The annual state budget process moved into the next stage this week with the release of the House Ways and Means fiscal year 2022 proposal. With many factors looming over state spending -- policy changes from the Biden administration, billions in federal aid dollars, and an evolving revenue picture -- the News Service's Chris Lisinski talks with Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation Executive Vice President Doug Howgate and Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center Policy Analyst Monique Ching to dive into how House lawmakers are suggesting the state spend $47.65 billion. Tune into this week's "State House Takeout" to hear about surprises in the House Ways and Means proposal, impact of revenue outlooks, and gaps in the spending recommendations.

State House Takeout

Status Quo Budget?

Advocates and public officials alike have been pushing for the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines even before the state announced its vaccination plan. On this week's "State House Takeout," reporter Katie Lannan sits down with Dr. Atyia Martin and Eva Millona of the Vaccine Equity Now! Coalition to discuss the group's demands and how the state can fairly get shots into residents' arms.

Equity In Vaccinations

As the one-year anniversary approaches of Massachusetts' COVID-19 state of emergency, the SHNS reporters recount their memories from March 2020, recap the news of this week, and look ahead to the vaccination outlook for March 2021.

It's Been A Year

After the state's vaccine appointment website crashed the day that approximately 1 million residents became newly-eligible for shots, Gov. Charlie Baker took to GBH on Thursday to say his "hair is on fire about the whole thing." On this week's "State House Takeout," GBH's Mike Deehan, the Boston Herald's Erin Tiernan, and SHNS' Katie Lannan and Sam Doran round up the latest vaccination news.

9-Alarm Hair Fire

On this week's "State House Takeout," reporter Chris Lisinski dives into new election reform efforts and legislation with Sen. Cynthia Creem and MassVOTE Policy and Communications Manager Alex Psilakis. Tune in this week to hear about the senator's new bill, dubbed the VOTES Act, the effort to implement same-day voter registration, and make voting by mail permanent in Massachusetts.

Vote Vote Vote

Wondering how lobbyists manage to serve their clients during a pandemic where face-to-face interactions have been forced into the virtual realm? Ben Fierro of Lynch & Fierro, LLP joins State House News Service's Matt Murphy on this week's "State House Takeout" to talk about the pandemic's impact on the lobbying world and what it's been like to keep an eye on and in contact with legislators from afar. Fierro is a 40-year veteran of the lobbying world and first started on Beacon Hill in 1981 when former Gov. Ed King was in office.

Pandemic Lobbying

On this week's "State House Takeout", reporter Katie Lannan sits down with MassBudget President Marie-Frances Rivera and Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation Executive Vice President Doug Howgate for a close look at Gov. Charlie Baker's fiscal 2022 budget, what people should be paying attention to, and how the spending plan affects K-12 education.

Baker's Budget

A class of 19 new lawmakers joined the Legislature this month and many of them have only known lawmaking during the COVID-19 era where a large majority of House and Senate functions have been pushed into the virtual realm. On this week's "State House Takeout," hear from two of the new legislators, Sen. Adam Gomez (D-Springfield) and Rep. Meg Kilcoyne (D-Northborough) on what it's like to arrive at the State House virtually.

The COVID Class

On this week's State House Takeout, join reporters Matt Murphy, Katie Lannan, Colin Young, and Chris Lisinski as they break down the start of the 2021-2022 session, vaccination rollout efforts, the latest on the climate and emissions bill, and the security situation at the State House ahead of the Presidential Inauguration next week.

Interminable Weeks

With only hours remaining in a year that drastically reshaped all of our lives, the State House News Service crew sits down to reflect on the top stories of 2020. From a reckoning on race to former Speaker Robert DeLeo stepping down and a historically late budget to service cuts at the MBTA, the pandemic has touched every aspect of life and state government. For the last time in 2020, listen to this week's "State House Takeout" to revisit the most impactful events of the year as determined by the journalists on top of Beacon Hill. Weekly Roundup - Top 10 Stories of 2020: https://www.statehousenews.com/news/20202708

Exit Strategy

With Gov. Charlie Baker rolling back the state's reopening plan and issuing new COVID-19 guidance, retail store capacity limits have been cut and restaurant patrons will have to vacate their tables after 90 minutes. The State House News Service's Sam Doran talks to Retailers Association of Massachusetts President Jon Hurst and Massachusetts Restaurant Association President Bob Luz on this week's "State House Takeout" to break down how the orders affect dining locales and local shops

Ordering Out And Online

With 32 days remaining until the legislative session ends on Jan. 5, the branches sprung into action on two closely watched bills this week: policing reform and the five-month-overdue state budget. On this week's "State House Takeout," the News Service's Sam Doran talks with Shira Schoenberg of CommonWealth, Steve Brown of WBUR, and the News Service's Matt Murphy about what happened this week and what's left to tackle as the final month of the 2019-2020 session kicks off.

The Final Countdown

Budget talk never dies, it just fades away for a few months. With COVID-19 scrambling the timeline for pretty much everything, the passage of a fiscal 2021 budget is running up against the start of talks for fiscal 2022. The State House News Service's Katie Lannan checks-in with Marie-Frances Rivera of Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center and Eileen McAnneny of Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. Listen to this week's "State House Takeout" to satisfy all your budget cravings and hear two of the state's top fiscal experts react to the House and Senate budget bills and what they have their eyes on as fiscal 2022 approaches.

Budget Frenzy

Numbers are flying around. Reporters are doing math. And in Massachusetts, election officials and budget writers are crunching those numbers during a week like no other. The "State House Takeout" crew sits down to parse through a huge news week including election results for legislative races and ballot questions. Stick around for a preview of next week's House budget debate and discussion of legislative leadership's commitment to debate reproductive health care legislation this year.

It's A Numbers Game

State House Takeout brings you weekly takeaways from Beacon Hill with the reporters of the State House News Service.

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State House Takeout

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