Press Release: 5/28/2026

Victory: Healey’s Local Tax Hike Plan Shelved

We have a major update and it’s a big win.



Governor Healey’s “municipal empowerment” tax package, her proposal that would have allowed politicians to raise a wide array of local taxes and fees, including raising your vehicle excise tax as high as 7.5%, has been sent to study by the legislature.



In plain English, that means it’s effectively been shelved.

 

This is the same proposal that would have undone part of one of the most important taxpayer protections in Massachusetts history. A lesser-known component of Proposition 2½ reduced the vehicle excise tax from 6% down to 2.5%. Healey’s plan didn’t just call to reverse that progress, it would have allowed taxes to climb even higher than they were before Prop 2½ was passed.



But now, just days after the Fiscal Alliance Foundation released its major study on Proposition 2½ and its benefits to taxpayers, this tax hike proposal has been effectively killed for the remainder of the two-year Session.



Over the past year, Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance has been pushing a grassroots campaign in opposition, generating thousands of messages from taxpayers voicing their opinion directly to Beacon Hill, urging lawmakers to reject this proposal.



At the same time, our local reporting has put pressure on those pushing for this proposal, ensuring that they know that the public is watching their moves on this important legislation.



It’s a clear sign that our grassroots pressure is working and having an effect at the State House. When research exposes the consequences of bad policy, and when thousands of taxpayers speak up, elected officials take notice and it changes the outcome.



Make no mistake: this is not the end of the fight. The same ideas will come back under different names, pushed by the same insiders who believe taxpayers should always pay more.



But today, we should take a win.



As always, we’ll keep on going. Your support is making a real difference.