December 10, 2025 |News, Office of MA State Treasurer, State of MA

State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg’s Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Speech

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From the Office of State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg: Today, Treasurer Goldberg joined the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce’s Government Affairs Forum. Please see below for Treasurer Goldberg’s speech:

Introduction

Thank you, Maurice and hello everyone.  
 
I have been asked a lot lately about how we are preparing for uncertain economic times – federal funding cutbacks, tariffs, market reactions and more…
 
We have always been prepared because we look towards the long-term and operate under the assumption that the one thing we know for certain is that there is always uncertainty. At Treasury we have developed sustainable processes and strategies, working beyond the bounds of term limits, political ideology, or volatile markets. So, this morning, I’d like to talk a little bit about the challenges we are facing but more importantly about the strategies we are using to address them.
 
As a reminder, Treasury is like a multi-faceted business– we have 13 areas of state government that seem to have little to do with each other. Traditional cash and debt management and unclaimed property, but what do the Lottery and the pension fund have in common? Or the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and the Massachusetts School Building Authority? Veterans’ Bonus and Clean Water Trust? 
 
What we do have is a common mission. And everyone understands their role, to help create economic stability, economic security and opportunity for every Massachusetts resident. This mission has consistently stayed the same.
 
No matter what business you are in, if you build a culture and cohesiveness that fosters collaboration and resiliency, you can think long term and develop policies and strategies that help you ride the ups and downs.

Stabilization Fund

Anyone who has heard me speak knows that I live and die by the Rainy Day Fund.
 
I have always been adamant about building up our reserves to position the Commonwealth to be financially secure no matter what the future should bring. When I arrived in January 2015 it was at a woefully low level of $1.2 billion. Through collaboration with our legislature and the Governor’s office, the Stabilization Fund is now at $8.1 billion.

Debt

Another tool we use in navigating challenging times is leveraging our state debt. Our debt management team works alongside the Governor’s office on key initiatives, like the environmental bond bill that was filed last June. Also known as the Mass Ready Act, it includes nearly $3 billion in bond authorizations to strengthen infrastructure and protect Massachusetts communities against increasingly extreme weather events.
 
We are also looking forward to implementing the Governor’s transportation bond bill. Passed in August, the legislation will help address the critical need for repairs and upgrades to the state’s infrastructure, while supporting economic vitality in our communities.
 
Given what is happening at the federal level you can see how forward thinking this approach is. And it goes without saying, that our Deputy in charge of debt, Sue Perez, is one of the toughest negotiators in the business – always saving money for the Commonwealth on every deal.

Clean Water Trust 

In a state with aging infrastructure and rising environmental and public health challenges, for communities to be able to access below-market rate financing through our Clean Water Trust, makes a critical difference for funding improvements to water infrastructure.
 
In FY 2025, the Trust provided $867.1 million in financial commitments through grants and low or 0% interest rate loans. This effort supports numerous projects that will bolster economic growth by creating an estimated 5,203 construction and engineering jobs. These significant investments all occurred against a backdrop of increasing fiscal and regulatory challenges. At the Federal level, the reintroduction of Congressionally Directed Spending has had a negative impact on the funding the Trust receives. 
 
With only one year of funding remaining available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Trust and Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection have had to heavily restrict the amount of new funding offered.  
 
Projects are larger and more complex with increasing costs that also require funding across multiple years. Despite these obstacles, we remain committed to leveraging federal and state resources to maximize benefits for Massachusetts communities. As we look ahead, we know that we will need to explore innovative strategies to overcome funding limitations.

PRIM

The Massachusetts Pension Reserve Investment Management, or as we like to call it, MassPRIM, is responsible for the management of the state’s pension fund.
 
When I arrived in December 2014, the fund value was $59 billion. Today, our carefully designed portfolio now sits at $121.1 billion, despite challenging markets and persistent geopolitical and economic crises. This number reflects a 9.6% net gain over the past calendar year. PRIM continues to outperform its peers and its benchmark and has exceeded its actuarial rate of return for 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and 10 years.
 
PRIM’s Stewardship and Sustainability Committee has engaged in a research-based, data driven approach to identify priorities, driven by its fiduciary duty to protect and enhance the long-term value creation of the PRIT fund. These include climate transition planning, fair pay, sustainable forestry, and transparency. These areas have high potential for risk mitigation and value creation within the fund. Despite those who label this work with politically charged buzzwords, this is simply “common sense” investing…what every successful, savvy businessperson has always done.  
 
PRIM takes the same kind of thoughtful approach under the guidelines of our FUTURE Initiative, ensuring increased investments with diverse managers. Through this program, we have $16 billion (representing more than 13% of our portfolio) invested with women, people of color and those with disabilities.
   
Our work positions PRIM as an industry leader as we continue to generate steady returns.

Invest MA

We all know small businesses are particularly vulnerable in this challenging economic environment. Many of our departments within Treasury are dedicated to supporting them at every step.
        
Our Investing For the Long-Term Initiative (Invest MA) promotes the success of small businesses by boosting loans to them. 
 
We created Invest MA to shift state cash deposits under the control of the Treasurer to Massachusetts banks that are willing to expand their small business lending. The 31 participating banks have now received a total of $445 million. This program synchs nicely with our Small Business Initiative.

Small Business Initiative

Our Small Business Initiative (SBI), is an online toolkit on how to start, maintain, and grow a successful small business for budding entrepreneurs all over the state. The website’s resource map currently features 1,380 organizations across Massachusetts that provide at least one type of support to small business owners. 
 
In addition, we continue to host the Small Business Empowerment Series, which includes free workshops provided in multiple languages. The series equips entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills necessary to create a strategy, implement successful planning, and make wise financial choices. We have also partnered with Eastern Bank, MassDevelopment TDI, and the Executive Office of Economic Development to host Collaborative Coffee Hours. So far, we have engaged with over 93 small business owners at these events. 
 
Secretary Paley and I will be celebrating Small Business Month in May together, at an event hosted by SBI, to engage with entrepreneurs and small business owners. By providing this kind of support from the beginning, we hope to ensure greater success for entrepreneurs, positively impacting local communities, and the state’s overall economy. 

ABCC

The Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) is another resource that is always ready, willing, and able to help our small businesses and promote local economic development.  
 
With the influx of 225 new licenses in Boston due to last year’s legislation, the ABCC in conjunction with the City of Boston, works very closely with all applicants throughout the entire application process. Boston is gaining new businesses as a result. So far this year the ABCC has received 63 new special legislation applications and we have approved 57 of them (6 are still pending).
 
The ABCC already has the infrastructure that provides guidance to these new licensees in compliance training and the rules and regulations of the industry. In Fiscal Year 2025 and to date for Fiscal Year 2026, approximately 2,880 alcoholic beverage stakeholders have participated, across 39 municipalities.

Lottery

Now more than ever, it is critical that we protect local aid and remain dedicated to supporting retailers through our Lottery.
 
Since inception in 1972, the Lottery has generated over $161 billion in revenues, awarded over $114 billion in prizes, paid over $9.2 billion in commissions and bonuses to its statewide network of retailers, and returned over $34 billion in net profit to the Commonwealth for unrestricted local aid.  
  
iLottery will help ensure that the Lottery can continue to compete in an increasingly saturated market. In the first full year of operation, Massachusetts can expect over $70 million in net profit from online sales. That number quickly scales to over $180 million by year three, over $230 million in year five, and almost $360 million in year ten. These dollars will go toward funding childcare initiatives aiming to improve affordability and accessibility. I do not need to tell you how critical affordable childcare is to filling job openings, let alone growing the workforce. 
 
Retail sales will continue to support all 351 cities and towns, and we remain committed to our network of retail agents, including many small businesses, who have helped make our lottery one of the most successful in the world. 

CORE

You might remember last year I emphasized how important it is to expand access to retirement plans. My Office administers The CORE Plan, which addresses barriers to saving by offering a simple, low-cost, and convenient option for non-profit employers and employees.
 
We had been limited to non-profit organizations with 20 employees or less. Exciting news – we were able to get language passed in the budget that lifts the cap, expanding CORE to organizations of up to 100 employees. This is an extremely positive result providing a low-cost retirement option to many who had no options before.
 
Speaking of preparing for our financial futures… My Office of Economic Empowerment has been instrumental in helping people in Massachusetts develop greater confidence in making financial decisions during all stages of life.

BabySteps

I know everyone remembers my BabySteps savings plan, a public private partnership that seeds savings accounts to prepare for children’s future post-secondary education.   
 
Since we launched in 2020, the BabySteps Savings Plan continues to show growth year after year. Now in its fifth year, we have almost 56,000 (55,891) accounts opened and funded, with almost $2.8 million in investment thanks to our public-private partnerships. Just last week Needham Bank made a $50,000 pledge for BabySteps! With end of year numbers coming in fast, we may very well hit 60,000 accounts before the year is out!
 
Not only are we helping families save for their kid’s future, we also wrap financial education around them on savings, budgeting and planning.   The data shows this strategy works.

Financial Education

Speaking of financial education, for over ten years, OEE has been working to fill the gap that currently exists with students, older adults, families, and veterans. Through our public-private partnerships, we offer programs, like the Worth and Wealth Seminars, Enrich, grants for Credit for Life Fairs and in-person workshops hosted by our Community Ambassadors in key cities and towns.  
 
There has been a national movement to ensure students receive financial education curriculum in schools. I know that this initiative is a priority for the Chamber. In fact, Carrie Palazzo, a member of our Office of Economic Empowerment team, who is here today, participated in the working group supported by the Chamber to create this opportunity with Boston Public Schools.   
 
Thirty states have already committed to teaching their students money management skills. I can finally say that Massachusetts is joining this movement! The House recently passed financial education legislation and just last week Governor Healey, Secretary Tutwiler, and Commissioner Martinez joined the Council on Graduation Requirements stating that our young people deserve this knowledge. And they will have access to it not just in some schools, but in All schools.

Challenges Moving Forward

What are our challenges moving forward?
 
Well, we are national leaders in public education, research and development, venture capital investment, and have the highest percentage of jobs in high-tech and bio-tech industries, all which are direct targets.
 
And this is just the tip of the iceberg…
 
We are fortunate to have a state government where everyone pulls in the same direction. And believe that our management approach will address this crisis head on. We know that the state must step up to meet the needs and support people across the state. All of us in state government are 100% in collaboration mode and the private sector has stepped up too.
 
I want to thank you as leaders in Massachusetts businesses, public finance, government, and the investment world, in continuing to innovate, so we can collectively move the needle towards an economy that works for everyone even in these uniquely challenging times.