BOSTON — The Massachusetts House and Senate scheduled formal sessions for Friday afternoon amid signs late Thursday pointing to a potential deal between Democratic legislative leaders on an overdue state budget.
The scheduling announcement came at the end of Thursday’s uneventful informal sessions and as lawmakers try to end days of indecision and agree on an annual budget, which was due on July 1.
Budget negotiators have expressed optimism about an agreement for days and reported progress. The big question is how did conferees account for an expected revenue shortfall, unaddressed in bills that passed this spring, that Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr on Thursday estimated at $300 million to $500 million.
The House plans to gavel in at 1:30 p.m., with recorded votes expected after 2 p.m., Second Assistant Majority Leader Paul Donato said before the House adjourned. The Senate plans to begin Friday’s session at 2 p.m.
The Senate plans a joint caucus at noon in Senate President Stan Rosenberg’s office on a budget conference report “which hopefully will be ready for us to vote on tomorrow,” Rosenberg said after Thursday’s session.
“The budget will be ready. We’re very optimistic the budget will be ready. The conference committee on marijuana will continue to meet, assuming that both sides agree to come back to the table. The Senate never left the table,” Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg said marijuana bill negotiators were planning to meet Friday, but he did not expect a vote on marijuana legislation to occur before the weekend.
Donato did not specify which bill or bills might be ready to be voted on.
“We are very optimistic that things are going to be fine, that’s why we’re having a formal session. We’re optimistic, we’re hopeful and that’s where we are at this point. Hopeful and optimistic,” he said.
Six-member conference committees have been charged with reconciling 2018 budget bills and legislation amending the voter-approved recreational marijuana law, but House Speaker Robert DeLeo suspended pot talks Wednesday night to focus on the budget.
Asked if the budget would have been ready if marijuana talks were not put on hold, Rosenberg said, “Absolutely, because that was a bunch of b.s. Whoever made up those rumors and spread them had an intention, a nefarious intention. There were never any discussions linking the two. It was b.s.”
Rosenberg had additional choice words on claims by sources close to the budget and marijuana talks that the bills had become intertwined.
“Miracle of miracles. We suspended — excuse me, a unilateral suspension of the conference committee on marijuana and 24 hours later, miracle of miracles, I’ve been in this building for about 40 years, that’s about the most absurd thing that I have ever seen,” Rosenberg said.
Conference committee reports are not subject to amendment, and are almost always adopted.
If an agreement is reached on the budget, the bill would first be voted on in the House.
Massachusetts is one of a handful of states without an annual budget in place for the new fiscal year.