FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                 Contact: Erin McNeill 
February 12, 2009                                                                                         (617) 722-1551


Senator Pacheco Named Senate Chairman of Joint Committee to 
Oversee Federal Stimulus Funds

Senator Marc R. Pacheco, (D-Taunton) will lead a newly-formed committee to oversee and review state spending of federal stimulus funds. The Special Standing Committee on Federal Stimulus Oversight will act on behalf of the legislature to coordinate efforts with the administration to maximize federal assistance for Massachusetts, Senate President Therese Murray announced Thursday.

Murrray also tapped Pacheco again for major leadership roles in the senate. He will continue to chair both the powerful Post Audit and Oversight Committee and the Global Warming and Climate Change Committee. He will also sit on the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, as well as the joint committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy and the joint committee on Health Care Financing. 

As lawmakers in Washington moved closer to agreement on a federal stimulus package that could total $789 billion, Pacheco said he wants to be sure the cities and towns of Massachusetts will be positioned to get their share of the federal assistance to projects on the ground. 

“We intend to see that this assistance is used as intended to pay for infrastructure projects, for Medicaid, and for education, but most of all to create jobs throughout the state and stimulate the economy,” Pacheco said. “The taxpayers can be certain that we will be watching very closely. We are here to give them that accounting.”

Pacheco hailed Gov. Deval Patrick’s statement that all stimulus projects would be conducted under a public bidding process, and bidders, contracts and progress reports would be posted online. 

“I am pleased that the governor is committed to transparency and accountability,” Pacheco said. “We will work in close coordination with Governor Patrick, and will support his efforts to get this money to projects on the ground.”

The committee will also review current state laws, regulations and policies, and make recommendations regarding changes that will allow Massachusetts to access additional funding or to spend money more quickly to stimulate the economy, according to Murray.

The special stimulus oversight committee will have the ability to hold hearings on federal stimulus plans, audit expenditures, and report back periodically to the House and Senate, Murray said. The joint committee will be led by the chairs of the House and Senate committees on Post Audit and Oversight with assistant vice chairs from House and Senate Ways and Means acting as vice chairs of the new committee. They will not receive additional compensation.

Other members on the 18-person committee will include the chairs of the House and Senate committees on Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, the chairs of the joints committees on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, Transportation, Education, State Administration and Regulatory Authority, Labor and Workforce Development, and an appointment by the respective minority leaders. 


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