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THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2025 Page 15 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 CORRECTION: In last week’s Beacon Hill Roll Call, we included in some newspapers a quote from a senator who voted against resolutions which would rescind all previous calls by the Massachusetts Legislature for a national Constitutional Convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution. We did not attribute the quote to anyone. Here’s the quote and the attribution: “I am the Senate sponsor of the ‘We the People’ bill to repeal the Citizens United decision, including through an Article V Convention,” said Sen. Jamie Eldridge (D-Marlborough). “I continue to believe it is a legitimate path to change the U.S. Constitution, and therefore I voted ‘No’ on the resolutions.” An Article V convention is a process outlined in the U.S. Constitution allowing states to propose constitutional amendments if two-thirds (34) of state legislatures call for it. Supporters of the resolutions said such a convention could open the entire Constitution to unpredictable changes, as there are no clear guidelines or limitations on what delegates could propose. They noted that while an Article V convention has never been called before in American history, there is recent conservative momentum to add up all active resolutions to meet the twothirds threshold. THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ votes on roll calls from recent sessions. There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. $3.65 BILLION TO MODERNIZE BAY STATE PUBLIC COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES (H 4750) House 146-5, approved and sent to the Senate a bill that funds the modernization of Bay State public colleges and universities by using the revenue from the 2022 voter-approved law, known as the Millionaire’s Tax, that imposes an additional 4 percent income tax, in addition to the current fl at 5 percent one, on taxpayers’ earnings of more than $1 million annually. Provisions include $1.25 billion for the UMass system; $1.25 billion for nine state university campuses and 15 community college campuses; $275 million for upgrades to MassArt; $100 million for the transition of campus facilities and property into housing and mixed-use developments; $80 million for costs associated with decarbonization and energy effi ciency; $120 million for lab modernization, projects at community colleges to support collaboration with vocational technical schools and projects related to student health and wellbeing; $50 million for a grant program for general improvements and climate-related upgrade; $20 million for enhancing remote or hybrid learning; and $100 million for a grant program for improvements to upgrade and expand career technical education and training programs. “The [bill] will ensure that students across the state learn and train in modern, high-quality campus facilities, while strengthening Massachusetts’ competitiveness in research and innovation,” said House Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy). “Building on the commonwealth’s increases in student fi nancial aid, and on our commitment to making higher education more accessible and aff ordable, especially for low-income students, Massachusetts is undertaking a generational reinvestment in educating our residents and strengthening our higher education system.” “The [bill] will help usher in a new era for public higher education in Massachusetts,” said Rep. Dave Rogers (D-Cambridge), House Chair of the Committee on Higher Education. “The House has created free community college, exponentially increased fi - nancial aid and now [this bill] invests nearly $3.65 billion in public higher education campuses statewide. This new investment will: address essential campus infrastructure needs, develop modern learning spaces and decrease reliance on fossil fuels.” “The [bill] will modernize every public higher education campus in Massachusetts,” said Rep. Mike Finn (D-West Springfi eld), House Chair of the Committee on Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets. “This investment will spur economic development creating good-paying jobs, and deliver cleaner, state-of-the-art facilities that will prepare our students to lead in a competitive, sustainable future.” None of the fi ve representatives who voted against the bill responded to repeated requests by Beacon Hill Roll Call asking them why they voted against it. Those five representatives are Reps. Nicholas Boldyga (R-Southwick), John Gaskey (R-Carver), Marc Lombardo (R-Billerica), Alyson Sullivan-Almeida (R-Abington) and Kenneth Sweezey (RHanson). “While it’s very important to have high quality public colleges, not everyone goes to college,” said Paul Craney, executive director of the Mass Fiscal Alliance. “These funds could have been used for expenditures that impact more people, like repairing and maintaining our roads and bridges or as local aide to off set costs in local municipal public education.” (A Yes” vote is for the $3.65 billion bill. A “No” vote is against it.) Rep. Jessica Giannino Yes Rep. Jeff Turco Yes WORKPLACE VIOLENCE IN HEALTH CARE FACILITIES (H 4767) House 153-0, approved and sent to the Senate a bill that supporters said would strengthen protections for health care workers, establish preventive and protective standards to reduce the risk of violence, improve health care facility incident reporting, enhance interagency coordination to safeguard privacy and create legal protections for certain employees harmed in the line of duty. Another key section would establish that employees, directly employed by a health care employer, who suff er workplace violence resulting in bodily injury or serious bodily injury are entitled to paid leave without using any vacation, sick or personal time. Supporters said that every 38 minutes in Massachusetts health care facilities, someone, most often a clinician or an employee, is physically assaulted, endures verbal abuse or is threatened — most often in emergency rooms, inpatient units and psychiatric units, according to the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association. “Every day, health care workers face an imminent risk of workplace violence,” said Rep. John Lawn (D-Watertown), lead sponsor of the bill and House Chair of the Committee on Health Care Financing. “This bill takes decisive action to ensure our laws refl ect our values and deliver real protections for those who protect us.” “Every day frontline health care workers are asked to do their jobs under the threat of violence,” said Rep. Dan Cahill (D-Lynn), House Chair of the Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security. “This bill makes it clear that protecting our health care workers is a matter of public safety and an urgent responsibility. By requiring health care employers to assess risks, train staff , report incidents and respond to violence with real accountability, we are taking long overdue steps to ensure that no worker stands alone in harm’s way.” (A “Yes” vote is for the bill.) Rep. Jessica Giannino Yes Rep. Jeff Turco Yes ALSO UP ON BEACON HILL DON’T MISS THIS TRANSPORTATION POLICY FORUM — Massachusetts faces a turning point in transit. Long underfunded systems are getting a boost from a new Transportation Bond Bill — but key challenges remain. On Tuesday, December 9, the State House News Service and MASSterList host TransitNEXT, a policy forum at the MCLE in Boston (Downtown Crossing). Speakers include interim MassDOT Secretary and MBTA General Manager Phil Eng, former Federal Highway Deputy Administrator and MassDOT Secretary Stephanie Pollack, along with key legislators and transportation advocates. Networking begins at 7:30 a.m. with the policy conversation starting at 8:30 a.m. Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/transitnext $2.3 BILLION SUPPLEMENTAL BUDGET (H 4761) Gov. Maura Healey signed into law a $2.3 billion fi scal year 2025 budget to close out the books on fi scal year 2025. Provisions include $1.67 billion for MassHealth, with a $303 million net cost to the state after federal reimbursements; $374 million for Steward hospital payments, with a $236 million net cost to the state; $10 million for Health Care For All to conduct a public awareness campaign to inform vulnerable populations about new Medicaid work requirements put in place by the recent federal spending bill; $5 million in for reproductive health care; $2.5 million for the Committee for Public Counsel Services for indigent persons; $60.7 million for snow and ice removal; and $50 million for the Housing Preservation and Stabilization Trust Fund. Other provisions require an investigation into sheriffs’ fiscal year 2025 spending defi cits; create a new Sports and Entertainment Fund initially provided with $10 million to support transportation, public safety and other costs related to Massachusetts’ seven 2026 FIFA World Cup matches; criminalize the impersonation of a federal offi cer and increase penalties for impersonating a public offi cial, including a federal offi cer; protect unpaid federal employees from residential eviction or foreclosure during and immediately after any federal shutdown; and remove the automatic requirement of a public notice for name-change petitions fi led in court. “This budget represents our commitment to delivering for people on what matters in their lives,” said Gov. Healey. “It will make things more affordable, promote vaccine and health care access for our kids and families in the face of attacks from the federal government and protect public safety in our communities. While President Trump is increasing costs and cutting funding from states, this budget is balanced and protects taxpayer dollars.” “With the next fi scal year well underway, it is critical that we close the books on fiscal year 2025 with a balanced budget that delivers for Massachusetts communities,” said Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. “This bill reflects our commitment to responsibly managing state spending and stretching every dollar in service of Massachusetts residents.” “The governor and Legislature put the fi nishing touches on a supplemental budget that was full of gravy for their pet projects, and not prioritizing the taxpayers of the commonwealth,” said Paul Craney, executive director of the Mass Fiscal Alliance which opposed the budget. “If you can imagine a Thanksgiving feast, the taxpayers were on the table and not at the table. Our hard-earned money was being carved up for misguided priorities. Spending billions of dollars BHRC | SEE Page 16

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