The same as many during the coronavirus outbreak, the Massachusetts State Treasury is being run from home.
State Treasurer Deb Goldberg is doing what she has called on her nearly 800 employees to do: work remotely. From her home office, Goldberg keeps things running with the help of two computers, an iPad a television and her cell phones.
It’s all about helping to contain the coronavirus without compromising the important work of the treasury, which includes the state’s cash management, the lottery, and the pension fund.
Goldberg says her staff regularly texts, calls and emails.
“For the things that we do in our offices, we are managing it well and we are keeping the state economically stable,” she said.
Inside the state house, Senate minority leader Bruce Tarr is operating with a skeletal staff.
“The government will continue to go and we’re all committed to that,” he said.
Tarr pointed to the legislature’s actions just Thursday, when both the House and Senate moved a $15 million supplemental spending bill to the governor’s desk to create a reserve fund to deal with coronavirus.
“We were able to work together in a bipartisan, bicameral way to take action that needed to be taken immediately on a priority issue and we got it done,” he said.
City and town leaders have also put plans in place to continue the services of local government.
“It could be an inspection on your home or business. Another permit you might need or some other service from the city. The challenge for us is how to keep as much of that going is possible, but it will not be at the expense of taking this crisis head on,” Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone said.
City and state leaders say getting through the coronavirus crisis will be a challenge requiring a lot of prioritizing. But they are confident they will manage it smoothly.
