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Massachusetts Nixes Ad Agency That Was Worsening the State's Image

The Baker administration has bounced the state's longtime ad agency after a Herald investigation revealed it got $20 million from a hidden, taxpayer-funded account created by former Gov. Deval Patrick to skirt the budget ax.

By Joe Battenfeld

The Baker administration has bounced the state's longtime ad agency after a Herald investigation revealed it got $20 million from a hidden, taxpayer-funded account created by former Gov. Deval Patrick to skirt the budget ax.

The agency, Connelly Partners, was "no longer needed" by the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism after its contract "ended" at the end of last month, according to a top Baker aide who was responding to Herald questions.

"Connelly ceased providing services to MOTT on Sept. 30," Kristen Sabella, deputy director of policy and communications, told the Herald. "Given MOTT staff's capacity and expertise, it made sense to bring the work Connelly was doing in-house to streamline our marketing work. At this time, there are no plans to hire another firm to replace them."

Steve Connelly, the president of the firm, did not respond to messages left at his office.

The move is a major shake-up in the state's often-embattled tourism promotion effort, which has produced slogans such as the current one, "It's all here."

Connelly Partners started working for the Patrick administration in 2009 and was a major beneficiary of the former Democratic governor's bid to boost tourism spending as well as his own around-the-world trade mission junket spree.

The Herald reported earlier this year that Patrick and his tourism chief, a former campaign aide, diverted millions of dollars every year in public money from state quasi-public agencies to off-budget "trust" accounts. One of the trusts paid for Patrick's $1.3 million junket tab, which included $12,000 business-class flights and stays in five-star hotels around the world.

Those tourism and trade accounts were not part of the state budget appropriation process, and House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo and other legislative leaders said they knew nothing about the transfers.

Connelly received more than $20 million from Patrick's tourism trust account from 2009 to 2014, in addition to the millions it got from MOTT's legislative appropriation.

Sources said Baker administration officials were unaware Connelly was getting the boost in funding.

On its website, Connelly touts its work with Massachusetts, citing big boosts in traffic on the state's redesigned website. Former Patrick administration officials have also defended their tourism promotion effort, saying it's helped lead to a major increase in international and domestic visitors.

(c)2015 the Boston Herald

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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