Behind Charlie Baker's tax cuts for high earners

Also: Shorts weather, then snow; what surging oil prices mean for you [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  February 23, 2022 ⛅ Cloudy, with a high of 67. Good Morning Boston, New Englanders (OK, particularly men, if we're being honest) may be [infamous]( [wearing shorts]( in even the [worst winter conditions](. However, it really will be shorts weather out there today. Enjoy it while it lasts; the temperatures will drop quickly overnight and then there's [another snow storm]( on the near horizon. Now onto the news: - Gov. Charlie Baker made an appearance Tuesday at the [newly reopened]( State House to sell lawmakers on [his administration's package of proposed tax cuts](. And while Democratic lawmakers praised the Republican governor's proposed tax breaks and credits for low-income seniors, renters and parents, the reception was far more mixed when it came to two cuts that would disproportionately benefit the state's wealthiest residents. - Baker's plan would reduce the state's short-term capital gains tax from 12% to 5% and raise the threshold at which residents pay the estate tax from $1 million to $2 million. Those two changes alone account for half of the administration's $700 million in proposed tax cuts. Both Baker and his finance secretary, Michael Heffernan, acknowledged the wealthy would get most of the benefit from those changes. - State Sen. Adam Hinds, the co-chair of the Legislature's joint revenue committee and a Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor, said he had "a lot of sympathy" for the need to raise the estate tax threshold, noting it can affect farmers or owners of two-family homes in the Boston area. But at a time of increasing inequality and [record corporate profits]( Hinds said the proposed capital gains tax cut was "jarring." - Baker's administration contends that the "skewed" impact is worth the benefit to lower-income residents, including 61,000 people making under $50,000 a year who pay the state's tax on short-term stock trades. Heffernan said the 12% tax is "pretty freakin' painful" for those lower-income earners "trying to save for their future." - With the rise in remote work, Baker has repeatedly argued (and did so again Tuesday) that Massachusetts needs to make its tax code more competitive to keep residents from moving away, especially with the already-high costs of living. - Big picture: Some Dems reject that approach, saying it could result in a "[race to the bottom]( And their veto-proof majority in the State House will ultimately have the final say. - Speaking of high costs, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is making an announcement today about a notoriously pricey topic: Child care. - Wu's office says they will outline "important steps" to further their commitment to accessible childcare and early education. - The news comes a day after the state's top childcare official, Samantha Aigner-Treworgy, [announced she will resign]( as commissioner of the Department of Early Education and Care. - A look at the COVID numbers: Massachusetts is close to averaging less than 1,000 news cases a day for the first time since early August and — perhaps most importantly — there's a sharp decline in COVID hospitalizations, which means less than 90% of hospital beds in the state are now occupied. - Of course, we're not yet out of the woods. WBUR's Jack Mitchell reports that [a new MGH study]( found even individuals who never got COVID suffered from stress-related brain inflammation linked to the pandemic. - He's running? Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty has filed paperwork indicating he plans to launch a campaign for the state Senate seat being vacated by longtime Sen. Hariette Chandler. P.S. — A new name — and potential lead? — [has emerged in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum art heist mystery](. Personally, I'm skeptical those Rembrandts, among others, will ever turn up. But also, I’m very intrigued by the new clue. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Allies join U.S. in imposing sanctions pressure on Russia over Ukraine]( The president called Russia's recognition of two Ukrainian regions a "flagrant violation of international law" and announced sanctions targeting Russia's ability to do business with the West. [Read more.]( [Allies join U.S. in imposing sanctions pressure on Russia over Ukraine]( The president called Russia's recognition of two Ukrainian regions a "flagrant violation of international law" and announced sanctions targeting Russia's ability to do business with the West. [Read more.]( [Oil prices are surging toward $100 a barrel. Here's what that means for you]( The threat of war between Russia and Ukraine is driving prices sharply higher, but there's more at play than just geopolitical tensions. [Read more.]( [Oil prices are surging toward $100 a barrel. Here's what that means for you]( The threat of war between Russia and Ukraine is driving prices sharply higher, but there's more at play than just geopolitical tensions. [Read more.]( [American women players settle equal pay lawsuit vs U.S. Soccer for $24 million]( American women soccer players reached a landmark agreement with the sport’s domestic governing body to end a six-year legal battle over equal pay. [Read more.]( [American women players settle equal pay lawsuit vs U.S. Soccer for $24 million]( American women soccer players reached a landmark agreement with the sport’s domestic governing body to end a six-year legal battle over equal pay. [Read more.]( [Group interrupts book reading in Providence with Nazi imagery]( The Red Ink Community Library — a nonprofit library, reading room and organizing space in Providence’s Mt. Hope neighborhood — said the group interrupted an event celebrating the 174th anniversary of the publishing of "The Communist Manifesto." [Read more.]( [Group interrupts book reading in Providence with Nazi imagery]( The Red Ink Community Library — a nonprofit library, reading room and organizing space in Providence’s Mt. Hope neighborhood — said the group interrupted an event celebrating the 174th anniversary of the publishing of "The Communist Manifesto." [Read more.]( [Court backs murder convictions of Gary Lee Sampson who died during appeal]( A Boston federal appeals court ruled Tuesday against vacating the death sentence and murder convictions of a man who died in prison while appealing his death sentence. [Read more.]( [Court backs murder convictions of Gary Lee Sampson who died during appeal]( A Boston federal appeals court ruled Tuesday against vacating the death sentence and murder convictions of a man who died in prison while appealing his death sentence. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - Eggs for breakfast, lunch and... happy hour? Here and Now is [showcasing a few recipes from a Maine farmer's new cookbook]( espouses eggs in "just about everything." - Have you ever heard of a pupfish? I hadn't — until yesterday. The latest episode of Last Seen looks at [how the rare, cave-dwelling species became the center of a debate]( about how far we should go to protect endangered animals. - Boston's Baltic Film Festival kicks off Friday at ArtsEmerson’s Paramount Center (with a subsequent online streaming run beginning next week). The festival [highlights the region’s struggle for autonomy](. - Pediatric psychologist Ellen O'Donnell [writes in this commentary]( that parents should prepare for their children's college experience to be different in the wake of the pandemic. What We're Reading 📚 - The Constitution and the Ten Commandments: A Christian group plants its flag ([The Boston Globe]( - I Gave Myself Three Months to Change My Personality ([The Atlantic]( - If I could learn to cook for my partner during a pandemic, anyone can ([Washington Post]( Tell Me Something Good ["Wait, did you play with Bill Russell?" The quiet, impactful substitute teaching career of Celtics legend Sam Jones (The Boston Globe)]( Sports fans know Jones as a five-time All-Star who won 10 NBA titles with the Celtics. In Maryland in the 1990s and early 2000s, he was Mr. Jones, substitute teacher. [Read more.]( ["Wait, did you play with Bill Russell?" The quiet, impactful substitute teaching career of Celtics legend Sam Jones (The Boston Globe)]( Sports fans know Jones as a five-time All-Star who won 10 NBA titles with the Celtics. In Maryland in the 1990s and early 2000s, he was Mr. Jones, substitute teacher. [Read more.]( Before you go: Happy trails, [MetroWes](. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news   Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2022 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.