Mayor of Boston v. Treasurer & Receiver General

In providing an additional $348,000,000 in financial aid to the cities and towns in the budget for the current year, the Legislature imposed a specific limitation on the distribution of funds to the city of Boston. St. 1981, *719c. 351, § 2, item 0611-5500. That limitation conditioned the distribution to Boston on the city’s maintaining “the same level of police and fire protective services as during fiscal [1980]” and maintaining “as operating facilities all police and fire stations operating during fiscal [1980].”1 The city and its mayor brought this action to challenge the limitation on Boston…