State's Business Regulations to be Reviewed

By Kyle CheneyPrint Story | Email Story
State House News Service BOSTON - Why should the state fire marshal have to inspect above-ground storage tanks containing nonflammable liquids? Why should two people have to monitor a steam boiler when modern technology may reduce the need? These are two of the many admittedly esoteric questions that businesses in Massachusetts grapple with as they weed through the state's regulatory requirements. But as obscure as they may seem, trying to answer them adds up to thousands of hours for local business owners, who are now appealing to the government for help. In an effort to simplify the tangled web of restrictions and rules, Gov. Deval Patrick on Friday promised a sweeping examination of the commonwealth's regulations that he hopes will "strike the right and most effective balance between protecting consumers and the environment and also enabling businesses to get off the ground." "We have asked the leaders of the [business] community to talk with their members and to give us insights into where we should concentrate," he said after meeting with Attorney General Martha Coakley and 15 prominent business leaders. "I'm happy to have the enthusiastic support of the folks who participated in the meeting." Those participants included Associated Industries of Massachusetts President Rick Lord, Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce President Paul Guzzi, and the heads of the Worcester, Berkshire, South Shore and Cambridge chambers of commerce. The goal, Patrick said, is to "examine all of our business regulations for their simplicity, their straightforwardness, for their ease of compliance." The governor said that over the next three to four months, the administration and Coakley's office would gather information about what most hinders businesses from obtaining development permits and from performing their everyday operations. Then, they would revise regulations deemed barriers, or, if necessary, file legislation. AIM Executive Vice President for Government Affairs John Regan, who attended the meeting, said he was encouraged by the administration's outreach. "From a business climate perspective, these [regulations] are things that aggravate employers because they have to deal with them," he said in a phone interview. "If we can make them a little easier without diminishing public safety ... these are the kind of things we should be doing." Regan said business leaders were mulling a legislative proposal to require a review of state regulations every few years. "Let's not wait for the political leadership to line up," he said. "Thankfully, in this case they have, but let's build it into the normal practice of state government." Another attendee, David Begelfer, CEO of the Massachusetts chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties, also endorsed the notion of recurring reviews. "Having an automatic, periodic look at regulations once they're put in makes an awful lot of sense," he told the News Service. "In any kind of bureaucracy, sometimes the regulations get bogged down. There may be some duplication of effort." Begelfer compared state government to "an established, older business." "If that business doesn't take a look at how it operates on a regular basis, it loses," he said. During the morning announcement, Coakley said her office's division of Business, Technology and Economic Development would work closely with the governor's staff to "clean up some of the overlapping duplicative regulations, but also as we go forward look at ways that we can speed up processes for applying for permits for getting business done, for getting projects done." That office was established this summer, Coakley said, because "we have such an obvious and visible role in terms of consumer protection, environmental protection, but as we go forward with generating those regulations, I think it's really important that the business community have a place to be heard in our office." Patrick said there wasn't a particular agency that business leaders were concerned with but cited the difficulty businesses were having investing in brownfields, contaminated sites that require cleanup from developers before being put into use. Begelfer agreed, calling brownfield regulations "a great example" of an area in need of regulatory reform. He suggested "compliance assistance" to help developers navigate the often confusing process of earning a permit.
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Lanesborough Fifth-Graders Win Snowplow Name Contest

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — One of the snowplows for Highway District 1 has a new name: "The Blizzard Boss."
 
The name comes from teacher Gina Wagner's fifth-grade class at Lanesborough Elementary School. 
 
The state Department of Transportation announced the winners of the fourth annual "Name A Snowplow" contest on Monday. 
 
The department received entries from public elementary and middle school classrooms across the commonwealth to name the 12 MassDOT snowplows that will be in service during the 2025/2026 winter season. 
 
The purpose of the contest is to celebrate the snow and ice season and to recognize the hard work and dedication shown by public works employees and contractors during winter operations. 
 
"Thank you to all of the students who participated. Your creativity allows us to highlight to all, the importance of the work performed by our workforce," said  interim MassDOT Secretary Phil Eng.  
 
"Our workforce takes pride as they clear snow and ice, keeping our roads safe during adverse weather events for all that need to travel. ?To our contest winners and participants, know that you have added some fun to the serious take of operating plows. ?I'm proud of the skill and dedication from our crews and thank the public of the shared responsibility to slow down, give plows space and put safety first every time there is a winter weather event."
 
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