Enrich Appointed to Mass. Senate Revenue Working Group
04.23.19 — Karen Spilka ’80, president of the Massachusetts Senate, has announced the appointment of Professor Peter Enrich to a newly established Revenue Working Group. Chaired by State Senator Adam Hinds, who serves as the Senate chair of the Joint Committee on Revenue, the Revenue Working Group is charged with assessing the existing Massachusetts revenue system and exploring ways to update and improve it, with the primary goal of ensuring the Commonwealth’s system of revenue collection generates sufficient funds in a predictable, sustainable and fair manner while contributing to a vibrant and competitive economy and ensuring taxpayer accountability.
“I am excited to be working with Senator Adam Hinds and the many distinguished members of the Revenue Working Group to take a close and comprehensive look at how our tax code is structured in Massachusetts,” said Spilka. “With all of the changes to how we live and work these days, it is important to see what is working, what is outdated, where we can improve, and how we can create a revenue system for the Commonwealth that is fair and functional for all of us. I am confident that we will find a way to continue to provide for the economic vibrancy of Massachusetts while allowing us to care for each other and fund our priorities.”
“I’m delighted that President Spilka and Senator Hinds have launched this much-needed effort, and I am honored to be a part of it,” said Enrich. “The Massachusetts tax system needs a thorough review. Among its chief present flaws are, first, that it simply doesn’t produce the revenues needed to meet the widely acknowledged responsibilities of state and local government and, second, that the present distribution of tax obligations is ‘upside down,’ with our wealthiest residents paying a much smaller share of their income in state and local taxes than our poorer citizens. I am hopeful that the very diverse membership of the Working Group will be able to come to agreement about key values and needs to be met by a fair and adequate tax system, although it will be an ambitious challenge to find consensus around specific and significant reforms.”
Professor Enrich is a leading authority on state and local government and state tax policy, and frequently serves as an advisor to state and local governments and to advocacy groups interested in state and local fiscal policy. He teaches Contracts, State and Local Government and State and Local Taxation. His areas of research and expertise include state taxation of businesses, tax equity, relationships between different levels of government and funding of public education.
About Northeastern University School of Law
The nation’s leader in experiential legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law offers the longest-running, most extensive experience-based legal education program in the country and is a national leader in legal education reform. Founded with cooperative legal education as the cornerstone of its program, Northeastern guarantees its students unparalleled practical legal work experiences. All students participate in full-time legal placements, and can choose from the more than 1,500 employers worldwide participating in the school’s signature Cooperative Legal Education Program. The future of legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law blends theory and practice, providing students with a unique set of skills and experience to successfully practice law.
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