BOSTON

The road to
1ST HAMPDEN-HAMPSHIRE DISTRICT SENATE RACE SERIES
Tim Allen James Chip Harrington Tom Lachiusa Eric Lesser Aaron Saunders
This is the frst in a four-part
series of coverage of the Demo-
cratic State Senate Primary race
in the 1st Hampden and Hamp-
shire District replacing Sen.
Gale Candaras (D-Wilbraham).
An editorial board made up of
editors of Turley Publications
newspapers in the district has
determined that the candidates
can speak for themselves when
we posed questions to them cov-
ering a range of issues, the econ-
omy, public safety, education and
questions from our readers.
Q
: What would you do
to get the attention
of leaders in Boston
and Eastern Massachusetts
about the plight of the Greater
Springfeld economy, which is
lagging behind the rest of the
state?
TIM ALLEN
A
: I recently released an
economic development
plan outlining my pro-
posals to attract businesses to the
region and ensure that we have
a labor ready workforce with the
skills to match local employer
needs.
My plan calls for a Jobs and
Economic Development Sum-
mit, which would bring together
members of the business, edu-
cation and public sectors. The
summit would be an opportunity
for local workforce development
leaders, business owners, Cham-
ber representatives, the Eco-
nomic Development Council of
Western Massachusetts, state of-
fcials, including a new governor,
and legislators to convene and
develop a coordinated strategy to
grow business and employ local
residents in living wage jobs in
our region.
As senator I will put prior-
ity focus on the growing area of
healthcare jobs and careers and
precision manufacturing, which
is strong in the Valley, but lacks
the trained workforce to fll avail-
able vacancies. These ideas are
included in my comprehensive
Economic Development plan
that can be accessed at TimAl-
len2014.com.
JAMES CHIP
HARRINGTON
A
: As a member of the
Western Massachusetts
legislative delegation
I would encourage my fellow
Western Massachusetts senators
to form a caucus. As individuals
we speak for our district but as
a group we speak for the entire
region, which includes Spring-
feld, Westfeld, Greenfeld and
Pittsfeld.
We are lagging behind Cen-
tral and Eastern Massachusetts
in a very signifcant way. Spring-
feld is the center of our universe
and all surrounding communities
will succeed or struggle based
on the city. The same is true for
the other towns in Western Mas-
sachusetts that surround a city. I
have lived in this district my en-
tire life, I own a small business
and I feel the gradual decrease
of business we are experiencing.
My customers have lost jobs or
had their hours cut which has
affected my business and every
business in this region.
As a state senator I will
bring real world experience from
Western Massachusetts to the
Senate. We must work as a group
regardless of party affliation to
improve our current economic
state in Greater Springfeld. The
leaders in Boston will not have
the ability to ignore our collec-
tive voice. We also have an op-
portunity to be heard now that
State Senator Stan Rosenberg
becomes Senate President.
TOM LACHIUSA
A
: To get the leaders in
Boston to pay attention
to Greater Springfeld
I would use the following ap-
proach: First I would need to
share information about our area
that would trigger some emo-
tional response in the leaders.
They would need to see that our
concern is something they feel
emotionally connected to after
hearing about the real issues we
have.
The second part of the pro-
cess would involve providing
data that shows Greater Spring-
feld is lagging behind and to
what extent this can be proven.
The last part of the process
would involve presenting a so-
lution that would connect to the
emotional concern that was trig-
gered in Part One of the process.
If emotion to support Greater
Springfeld is not generated in
the power clique of leaders, we
need to try again with a better ar-
gument. An asset that should help
our area of the state is the lead-
ership position that Senator Stan
Rosenberg of Amherst will have.
He has a direct understanding of
Belchertown and feels connected
to that part of our district.
ERIC LESSER
A
: Ultimately the great-
est way to ensure we are
part of the discussion is
to make sure we have a seat at
the table, and the way we do that
is by organizing, demanding that
our voices in Western Massachu-
setts are heard, and offering new
ideas and new vision to change
the status quo. Otherwise, well
be stuck with the same old rou-
tine of Western Massachusetts
getting ignored. As state senator
I will vigorously advocate for
Greater Springfelds strengths,
and for policies that build on
those strengths, for example,
increased support for our high-
tech manufacturing sector, and
improvements to our infrastruc-
ture, including high speed rail to
Boston.
Its not fair that Eastern
Massachusetts gets all the at-
tention when we have so many
needs here. As state senator, I
will continue to knock on doors
throughout our area to learn frst-
hand what our citizens need.
AARON SAUNDERS
A
: As your state senator I
would use the years of
experience I have in state
government working on behalf
of our communities to hit the
ground running. My six years as
Senator Gale Candaras chief of
staff will be instrumental in en-
suring our voice is heard. West-
ern Massachusetts cannot afford
to have our next state senator
learn on the job while vital fund-
ing and opportunities go else-
where.
Western Massachusetts
also has a historic opportunity
with the presumptive next Sen-
ate President, Stan Rosenberg.
I have had the pleasure of work-
ing with Sen. Rosenberg, and
the rest of the Western Massa-
chusetts delegation for the better
part of a decade and I know that
we share many of the same re-
gional goals.
Q
: What would you do to
bring more technology
and innovation compa-
nies to Greater Springfeld?
TIM ALLEN
A
: I believe that in combi-
nation with investments
in infrastructure that the
Greater Springfeld area can le-
verage the assets it already has
in order to realize its potential as
a hub for innovation and techno-
logical advancement.
For instance, Springfeld
Technology Park offers a state-
of-the-art and redundant fber op-
tic network making it a location
that is primed for innovation and
tech-oriented businesses. The
Technology Park employs about
800 workers in a range of tech-
nology-based companies. Grow-
ing our precision manufacturing
sector within the Greater Spring-
feld Economy will be critical as
well this in an area we have
excelled at and there are 400
precision manufacturers in the
region who continue to evolve
and innovate. These are jobs that
are not going overseas and need
our support. We also need to sup-
port the Tech Foundry, a training
program for people who want to
enter the Information Technol-
ogy feld.
* Massachusetts numbers are reflected in Primary Value (Left Axis) all other is Secondary Value (Right Axis)
LABORFORCE
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1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Massachusetts
Hampden County
Hampshire County
Franklin County
Three Counties
Suffolk County
Springfield
Part 1: The Greater Springeld Economy
Please see SENATE SERIES,
on following page
Photo courtesy Afliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springeld
Graph shows Hampden and Hampshire County lagging behind the eastern part of the
state in job growth.
JAMES CHIP
HARRINGTON
A
: Leverage the talent we
currently have throughout
our Knowledge Corri-
dor with the plethora of colleges
universities, community colleges
and our public schools especially,
or vocational schools to prove
that we have the proper and ade-
quate human capital to make sure
these companies have options or
employees.
In addition, we must ask ex-
actly what these companies need
when it comes to their work-
force.
TOM LACHIUSA
A
: Much of the science-
based cutting edge tech-
nology research is con-
ducted in modern laboratories in
Cambridge. The turnover in a lab
space happens regularly due to the
level of competition. New com-
panies are able to easily fnd lab
space and staff quickly. To draw
companies to the Greater Spring-
feld area we need to develop ad-
equate facilities for several com-
panies, and have trained workers
available, or we cannot compete
with areas like Cambridge.
Involving the local colleges
and universities would also be a
focus of my development plan. In
New York State they are prepar-
ing for the future and you can see
the new building from Route 90 in
Albany. A very large new building
focusing on Nanoscale Science
and Engineering technology was
added to the University of Albany
system. This Albany NanoTech
Complex is currently the most
advanced research facility of its
kind. We sit 90 miles from Alba-
ny and 90 miles from Cambridge.
We are in a great location to de-
velop educational programs and
employment opportunities.
ERIC LESSER
A
: Our region has histori-
cally been a hotbed for
innovation - from the frst
gasoline-powered automobile to
the invention of basketball. We
are also national leaders in high-
tech manufacturing. To make the
most of these strengths, I would
improve training programs and
work to make sure our most tal-
ented workers stay local.
One way to do this is to im-
prove collaboration between our
schools and our local businesses.
FloDesign, for example, has suc-
cessfully placed many local en-
gineering grads in jobs design-
ing wind turbines and jet engine
components at their headquarters
in Wilbraham. We can also pro-
vide more support to nonproft
groups like Tech Foundry and
Valley Venture Mentors, which
are preparing people for careers
in the technology and entrepre-
neurship felds, fueling innova-
tive new businesses right here in
Western Massachusetts.
I am also a strong advocate
for a high-speed rail link between
Springfeld and Boston, which
will help attract more high-tech
economies to Western Massachu-
setts. As your state senator, I will
bring new energy to these initia-
tives and make sure were get-
ting support from Beacon Hill to
make our area a magnet for talent
and innovation.
AARON SAUNDERS
A
: There are a number of in-
centives and programs that
would be useful in attract-
ing new business to our region, but
in order for any of them to be suc-
cessful we must ensure that there
is regulatory and tax stability.
All too often the region has
lost business and job opportuni-
ties because the rules are changed
at the last minute, or the state
does not think through the rami-
fcations of a new tax, such as
the failed tech tax, before imple-
menting the policy. As state sena-
tor I will work to attract jobs and
economic development by frst
creating a stable environment in
which to attract businesses and
developing job creation initia-
tives tailored for Western Mas-
sachusetts.
Q
: Would you work to end
corporate welfare?
TIM ALLEN
A
: I think the question is
fundamentally one of
fairness. Our laws must
provide a framework that is fair
to both the public and private
sectors interests. Our system of
taxes and regulations must also
provide incentives for small busi-
nesses to grow, hire locally, and
provide living wage salaries.
JAMES CHIP
HARRINGTON
A
: Yes I would. It is not
uncommon for state gov-
ernments to offer special
business tax breaks to corpora-
tions in an effort to bolster the
economy during an economic
downturn. For example Massa-
chusetts spent about $350 million
on special business tax breaks in
the late 1990s then jumped to
over $770 million by 2012.
These are real tax dollars
that are being lost or reallocated
to mostly large corporations. My
feeling on any kind of welfare,
regardless if it is corporate wel-
fare or social welfare is that
it should only be a temporary
bridge to get from a diffcult situ-
ation to a more stable situation.
Just as I would support reform
of our current social welfare pro-
gram, I would equally support an
overhaul of any type of corporate
welfare program as well.
TOM LACHIUSA
A
: Ending corporate wel-
fare involves challenging
some of the strongest lob-
bies in the country. As a freshman
senator I would offer what I could
to established senators who have
been working on this issue. Giv-
ing funds to corporations is com-
plex, but taxpayers should not be
taken advantage of.
ERIC LESSER
A
:Yes. Year after year, the
middle class is asked to
do more and more with
less and less. Our tax system in
particular is unfair to middle
class families and is skewed to
beneft wealthy corporations at
the expense of everyday people.
We need to restore fairness, and
that means ensuring corporations
pay their fair share of taxes, pay
their workers fair wages, and
give back to the communities that
give them so much. I will have a
zero tolerance policy for tax eva-
sions, corporate giveaways, and
inside deals that pad the pockets
of corporations at the expense of
our middle class. I will also work
to protect and fght for our local
family-owned businesses, which
are increasingly getting squeezed
and asked to pay for corporate
welfare that does not beneft our
local economy.
AARON SAUNDERS
A
: Any expenditure of the
publics money must have
a public beneft, includ-
ing tax exemptions and credits.
Whether a business is a corpora-
tion, or any other form, as your
state senator I will make sure any
tax expenditure meets this stan-
dard. I fully support the periodic
review of tax credits, and any new
tax credits must meet a high stan-
dard to prove that they will result
in more economic growth than the
corresponding loss in tax revenue.
Q
: According to statisti-
cal research conducted
by the frm WalletHub.
com, Massachusetts ranks 46th
nationally in regard to the con-
dition of its public roads. What
would you do to improve this
rating?
TIM ALLEN
A
: As we know, our re-
gional infrastructure af-
fects not only quality of
life but business investment in
Western Massachusetts. A well
maintained, modernized system
of roads, highways and bridges,
are essential in growing our local
economy.
Projects like the I-91 viaduct
rehabilitation are necessary but
must be done with careful fscal
oversight to make sure those pub-
lic funds are being utilized effec-
tively and that local businesses do
not suffer during the construction
phase. The next state senator can
have an impact on making sure
the viaduct project is done right,
with as little disruption as pos-
sible and with maximum beneft
to the region.
JAMES CHIP
HARRINGTON
A
: Roadways in New Eng-
land have always been a
challenge. Our climate
and seasonal temperature fuc-
tuation makes maintaining our
roads a constant expensive uphill
battle.
It is so important for our
state to maintain healthy public
roads for our commerce and busi-
ness community. We cannot fully
fund this program on a local or
even state level. The federal gov-
ernment must play a larger role
in increased funding for our state
roads and highways. Our Legis-
lature along with the Executive
Branch has a responsibility to ad-
vocate for more federal funding
for our state highways and roads.
TOM LACHIUSA
A
:To improve the condition
of public roads I would
frst identify priority ar-
eas for repair. Next would be to
determine if it is a state road, lo-
cal community road, or a private
road that people may think is
public. Senators regularly request
funds from the state for specifc
repairs that need to be made a
priority.
Large, heavy trucks gener-
ally cause most of the damage to
roads but consumers depend on
these vehicles so we cannot re-
strict them. Finding a fair way to
tax vehicles would not be an easy
task. Generating support from the
Senate to appropriate more funds
for all the roads in poor condition
would require that other state con-
cerns receive less funding. To see
Massachusetts make signifcant
improvement in its public road
conditions would require federal
intervention unless the funds col-
lected from state taxes increase.
ERIC LESSER
A
: Weve all experienced
this problem and it is
only getting worse. We
know that maintaining our roads
reduces traffc fatalities and saves
nearly $500 per motorist in Mas-
sachusetts by reducing damage
and wear-and-tear on our vehi-
cles. We also know, for example,
that the state pays $2 million a
year just to prevent the Interstate
91 viaduct in Springfeld from
falling apart. Keeping roads well
maintained is essential for eco-
nomic health and also saves us
money.
I will make sure funding for
our roads is protected and en-
sure we have dedicated mainte-
nance plans in place. I will also
strongly advocate for investments
in alternative forms of transpor-
tation, especially the upcoming
north-south rail link between
Springfeld and Hartford, and a
new east-west rail link between
Boston and Springfeld. High-
speed rail will reduce congestion
on our roads, ease transportation
throughout our region, and open
vast new economic opportunities
in the process.
AARON SAUNDERS
A
:A safe and modern pub-
lic infrastructure is key to
economic growth and job
creation. Sadly, too much of our
transportation money spent over
the last number of years has gone
to the Big Dig, or to bail out the
MBTA.
As your state senator, the
roads and bridges of Western
Massachusetts will be a top prior-
ity. I will fght for increased tar-
geted funding for Western Mas-
sachusetts in light of the billions
of dollars spent elsewhere at our
expense.
While train service to Boston
might be a nice long-term goal,
those of us who live and work
in Western Massachusetts know
that our roads and bridges must
be our top transportation prior-
ity. We depend on our roads and
bridges to bring us to work, get
kids to school safely, and trans-
port goods and services in and
out of the region. Our roads and
bridges are simply too important
to take a back seat to any other
transportation priority.
This part 1 of the Senate Se-
ries was edited by Editor Charles
F. Bennett of the Wilbraham-
Hampden Times.
SENATE SERIES
from previous page
BOSTON
The road to
1ST HAMPDEN-HAMPSHIRE DISTRICT SENATE RACE SERIES
The Road to Boston senate series continues next week
when the candidates discuss public safety issues.