Contested Ballot Initiatives Mobilize State Voters

While most Massachusetts voters heading to the polls today have paid little heed to state issues, eight ballot initiatives--from tax cuts to health care reform--could have a bigger impact for the state than the ultimate presidential victor.

Television and radio ads have been swamping the Bay State airwaves for the last month, arguing opposing sides and urging voters to turn out to vote on the initiatives.

With Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 virtually reassured reelection and no close races for the House of Representatives, the most contested races are over the slew of ballot initiatives which are crowding today's ballot.

But the two issues that have drawn most of the spotlight have been proposals to cut income taxes and extending health care reform.

Question Four on today's ballot would reduce the state's personal income tax rate from its current 5.95 percent to 5 percent over the next three years. When fully implemented, the plan would reduce state revenues by $1.2 billion per year.

The measure has been heavily endorsed by the state's Republican leadership and attacked by the legislative Democrats. Republicans say the cut is just a fulfillment of the legislature's promise, while Democrats said the lost revenue from the cut would make the state unable to face pressing needs or an economic downturn.

Recently in ads and in public, Democrats have been trying to tie the proposal directly to generally unpopular Gov. A. Paul Cellucci and Lt. Gov. Jane Swift and make the question a referendum on their leadership.

A statewide poll conducted last week by the Boston Herald and Boston's WCVB-TV showed the question leads by a 47 to 37 percentage point margin. However, opposition to the cut seems to be gaining momentum, as the approval rating for the cut has shrunk dramatically since the summer.

Another tax-related proposal, Question Six, would allow state residents and businesses to claim a tax credit for tolls they pay on state roads, bridges and tunnels and motor vehicle taxes. If passed, it will drain between $400 and $650 million per year from state coffers.

The other heavily contested issue on the ballot is Question Five. The proposal would create a new patient's bill of rights to give residents protection from insurance company abuses. It tries to cut the amount insurance companies spend on advertising and lobbying. It would also work towards establishing universal health care coverage, although it does not mandate such a system be established.

Opponents of the proposal argue it will drive up health care costs and put insurers and health care providers out of business. It would also replace a patient's bill of rights enacted by the legislature this summer, which many doctors claim is superior to the wording in the ballot question.

Opponents of Question Five have been able to widely publicize their message thanks to over $3 million contributed to the committee opposing the question. Most of these contributions have come from insurance companies.

A recent Herald-WCVB poll shows the heavy spending by the opponents of Question Five seems to be ineffective, as the proposal has a commanding 51 to 29 percentage point lead.

Today's ballot also includes citizen-initiated proposals to outlaw greyhound racing, give greater tax benefits to charitable contributions and revise laws related to drug crimes, to place a greater emphasis on drug treatment and to use proceeds of drug-related property seizures to go to treatment.

Two state constitutional amendments also appear today for final voter approval. One would disenfranchise those incarcerated for felony convictions. Another would require the state to redraw election boundaries based on 2000 U.S. Census data for elections held in 2002, instead of waiting until 2004, which the constitution currently requires.

Finally, some portions of Cambridge and the surrounding communities, including residents of Mather, Dunster, Leverett and Adams House and the Union dorms, will vote on a non-binding resolution to urge the suspension of the administration of the MCAS test in Massachusetts schools.