July 2022 | The Stanley Report 

Rep. Stanley attended the Beyond Roe Coalition rally at the State House. 

Rep. Stanley at the Pride Flag Day Raising at the State House

Rep. Stanley attended a LGBT Aging Commission's Quarterly Meeting in June (6/14/22). He is co-Chair of the Commission with

Senator Jehlen. 

Rep. Stanley Urges House to Pass Bill to Expand Women's Reproductive Rights Protection in Commonwealth in Wake of Supreme Court Roe v. Wade Decision

Rep. Stanley Remarks on H4930: Ensuring access to both gender affirming and reproductive health care services. 6/29/22

In anticipation of the US Supreme Court’s recent decision to rescind reproductive rights, Massachusetts enacted the Roe Act in 2020 to ensure people in this Commonwealth would continue to have the legal right to make personal health decisions and to have access to those services regardless of anticipated Supreme Court actions.

During our recent budget considerations, Rep. Stanley filed a successful budget amendment to fund expanded access to reproductive health services for all. At that time, Rep. Stanley acknowledged that while a positive step, it would not be enough, and that Massachusetts would need to bolster the Commonwealth’s reproductive freedom infrastructure as we prepared our providers and clinics and non-profits to face increased demand for protection and care when the anticipated Supreme Court action was taken.

House 4930 is the product of that preparation. Working with Massachusetts Reproductive Equity Now, Planned Parenthood, health care providers and House colleagues has resulted in a comprehensive and much needed response. It also anticipates that the US Supreme Court’s recent decision will not be its last assault on personal rights and protections.

H 4930 ensures access to both gender affirming and reproductive health care services. This would be a right under the law and constitution of Massachusetts. It requires health insurance to provide coverage for abortions without a co-pay or other financial barrier. It guarantees access to emergency contraception and protects providers. It also prohibits sharing of information relative to, punishment of, and extradition of persons who provide legally protected health care services when demanded by another state. This bill shields providers of reproductive and gender-affirming care as well as their patients from out-of-state legal action.

House 4930 outlines broad liability protections for both providers who offer abortions and related care as well as for patients who receive them. Licensing boards would be forbidden from disciplining professionals for providing or assisting reproductive care and gender-affirming care.

Read Rep. Stanley's full remarks here.

House Passes Veterans Omnibus bill, includes Rep. Stanley's Military SPEED Act

The House passed an omnibus veterans bill today which includes policies from Rep. Stanley's Military SPEED Act to assist our service members as they move to the Commonwealth via licensure enhancement, military spouse teacher certification, advance enrollment, virtual schools, in-state tuition continuity and the Purple Star School program. The bill would eliminate the ‘substantial equivalency’ licensure requirements in current law, which require state agencies to determine whether other states’ licensing requirements are substantially equivalent to those in Massachusetts. The bill would also require the Department of Professional Licensure (DPL) to accept a spouse’s application or notify of them of what criteria they did not meet within 30 days of applying, the timeframe recommended by the United States Department of Defense (DOD).

The bill waives the initial proof of residency requirement for school enrollment. This will allow military children to begin attending school immediately upon arriving in the Commonwealth. Military parents would also be allowed to enroll their children in the Massachusetts virtual school network, under the bill. The Military SPEED Act also allows college students to be considered an in-state resident and qualify for in-state tuition at public higher education institutions – if they remain continuously enrolled – should their military parent move out of Massachusetts. Lastly, this legislation would establish a Purple Star School Program to recognize Massachusetts schools that have demonstrated a deep commitment to supporting military students and families. This will help families identify schools that are best prepared to meet their needs.

A redraft of the bill by House Ways and Means also includes the following provisions:

·       Requires funeral directors to inform clients about benefits available to veterans

·       Creates a "Medal of Fidelity" award honoring service members who died as a result of combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder or service-connected diseases

·       Establishes a commission to study a potential memorial honoring Deborah Samson, a Massachusetts woman who disguised herself as a man during the Revolutionary War

·       Requires DPH, the Commissioner of Veterans' Services and the Massachusetts National Guard Adjutant General to develop educational materials about burn pit exposure, and to reach out to any Massachusetts residents who might have been exposed and connect them with a federal registry.

Rep. Stanley Attends MBTA Public Hearing

Rep. Stanley joined Mayor McCarthy, Councillor Darcy, Councillor Bradley-McCarthur and Waltham residents to advocate for better bus service and changes to the MBTA draft proposal at a virtual public hearing. The proposal brings many positive changes. 

Highlights for Waltham:

• New, high-frequency connection to Watertown, Allston, Central Square, and Kendall/MIT on extended and simpler Route T70, with service every 15 minutes!

• MBTA estimates 8,000 more residents will be provided with faster, frequent service to Kendall Square.

• Express connection to both Back Bay and Downtown on Route 505.

• Big increase (260%) in Sunday Service.

• New weekend connections to Riverside, Belmont, and Arlington.

• New Sunday service to Brandeis/Roberts, Beaver Street, Moody Street, and High Street.

Overall, the key benefits of the entire Bus Network Redesign include:

• 25% increase in bus service across the entire network

• 70% increase in weekend service

• 275,000 more residents near high frequency service (Every 15 minutes)

• 115,000 residents of color gain access to high frequency service 

• 40,000 low-income households gain access to high frequency service.

Short comings of the draft include eliminating a Cedarwood bus stop, reducing feeder bus lines and insufficient public transportation for Waltham along Lexington Street and Trapelo Road. The City of Waltham officials present and through a City Council Resolution joined local residents in advocating for changes to address these short comings in the MBTA draft proposal. Residents are encouraged to submit their thoughts to the MBTA here. 

Waltham Receives 2022 MassTrails Grant Award

Rep. Stanley attended the MA DCR 2022 MassTrails Grant Award Announcement in Milton, MA with Lt. Gov. Karen Polito, Sect. Of Environmental Affairs, Acting Sect. Of DCR, Sen. Timilty and Reps. Galvin and Driscoll. Many communities around our state received grant awards appropriated by the MA Legislature and Baker/Polito Administration. The City of Waltham received $500,000 towards the restoration of the Linden Street Bridge as part of our new bike trail across Waltham. Congratulations to Mayor McCarthy, Rep. Stanley's colleagues on the City Council and City Planning Department under Planning Director Catherine Cagle.

This year, the MassTrails Grant Program supported 81 trail improvement projects across the Commonwealth to expand and connect the state’s network of trails. The grants will assist municipalities, non-profit organizations, and other public entities for the design, construction, and maintenance of a variety of public trails throughout the state, including hiking trails, bikeways, and shared-use paths. Additionally, this year, MassTrails has partnered with the Conine Family Foundation’s HubLuv Initiative, which seeks to further improve the Commonwealth’s existing trail network.

Lincoln receives 2021 Community Water Fluoridation 50 Year Award

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health recently announced that Lincoln will receive the 2021 Community Water Fluoridation 50 Year Award by the American Dental Association (ADA), Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD), and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This award is given jointly to recognize public water systems that have consistently adjusted the fluoride concentration in drinking water for the past 50 years, beginning in 1971. For 2021, a total of 140 public water systems in 23 states received these awards, including six communities in Massachusetts. The communities in Massachusetts that are receiving the award are Southbridge, Haverhill, Ipswich, Lincoln, Needham, and North Reading.

Gore Place and Mass Audubon Win MCC UP Awards

Mass Cultural Council recently awarded Gore Place in Waltham and Mass Audubon in Lincoln with $3,000 awards to promote accessibility through its Universal Participation (UP) Initiative. The UP Initiative is forged in the processes of Universal Design, supporting the work of cultural organizations that both provides and compels inclusion. In FY22 Mass Cultural Council provided funding to UP Designated organizations through the Innovation Fund and LEAD Professional Development Grants. Both grants come with expectations of the recipients to contribute to the ever-growing Community of Practice that is a key component of the UP Initiative. Through the Innovation Fund, $3,000 grants were awarded to support innovative, inclusive actions by cultural organizations that will dismantle barriers and create equitable opportunities for civic and social participation.

Rep. Stanley Helps Pass Comprehensive Behavioral Health Legislation

Rep. Stanley and his colleagues in the House passed comprehensive legislation addressing longstanding issues with our behavioral health care delivery system. The bill focuses on acute psychiatric care and crisis response, youth behavioral health initiatives, community-based behavioral health services, investments in the workforce, and enforcement of existing behavioral health parity laws.

“This legislation is a monumental step forward in increasing access to quality behavioral health care across Massachusetts,” said Representative Tom Stanley (D-Waltham). “The pandemic exacerbated the mental health crisis, and this timely bill reflects the House’s strong belief that behavioral health care is essential. I am proud of this legislation which will remove barriers to the behavioral health care all people deserve.”

Read more.

Early Education and Care Organizations Serving 9^th Middlesex District Receive Grants

Rep. Stanley is pleased to announce that the Massachusetts Department of Early Education & Care recently awarded grants to organizations serving the 9^th Middlesex district. Family ACCESS of Newton received a Coordinated Family & Community Engagement (CFCE) grant while South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC) and Communities United, Inc. received Head Start State Supplemental grants. Thanks to these organizations for serving families from the 9^th Middlesex and beyond!

CFCE grants help providers promote optimal child development and bolster school readiness. Head Start grants support workforce development programs at Head Start and Early Head Start programs, including staff salary increases as well as other compensation and benefits to address recruitment and retention.  

Rep. Stanley Attends Pedestrian Safety Briefing

Rep. Stanley recently attended a briefing hosted by WalkBoston about pedestrian safety. At the event, WalkBoston presented findings from its 2021 Report on Pedestrian Fatalities to the Joint Committees on Elder Affairs and Transportation. This report finds that improving road design and safety would particularly benefit the health, safety, and wellbeing of Massachusetts’ growing older adult population. Adults over the age of 65 were disproportionate pedestrian crash victims, making up 36 percent of those killed while representing only 17 percent of the population. Read the full report here.

You’re Invited: Green Space Blues Jam in Person 2022

The Waltham Land Trust presents its 18th annual Green Space Blues Jam fundraiser which will feature live music by the Love Dogs, snacks, drinks, desserts, and a silent auction. The event will take place on Saturday July 30th, 2022 from 7:30pm to 10:30pm at Citypoint in Waltham. Learn more!

Rep. Stanley lobbies on behalf of compensation for provider’s direct care, front-line and medical and clinical staff

In a letter to members of the FY23 Budget Conference Committee, Rep. Stanley urged the committee to include language in the Senate Budget (S.2915) under line item 1599-9603 in their final report. This language would ensure that new Ch. 257 funds are used to support the human service workforce, including hourly rate increases, wraparound benefits, shift differentials, overtime, hiring and retention bonuses or recruitment.

The Commonwealth is experiencing a workforce crisis among essential care workers – people who provide care for our elderly, people with disabilities, adults and children living with mental illness, and other vulnerable populations. Over the past two years, home and community-based service organizations received temporary rate enhancements funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) required that 90% of these funds go towards frontline workforce development. As a result, essential workers saw rate increases in their wages for the first time in years.

Rep. Stanley Submits Comments to raise awareness of malnutrition prevention among older adults

As members of the Malnutrition Commission, Rep. Stanley and Rep. Kane (11^th Worcester district) recently sent a letter to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) within the Department of Health and Human Services expressing support of a proposal to adopt the Global Malnutrition Composite Score measure.

Currently, no public quality reporting programs include performance measures focused on nutrition care or malnutrition. This is significant given that up to one in two older Americans is at risk for or is malnourished, and a recent Government Accountability Office report noted that “the majority of older adults have chronic conditions and evidence shows older adults’ nutrition is associated with their health outcomes.” Inclusion of the Global Malnutrition Composite Score into a CMS hospital quality reporting program can provide valuable information to providers, patients, families, and federal stakeholders about nationwide performance on nutrition care practice standards to address this burdensome condition.

Rep. Stanley Requests Extension of School Meals for All

Rep. Stanley urged members of the Conference Committee to include funding to extend School Meals for All for the 2022-2023 school year, ensuring all students have access to healthy food at school, regardless of their household income. Research indicates tremendous health and academic benefits of providing universal free meals. Consuming healthy, balanced meals each day in schools helps students stay engaged in the classroom and significantly reduces the number of visits to the school nurse. Furthermore, serving everyone for free also eliminates the stigma of free lunch, a boon for children self-conscious about their household’s economic status. Universal school meals would also provide much needed relief to families who are struggling to provide daily meals for their children.

During the pandemic, school meals became a primary source of food for nearly 400,000 children and their families. When schools shut down in March 2020, the federal government made changes to its school nutrition program, opening access to free meals for thousands of families while also relieving overburdened school meals managers from the undesirable tasks of determining which students need to pay full price, a reduced rate, or nothing at all. With these changes, some districts saw an increase of up to 40% of students requesting free school meals.  

Rep. Stanley Supports Funding the Massachusetts Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment Initiative program

In a letter to the FY23 Budge Conference Committee, Rep. Stanley voiced his support for the allocation of $4 million to the Massachusetts Concurrent Inclusive Enrollment Initiative (MAICEI) program. This funding would provide more support to high school students with intellectual and or developmental disabilities (I/DD) in accessing higher education opportunities.

Typically, students without disabilities graduate high school after 12th grade at age 18, whereas students with I/DD and autism remain in special education until age 22. Unfortunately, special education services for these students are often provided in segregate programs, leading to poor employment outcomes and greater dependence on day habilitation programs for support.

The funding would allow students with I/DD and autism who are unable to pass MCAS and who do not obtain a regular high school diploma to enroll in coursers with their peers and participate in extracurricular activities and other aspects of campus life, with supports and services to facilitate inclusion. 

Rep. Stanley Opposes Proposal to Raise the MCAS Passing Score

In a letter to Commissioner Riley and Members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, Rep. Stanley joined a group of legislators urging opposition to a pending proposal to raise Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) passing scores. Massachusetts is an outlier – one of just 11 states in the nation still requiring standardized tests for graduation.

Raising MCAS passing scores is likely to intensify, not reverse, negative consequences of 24 years of the high-stakes MCAS. The negative consequences would be the most onerous for groups of students who already suffer and were disproportionately harmed by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially English learners and students with disabilities, as well as Black and Latinx students.  

Rep. Stanley meets with members of the Tapei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston

Rep. Stanley and members of the House of Representatives welcomed Boston Director-General Jonathan Sun and Consular Officer Johanna Wang with the Tapei Economic and Cultural Office to celebrate the 30th anniversary of sisterhood between Taiwan and Massachusetts. During Jonathan Sun's remarks, he reported that trade between Massachusetts and Taiwan reached nearly $2 billion in 2021, and announced the recent formation of the New England State Legislator's Taiwan Caucus.

Rep. Stanley Lobbies for Environmental Funding

In a letter to Chair Michlewitz, Rep. Stanley urged the House Committee on Ways and Means to consider several investments that would help protect our environment and open space in a potential ARPA bill or FY22 supplemental budget. The investments will not only protect our natural assets and reduce emission but save billions in avoided costs in disaster recovery and support job growth across the Commonwealth.

Rep. Stanley asked the Committee to consider $210 million for open and space and recreation funds including $90m for Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA) programs and grants to maintain, restore, and improve public access on state, municipal, and nonprofit parks, trails, conservation, and waterways; $95m for municipalities and nonprofits to increase the pace of new open space acquisition, including waterways and waterfront parks, urban parks, trails; and $25m for DCR, DG and DAR to acquire conservation land and conservation and agricultural preservation restrictions on working farms and forests.

He also asked the Committee to consider $240 million for nature-based solutions for climate mitigation, adaption and resilience including $45m to remove obsolete and unwanted dams statewide; $20m to protect headwaters land and restore wetlands on cranberry farms; $25m for coastal and tidal wetlands restoration for climate adaptation and habitat restorations benefits; and $150m for climate resiliency via the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) program.

Rep. Stanley Supports Bold Climate Policies

In a letter to Representative Roy, House Chair of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy, Rep. Stanley urged him to consider bold climate policies in his deliberations with the Wind and Clean Energy Conference Committee. Rep. Stanley supports existing and continuing commitments to reduce air pollution and support community-based agriculture and jobs to create a healthy, thriving environment in the Commonwealth.

In the letter, Rep. Stanley asked Rep. Roy to support legislation to promote energy efficiency and electrification of buildings, a rapid transition to electric vehicles and improved public transportation, more renewable energy to the electric grid and ensuring the transition is fair to working families.