Massachusetts
A Look at the Mass. Ballot Question That Would Create a ‘Millionaire’s Tax’
A bunch of Massachusetts residents thinks the state’s schooling and transportation techniques must be higher funded.
“We’d like extra funding in the case of schooling and public transportation,” stated Gerly Adrien. “And a manner to do that is the Truthful Share Modification.”
So Adrien, a director of “Truthful Share for Massachusetts,” is working to get a poll query generally often known as the “millionaire’s tax” handed in November.
“Millionaires who make greater than 1,000,000, are they paying their justifiable share?” Adrien requested. “The reply is, they don’t seem to be.”
The measure, which might amend the state structure, would put an additional 4% tax on any state resident’s private revenue over $1 million.
For instance, in the event you had private revenue of $1.5 million, the primary million could be taxed on the present charge of 5.5%, or $55,000. The additional $500,000 could be taxed at 9% or $45,000. You’d pay $17,500 extra.
The projected $1.5 billion raised could be focused for schooling and transportation. And for a lot of residents, it isn’t a foul thought.
“I might get behind that, yeah,” stated Jeff Smith of Fitchburg.
“I do suppose individuals who make over $1 million must be taxed greater than individuals who do not,” stated Sahai Stevens of Boston.
“I feel that is a good suggestion to reallocate the cash again into the financial system for different folks,” stated Jordan Albano of Newton.
However not everybody likes the thought. Dan Cenci heads up the Coalition to Cease the Tax Hike Modification. He argues that there could be unintended penalties that will have a destructive have an effect on on the state.
“Small companies will go away. Excessive earners will go away. There will be a mind drain. There will be an financial drain,” Cenci stated.
He additionally questions how a lot further funding will really go to transportation and schooling, since it’s the Massachusetts Legislature that allocates the funding.
“When the degrees that the legislature units are met, any enhance in that may return to the overall fund and could be spent anyplace they see match,” Cenci stated.
Nonetheless, polling exhibits opponents of the millionaire’s tax face an uphill battle.
“Most individuals in Massachusetts know they’re by no means going to earn 1,000,000 {dollars},” stated Evan Horowitz of the Tufts Middle for State Coverage Evaluation.
How many individuals within the state would qualify?
“It is about 6% of households, or 20,000 households,” Horowitz stated. “It isn’t very many individuals.”
Horowitz says many individuals might be topic to this tax simply as soon as of their lifetime, thereby affecting extra taxpayers over time.
“As an instance you, you recognize, you are a dentist. You’ve got constructed up a apply. You by no means earned $1 million in any given yr. After which one yr, you promote your apply. You are able to retire. And that yr that you simply bought your apply, yeah, you earned $1 million and you’ll pay this,” he defined.
The identical would apply for the one-time sale of a home. And if it was bought 40 years in the past, Cenci stated, “That home is value some huge cash at the moment. And once they go to promote it, maybe it is their retirement. Maybe it is passing that all the way down to their youngsters. They are going to pay 80% extra revenue [tax] on that home.”
“I got here from Brazil like 18 years in the past searching for the American dream,” stated small enterprise proprietor Ricardo Souza.
He says he spent years doing handbook labor and going to highschool to turn into a grasp plumber in order that he might lastly open his personal enterprise.
“We aren’t millionaires. We aren’t. However we’re going to be affected,” he stated.
Souza says revenue margins for small companies are razor-thin, and that each further greenback he makes must be reinvested into his firm.
Requested how he thinks the tax would have an effect on him, he stated, “All the employees are going to be affected as a result of I will not have the ability to survive. I’ll have to put folks off.”
Adrien is not shopping for that argument.
“They’re scaring folks,” she stated. “The reality is it is in your private revenue over $1 million.”
If the poll query is profitable, voters shall be dwelling with the tax for the long run, as constitutional amendments are troublesome to reverse.
“With a regulation, you may simply say, ‘Nicely, we did it, let’s repeal it. We’re finished.’ That will not be an possibility if this passes,” Horowitz stated.
Massachusetts
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Massachusetts
Three Elegant Harborside Venues with Timeless Coastal Charm
With two in Boston and one down the Cape, these coastal locations are beautiful backdrops in any season.
Five-Star Fabulous
Boston Harbor Hotel
Boston, Massachusetts
Awash in luxury, the venerable Boston Harbor Hotel is one of the city’s most coveted places to stay. The hotel’s sweeping harbor views are unrivaled, and the five-star hotel, rife with rich fabrics, marble, and carved-wood finishes, exudes a modern classic appeal. There are several on-site wedding venue options. Optimal for larger receptions as well as ceremonies, the Wharf Room features dramatic, high ceilings and views from three sides, along with a private outdoor terrace. The second-story Meritage Room is oriented toward smaller celebrations, and Foster’s Pavilion is the hotel’s outdoor space, which can be enhanced with an outdoor tent. The Atlantic Room is a larger space that can be broken down into two separate areas. The hotel’s wedding planning and catering staff are attentive and experienced; executive chef David Daniels’s cuisine features fresh, seasonal fare that elevates any occasion held at the hotel.
Among the best parts of hosting your wedding at the Boston Harbor Hotel is its elegant accommodations, which include more than 200 guest rooms and suites. The John Adams Presidential Suite is among the city’s most luxurious: featuring two-, three-, or four-bedroom configurations with a private elevator, spacious living areas, a media room, and an expansive waterfront terrace, you will never want to leave.
PHOTO OPS
Just outside the restaurant is Fan Pier Park, a verdant stretch of green space along the waterfront. The landscaped area features manicured grassy areas and beautiful harbor vistas with the city rising in the distance, which make a gorgeous backdrop for wedding photos.
Restaurant Chic
Davio’s
Boston, Massachusetts
Well-known and loved for its cuisine, Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse is a longtime staple in Boston’s fine-dining restaurant scene. Its perfectly cooked steaks, handmade pastas, and fresh seafood have broad appeal. With multiple locations in and around the city—and in other states, too—Davio’s Seaport location offers elegant dining overlooking Boston Harbor.
With several private dining spaces of varying sizes, the restaurant is in a prime position for hosting weddings and rehearsal dinners. The private dining rooms feature high ceilings, majestic columns, elongated windows, and plenty of space. Flexible spaces can accommodate 10 to 200 guests for full-service sit-down dinners and up to 350 for a reception. Rooms are equipped with high-back upholstered chairs and round and square tables. For larger events, the entire restaurant can be reserved for up to 500 guests. The patio, with stunning waterfront views, holds up to 150 guests. There are several different menu options for both sit-down dinners and buffets, and the attentive catering staff will even work with couples to create custom appetizers, entrées, and desserts that appeal to their specific tastes.
SAY “I DO” IN CHOO
Among the hotel’s exclusive wedding offerings is the opportunity to be treated to an after-hours store consultation at the Jimmy Choo Boutique in Copley Place—along with a pair of shoes to wear on your special day!—if you book a Friday or Sunday wedding.
Boater’s Paradise
Flying Bridge
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Set on glorious Falmouth Harbor, the Flying Bridge has long been a Cape Cod mainstay. With 12,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor entertaining space, the restaurant was remodeled in 2023. The bride and groom often arrive here by boat while their guests watch them from the deck. Featuring a grand-stairway entrance, the second-floor event space provides an idyllic backdrop with floor-to-ceiling windows and accordion doors overlooking the harbor and a deck that wraps around the building. A quartz-topped U-shaped bar, an ample dance floor, and the ability to accommodate a 200-person seated dinner prepared by chef Leon Biscoe and his team, which includes an on-site master sushi chef, are all part of the program.
The restaurant also hosts on-site ceremonies in an arbor overlooking the harbor or, for smaller groups, on the upper deck. If your dream is to have a beach ceremony, the Flying Bridge’s sister property, the Tides, can accommodate that, as well as a rooftop reception with 360-degree views. The nearby beachfront hotel is also a great spot to set your guests up in; with 29 rooms, including a bridal suite, it’s one of the most desirable hotels to stay in town.
DAY-TRIPPING
Also set on Falmouth Harbor, directly across from the Flying Bridge and a short stroll from the Tides, is the Island Queen Ferry, which makes several daily trips to Martha’s Vineyard. The quick 35-minute ride to Oak Bluffs makes for a great summer day trip for wedding guests looking to make the most of their downtime.
First published in the print issue of Boston Weddings 2025 with the headline, “View Finders.”
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Massachusetts
Massachusetts man accused of making antisemitic threats arrested after Nazi flag, ghost gun found in home
A Massachusetts man accused of making violent antisemitic threats was arrested on Saturday and is facing illegal gun possession charges after a ghost gun and a Nazi flag were recovered by authorities during a sweep of his home.
Matthew Scouras, a 34-year-old living in Beverly, Mass., allegedly threatened to rape Jewish women and motivated others to shoot anyone seen outside synagogues on an online message board, according to investigators.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations notified local authorities on Thursday that someone in their province was posting the menacing threats online, the Beverly Police Department said.
Police searched Scouras’ home and recovered a Nazi flag, a 9mm Glock “ghost gun” without a serial number, three large-capacity magazine rifles, a jig used to drill holes in polymer pistol handles, scopes, rifle stocks, and other gun parts, including 11 lower receivers for rifles, according to the local department.
Officers also found over $70,000 in cash, a cellphone, and two desktop computers.
The Massachusetts chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations praised local law enforcement for taking down the alleged Nazi supporter.
“We welcome the arrest of this suspect, thank law enforcement authorities for their action in the case and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community and all other communities of faith targeted by hatred and violence,” CAIR-MA Executive Director Tahirah Amatul-Wadud wrote in a statement.
Scouras is currently being held by the Beverly Police Department and will undergo a mental health screening.
The charges levied against him include 12 counts of unlicensed firearm possession coupled with single counts of threats to destroy a place of worship, willful communication of a threat with a dangerous item, making of a firearm without a serial number, possession of a large capacity feeding device, illegal possession of ammunition and improper storage of a firearm.
Scouras was arraigned Monday and held without bail, police said. He is set to appear in court for a detention hearing on Jan. 13.
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