall backwards track re: COVID).
Any which way, it's not over by a longshot because the federal response to COVID transit relief is still a total unknown with Congressional control still jump-ball and undecided for several more weeks. But doesn't look like they're getting much credit at all for "managing expectations" with the intentional step-down in cuts. No other state went as nihilist/draconian with its first-offer proposed cuts...not even New York/MTA which is singing similarly toxic tune in style if not altogether substance...while every state was similarly playing the managed-expectations game on the rebound. They got a brutal beatdown in public opinion for overplaying their hand, the oversight board already barbecued them for funny math on their projected deficits, and this divided FCMB board vote is as close as you'll ever structurally get to a sanctioned rebuke. Everyone has their knives sharpened to keep pecking away at this and hold MassDOT's feet to the fire to continue whittling down the list of cuts with any changes in perspective or fortunes. That's a lot of coughed-up leverage by Masshole governance standards. Baker/Pollack in no way are better off today than they were a week ago at keeping this wholly under their control. It looks every bit like they overplayed their hand badly and got sacked for a loss. How consequential a loss remains to be seen amid very changeable circumstances, but if there was an attempt at eight-dimensional chess here it backfired on them to some calculable degree.
) slidepack. Mostly a fluff stats compendium of all the violently negative public feedback, and not any additional substantive detail on the nature of the cuts. Yep...they're still stalling.
