The Nangle Gang Still on the Loose and Riding High on Taxpayers’ Money
by Broadside Staff
The four-members of the Nangle Gang have increased their plundering of taxpayer’s gold this year. Their take has increased to $120,000 against the wishes of many law-abiding and well-intentioned citizens, including the sitting governor of this commonwealth.
The Nangle Gang consists of its leader, David “Tax the Nonprofits” Nangle (D-Lowell) and members Ann-Margaret “The Creative Economy” Ferrante (D-Gloucester), Sarah “Automatically Register Voters” Peake (D-Provincetown) and Louis “Regulating & Protecting” Kafka (D-Stoughton.
As a result of the Great Pay-Raise Heist earlier this year (https://legiscan.com/MA/text/H58/2017), perpetrated by Robert “The Unindicted Co-conspirator” DeLeo and Stanley “The Gay Cougar” Rosenberg, the Nangle Gang of Four now takes home and EXTRA $60,000 this year for what appears to be not much more than a no-show gig.
At least the old Wild West “Hole-in-the-Wall Gang” seemed to have had a purpose and direction. It rustled cattle and horses, robbed stagecoaches and held up banks to obtain money for life’s necessities and pleasures. Although the Nangle Gang does not adhere to any of these nefarious pursuits, it is hard to determine just what the four desperados do for their $120,000 per year.
Each had been appointed to the antiquated title of “Division Chair” by Blazing Saddles DeLeo earlier this year. But what does a Division Chair do except receive $30,000 a year in our precious gold for the title? Good question!
The only reference our staff could find was in the document: Massachusetts House Rules (https://malegislature.gov/Laws/Rules/House). This says that the Division Chairs are responsible for “reviewing the daily Calendar and providing advance notice to committee members in the respective divisions of all matters scheduled for consideration in the Orders of the Day. Said committee chairpersons shall provide information to members of their committees on pending legislation and other matters of business before the House.”
In practice, in this modern digital age of computers, our elected officials simply access the House Clerk’s Orders of the Day on their smart phones or computers to find out what’s on the schedule or agenda for that day’s session.
And how many formal sessions has the House held this year – to date? By our count there have been only 13 sessions with a roll call vote, requiring all members to attend. Every other session has been informal where no important legislation gets passed and Orders of the Day don’t change much. Typically, Orders of the Day, or the Calendar as prepared by the House Clerk, are only updated before a formal session.
But wait! The House Rules also dictate that the Division Chairs “shall oversee the physical appearance of the Chamber and the various areas under the jurisdiction of the House of Representatives … for the purpose of requesting expeditious appraisals [when necessary] and necessary repairs and renovations to the interior and exterior of the State House.” Thus, they are responsible for bringing to the speaker’s attention if any repairs to the State House are required.
But isn’t there a building and maintenance department in the executive branch that specifically handles such problems or improvements? We think there is something called the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance that would handle any building questions with respect to the State House. Certainly, these professionals appear to be highly qualified to address any issues with building maintenance, upgrades or renovations.
So we remain perplexed at just what the Nangle Gang does for its extra $120,000 per year. We know they are not out rustling cattle or robbing stagecoaches. Those days are long gone. And they are not hiding in the Big Horn Mountains of Northern Wyoming. They don’t even have to avoid the law. They are right here – all around us and on Beacon Hill.
But what does each one of the Gang do to earn an extra $30,000 a year? That’s on top of their $62,547 base salary and the new $15,000 or $20,000 travel/office allowance.
If there is anyone out there who can tell us what the Nangle Gang does to justify an extra $120,000 per year of our gold, please contact the Boston Broadside to let us know.
We eagerly await answers. ¨
