Now that the Supreme Judicial Court has cleared the way, the House and Senate (and Gov. Charlie Baker, too) can start debating income inequality in Massachusetts and how to address it.

The SJC ruled on Monday that tax policies contained in the Senate budget are there legally. Under the state constitution, the House must originate so-called money bills, which “transfer money or property from the people to the state.”  House Speaker Robert DeLeo insisted the House budget proposal contained no new taxes, so the Senate couldn’t legally tinker with tax policy in its budget plan.

But the SJC disagreed, saying the Senate tax measures were legal because the House budget did raise taxes. The justices pointed to a provision in the House budget plan that delays for a year the start of a corporate tax deduction, which has the effect of raising state tax revenues by $45.8 million. (Bit of irony there: the SJC decision means no-new-taxes DeLeo included a tax in the House budget that was copied from the budget plan of no-new-taxes Baker.)

Now that the legal issues are resolved, the political games can begin. The Senate budget expands the state’s earned income tax credit and increases personal income tax exemptions and pays for those initiatives benefitting lower-income workers by freezing the income tax at 5.15 percent rather than allowing it to keep ratcheting down to 5 percent. In its brief to the SJC, the Senate described its tax measures as the centerpiece of its budget and “tools it considers to be critical to address rampant income inequality in the CommonWealth.”

It will be interesting to see if the tax debate goes public on Beacon Hill or whether the lawmakers charged with resolving differences between the House and Senate budgets settle the dispute behind closed doors. DeLeo, who tried to block the Senate tax package using legal means, obviously doesn’t want to debate income inequality publicly. But Senate President Stanley Rosenberg may make the case.

Examples of income inequality abound: Boston Globe columnist Joan Vennochi notes one, the redevelopment of Holy Trinity Church in Boston’s South End and “the crassness of a glass palace for the rich rising out of a church that served the poor.” The Boston Herald, in an editorial, wants no part of income redistribution. The tabloid says the focus of Beacon Hill should now shift “to the true awfulness of the Senate proposal,” which the tabloid labels a $1 billion tax hike.

Whether the debate over income inequality goes public or not,  the political odds are against the Senate tax plan. The key players on Beacon Hill all favor increasing the earned income tax credit, but DeLeo and Baker want the income tax to keep dropping. It’s two against one.

BRUCE MOHL

 

BEACON HILL

Senate President Stan Rosenberg says there should be clearer rules on the use of state money for trade missions abroad. (Boston Herald)

Gov. Charlie Baker says the state should consider whether to give paid parental leave to state employees. (Associated Press)

The Berkshire Eagle calls for an end to mandatory minimum drug sentences.

The international president of the Amalgamated Transit Union defends the anti-privatization Pacheco law that Baker would like to scrap and the House would like to suspend for five years for the MBTA. (Boston Globe)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

A new Gateway Cities program will be used to attract development to Lynn using tax credits and exemptions. (Item)

The Brockton City Council, frustrated in its attempts to meet with the private water supplier Aquaria, voted to defund the multi-million dollar, 20-year contract the city has with the company. (The Enterprise)

OLYMPICS

Boston 2024 makes it official: Billerica’s Minute Man Sportsman’s Club will play host to shooting events if Boston is chosen to host the Games. (Lowell Sun)

Boston 2024 expands its board, adding Olympian Aly Raisman and former Boston mayor Raymond Flynn. (Boston Globe)

A Globe editorial says the Olympics could be a boon to planning and redevelopment efforts in Allston.

CASINOS

The administration of Boston Mayor Marty Walsh accuses Wynn Resorts of lying to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission about its progress in obtain city permits. (Boston Globe)

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Rachel Dolezal, who resigned Monday as leader of the Spokane NAACP after it was revealed she falsely claimed to be black, sued Howard University in 2002 claiming the historic black school discriminated against her because she was white. (New York Times) She tells NBC she identifies as black (Time), which starts a firestorm of its own. (Christian Science Monitor.)

Pigs are flying:  House GOP leaders and President Obama are trying to resurrect Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal. (PoliticalWire)

ELECTIONS

Hillary Clinton hits New Hampshire — and joins the chorus of those calling for quality 4-year-old kindergarten for all. (Boston Globe)

The “cocky billionaire class” should watch out: Bernie Sanders continues to pack ’em in wherever he goes. (PoliticalWire) A new online poll of New Hampshire primary voters shows Sanders coming on strong, garnering 32 percent to Clinton’s 44 percent. (The Hill)

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Cape business owners bemoan the worsening problem of trying to find affordable housing for summer workers. (Cape Cod Times)

A Cambridge nonprofit says it sometimes makes sense for philanthropic dollars to aid for-profit startups — if they’re aimed at developing products or services with social benefits. (Boston Globe)

A Brockton man has filed a $5 million federal lawsuit against DraftKings, claiming the Boston-based sports fantasy business defrauds customers through false advertising. (The Enterprise)

Weymouth Mayor Sue Kay says a movie studio is coming to Southfield, the mixed use redevelopment project at the former naval air base, after all. (Patriot Ledger)

A group of activists has filed a complaint with the IRS that Walmart used its charitable foundation to target donations in some cities, including Boston, to overcome opposition to building stores there. (New York Times)

Yes, it has come to this: Management consultants weigh in on the best course of action for the sinking Sox. (Boston Globe)

Rhode Island-based CVS is acquiring all the in-store pharmacies at Target. (Boston Herald)

Charitable donations grew 5.4 percent last year to more than $358 billion, according to “Giving USA,” an annual report that tracks nonprofit gifts. (Chronicle of Philanthropy)

EDUCATION

Wheelock College faces challenges with its finances and an overburdened faculty, according to a new accrediting report. (Boston Globe)

The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit website focusing on education, says the cost of college tuition could increase as more and more schools such as Tufts and Northeastern see their part-time adjunct faculty unionize. (U.S. News & World Report)

Marian Court College in Swampscott is shutting down due to declining enrollment. Salem State University agrees to enroll all of the students. (Item) The Item, in an editorial, calls the Catholic school’s closing a complete shock and urges residents to lend a hand.

Worcester teachers are 87 percent white and a Department of Justice-sponsored conversation about race reveals that that is a problem when talking about racial issues in the city and beyond. (MassLive)

HEALTH CARE

The North Shore newspapers continue their series on opioid abuse, with a story debunking myths about junkies, another on pharmacists in New Hampshire, a third on Gloucester’s angel program, and a fourth on the scarcity of addiction treatment. (Eagle-Tribune)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

Acadia Center officials say the region’s energy rules need to change, particularly the incentives utilities receive for building pipelines and transmission lines. (CommonWealth)

Greenhouse gas emissions tend to rise as population and affluence increase, but a new study suggests environmental activism can alter that trend. (Governing)

Former state energy and environment secretary Ian Bowles says that contrary to the alarmist talk of “out of control” Massachusetts energy costs, homeowners in the state have electricity bills that rank 30th to 40th in the country. (Boston Globe)

Sharks should be arriving off our coast before the Fourth of July, the Herald helpfully informs. Two swimmers lost limbs in attacks over the weekend in North Carolina.

“Gone fishing” is evidently becoming a less common sign left on people’s doors, and that’s bad news for wildlife management agency budgets. (Boston Globe)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE

A prosecutor outlines the chilling “trapping” of 16-year-old Jonathan Dos Santos by two other teens who are now charged with his murder. (Boston Globe)

The judge in the Aaron Hernandez murder trial released a redacted copy of an affidavit from defense attorneys seeking court permission to conduct a confidential investigation into allegations of juror misconduct. (Herald News)

MEDIA

Matt Karolian, social media director at BostonGlobe.com and Boston.com, reflects on his first year on the job and notes that Facebook, not Twitter, is the way to drive traffic to news stories. (Medium)

Actor Alan Cumming, host of PBS’ “Masterpiece Mystery!” and a cast member on the CBS hit series “The Good Wife,” talks about his brutally and painfully honest autobiography about growing up with a physically and emotionally abusive father. (Greater Boston)