Page 14 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2022 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 selected by widely acclaimed and highly experienced writers Chris Van Buskirk and Keith Regan who introduce each article in their own clever and inimitable way. 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: www.massterlist.com/subscribe THE HOUSE AND SENATE. Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ and senators’ votes on roll calls from the week of January 24-28 4359) ELECTION LAW CHANGES (H House 124-34, approved a bill making permanent the mail-in and early voting options used in Massachusetts in 2020. Other provisions include reducing the registration blackout period from 20 days prior to an election to 10 days; ensuring that non-felons who are incarcerated who are currently eligible to vote are provided with voting information and materials to exercise their right to vote; mandating that felons ~ LEGAL NOTICE ~ COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS THE TRIAL COURT PROBATE AND FAMILY COURT Essex Probate and Family Court 36 Federal Street Salem, MA 01970 (978) 744-1020 Docket No. ES21A0252AD In the matter of: Cristian Alejandro Erazo To: William Neftali Erazo L.K.A. of Revere, MA. and persons interested in a petition for the adoption of said child and to the Department of Children and Families and said Commonwealth, 280 Merrimac St., 2nd Fl., Lawrence, MA 01843 CITATION G.L. c. 210, § 6 A petition has been presented to said court by: Jonathan Ferney Velez of Lynn, MA Claudia Marcela Sanchez of Lynn, MA requesting for leave to adopt said child and that the name of the child be changed to: Cristian Alejandro Velez If you object to this adoption you are entitled to the appointment of an attorney if you are an indigent person. and SSI. The Court will determine if you are indigent. Contact Court on or before the date listed below to obtain the necessary forms. ATTORNEY MUST FILE A WRITTEN APPEARANCE IN SAID COURT AT: Salem (10:00 AM) ON: 04/11/2022 WITNESS, Jennifer M R Ulwick, First Justice of this Court. Date: January 28, 2022 PAMELA CASEY O’BRIEN REGISTER OF PROBATE February 4, 2022 who are incarcerated but prohibited from voting are notifi ed of their right to vote upon release and given the opportunity fi ll out a voter registration form; and requiring the secretary of state to conduct a comprehensive public awareness campaign to publicize the new voting and registration options. The Senate has already approved a diff erent version of the bill which includes same day registration that allows people to register to vote on the same day that they actually vote. The House version does not include that provision. Rep. Dan Ryan (D-Boston), House chair of the Elections Laws Committee, led the charge on the House fl oor for the bill but did not respond to several requests by Beacon Hill Roll Call to comment on passage of the bill. “With nationwide assaults on voting rights and upcoming elections in November, our democracy can’t be taken for granted,” said Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. “It must be protected and strengthened, not just in Congress but in every state. Passage of [this bill] in the Massachusetts House represents important progress, and we are grateful that state lawmakers adopted reforms—from widespread mail-in voting to improved access for eligible incarcerated voters—that will address barriers to the ballot and expand the hard-won right to vote.” “Speaker Ron Mariano and his leadership team passed a very partisan Democratic election bill,” said Paul Craney, spokesman for the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance. “It’s important for Republicans and common-sense Democrats to speak up and hold accountable the majority party when they try to change the rules in favor of their party’s electoral success.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill. A “No” vote is against it.) Rep. Jessica Giannino Yes GET OPINION FROM SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT (H 4359) House 30-128, rejected an amendment that would require the Supreme Judicial Court to rule on whether the election bill is unconstitutional and to delay the measure’s implementation until the court renders its opinion. Amendment supporters said this is a very complicated bill and noted some analysts have said it might be unconstitutional. Amendment opponents said that the amendment is simply a tactic to delay passage of the bill and will impede approval of the bill which is aimed at voter integrity and ballot access. (A “Yes” vote is for getting the court’s opinion. A “No” vote is against getting it.) Rep. Jessica Giannino No PRISON VOTING (H 4359) House 153-5, approved an amendment that would require prison offi - cials to provide information to nonfelon prisoners on how to register and then vote in local, state and federal elections while in prison. Under current law, prisoners serving time for a felony are banned from voting until their release from prison. The amendment also requires prison offi cials to help these felons register to vote just before their release. Amendment supporters said that Your Hometown News Delivered! EVERETT ADVOCATE MALDEN ADVOCATE REVERE ADVOCATE SAUGUS ADVOCATE One year subscription to The Advocate of your choice: $100 per paper in-town per year or $120 per paper out-of-town per year. Name_________________________________________ Address_______________________________________ City_______________ State_______ Zip ____________ CC# _______________________________ Exp. _____ Sec. code____ Advocate (City):___________________ Clip & Mail Coupon with Credit Card, Check or Money Order to: Advocate Newspapers Inc. PO Box 490407, Everett, MA 02149 lack of voting by prisoners, especially black and brown inmates, often occurs because they are not given suffi cient information. They said this is a subtle form of voter suppression. They noted the amendment would force prison offi cials to provide the information. “Currently, those few eligible incarcerated voters who are able to access a ballot application fi nd their application unduly rejected,” said Kristina Mensik, Democracy Behind Bars Coalition co-chair. “What’s more, we include provisions to help ensure that no eligible voter behind the wall is disenfranchised because they were unhoused before being incarcerated.” Amendment opponents off ered no arguments on the House fl oor. Beacon Hill Roll Call made repeated attempts to get a comment from the five legislators who opposed the amendment but only one responded. “I felt it was too costly and placed an undue burden on correctional offi cials,’ said Rep. Peter Durant (R-Spencer). The other four representatives who voted “No” and refused to comment are Reps Donald Berthiaume (R-Spencer), Nick Boldyga (R-Southwick), Shawn Dooley (R-Norfolk), and Marc Lombardo (RBillerica). (A Yes” vote is for the amendment. A “No” vote is against it.) Rep. Jessica Giannino 4359) Yes SAME DAY REGISTRATION (H House 93-64, approved an amendment to a measure that would implement same day registration (SDR) that allows people to register to vote at the polls on Election Day and on any of the early voting days prior to the election. The amendment would replace SDR with a requirement that Secretary of State Bill Galvin complete a study that would analyze the cost of the proposed policy to the state and cities and towns and what it would take for local city and town clerks to implement SDR. Under House rules, the approval of the study amendment prohibits a roll call vote on the straightforward establishment of SDR. Supporters of SDR said that the study is simply a tactic by SDR opponents to delay the implementation of SDR and also avoid a direct vote on SDR itself. Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa (DNorthampton), the sponsor of SDR, said it is an important tool that Massachusetts can use to increase voter access to the polls. “In 2021, we had one day of overlap when voters could vote early and register. There was not a fl ood of applications; just a few more people across the state who were able to exercise their civic duty. That small data point shows that this can work and [this roll call] vote shows that support for same day registration, already popular with voters, is growing amongst legislators as well.” Some supporters of the amendment to replace SDR with the study BEACON | SEE Page 15
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