Bringing Beacon Hill to You

We closed out the month, the year, and the legislative session. December was an interesting month filled with holiday celebrations, reflection on the 13rd General Court, and plans for what's still to come.

Here are some of the highlights from our work over the past few weeks.  



Of all the things that have come to the Senate floor in the past few weeks, the one I am most eager to share with you is the substance use disorder bill recently passed by the Legislature. Substance use disorder impacts our society in so many ways, from broader public health concerns to personal well-being. This bill consists of numerous policies to address this public health crisis, and I was incredibly glad to see several of my office’s policy priorities included in its final version.  

December provides us all the opportunity to reflect. Having reached the end of the 193rd legislative session, I’m thinking back on everything that we managed to do during the past two years, and I’m proud of what our team has accomplished. The revenge pornography bill became law, bringing with it a variety of protections including the addition of coercive control to the state’s abuse laws and the inclusion of offenses involving AI-generated “deep fake” content. We also filed and passed bills that will provide home improvement loans to low-income homeowners, create jobs for people in recovery from addiction, and increase public access to naloxone on the MBTA in areas where fatal overdoses are statistically more likely to occur.  

We led the charge on addressing the public health impacts of widespread gambling addiction and helped push the conversation on the value overdose prevention centers could have in the communities seeking to host them. 

I am proud of what our team has been able to accomplish, but I know there is still so much to do. There are still so many people struggling to keep pace with their bills, anxious over shaky healthcare coverage, or just generally worried about their future.  

This month, I will be filing dozens of bills, all of which I hope will have a positive impact on the people of Massachusetts. We’re going to keep challenging gambling companies that prey on financially vulnerable consumers. We’re going to push for changes in health insurance coverage, so people won’t have to worry as much about losing access to their treatment. We’re going to advocate for workers rights and hopefully see dedicated government employees be afforded the option to form a union.  



As we move into this new chapter, please remember that you have a voice in all of this. A phone call or a friendly meeting can lead to real change. So keep in touch. If there is something you care about, let us know. If there is a bill you’re curious about, we will be happy to review it with you. The next two years promise to be interesting and challenging - but we need your help to make them years of progress for the residents of the Commonwealth. 

My December calendar was full with so many events that brought me together with constituents. 

In Quincy I enjoyed attending the Annual Holiday Parade, and I was happy to sponsor a balloonist for the Rockland Holiday Stroll. It’s always great to see kids having fun at the holiday stroll and I hope they enjoyed their balloon animals! 

I also attended Quincy’s Annual Good Scout Breakfast, which recognized some extraordinary local leaders who embody the values of the Scouting program. I also stopped by Interfaith Social Services’ Feed the Hungry Gala in Quincy. Interfaith has been doing such important work across the South Shore for over half a century, and I was happy to take part in an event that supports their work across our communities. Later in the month I attended an event at the Quincy Armory hosted by Senator Walter Timilty, the Executive Office of Public Safety, and the Massachusetts National Guard to brief local officials on the many resources available to them to build up cyber security operations across Massachusetts. 

December marked the 83rd anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and on National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day I joined the Quincy and Braintree Veterans Services at the USS Salem to honor the servicemembers who lost their lives. 

At the Kennedy Center in Quincy, I spoke with their men’s group about work being done in the Legislature and how we are preparing for the start of the upcoming session.  



Representative Chan and I also met with officials at Eastern Nazarene to get an update on where things stand with the school’s closure, and I was grateful to hear that things are going smoothly during this difficult period of transition. I also met with the Hanover Superintendent of Schools and some members of the School Committee about current school issues. 

Working for the Legislature is an important job. Everyone in the office of a senator or state representative has the potential to help people in need and to seriously impact the process behind new polices that may become law. There’s a lot of responsibility here, which is part of why my staff and I decided to implement a new professional development course for folks working at the State House.   

Drawing from a public speaking course I took at the Harvard Kennedy School, we developed a curriculum for a communications-focused class that tackled explaining policy and government issues effectively to individual constituents, members of the media, and to large public audiences. I want to thank Peter Jasinski, our Communications Director, for artfully leading the class, which included 10 sessions over about six weeks. It was great to watch how people progressed through the course, but even greater to see personnel from different offices from across the building connect and build a sense of community. 

 

Despite the important work they do, legislative staff do not have a lot of the same professional development opportunities available to people working in other fields. Our seminar had a really positive reception, but it also revealed how strong of an appetite personnel have for this type of experience. We are hopeful that we will be able to offer this experience again, and that other similar opportunities will also be made available.