About the Action Newsletter:
We suggest you choose one or two items for action. The items included in this newsletter fall under LWVMA Program Priorities:
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Improving Elections
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Empowering Voters and Fostering Civic Engagement
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Advocating for Justice and Equality
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Addressing the Climate Emergency
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Advocating for Equitable Access to Basic Human Services
These priorities are referenced for each item as a way to orient you as you survey the list. Thanks for helping to move LWVMA priorities forward!
Priority: Elections
Hearings on Redistricting in Massachusetts - Ongoing
The Special Joint Committee on Redistricting continues to hold hearings to collect public input for drawing maps for Congressional, state legislator, and Governor Council districts. The hearings are organized by Congressional districts. The upcoming virtual hearings:
- Congressional District 6: Tuesday July 6, 6 p.m. (Lynn, Salem)
- Congressional District 3: Thursday, July 8, 6 p.m. (Lowell, Lawrence, Fitchburg)
- Congressional District 7: Monday, July 12, 10 a.m. (Most of Boston, Everett, Chelsea, Cambridge, Somerville, Randolph)
- Congressional District 4: Monday July 19, 1 p.m. (Brookline, Newton, Taunton, Attleboro, some of Fall River)
The livestream of these hearings can be accessed under the Hearings & Events section of the legislative website. While the hearings are being held by Congressional District, the Committee wants to hear from the public regarding redistricting for the state level districts in addition to the Congressional districts. In particular, the Committee wants to hear about specific insights about your community such as racial, ethnic, or language groups, school districts, transportation hubs, commercial districts, watersheds, and other communities of interest that should be considered in redistricting.
Oral testimony is limited to 3 minutes. We encourage you to publicize hearings in your community, listen to the hearings, or provide either written or oral testimony. Hearings will be posted here.
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To provide live testimony during the hearing please complete the Sign Up Form.
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To submit written testimony, please use the Contact the Committee form on the Special Joint Committee on Redistricting website.
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LWVMA will send emails to local Leagues as their district hearings are scheduled. Please email Elizabeth Foster-Nolan if you plan to testify.
See People Powered Fair Maps Toolkit for more information here.
Priority: Elections
Phonebank for the VOTES Act
Thanks to our partners at Mass Voter Table, we can participate in phone banking for the VOTES Act, H.805/S.459, the comprehensive voting bill that would make permanent the pandemic voting reforms, including voting by mail and expanded early voting, and add such reforms as same day voter registration. Click here to participate on any of the Thursdays in July from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. You will be calling voters and asking that they contact their legislators. Training is available at every session and you will have a script.
Priority: Elections
Election Legislation Update Email
Election and voting legislative co-specialists Nancy Brumback and Linda Freedman are sending emails periodically to update interested League members on the status of the election and voting bills we are following. If you’d like to be added to that email list, please notify Nancy here.
Priority: Justice and Equality
Criminal Justice Specialists Available for Presentations
Nancy Bettinger and Lucy Costa are the LWVMA Legislative Specialists focusing on criminal justice. We are available to present to local Leagues on legislative priorities and to offer educational programs on criminal justice issues. We also are developing an email list of individual members who would like to receive more frequent updates regarding criminal justice bills and events. To be added to the mailing list or schedule a presentation, please email us at criminaljustice@lwvma.org. We look forward to connecting with you.
Priority: Justice and Equality
Programs: Aug. 3 and Aug. 25 LWVMA “Meet with a Specialist: Criminal Justice”
On Tuesday Aug. 3 at 7 p.m. and again on Wednesday Aug. 25 our LWVMA Criminal Justice specialists Nancy Bettinger and Lucy Costa will hold meetings to discuss their legislative priorities for this session. On Aug. 3 they will cover the following bills supported by LWVMA:
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S.1578 and H.2504: An Act to Provide Criminal Justice Reform Protections to all prisoners in segregated confinement; this bill curtails use of solitary confinement.
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H.1797: An Act to Reduce Mass Incarceration; the bill establishes the right to a parole hearing after 25 years in custody
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H.1826 and S.920: An Act to promote public safety and better outcomes for young adults; bill restructures the juvenile justice system to include 18 to 20-year-olds
Register here for August 3, 7 p.m. “Meet with a Specialist: Criminal Justice”
Register here for August 25, 7 p.m.
“Meet with a Specialist: Criminal Justice." Note that the criminal justice bills covered may change for the second session.
Priority: Justice and Equality
Join Statewide DEI Peer Discussion Group
Join your LWV colleagues across the state to learn more about what your local League can do to further its work on issues of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The group will meet online several times a year to share ideas, experiences, and resources. It is coordinated by Patty Shepard (Winchester) and Amy Cooper (Central Berkshire County), both of whom are members of the LWVMA DEI Committee. If you would like to participate, please email Patty Shepard and/or Amy Cooper.
Find DEI Resources from LWV here.
Find LWVMA Racial Justice Resources here.
Priority: Justice and Equality
Watch Discussion on Immigration Rights
Priority: Equitable Access to Basic Human Services
Learn about Common Start bill Tues. July 13 at 6:30 p.m.
The Common Start Coalition is screening a film, No Small Matter, which highlights the importance of early childhood education and care. The film will be followed by discussion of the Common Start legislation (H.605/S.362) that would make high-quality early education and child care affordable and accessible to all Massachusetts families. LWVMA is a member of the Common Start Coalition and supports this legislation. Register here.
Priority: Equitable Access to Basic Human Services
Out of Hospital Births Basics
Our LWVMA Healthcare specialists are supporting a bill (H.2341/S.1519) that will allow state licenses for CPM certified midwives to practice in Massachusetts. A CPM (Certified Professional Midwife) is the credential used as the benchmark standard by which US maternity care is judged. In Massachusetts CPM midwives are allowed to practice without the need for a state license. This sets up an economic Catch-22 for pregnant women because medical insurance companies (private and Mass Health) will not pay for medical procedures performed by a non-state licensed provider. Therefore pregnant women who wish to give birth at home with a midwife must pay out of pocket. This situation is a cultural and equity issue since it only allows women with money to give birth at home.
This bill will have a profound effect on the economic well- being of many pregnant women who wish to give birth at home with a midwife. Specialists will let you know when the bill is reported out of committee, so you can advocate for it with your legislators.
Priorities: Elections, Civic Engagement
LWVUS and For the People Act
The U.S. Senate recess is upon us and it is critical we use this time to keep up the momentum for voting rights. The fight to pass the For the People Act is far from over! The For the People Act (S.1) would:
- Modernize our voter registration system
- Restore voting rights to formerly-incarcerated individuals
- Curb partisan gerrymandering
- Make campaign contributions more transparent
What you can do during US Senate recess:
- Join the Deadline for Democracy! An effort of over 100 partner organizations focusing on this recess to draw attention to the For the People Act, and encourage Senatorial support.
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Find an event near you, or
- Host your own
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Is your Senator attending a July 4th event? Bring your League members and partner organizations with For the People Act signs and show them that you support this crucial legislation!
- Organize a honk and wave! Grab your signs and a public street corner (maybe close by your Senator’s office), let the local media know, and hold a small rally!
- Is your senator already a co-sponsor? Invite them to a League event!
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Use this Deadline for Democracy toolkit to support your efforts or reach out to LWVUS should you have additional questions or needs!
- Utilize League resources!
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Find sample letters to the editor, social media, and more on this LMS page. Placing local letters to the editors is incredibly effective in ensuring we are reaching our communities and maintaining control of the media narrative.
- Host your own For the People Act Friendbank
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Check out these resources to help you bring in your own networks and move them to action.
After recess:
- Join this workshop on storytelling July 14th at 7pm
- This session will focus on how the For the People Act impacts communities and individuals. We will share real stories and provide tactics to help you and your community tell your own stories of why we must pass the For the People Act.
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If you missed the “Filibuster and Civil Rights: What you can do about this Jim Crow Relic” virtual session, you can check out the recording here!
Priority: Civic Engagement
Be Part of League Advocacy
Learn more about advocacy:
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Learn about the legislative process: How The Legislature Works webinar
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Find League Advocacy toolkit here.
Things you can do to help move priorities forward:
- Choose one or two items to act upon in the Action Newsletter
- Organize an educational program for your League, to generate interest on the issue addressed by the bill.
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Join a League interest group, such as the LWVMA’s Criminal Justice group, DEI Peer Discussion group, Election Legislation group or the LWVMA’s Environmental Action and Advocacy Committee to receive frequent updates.
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NEW! Attend the Legislative Action Committee’s upcoming programs “Meet with a Specialist” to learn about bills LWVMA is supporting this session. These programs will run over the next several months.
Priority: Civic Engagement
LWVMA Convention Recap
Did you miss Convention? Read about the newly—elected LWVMA Officers and Board here.
You can view the newly adopted LWVMA Program 2021-2023 here.
(Note: Program establishes the priorities for LWVMA for action, education and advocacy.)
You can watch State Representative Liz Miranda’s Keynote Convention speech here or the entire convention here. LWVMA is supporting most of the bills.
A special thank you to the local Leagues who made generous gifts to LWVMA at Convention:
- LWV of Acton Area
- LWV of Amherst
- LWV of Arlington
- LWV of Cape Cod Area
- LWV of Concord-Carlisle
- LWV of Hamilton-Wenham
- LWV of Hingham
- LWV of Lexington
- LWV of Plymouth
- LWV of Needham
- LWV of Newton
- LWV of Northampton Area
- LWV of Wellesley
- LWV of Winchester
Priority: Civic Engagement
Update on State Legislation
Hearings on bills are happening now and the LWVMA specialists provide testimony on all League supported or opposed bills. You can read LWVMA testimony on the League website here.
