Page 16 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 2024 By Bob Katzen If you have any questions about this week’s report, e-mail us at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com or call us at (617) 720-1562 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 infl uence. 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. This week, Beacon Hill Roll Call reports on the number of times in the 2023 session each senator sided with Democratic Gov. Maureen Healey and voted to sustain/support the governor’s vetoes of 24 items in the fi scal 2024 state budget. A “Yes” vote favors the funding of the item despite the governor’s veto. A “No” vote is a vote to support/sustain Healey’s veto. The current makeup of the Senate is 36 Democrats and four Republicans. A two-thirds vote is required to override a gubernatorial veto in the 40-member Senate. The governor needs the support of 14 senators to sustain a veto if all 40 senators voted—and fewer votes if some members are absent or there are vacancies. Healey fell far short of that goal as two votes was the most support she received on any veto. The Senate easily overrode all 24 vetoes, including 14 that were overridden unanimously. None of the 36 Democrats ever sided with Healey to support/sustain a single veto. Only two of the four Republicans ever sided with Healey to support/ sustain a veto. They are GOP Sens. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) and Peter Durant (R-Spencer) who each voted ten times with Healey to support/ sustain a veto. NUMBER OF TIMES SENATORS SUPPORTED GOV. HEALEY’S VETOES IN THE 2023 SESSION Gov. Healey vetoed 24 proposals that were approved by the Legislature in 2023 Here is how your senator fared in his or her support of Gov. Healey on the vetoes. The percentage next to the senator’s name represents the percentage of times that he or she supported Healey. The number in parentheses represents the actual number of times the senator supported Healey. Sen. Lydia Edwards 0 percent (0) ALSO UP ON BEACON HILL GOV. BAKER PORTRAIT - Former Gov. Charlie Baker’s offi cial portrait was unveiled to the public and the press this week in the lobby of the executive suite. The portrait was fi rst unveiled in a private unveiling before Christmas on December 21. The display space in the lobby is reserved for the 12 most recent governors, resulting in the 1950s portrait of the late Gov. Christian Herter being shuffl ed off to another location. The $29,000 price tag for the portrait, painted by Pennsylvaniabased artist Ellen Cooper, was paid for by Baker’s campaign committee. For many years, the cost of gubernatorial portraits was paid by the taxpayers. Former Gov. Mike Dukakis changed that by starting a custom of fi nancing the portraits with private money. SCHOOL BILLS – The Education Committee will hold a hearing on several bills on January 10 in Room A-2 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The hearing can also be viewed online at https://malegislature.gov/Events/ Hearings/Detail/4815 Here are some of the legislation on the January 10 agenda: FREE EXPRESSION IN LIBRARIES (S 2528) – Would prevent book removal from school or public libraries due to personal or political views of individuals or groups. Other provisions would empower school librarians and teachers to determine access to age-appropriate materials in school libraries; require public libraries to adopt the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights; and protect librarians from retaliation. Supporters of the proposal say that while no books in 2022 were technically banned in the Bay State, there were 45 attempts to censor books and other library resources, the fourth highest number of any state. They note that most attempts are to censor materials or library programming about race, sexuality and gender identity. “Massachusetts is home to the nation’s fi rst public library and fi rst public school because we have long appreciated that unabridged access to knowledge is key to opportunity and fulfi llment,” says Senate sponsor Sen. Julian Cyr (D-Truro). “At this sad moment when hate and fear are driving too many cruel policies across the nation, and yes closer to home, Massachusetts must continue to champion values of equity and belonging. Indeed, books are among our most compelling windows into the myriad of human experiences and capture the breadth of knowledge. We cannot allow small-minded bans or politically opportunist censorship interfere with the right to read.” “As a member of the LGBTQ+ community representing a highly diverse district, I understand how important it is to prevent unnecessary censorship of books and other library resources,” said House sponsor Rep. John Moran (D-South End). “This bill would help ensure access to age-appropriate materials for communities across the state.” STUDENTS MUST TAKE A FINANCIAL LITERACY COURSE (H 4199) – Would require the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to develop and assist in the implementation of curriculum on personal fi nancial literacy to equip students with the knowledge and skills they need to become selfsupporting and to enable them to make critical decisions regarding personal fi nances. All students in grades 9-12 would be required to take the course. The components of the curriculum would include the understanding of loans, borrowing money, interest, credit card debt and online commerce; the rights and responsibilities of renting or buying a home; saving, investing and planning for retirement; banking and fi nancial services; balancing a checkbook; state and federal taxes; charitable giving; preventing identity theft; avoiding online scams; and learning a basic understanding of cryptocurrencies. “I fi led [the bill] because I’ve seen fi rsthand the gap in personal fi nancial literacy education for students across Massachusetts,” says sponsor Rep. Ryan Hamilton (D-Methuen). “While some students may learn helpful money practices at home, too many of our young people are thrust into life after high school with minimal understanding of key topics such as building credit, managing a budget or investing for one’s future. Failing to teach the next generation these critical skills while they are still in school misses an important opportunity to not only set up our students for success as young adults, but to help our educators, parents and caretakers learn more about subjects they too may have missed while in school.” REQUIRE AIRWAY CLEARANCE DEVICES IN SCHOOLS (H 4207) – Would require all public and private schools to have a portable airway clearance device onsite. The bill defi nes portable airway clearance device as an FDA-approved medical device that uses manually created suction to remove blockage from the airway during a choking emergency. The popular brand name of the device is Life-Vac. The bill requires each school nurse and cafeteria worker to be BEACON | SEE Page 19 How to Close Social Media Accounts of a Deceased Loved One Dear Savvy Senior, How do I go about canceling a person’s social media accounts when they die? My wife passed away a few months ago and her social media accounts are still active. Sad Spouse Dear Sad, I’m very sorry for your loss, but this is a smart move on your behalf and one that often gets overlooked. Social media is part of many people’s daily lives, but when a person passes away their dormant accounts can become vulnerable to scammers who can hack into them and even steal your deceased loved one’s identity. Here’s a run-down of how you can cancel or change many different social media accounts after a loved one dies. Facebook: If your wife used Facebook, you can either “memorialize” or “delete” her account. A memorialized account serves as a place where family and friends can share memories to celebrate the deceased person’s life, with the word “Remembering” shown next to the deceased person’s name. Once an account is memorialized, content the person shared is still visible on Facebook to the audience it was originally shared with, however, the user’s profi le will not show up in public spaces such as people you may know, ads or birthday reminders. To memorialize your wife’s profile simply go to Facebook.com/help/contact/234739086860192. Or, if you’d rather have her account removed, go to Facebook.com/ help/contact/228813257197480. To memorialize her account requires proof of death (via death certificate, obituary or memorial card), but if you wish to delete the account, you’ll also need to verify that you’re an immediate family member, legal representative or executor, unless you’re the legacy contact on her account. Instagram: The policy on a deceased users’ Instagram account is the similar to Facebook’s, which owns Instagram. You can either memorialize or remove the account at Help.Instagram. com/264154560391256. But just like with Facebook, you’ll need to provide proof of death and relationship to the deceased. X (formally Twitter): To deactivate an X account, go to Help. Twitter.com and type in “How to contact X about a deceased family member’s account” in the search bar and follow the prompts. After you submit your request, X will email you with instructions for providing more details, including information about the deceased, a copy of your ID, and a copy of the deceased’s death certifi cate. YouTube and/or Google: To close these accounts, simply go to Support.Google.com/accounts/troubleshooter/6357590 and fi ll out their form and upload scans of the death certifi - cate and your ID. Pinterest: To remove a Pinterest account, email Care@pinterest.com with the deceased user’s account username, proof of death and proof of relationship to the deceased. LinkedIn: To remove a deceased person’s LinkedIn profi le, submit a request at LinkedIn.com/help/linkedin/ask/ts-rdmlp. You’ll need to provide the name and URL to the profi le; the relationship you have to the deceased; the email address; date of passing; and link to an obituary. Snapchat: To delete this account, simply login to the account and click “Delete My Account” and follow the prompts. Tumblr: Send an email to Support@tumblr.com requesting to remove the account of the deceased person with their Tumblr username, proof of their death, and proof of your relationship to the deceased. If your wife had social media through a company not listed here, go to that company’s website for information on how to delete the account. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.
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