Pushback: I’m voting ‘yes’ on all 5 state ballot questions

Al Norman

Al Norman

By AL NORMAN

Published: 10-15-2024 4:33 PM

 

I’m voting “yes” on all five state ballot questions. To wit:

Question 1: YES. Allow the auditor to audit the state Legislature.

Question 1 empowers the state auditor to audit the “authorities created by the general court and the general court itself.” The state auditor says: “We all want accountability from our elected politicians — especially when it comes to the use of our tax dollars.” I worked as a lobbyist on Beacon Hill for more than 30 years. The Legislature often made policy and budget decisions in closed-door caucuses, with no record of how lawmakers voted.

The auditor is part of the executive branch, but she’s elected by the voters. The more sunshine on the legislative process, the better. As lobbyist Judy Meredith used to say: “People behave differently when they know they are being watched.”

Question 2: YES. MCAS tests should not be a high school graduation requirement.

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test should not be a high school diploma requirement. Students already have to demonstrate over time their mastery of the competencies as established by their school districts. State law requires students earn a passing score on the grade 10 MCAS tests in English, math and science, technology and engineering. Some students don’t perform well at test-taking.

Question 2 supporters say the MCAS graduation requirement “creates classroom environments filled with anxiety and stress,” to the detriment of “excitement about learning.” Many teachers complain they waste time “teaching to the test.” They say MCAS is a “one-size-fits-all” exam that doesn’t measure other student achievement metrics, such as grade-point average, coursework, and teacher assessments. These years of work are better measures of a student than a standardized test.

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Question 3: YES. Give gig drivers the right to choose a union.

Question 3 gives ride service drivers the right to form unions to collectively bargain with companies like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash. Driver unions would address wages, benefits, terms and conditions of work. The state Employment Relations Board would then require gig companies to bargain with drivers.

Uber, Lyft and DoorDash have spent hundreds of millions of dollars in other states on ballot questions to keep their workers classified as independent contractors, not employees. Last June, Uber and Lyft paid $175 million to settle a Massachusetts lawsuit over wage and hour law violations. “For years, these companies have underpaid their drivers, and denied them basic benefits,” the AG said. Gig drivers have been exploited long enough. They deserve the right to organize their own unions.

Question 4: YES. Decriminalize natural psychedelics and regulate their access.

Question 4 establishes regulated access for people 21 years of age and older to five substances found in mushrooms and plants (not peyote), used to treat PTSD, anxiety and depression. Only licensed therapeutic clinics will sell these products. A 15% state excise tax and a 2% local sales tax will be levied on these psychedelics, which would be decriminalized for personal use. An individual could possess a small “personal use amount.”

These psychedelics won’t be allowed in public buildings or schools. Municipalities will restrict the operations of licensed facilities. Existing motor vehicle laws regarding “operating under the influence” will not change. Employers will restrict the use of these psychedelics by their employees.

Question 5: YES. Give tipped workers more than minimum wage.

State law says workers should not be paid “an oppressive and unreasonable wage.” A wage of less than $15 an hour is considered under state law to be oppressive. Yet statute today allows the cash wage for tipped workers to be not less than $6.75 an hour, plus an amount not to exceed “the value of the tips actually received by an employee.” Question 5 increases the minimum hourly wage an employer must pay a tipped worker gradually — over five years — starting at not less than 64% of the state minimum wage as of January 2025, to not less than 100% of state minimum wage as of January 2029.

When the required hourly wage for tipped workers becomes 100% of the state minimum wage, the employer can implement a “tip pool” that distributes tips to all the workers, including non-tipped chefs and dishwashers. Workers at some restaurants already are making — counting tips — more than the minimum wage. If Question 5 passes, owners likely will pass on higher meals costs to patrons, but once restaurants are all paying their servers the full minimum wage, we customers will know that our generous tips are actually lifting server pay above minimum wage — which is what tipped workers need to support their families.

Al Norman’s Pushback column is published in the Recorder the first and third Wednesday of the month.