Page 14 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2020 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. My guest on Sunday, October 11 for the fi rst hour will be Stephen Talbot who played Beaver Cleaver’s friend Gilbert Bates on «Leave it to Beaver.» Stephen has had a very successful career as an award-winning documentary producer and writer including 16 years at the PBS/WGBH series Frontline from 1992-2008. He lived in Boston during that stint. 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: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. This week Beacon Hill Roll Call reports on how local legislators voted on some of the bills that were approved by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Charlie Baker in the 2020 session. Of the more than 6,000 bills that have been fi led for consideration, only 178 have been approved and signed by the governor. And only 28 of those were bills that affect the entire state while the vast majority were either sick leave banks, local land-taking measures or other local-related measures applying to just one city or town. Of those 28 bills, 13 were related directly to the COVID-19 virus and 15 were on other matters. Sick leave banks allow public employees to voluntarily donate sick, personal or vacation days to a sick leave bank for use by a fellow worker so he or she can get paid while on medical leave. Land takings are local land measures that usually only aff ect one city or town. Here are six of the statewide bills signed into law: BREAKFAST AFTER THE BELL (H 4896) House 158-0, Senate 35-0, approved a law designed to boost participation rates in school breakfast programs in high-poverty schools. The measure would require that breakfast be off ered only after the school day begins, through a variety of ways including breakfast in the classroom, grab-and-go and second-chance breakfast. Currently, only 150,000 of the 300,000 students eligible for breakfast actually take part in it. Supporters said that most school breakfasts are currently off ered in the cafeteria before the bell and the participation rate is less than 40 percent of eligible students because bus schedules and family obligations often result in the student not being able to arrive at school in time for breakfast. Participation is also low because of the stigma attached to the program. They said many students assume that everyone who arrives at school early for breakfast is from a poor family. The participation rate rises to up to 90 percent of eligible students participating in the lunch program later in the day. “Pre-pandemic, this bill made a lot of sense,” said Rep. Andy Vargas (D-Haverhill), co-sponsor of the bill. “In many ways, Breakfast After the Bell makes even more sense now. There are more families and students and need. School districts are being asked to limit cafeteria use to prevent the virus from spreading. Districts are short on revenue. Breakfast After the Bell speaks to all of these concerns and I look forward to its implementation and outcomes for educational equity.” “Ensuring breakfast access to all children who need it in our public schools was a priority pre-COVID-19 and is now more important than ever,” said the measure’s co-sponsor Rep. Aaron Vega (D-Holyoke). “Many districts have already implemented Breakfast After the Bell, including Holyoke, and are seeing the positive impact on school attendance, classroom engagement and a reduction in nurse visits.” “Studies show that something as simple as eating a healthy breakfast signifi cantly improves student performance throughout the school day,” said House Education Committee Chair Rep. Alice Peisch (DWellesley). “This bill will bolster participation in school breakfast programs across the commonwealth by allowing students to access this critical meal after the day begins, breaking down barriers associated with traditional breakfast programs such as lack of early transportation to school and associated social stigma.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Rep. Bob DeLeo Yes Rep. RoseLee Vincent Yes Sen. Joseph Boncore – NICKY’S BILL (S 2367) House 154-0, Senate 40-0, approved a law that established a registry that identifi es individuals who have been found to have committed abuse against persons with disabilities. The measure was fi led by Sen. Mike Moore (D-Millbury) at the request of a constituent who is the mother of Nicky, an intellectually disabled and non-verbal individual. Nicky had been inappropriately restrained and struck multiple times by her caretaker. Under current law, unless the off ender is criminally convicted, no system exists to identify caretakers and prevent them from finding employment with another provider licensed by the state. “Enacting this registry will help disrupt a cycle of abuse of individuals with disabilities and put in place common-sense protections that families in the commonwealth deserve,” said Sen. Moore. “There are clear benefi ts to screening prospective employees who intend to work within the licensed caretaker fi eld.» (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Rep. Bob DeLeo Yes Rep. RoseLee Vincent Yes Sen. Joseph Boncore $1 BILLION-PLUS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY BOND (H 4932) House 155-4, Senate 39-0, approved a $1 billion-plus information technology bond titled “An Act Financing the General Governmental Infrastructure of the Commonwealth.” The state borrows the funds to fi nance the projects in the package. “We are pleased to have worked closely with the Legislature to sign this bill into law and continue investing in information technology improvements, public safety upgrades and food security across the commonwealth,” said Gov. Baker. “We are continuing to support critical capital investments that modernize our technology infrastructure and allow us to deliver eff ective and reliable government services for the people of Massachusetts during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic.” “The Legislature is using a new tactic, which is to borrow money in hopes the public doesn’t catch on,” said Paul Craney, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance. “If this package was funded through tax hikes, there would have been a more robust debate for how to pay for it. Many of the election year pet project earmarks would applicants for Fifth Member of the Board Yes Yes PROTECT DISABLED PERSONS have been left out. Unfortunately, lawmakers know the public doesn’t pay attention to state debt, so they were able to add more debt to the most indebted state in the country.” Hundreds of provisions in the bill include massive state projects including $165 million for state telecommunications and data-security-related equipment; $140 million for the purchase and implementation of information technology, telecommunications and data-security-related items for various state agencies; $1.25 million for information technology upgrades for the House of Representatives; $40 million to replace State Police cruisers; and $20 million for policy body cameras. The package also includes hundreds of local projects successfully sought by individual legislators for their districts including $500,000 for New Bedford’s Buttonwood Park Zoological Society’s infrastructure improvements for the animal ambassador and nature connection education center projects; $61,200 to update the town hall conference room’s streaming technology for the local cable services in Stoughton; $15,000 for Medfi eld for the implementation of an electronic payroll program; and $1 million for Everett for electronic learning devices for all Everett students and virtual professional development, training and remote learning support for their teachers. (A «Yes» vote is for the bill. A “No” vote is against it.) Rep. Bob DeLeo Yes Rep. RoseLee Vincent Yes Sen. Joseph Boncore Yes IMPROVEMENTS TO LOCAL AND REGIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH SYSTEM (H 4503) House 149-0, (Senate on a voice vote without a roll call), approved a law to improve the delivery of public health services through enhanced collaboration between local boards of health and regional health districts. A key provision creates a State Action for Public Health Excellence Program to encourage boards of health and regional health districts to adopt practices that will improve the effi ciency and eff ectiveness of the delivery of local public health services. The program would also provide grants to improve these health systems and requires not less than 33 percent of the grants go to cities and towns with a median household income below the state average. Other provisions include the state providing at least four annual free public health educational and training opportunities to boards of health and regional health district offi cials; and setting minimum standards for local public health services. Each of the state’s 351 cities and towns has its own board of health which is designed to ensure many health-related items including food safety in restaurants, response to public health emergencies, housing code violations and water quality at beaches and pools. Cities and towns have vastly diff erent staffi ng levels and most small towns lack a full-time staff . “Public health departments of the 351 communities of the commonwealth deal with issues seen and unseen across a wide range, from water quality and effective sanitation to substance use disorders and suicide prevention,” said the bill’s co-sponsor Rep. Denise Garlick (D-Needham). “These are the issues and concerns of the quality of life in Massachusetts. This bill is vitally important and timely given our current concerns over emergency preparedness with infectious diseases such as … [the coronavirus].” “This legislation will work toward ensuring each resident of the commonwealth has access to the public health services they need to live a healthy life, regardless of their zip code or the size of their community,” said co-sponsor Rep. Hannah Kane (R-Shrewsbury). “[The bill] will signifi cantly strengthen our local and regional health systems by tackling many of the fi nancial and operational burdens municipalities face.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Rep. Bob DeLeo Ye s Rep. RoseLee Vincent Ye s HELP CITY AND TOWN GOVERNMENTS (H 4777) House 156-0, (Senate on a voice vote without a roll call), approved a law that would lower the number of voters needed at an open town meeting in order to have a quorum. Other provisions include allowing virtual representative town meetings to be held online and allowing towns to hold town meetings outside the geographic limits of the town if the select board determines that it is not possible to conduct town meetings within the geographic limits of the town that ensures health and safety. Another key section allows a mayor who is unable to submit an annual budget for fi scal year 2021 to the city council within 170 days after his or her inauguration to submit the budget to the city council within 30 days after the termination of the governor’s declaration of emergency, or on July 31, 2020, whichever is earlier. Supporters said it is essential to provide municipalities with the fl exibility they need to run their government. They said the bill would allow cities and towns to function while still being fi scally responsible and maintaining the health and safety of voters. (A «Yes» vote is for the bill.) Rep. Bob DeLeo Ye s Rep. RoseLee Vincent Ye s MOSQUITO CONTROL (H 4843) House 158-0, (Senate on a voice vote without a roll call), approved a law that would grant additional tools to the State Reclamation and Mosquito Control Board to combat mosquito-borne illnesses including Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus (WNV). The measure gives the board the authority to take preventative, management and eradicative mosquito control methods to address the problem when the risk is elevated. The board must notify local authorities, property owners, agricultural entities and other stakeholders about spraying plans, products and timelines. Other provisions include allowing cities and towns to opt out of
15 Publizr Home