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THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, MARCH 1, 2024 Page 17 GET A FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO MASSTERLIST – Join more than 22,000 people, from movers and shakers to political junkies and interested citizens, who start their weekday morning with MASSterList—the popular newsletter that chronicles news and informed analysis about what’s going on up on Beacon Hill, in Massachusetts politics, policy, media and influence. The stories are drawn from major news organizations as well as specialized publications. MASSterlist will be e-mailed to you FREE every Monday through Friday morning and will give you a leg up on what’s happening in the blood sport of Bay State politics. For more information and to get your free subscription, go to: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/aPTLucK THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. Beacon Hill Roll Call’s research shows that so far there are at least eleven bills that have been approved unanimously by the Senate in 2023 but are languishing in the House Ways and Means Committee as of February 23, 2024. With no opposition in the Senate, observers question why the bills have not yet been considered and approved by the House. Under House rules, any individual representative can move to discharge any and all if these bills from the Ways and Means Committee. There is a 7-day waiting period prior to the House considering the motion to discharge. The discharge motion must receive a majority vote of the members present. If the measure is discharged from the committee, the committee has four days within which to report out the measure for placement on the House’s agenda for action. A bill may also be discharged from the Ways and Means Committee by any representative by filing a petition signed by a majority of the House. The bill would then be discharged seven days later and go onto the House agenda for the next session. A state representative who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Beacon Hill Roll Call that some bills are sometimes held up in committee because someone in a high position of power either inside or outside the Statehouse is opposed to it. “Rank and file members have little control over the bill if a powerful person wants the measure buried,” said the legislator. Beacon Hill Roll Call By Bob Katzen An ex-state representative who wished to remain anonymous said, “Although under House rules, every representative has the power to attempt to discharge a bill, hardly any attempt is made to do this out of fear of alienating the powerful speaker, his leadership team and committee chairs.” Beacon Hill Roll Call’s archives show that motions to discharge a bill from a committee and bring it to the full House for debate and a vote were a common practice back in the 1970s and 1980s. Beacon Hill Roll Call contacted the House Speaker’s office and and asked why the bills are still in committee. We received this e-mail response: “Each of those bills are currently being reviewed by the House, with a continued focus on fiscal responsibility,” said Max Ratner, a spokesman for House Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy). He also cited three important bills that were approved by the House in November 2023, December 2023 and January 2024 and are in the Senate Ways and Means Committee awaiting action. Beacon Hill Roll Call will report on those bills in a future report. Here are five of the important bills that were approved unanimously by the Senate and are currently in the House Ways and Means Committee: GENDER X (S 2429) On July 27, 2023, the Senate 39-0, approved and sent to the House a bill that would allow Bay Staters to choose the gender-neutral designation “X” in lieu of “male” or “female” on their birth certificates and marriage certificates. Another provision in the bill codifies into law a current practice that allows individuals to select “X” as their gender designation on their driver’s license, learner’s permit, identification card and liquor purchase identification card. In addition, current state law requires medical documentation in order to change a gender designation on a birth certificate. The bill does away with that requirement. Similar proposals were approved by the Senate during the 2018, 2020 and 2022 sessions but died from inaction in the House. “People know what gender they are,” said sponsor Sen. Jo Comerford (D-Northampton). “This bill affirms the ability of people to choose a non-binary gender option on state documents and forms, which would align the commonwealth with many other states that have adopted this designation …Together, with our partners in the House, we will continue to move our commonwealth to embrace this basic human right.” “Giving people the opportunity to be who they are is a human right and one that we are proud to extend to every member of the commonwealth, regardless of how they identify,” said Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) who first introduced the bill in 2017. “Allowing a nonbinary option for state licenses and birth certificates is fundamental to building a society that welcomes, protects and respects all individuals … I am as hopeful as ever that Massachusetts will be able to enshrine this change into our state laws this session and continue welcoming everyone into our commonwealth with open arms.” Although no senators voted against the bill, there was opposition from some outside groups. Catholic Action League Executive Director C.J. Doyle called the bill a “malign, non-rational proposal” that will “require the state to affirm and give legal sanction to the ideologically driven delusion that gender is a subjective social construct, which can be altered arbitrarily and capriciously, rather than what it is, which is an objective and immutable biological reality.” “It will make government a party to this delusion,” continued Doyle. “It will confuse and falsify public records and compel government employees to participate in this falsification. It will result in discrimination in public employment against those who hold a traditional understanding of reality and will make the investigation of offenders more difficult for law enforcement. Section 4 of the bill will essentially empower government bureaucrats who administer programs for youth to proselytize the minors in their care for so-called gender transitioning.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico Yes MAKE OBTAINING ID CARDS EASIER FOR HOMELESS PERSONS(S 2251) On July 27, 2023, the Senate 38-0, approved and sent to the House legislation that would make it easier for homeless youth and adults to secure free state ID cards. Supporters said that currently a person experiencing homelessness faces prohibitive fees and documentation requirements when trying to obtain an ID card. They noted that this legislation removes those barriers by eliminating fees and only requiring that applicants present documentation showing that they are currently receiving services provided by the state, a homeless service provider or another service provider. They argued that ID cards are necessary for applying for jobs, enrolling in school, interacting with law enforcement, accessing government buildings, opening financial accounts and many other basic services that many take for granted. “When we listen to our homeless youth about the challenges they face, there is a common denominator and that is access to identification,” said Sen. Robyn Kennedy (D-Worcester), the Senate sponsor of the bill. “Having proper identification is the foundation to accessing food, shelter and employment opportunities, while also breaking the cycle of poverty.” “Fees and documentation are not just barriers to identification,” saidSenate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland). “By extension, they are barriers to getting a job, accessing healthcare and applying for services—the most basic of necessities. These barriers harm the most vulnerable people in our commonwealth and eliminating them is a compassionate step that makes the path to stability a little bit easier.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico Yes MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS (S 2491) On October 26, 2023, the Senate 38-0, approved and sent to the House a bill that would require all prisons, homeless shelters and K-12 schools to maintain free menstrual products, including sanitary napkins, tampons and underwear liners in private and public restrooms and to make them available in a “convenient manner that does not stigmatize any persons seeking the products.” Supporters said that according to the Massachusetts Menstrual Equity Coalition, approximately one in seven children in Massachusetts is living in poverty and struggles to pay for menstrual products. They argued that research shows that the inability to access menstrual products affects students’ class attendance. They also noted that women facing homelessness or who are incarcerated face high barriers to access, with Massachusetts shelters reporting that menstrual products are among the least donated items. They argued that restricted access in shelters and correctional facilities means that products can be used as bargaining chips and tools of control for people in vulnerable circumstances. “I learned about this issue from young people in Medford High School, Somerville High School and Cambridge Rindge and Latin who took leadership at the local level to make menstrual hygiene products available in their own communities,” said sponsor Sen. Pat Jehlen (D-Somerville). “This is a true grassroots movement starting with girls talking about their experiences of missing valuable class time or feeling embarrassed to access products during the school day. These conversations have already started to change the culture and have motivated us to expand this across the state.” “Period products are not luxuries, but necessities required for people’s basic needs, health and hygiene,” said Sen. Julian Cyr (D-Truro), Senate Chair of the Committee on Public Health. “Today’s passage of the … bill affirms that women and all menstruating people deserve access to menstrual products. An inaccessibility of period products speaks to the longstanding and persistent misogyny in our society, a bias that intersects with inequalities in housing, education, socioeconomics and beyond. By ensuring better access to these products, we support further access to essential health needs regardless of our situation in life.” During floor debate, Cyr sarcastically commented, “I think it’s pretty obvious that if most men could menstruate, these products would be as ubiquitous and free as toilet paper.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Sen. Sal DiDomenico Yes HIV PREVENTION DRUGS (S 2480) On October 26, 2023 the Senate 38-0, approved and sent to the House a bill that would allow pharmacists to prescribe, dispense and administer a short-term supply (60-days once in a twoyear period) of HIV prevention drugs, known as pre-exBEACON | SEE PAGE 18

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