If your hair's not on fire, you don't know the truth about the MA legislature.
While everyone is justifiably concerned about what is happening at the federal level, Mass residents would be mistaken to ignore what is going on in our state. Many in the Commonwealth take comfort in our reputation as a 'progressive' state. But the facts say otherwise. The MA legislature is known to be one of the least transparent and least effective in the country, to those who study it. Power is concentrated in the hands of leadership, not evenly among our representatives.
There are many examples of the MA legislature not doing the job of good government – that is, doing everything they can to represent and fulfill the fundamental needs of their constituents and put the interests of people over corporate profits. Massachusetts has wealth, but also a lot of poverty. Our wealth gap is one of the largest in the country. Schools in poorer communities are underfunded while corporations and the uber wealthy are given tax cuts. Investors are allowed to buy up unlimited housing as the right to shelter is reduced under the guise of 'fiscal responsibility'. Below are the GRP's legislative priorities for the current session of the Massachusetts Legislature.
HD.2323 An Act relative to political designations Makes it more difficult to grow political parties by unenrolling all members (and dissolving the political designation) if they don't have enough registered members 2 years after being approved. GRP members should OPPOSE this bill!
SD.531 -An Act providing a local option for ranked choice voting in municipal elections. The state legislature has previously prevented municipalities from having RCV even though they voted for it!
https://rankthevote.us/
S.8 Proposal for a legislative amendment to the Constitution relative to campaign finance reform. Public financing of elections
HD.4303/SD.1301An Act to strengthen representation and promote democratic, transparent, and efficient lawmaking. Stipend Reform - Makes the House in Boston more democratic, removes important leverage of the House Speaker over our representatives
HD.4304/SD.467An Act to provide sunlight to state government. Promotes transparency in state government by removing the Governor’s exemption from public records law, requiring committee votes and legislative testimony to be public, and requiring 2 weeks notice for legislative hearings
HD.3390/ SD.1684 An Act combating offshore tax avoidance. Makes large global mega-corporations pay the state’s existing corporate tax rate on a higher share of the excess profits they conceal in offshore tax havens
HD.3428/SD.2088 An Act preventing gas expansion to protect climate, community health and safety. Put Gas in the Past - Prevents the expansion of gas infrastructure near Environmental Justice communities and requires gas companies and the Commonwealth to undergo planning for a just transition to green energy
HD.3369 /SD.1674 An Act establishing a climate change superfund. Make Polluters Pay - Requires major polluters to pay a fee based on historic emissions to pay for the costs of climate resilience
HD.3001/SD.1399 An Act Promoting Responsible Investment. Divest MA pensions from military weapons contractors
HD.3816 /SD.1670 An Act to protect the civil rights and safety of all Massachusetts residents. Safe Communities Act -Limits local and state police collaboration with federal immigration agents, bars law enforcement and court personnel from inquiring about immigration status, protects access to justice in our courts, and ensures due process protections
HD.1228/SD.234 An Act establishing Medicare for All in Massachusetts. Establishes a single payer system in which the state provides health care to all residents as a right
HD.2501/ SD.1084 An Act enabling cities and towns to stabilize rents and protect tenants. Repeal the ban on rent control and enable municipalities to enact local rent control ordinances to stabilize housing costs and prevent no-cause evictions
HD.2014/ SD.1029 An Act uplifting families and securing the right to strike for certain public employees. Authorizes educators and other public employees, except for public safety personnel, to legally strike after six months of negotiations if they have not been able to reach an agreement. It also ensures that the right to free speech is no longer restricted for public employees and their unions as it relates to discussing or supporting a strike.
HD.2334 /SD.1719 An Act to fix the Chapter 70 inflation adjustment. Makes a technical fix to the Chapter 70 formula so that state funding to public school districts keeps pace with inflation over time.