Dear Neighbors,
You've probably seen press reports about the Senate budget, so I'll just mention some issues I focused on.
I'm grateful to the many hundreds, perhaps thousands, of residents who have written to us about their budget concerns. My staff and I are working hard to respond to your emails.
The budget this year is very strong and progressive. It meets the standards of the Student Opportunity Act, bringing us closer to equity in school funding. Revenues are relatively high this year, along with federal assistance, which allows us to make important progress toward meeting needs. But we have unmet needs in transportation safety and access, continued progress toward education equity, and higher education affordability, among others. We will need the Fair Share amendment to pass this fall, and we need to focus tax cuts on those that are equitable and affordable.
EDUCATION AND YOUTH JOBS
The budget meets the standards of the Student Opportunity Act, bringing us closer to equity in school funding - but the gaps remain because funding is phased in.
Many people have called for more support for early education and care to help both families and the economy. The Senate’s budget invests $1.13 billion in this sector, including $300 million in new resources to begin implementation of recommendations made by the Early Education and Care Economy Review Commission.
For the first time, funding for the Massachusetts Consortium for Innovation in Education (MCIEA) was included in the Ways and Means Committee budget, and didn’t require an amendment as I have done previously, showing increased support. The Consortium, of which Somerville and Winchester are members, is developing more authentic and useful measures of student learning and school quality. The Consortium recently made public its dashboard of School Quality Measures: you can see results from student and teacher surveys as well as administrative data collection for schools in the member districts. I share the Consortium's hope to help other communities use its tools and possibly join.
Two of my successful amendments provide investments in education. $350,000 will go to Jumpstart for preschool programs in Cambridge, Somerville and four other communities. $350,000 will expand the Journey into Education and Teaching (JET) program supporting paraprofessionals to obtain teaching degrees, building career ladders and the pipeline of Black and Latino educators.
I also secured $50,000 in funding for Groundwork Somerville to support youth jobs. $75,000 for Teen Empowerment will support youth violence prevention, youth leadership jobs and helping teen voices reach policy makers.
LOCAL EARMARKS
One of my successful amendments will provide $75,000 for the Community Action Agency of Somerville to support community organizing to prevent evictions.
With the support of the Somerville Alliance for Safe Streets (SASS), Rep. Christine Barber and I each secured $100,000 in our budgets for design and implementation of traffic changes at the dangerous intersection of Broadway and Alewife Brook Parkway in West Somerville. This intersection is the first of many improvements to Alewife Brook Parkway, as SASS, the city, and legislators continue to prioritize work on road safety for all users.
Another of my amendments secured $150,000 to improve pedestrian facilities at three busy intersections in Medford for users of all abilities, at Elm Street and Aquavia Road, Elm and Sturges Streets, and South Border Road at Governor’s Avenue. These investments will be critical in making roadways, crossings, and sidewalks safer for Medford residents.
My amendment for $50,000 for ABCD will provide support for homelessness outreach teams in Medford, Malden and Everett. These teams operate vans that provide individuals with necessities like food, water, clothing, and hygiene kits. They also work with people 1:1, building trust, assessing needs, providing counseling, referring them to mainstream services, and, ultimately, helping them find permanent housing.
MY AMENDMENTS FOR EXONEREES, LGBT AGING COMMISSION, EVICTION STUDY
One successful amendment allocates $250,000 for an exoneree network program facilitated by New England Innocence Project to assist people re-entering society after exoneration. It would provide assistance in securing housing, jobs, and other necessary supports upon release. I'll be writing soon about what we owe those who have been incarcerated for decades in spite of innocence.
My amendment secured $50,000 to support the LGBT Aging Commission's activities, such as reducing anti-LGBT discrimination in senior housing, long-term care, and senior centers. The project also increases socialization opportunities to reduce social isolation and sustains a centralized listing of resources for LGBT aging people. I've served on the Commission for years, and this is the first time it's gotten funding.
Another successful amendment directs the Department of Housing and Community Development to study no-fault evictions and their effects on rent prices.
PROTECTING PATIENTS AND PROVIDERS POST-ALITO
Many people have written to us concerned for people from other states who will need care in Massachusetts due to other states' restrictions on reproductive and gender-affirming care. Senator Cindy Friedman’s amendment will enhance protections for residents, visitors and providers of reproductive and gender-affirming care in the Commonwealth.
NO COST CALLS IN PRISONS
The Senate also adopted an amendment that prevents correctional facilities from charging fees to incarcerated persons or their loved ones for prison phone calls, and requires that commissary items in correctional facilities not be sold at more than 3 per cent over the purchase cost. Both changes ensure that our correctional facilities do not unjustly profit off the basic needs of incarcerated persons, and free phone calls will keep people in touch with their families, which will promote better re-entry on release.
Now that the Senate and Massachusetts House of Representatives have passed our budget proposals, both branches will now work to reconcile differences and send a combined budget to the governor.
Stay safe, and stay in touch,