Dear Neighbor,
RULES REFORM AND TRANSPARENCY
Many of you have written in support of increased transparency and rules reform. The House and Senate have passed their versions of rules reform. Each chamber has made changes in its own rules, and a conference committee will resolve the differences for joint rules.
(image by gemini)
I can't do better than Progressive Mass' summary of the changes. For example, many people have asked that committee votes and testimony (except for sensitive information) be public, and they will.
For me, the most promising change is that both chambers propose to let House committee members vote on House bills, and Senate committee members vote on Senate bills. Since senators are significantly outnumbered on joint committees, it's sometimes hard to get a favorable report on a bill the House members (or the Speaker) don't favor. It also means that Senate chairs can call for a vote of senators even if the House chair isn't ready. This could expedite progress on bills.
Both houses propose moving up Joint Rule 10 Day, when committees are required to report out bills or seek extensions. This can also be helpful in encouraging earlier committee actions.
We need to start action sooner. Committees were not appointed till the end of February, and bills were only assigned to committee this week. That could happen earlier. The Aging and Independence Committee, which I chair, has set its hearing schedule, and plans to expedite hearings and action on bills favorably reported last session, but we couldn't start until we were appointed, and couldn't set schedule till bills were assigned.
WHAT YOU CAN SEE RIGHT NOW
You can find lots of information at www.malegislature.gov on:
- text and action on bills
- schedule and recordings of hearings, House and Senate sessions, and commissions (to get to previous or future month, click the arrow)
You can register at mylegislature https://malegislature.gov/MyLegislature to:
- Follow a bill or hearing for easy access to details on them through your MyLegislature Dashboard.
- Be notified of scheduling changes for hearings that you are following.
- Follow your legislators for easy access to their contact information, bills, and committee memberships.
- Get suggestions on what bills could be relevant to you based on your interests and where you live.
You can find hearings, submit testimony, and read testimony written by others on through the portal at MAPLE https://www.mapletestimony.org/. MAPLE is a project of my amazing former fellow, Nathan Sanders, and others,
IS MASSACHUSETTS BLUE?
We often wonder why it's hard to pass progressive legislation even in Massachusetts. Part of the reason is that people in different areas have very different opinions. While there are only 5 Republican state senators (a gain of 2 recently), there are many Democratic legislators in purple districts. Here are the cities and towns that voted for Harris and Trump last year. It suggests that work to listen and to change hearts and minds needs to be done here as well as in other states. (Obviously, geographic size of communities does not correlate with population or voter turnout) Map from AP via WBUR. Click on a town to see how it voted.
People in different areas have very different opinions on issues as well. Here's what people said in response to the question, "Do you support housing migrants in emergency shelters?" There are maps about other issues too at CommonwealthBeacon.
SATURDAY
Last Saturday was an unusually busy weekend day, with many inspiring events.
A great group of people came to Somerville Ward Five office hours at Zaruma Coffee with Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven, Councilor Naima Sait, and School Committee member Laura Pitone. This is just a few of the folks who came. A lot of concern about what's coming at us from Washington DC, transparency, as well as local issues.
Medford Democratic City Committee's Tea Time was also well attended. It was great to see people I haven't seen in person since COVID, and to hear reports from Democratic State Committee members (Teresa Walsh, Justin Klekota, and Jack Perenick) and Sunrise Movement members. Thanks to Councilor Matt Leming and MDCC chair Bruce Kulik for organizing!
1500 people attended Sen. Ed Markey's Town Hall gathering in Malden, demonstrating the level of concern with federal actions.
A question about Trump's abandonment of Ukraine got a standing ovation.
Republicans are proposing to have work requirements for Medicaid recipients. In Massachusetts, 62% of nursing home residents receive Medicaid. Sen. Markey pointed out that half of all nursing home residents have Alzheimers. Just one of many ideas based on low information.
Over 200 of us joined a rally in East Somerville in support of immigrants. It was really really cold, but many stayed for two hours. Luckily someone brought hand warmers! Thanks to Cambridge Day and Patch for reporting on the rally. Organizers and speakers included Asian-American Resource Workshop, Brazilian Women's Group, CAAS, Connexion, Cosecha, MAMAS, Padres Latinos, Somerville Educators Union, Somerville for Palestine, and the Welcome Project.
Cambridge Day previously reported on immigrants' fears of ICE have caused them to stay home; immigrant-owned restaurants in East Somerville are losing diners and revenue. Ward One Councilor Matt McLaughlin urged people to try those restaurants, saying they have “some of the best food in the entire city … You can get food from all over the world within walking distance.”
I was happy to attend the fourth anniversary celebration of Padres Latinos de Somerville Public Schools. It was wonderful to see families celebrating and feeling safe in a supportive community.
There were other events celebrating International Women's Day and Congresswoman Katherine Clark's town hall, but we can't be everywhere at the same time.
COMING UP: Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley will hold a town hall in Boston on Saturday, March 22 at 2:30.
Quotes of the Month
"The opposite of despair is not hope but struggle."
- Mordechai Anielewicz, leader of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
"Escucha, escucha! Estamos en la lucha!"
- chant at East Somerville rally
Stay in touch,
Pat Jehlen