The People's Blog

I delivered these remarks during the Senate FY21 budget debate: I ask for unanimous consent to make a brief statement. Madam President, I’d like to speak to amendment number 82 — Revenue for a [...]

During the FY21 Senate budget debate, I recorded this video message about why we must cancel MCAS.  

I delivered these remarks during the Senate FY21 budget debate: I ask for unanimous consent to make a brief statement. Please let me take a moment to extend my deep thanks to the Senate President [...]

Greetings, all. As many have said, in the hours following this weekend’s seismic news: The work begins anew. To build a nation — a Commonwealth — with dignity and respect for all. A place [...]

(I offered these remarks at an 11/4 Every Vote Count rally in Northampton.) You are beautiful. Thank you to Debby Pastrich-Klemer and all who organized today. Thank you to MoveOn, Indivisible, [...]

Did you know that many low-income people with MassHealth coverage who are over age 55 have to pay back the state for the cost of their medical care — after they die? It’s true: The “Estate [...]

Greetings from your State House, As fall rushes in, I’m reminded of the unparalleled beauty of our district. This email is event-packed, including information on a day-long paddle down the [...]

The following letter went out on October 15 to constituents who emailed or phoned about the Commonwealth’s eviction crisis. There is a great deal of misinformation about the legislation [...]

What’s Happening? Department of Revenue (DOR) and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) are doing a report on “the equity, predictability and accuracy of the method of [...]

Greetings from your State House, Transitions. Everywhere. And uncertainty. We’re in the grips of a massively high-stakes election cycle. Amid an ongoing pandemic and economic crisis — rife with [...]

This is a joint response from Mindy and Jo — as we work as partners in our accountability to the University of Massachusetts Amherst and its wider community.  This is an absolutely wrenching time [...]

All year long, our team benefits immeasurably from the skilled, dedicated, and passionate work of interns and fellows. We welcome interns in the fall, spring, and summer. This summer’s crew, amid [...]

A public hearing has just been announced for An Act responding to the COVID-19 emergency by instituting a moratorium of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System. Hearing details: The [...]

On Friday, the Senate passed the Conference Committee Report for what was called the General Government / IT Bond Bill, a $1.8 billion investment to modernize our Commonwealth’s general [...]

Greetings, We’re writing again in partnership with Representative Sabadosa and Congressman McGovern, to share a third timely update on the archeological site in Northampton and the construction [...]

Greetings from your State House, July was a sprint inside a marathon. During any other two-year session of the General Court, July 31 of the second year would have marked the final day of what’s [...]

Thank you to everyone who raised your voices about S.2842, An Act to encourage new development and usher in a recovering economy, otherwise known as (The ENDURE Act), an economic development and [...]

Information alone is powerful Earlier this week, I sent an email to constituents who had weighed in on K-12 education which contained links to guidance from DESE. I believe all constituents [...]

Rep. Mindy Domb and I wanted to provide some clarification on the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s plan to return students in the fall and the University’s budget picture. These are [...]

EDIT TO ORIGINAL POST: All, I imagined this post to be about information sharing — getting what a state agency said out to constituents so that everyone has the same information, BUT I fear that [...]

On July 16, the House and Senate enacted the final version of the Mosquito Control Reform bill and today the Governor signed the bill into law. I wanted to provide a summary of the bill and how [...]

I was honored to be appointed by Senate President Spilka to the Senate Advisory Group on Racial Justice, which generated the initial text of the Reform, Shift + Build Act. My team’s contribution [...]

Early on Tuesday morning (like, 4:30 AM early) the State Senate passed S.2800, known as the Reform, Shift + Build Act, by a vote of 30 – 7. The comprehensive bill is designed to increase [...]

Meet Seth McKenzie. Seth is one of the incredible interns on the Hampshire, Franklin, Worcester team this summer. He has a message for all of us about the power of Gen Z. The power of the vote. [...]

Thank you for your strong advocacy for the expansion of voting rights and the ability to vote by mail during COVID-19. I’m delighted to tell you that this week the Governor signed An Act relative [...]

Rep. Sabadosa and I drafted this joint statement. It’s the second communication we’ve sent out on the issue of the Northampton roundabout. View the first here. *** Greetings,  Thank [...]

In response to resounding calls for racial justice, the Senate’s An Act to Reform Police Standards and Shift Resources to Build a More Equitable, Fair and Just Commonwealth that Values Black [...]

Greetings, all, The last time I emailed you—about 44 days ago—it was our third straight month focusing solely on COVID-19. At that time, our streets were COVID quiet. Today, we hear cries for [...]

The following is an email reply going out to constituents who have emailed in response to a MassDOT project which would have an impact on a site known to have Native American artifacts. * * * [...]

Thank you to the hundreds of you who have written with all manner of racial justice demands, past and present — calling for an end to mass incarceration and to police brutality, raising your [...]

I have been honored to serve as Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Public Health during the 2019-2020 session. Since being appointed to this post by Senate President Karen Spilka back in [...]

Ahmaud Arbery was out for a run in Georgia when he was murdered. Breonna Taylor was shot six times by the police in the middle of the night in her own home. George Floyd was asphyxiated by a [...]

Moments ago, Governor Baker led a press conference with Lieutenant. Governor Karyn Polito, Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Mike Kennealy, and Secretary of Health and Human Services [...]

Greetings friends, I write to share news as we tackle the challenges presented by COVID-19 and aim for the boldest possible route forward—building back with greater equity. I continue to chair [...]

This blog is written by Elena Cohen, who’s the District Director on our state Senate team and a Northampton native. *** Writing to share a non-COVID-19 update on our office’s water and [...]

Dearest friends and neighbors, The intensity of this moment makes me wish I had more than the written word to pack into this email. We are in the midst of a storm we cannot see, but it’s raging [...]

My team is continuing our series of community conference calls on COVID-19 every Wednesday and Saturday through the first weekend of May.  These are open to the public and are opportunities to [...]

Friends, We are living through a defining moment. You know this: These are profoundly challenging times. The enormity of what we’re experiencing will be analyzed and written about for decades to [...]

Greetings, friends, Below is what I hope to be timely and useful information on the Governor’s initial executive orders, COVID-19 prevention, information on small business loans, a request to [...]

My team has scheduled a series of community conference calls on COVID-19 for me to speak with constituents. These are open to the public and will be an opportunity to ask me questions directly [...]

Greetings, all, Thanks to the many of you who replied to yesterday’s newsletter with questions and feedback. I want to respond to some of the most frequently asked questions and concerns [...]

Greetings Friends, I write to you today as our state grapples with the COVID-19 outbreak. This is a very hard time and we’re going to get through it, together. First, thank you to all [...]

Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass a trio of energy and climate bills under the banner: Next Generation Climate Policy. Together, the bills aim to bring the [...]

It was a packed house last night at Greenfield Community College, host to the annual Franklin County 4-H celebration and awards ceremony. I wanted to share the following remarks I offered in [...]

Amid increasing reports of environmental devastation worldwide, the Massachusetts State Senate has taken major new steps to advance the state’s approach to combating global warming. The Senate’s [...]

The Massachusetts Health Policy Forum held their annual student forum today in the State House. Public health graduate students from across the state gathered to hear from legislators, advocates, [...]

Hello hello! This is looooong. You can jump to the sections that interest you by clicking the links below: Education Flavored Tobacco Road Safety Campaign Finance Children’s Health and Wellness [...]

This blog is written by Elena Cohen, who’s the District Director on our state Senate team and a Northampton native. This is an excerpt from the Water and Sewer Forum Report Elena wrote [...]