After months and even years of public debate, the fate of six key pieces of legislation is now in the hands of just 29 lawmakers.

 The lawmakers are charged with resolving differences between House and Senate bills dealing with the state budget, police reform, climate change, economic development, health care, and transportation bond funding.so-called conference committees on which these lawmakers serve are “black boxes” whose inner workings are unknown.

 Rep. Denise Provost of Somerville, who retires in January after 14 years in the Legislature, said on the Codcast this week that many of her constituents have been asking her about progress on bills in the House-Senate conference committees. She said she has to explain that she doesn’t know

 The bills are the outgrowth of enormous public debate and negotiations over the last two years. But now their final shape – or whether they even emerge for an up-or-down vote in both branches – is being decided by a handful of lawmakers working in private, out of the public eye. The six  what’s going on in those committees.

 “The process is very well sealed,” she said. “Maybe that’s necessary to an extent for successful negotiations. Just as in diplomacy you have Chatham House rules, you have the security of knowing you can have wide ranging conversations that are not reported. But I wonder, especially in the last few sessions when some bills have ended up not coming out of conference at all after all that work, whether our current conference process is a good one.”

 Bills dealing with police reform, transportation funding, health care, and economic development went into conference committees in July. A climate change conference committee was appointed in early August, and budget conferees were named on Monday.

 Ironically, the budget, which is typically the biggest and most complex bill the Legislature passes each year, is likely to emerge for a final vote first because it’s five months late. The other bills have been languishing for months in their conference committees, leading to speculation that House and Senate negotiators are having a hard time finding common ground. The final deadline for action is a little over a month away, on January 5.

 Frustrated with the lack of action on police reform legislation, Boston Globe columnist Joan Vennochi today called for opening the process up for the public to see what’s holding things up. “Of course, that’s a fantasy scenario; open, honest debate doesn’t happen anymore on Beacon Hill on an issue,” she said.

 The conference committees all have three members from the House and three from the Senate. Each branch supplies two Democrats and one Republican. The Democrats tend to be key members of the House and Senate power structures, while the Republicans, because of their small numbers on Beacon Hill, have to plug the gaps as best they can.

Of the 29 lawmakers serving on the six conference committees, 19 are white men, six are white women, and there are three men and one woman of color.

 Eleven of the 40 senators fill the 18 Senate slots on the conference committees. Sen. Michael Rodrigues of Westport, a Democrat and the chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, serves on three, as does Republican Sen. Patrick O’Connor of Weymouth. Sens. Cindy Friedman, a Democrat from Arlington, and Dean Tran, a Republican from Fitchburg, each serve on two.

 In the 160-member House, only Rep. Aaron Michlewitz of Boston, the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, serves on more than one conference committee. He serves on the budget and economic development committees.

BRUCE MOHL

 

FROM COMMONWEALTH

Childcare centers are facing staffing woes across the state, which translate into problems for parents trying to return to work.

The MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board approves the purchase of 45 diesel-electric hybrid buses for the Silver Line after receiving assurances from staff that the vehicles can run all-electric through Chelsea. Transit advocates are skeptical.

Gov. Charlie Baker says fraud is rampant with unemployment insurance, which is requiring more extensive screening of claims and slowing down the entire process.

Baker vows a decision on the transportation climate initiative by the end of the year despite widespread uncertainty about how much climate bang the state will get for putting a price on carbon.

FROM AROUND THE WEB

 

BEACON HILL

Globe columnist Joan Vennochi decries the secretive Beacon Hill deliberations over a police reform bill. 

HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

Panelists taking part in a virtual discussion hosted by the Massachusetts High Technology Council say the state needs to dramatically ramp up its volume of COVID-19 testing. (Boston Globe) 

Local health departments could issue fines for people who host large gatherings on Thanksgiving, though many municipalities say they are focusing on education not compliance. (MassLive)

A new coalition is formed in Springfield to address the pandemic’s disproportionate impact on black residents. (MassLive)

Massachusetts will begin using rapid COVID tests for visitors at long-term care facilities. (MassLive)

Dr. Allen Smith has been named CEO of South Shore Health. (Boston Globe)

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Joe Biden taps former secretary of state and Massachusetts senator John Kerry to be his international climate czar, signaling the incoming administration’s intention to aggressively reverse the Trump administration’s abandonment of climate change policies. (Boston Globe) 

If confirmed, Janet Yellen will become the first woman and one of the most accomplished people to take the reins as treasury secretary — and she’ll face the daunting task of helping to guide the economy out of its pandemic-induced recession. (New York Times) 

ELECTIONS

More than two weeks after it was declared that he lost the election, President Trump gives in to growing calls to concede by allowing the government to begin formal transition planning with the incoming Biden administration. (Washington Post)

Globe columnist Kevin Cullen gathers up all the signs pointing toward a Marty Walsh run for a third term as Boston mayor next year. 

Ballot questions addressing a wastewater treatment plant have passed after a recount in Mashpee — including one that had appeared to fail by only three votes in the original count following the November 3 election. (Cape Cod Times)

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

The pandemic has significantly hurt the US seafood industry. (Associated Press)

MassLive looks at what we know about the sinking of fishing boat Emmy Rose off of Cape Cod — a boat previously owned by the “Codfather,” disgraced former fishing mogul Carlos Rafael. A Coast Guard plane has joined the search for the four fishermen who were aboard. (Boston Globe)

Brockton gets a $2.65 million grant from the state’s MassWorks infrastructure program, which will be used to transform a vacant tow yard into market-rate housing. (The Enterprise) 

EDUCATION

Unemployed Massachusetts residents who took employment-focused English courses boosted their earnings by more than $7,000 a year, a stunning gain from a workforce-related intervention. (Boston Globe) 

Catholic school teachers in Worcester demand a switch to remote learning after Thanksgiving, amid concerns about rising COVID case numbers. (Telegram & Gazette)

Smith College, which operated remotely this fall, plans to welcome more than 1,800 students back to campus in the spring with a host of conditions, including twice-weekly testing.

A Williams College mathematics professor apologizes for his analysis of Pennsylvania mail-in ballots that was used by Republicans who claimed voting fraud. (Berkshire Eagle)

GBH publishes the next installment of its year-long series, “COVID and the Classroom,” this time focused on a senior at Everett High School.

ARTS/CULTURE

New Century Theatre in Northampton permanently shuts down due to the pandemic after nearly three decades in operation and 100 productions. (MassLive)

TRANSPORTATION

Millions of Americans are traveling for Thanksgiving, ignoring the COVID-19 badvice of the US Centers for Disease and Control. (NPR)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

Attorney General Maura Healey’s office asks the Department of Public Utilities to order a new auditor after questions are raised about the current one. (WBUR)

Quincy is asking residents to weigh in on a proposed community electricity plan that would allow city officials to buy electricity in bulk on behalf of residents, an increasingly popular process called “municipal aggregation.” (Patriot Ledger)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS

Eviction filings in the state have nearly doubled in each of the five weeks since a state-imposed moratorium was lifted. (Boston Herald) 

The trial of John Rathbun, accused of attempted arson for trying to set fire to a Jewish nursing home in Longmeadow, ends in a mistrial. (MassLive)

MEDIA

Citing the First Amendment rights of reporters, a federal judge ordered the executive overseeing Voice of America and its sister networks to stop interfering with coverage of the president. (NPR)

PASSINGS

David Dinkins, New York City’s first — and so far only — black mayor, has died at age 93. (New York Times)