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State Leaders Want Independent Review Of Boston 2024 Plan

Citing the risk that cost overruns will be handed to state and local government to deal with, Gov. Charlie Baker and Democratic legislative leaders on Monday said they would hire an outside consultant by early May at a cost of no more than $250,000 to help evaluate the "puts and takes" of an Olympic bid.

Baker, House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Stanley Rosenberg detailed the hiring process on Monday after meeting privately in the Senate president's office. Baker said he'd be interested in hiring a consultant either within Massachusetts or from outside the state in Olympic development or "development development."

"I think in this particular instance spending a couple of hundred thousand dollars on something that could cost the commonwealth as much as $2 billion, if you believe the numbers that are currently out there with respect to what's being portrayed as the state's share of all this, I think that's money well spent," Baker said.

On Wednesday, a request for response will be published by Baker's office on CommBuys, an Executive Office of Administration and Finance contracting portal.

The three leaders expect the consultant to produce a report by mid-July.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh issued a statement commending the step taken by the three Beacon Hill leaders.

"Hosting the Olympic Games holds great economic potential for the city and I look forward to working together on all aspects of this bid to ensure that we are moving forward in a way that is best for the residents of Boston and the Commonwealth," Walsh said in a statement.

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