Massachusetts Lawmakers Let Patrick Veto on MBTA Fund Stand

BOSTON — The Massachusetts legislature let stand Gov. Deval Patrick's veto of a measure that would have repealed a bill making the MBTA Retirement Fund subject to the state's open-records law.

The fund manages the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority employee pensions, although it is run independently of Greater Boston's transit system.

Massachusetts' Supreme Judicial Court and Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin have ruled that the fund is a private trust and not subject to normal disclosure laws.

The inaction, during a truncated summer session, could help set the framework for a successful court appeal, according to transparency advocates.

"The governor sent a clear message that he wants more transparency, not less," said Iliya Atanasov, a senior fellow for finance at Boston-based Pioneer Institute.

Pioneer last week issued a report calling the fund poorly managed and rife with cronyism and conflicts of interest. A fund spokesman called the report "a preconceived conclusion in search of facts."

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Transportation industry Massachusetts
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