Dear Neighbors,
Most of my newsletters are on one topic, but every week we work on so many different issues. I thought I'd share some of the highlights from last week as a example. This of course doesn't include meetings, emails and calls with constituents and my staff.
MONDAY
SHANNON BEACH RIBBON CUTTING
At 9 am, the family and friends of my predecessor, Senator Charlie Shannon, DCR leaders, neighbors and friends gathered for the ribbon cutting at the renovated beach and bathhouse at Shannon Beach. It's always been a treasure, and now it's even more beautiful and accessible!
ELDER AFFAIRS COMMITTEE HEARING
At 1, the Elder Affairs Committee, which I co-chair with Rep. Tom Stanley, held our third hearing, this one on issues of safety, including a proposal for an Office of the Elder Advocate.
EDUCATION HEARING
Also at 1 was an Education Committee hearing on issues of charter schools and vocational schools. I'm a member of this committee, and was able to attend after the Elder Affairs hearing ended. I testified on my bill to require the Board of Education to consider the impact of a new or expanded charter on schools and students in the sending district. When there was a proposal for.a new charter in Somerville, the school committee found that, if it were created, the loss of funding would require closing an existing, popular school. Some families would gain a new choice; others would lose a school they had already chosen and committed to.
TUESDAY
HEALTH CARE FINANCE
At 10, I testified before the Health Care Finance Committee on our bill to continue the ability of disabled older people to establish pooled trusts to pay for expenses while they're on MassHealth. I followed Tara Gregorio of Mass. Senior Care, who talked about the need for modernized and adequate nursing home rates, including living wages and career ladders for staff. She testified that the $300 million gap between MassHealth rates and costs has caused 25 nursing homes to close. Both of us told the committee that the omnibus bill mentioned later in the newsletter will make real progress on urgent needs.
LGBTQ AGING COMMISSION
At 11, Vicki Halal, my senior policy director, and I attended the LGBTQ Aging Commission quarterly meeting, where we discussed future listening sessions around the state.
PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS MEETING
At noon, the Senate's Progressive Caucus met to prepare for Thursday's tax bill debate,
JUDICIARY HEARING
I testified with Representatives Lindsay Sabadosa and Nicholas Boldyga before the Judiciary Committee at 1 on our bills to decriminalize the use of plant medicines, including psilocybin. A police lieutenant who is also a psychotherapist, a physician who does research at MGH, and a person who found psilocybin helped him stay sober presented compelling testimony as well. You can see their testimony at minute 1:24 here. WBUR reported on the hearing. Previously WGBH discussed the bill.
WEDNESDAY
DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS
Democratic senators met at 11 for four hours to discuss potential amendments to the Senate tax bill scheduled for Thursday.
ELDER AFFAIRS CHAIRS MEETING
Vicki and I met with Co-chair Tom Stanley and his staff at 3 to make final changes on the omnibus nursing home reform bill. We hope and expect that this is the year we can finally pass comprehensive legislation about nursing homes, assisted living residences, and home care that will make huge differences for older people in Massachusetts. The nursing home bill reflects the work of the Nursing Facility Task Force, which I served on. The Task Force report was issued right before the pandemic hit. It discusses the need to right-size the number of nursing homes, establish a reasonable rate structure, ensure quality care, and support the workforce across the long term care continuum. Excellent, accessible information on the crises in nursing homes.
THURSDAY
WAGE EQUITY MEETING
At 9:30, my chief of staff Matt Hartman and I met with others to discuss details of the wage equity bills we're working on in the Labor Committee, which I co-chair.
FORMAL SENATE SESSION
From 11 am to 9 pm, the Senate debated the tax bill. As in the session when we considered the budget, senators debated and voted on real differences about overall tax policy, the scale of the estate tax exemption, whether Housing Development Incentive Program tax credits should require some affordability, and more. The session was longer than anticipated because of delays while climate activists staged a loud protest in the gallery. In response to the minority leader, I presented information about what makes Massachusetts competitive and what makes it an outlier. More on that later.
ELDER AFFAIRS POLL
The Elder Affairs Committee voted remotely to report favorably the omnibus nursing home bill, which would create career ladders and loan repayment to help address the workforce crisis in nursing homes. Licensure and suitability reforms will provide greater accountability in spending. Other provisions will help the Attorney General's office investigate bad actors; Attorney General Andrea Campbell had testified on the bill at an earlier hearing. I've been filing legislation for years to create more accountability in spending: it's so hard to understand why for-profit companies continued to buy nursing homes while they all said they were losing money. A news report on the bill is here.
FRIDAY
HEADSTART GRADUATION
The Headstart program at Elizabeth Peabody House held its graduation ceremony for 5 year olds. I was so happy to join them, along with Rachel Clinton, my constituent services director. The photo is of Rachel (in the middle) and me with the Headstart staff. Rachel is volunteering at Headstart!
Then Rachel and I visited services along East Broadway, including Project Soup, which provides free food for 60 families a day, five days a week. That the need is so great is shocking; that Project Soup and many other programs exist is wonderful.
I also was glad to have time to stop in at the East Branch Library, Connexion, and East Somerville Main Streets.
WEEKEND
THE GLX COMMUNITY PATH!
Alain and I and our son Peter were excited to walk along the newly opened Community Path Extension from Lowell Street to the heights above Lechmere. So much gratitude to all the dedicated and persistent Friends of the Community Path advocates who worked so hard to make the Path extension change from impossible to inevitable! Especially Lynn Weissman and Joel Bennett.
Now to make sure the Assembly Row/Encore pedestrian/bike bridge is done and done well!
ALEWIFE AND MYSTIC
Alain and I canoed from the Condon Shell to the Mystic Lakes Dam. From the river you get a completely different view and understanding of the area. And even more important, lots of Great Blue herons, turtles, swans and signets, and a muskrat! I remembered when then-Representative Jim Marzilli first advocated for the Fish Ladder at the Mystic Lakes Dam. Gratitude to all who made that happen - helping the herring, the fishing industry, and the seagulls.
We also paddled up the Alewife as far as Broadway, where fallen trees blocked the way. We saw why so many people are pushing to dredge and clean the Brook. Thanks to Rep. Dave Rogers for securing $100,000 in the House budget towards that project; we are hoping to keep that in the final budget.
We also got to see a Wood Duck chase away a heron trying to land near her ducklings, and a Black Crowned Night heron roosting above us.
More on the tax debate soon.
Stay in touch,
Pat Jehlen