THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2020 Page 17 Beacon Hill Roll Call By Bob Katzen LISTEN TO BOB’S SHOW: Beacon Hill Roll Call’s publisher, Bob Katzen, hosts “The Bob Katzen Baby Boomer and Gen X Fun and Nostalgia Show” every Sunday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Jump into Bob’s DeLorean time machine and tune in for a trip back to the simpler and happier days of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Bob’s special guest on the Sunday, November 15 show will be TV icon Jerry Mathers who played Beaver Cleaver on the long-running TV sitcom “Leave it to Beaver.” Listeners are welcome to call in and talk with Jerry who entered the hearts and homes of American in 1957 when the series debuted. The show ran for six seasons and in 2017 celebrated its 60th anniversary. Jerry has also appeared on dozens of TV shows and his theater credits include the Broadway production of “Hairspray,” “Who’s On First” and “So Long Stanley” which played to standing room only houses across the country for 18 months. In the mid-1990s Jerry was diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes. He took preventative action, lost 55 pounds and is currently one of the leading lecturers on living with and dealing with diabetes. He has partnered with diverse organizations to bring awareness of this horrendous epidemic that nation is currently facing among both children and adults. In 2009 and 2010, Jerry was the national spokesperson for PhRMA and their Partnership for Prescription Assistance program. This organization helps uninsured and financially struggling patients obtain prescription medicines for free or nearly free. Don’t miss this show with Bob as the host … “and Jerry Mathers as The Beaver.” There are many ways you can listen to the show from anywhere in the world: If you have a smart speaker, simply say, “Play WMEX on RADIO.COM” Download the free RADIO.COM app on your phone or tablet Listen online at: www.radio. com/1510wmex/listen Tune into 1510 AM if you still have an AM radio THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ votes on one roll call from the week of November 2-6. FISCAL 2020 SUPPLEMENTAL BUDGET (H 5102) House 157-0, Senate on a voice vote without a roll call approved and sent to Gov. Charlie Baker, a fiscal 2020 supplemental budget to close out the books on fiscal year 2020. A key provision to help fund the budget diverts the scheduled automatic transfer of capital gains tax revenue estimated at $400 million to the state Rainy Day Fund. Provisions include $422 million for MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program that provides healthcare for low-income and disabled persons; $62.6 million for the Group Insurance Commission; $11.9 million for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education; $1.9 million for the promotion of the restaurant industry; $6.6 million for the State Police; $727,170 to reimburse municipalities for early voting costs from the March 3 presidential primary; $711,947 for a grant program focused on advanced skill training for the home care aide workforce that serves consumers of the elder home care program; and creation of an Opioid Recovery and Remediation Trust Fund to mitigate the impacts of the state’s opioid epidemic including expanding access to opioid use disorder prevention, intervention, treatment and recovery options. Other provisions include giving flexibility to UMass by permitting it to secure a short-term line of credit for operating costs capped at eight percent of the university’s total approved operating budget; a limited retroactive extension to the statute of limitations for a cause of action concerning prescription opioids brought against Purdue Pharma and its owners; and a change to the state’s unemployment law to ensure that people receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance will receive an additional seven weeks of benefits, fully covered by the federal government. Overall, this budget is a fiscally responsible and targeted piece of legislation that will help close the books on fiscal year 2020,” explained Senate Ways and Means Chair Mike Rodrigues (D-Westport). Of the 39 amendments proposed by representatives, 36 were withdrawn including a controversial one by Rep. Mike Connolly (D-Cambridge) that would have extended a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures for failure to pay until at least January 1, 2021. The amendment would also give the governor the authority to postpone the expiration in increments of up to 90 days. SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS FOR A DIVORCED SPOUSE A divorced spouse must meet certain conditions in order to collect social security benefits based upon his or her ex-spouse’s work history. The divorced spouse must have been married for at least 10 years. The divorced spouse must not have remarried. If remarried, the divorced spouse will still be able to collect benefits based upon the ex-spouse’s work history so long as the second marriage ended by death, divorce or annulment. If the divorced spouse did remarry, he or she could collect under either exspouse’s work history so long as the second marriage also lasted at least 10 years, or if the second spouse died, that marriage lasted at least 9 months. Furthermore, a divorced spouse must be at least 62 years of age or older to collect. If the ex-spouse is deceased and the divorced spouse is at least 50 years of age, the divorced spouse can collect social security benefits if deemed disabled by the Social Security Administration. A divorced spouse can begin collecting benefits so long as the ex-spouse is at least 62 years of age and he or she has been divorced for at least two years. The divorced spouse is eligible to receive one half of the ex-spouse’s social security benefits. If, however, the ex-spouse dies, then the divorced spouse can then collect 100% of the ex-spouse’s full retirement benefit. This benefit would not include any delayed retirement credits the ex-spouse may receive. The divorced spouse would only be able to receive a benefit based upon the value of the ex-spouse’s benefit at his or her full retirement age. Full retirement age for those born between 1943 and 1954 is 66 years old. From 1955 to 1960, full retirement age gradually increases. For those born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67. A person born prior to January 2, 1954 has the option of first collecting based upon the ex-spouse’s work history while allowing his or her own benefits to grow until reaching age 70, and then switching over to his or her own work history. The law was recently changed so that a divorced spouse born after January 1, 1954 applying for social security benefits will automatically receive the highest benefit for which he or she is entitled to, based upon either his or her own work history, or the work history of the ex-spouse. He or she no longer has the option of collecting benefits based upon the ex-spouse’s work history and then switching over to his or her own work history at age 70. Nothing uncomplicated about social security benefits when dealing with divorce. A moratorium approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor on April 20 expired on October 17 and the Legislature has not extended it. Supporters say that without the extension, there will be tens of thousands of tenants evicted. (A “Yes” vote is for the budget.) Rep. Joseph McGonagle Yes HOW LONG WAS LAST WEEK’S SESSION? Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session. During the week of November 2-6, the House met for a total of eight hours and 18 minutes while the Senate met for a total of six hours and 21 minutes. Mon. Nov. 2 House 11:02 a.m. to 11:11 a.m. Senate 11:10 a.m. to 11:19 a.m. No Senate session Tues. Nov. 3 No House session. Wed. Nov. 4 House 11:02 a.m. to 1:04 p.m. No Senate session Thurs. Nov. 5 House 11:05 a.m. to 4:25 p.m. Senate 11:07 a.m. to 3:28 p.m. Fri. Nov. 6 House 1:34 p.m. to 2:21 p.m. Senate 12:33 p.m. to 2:24 p.m. Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com
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