Page 14 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, DECEmbEr 6, 2024 If you have any questions about this week’s report, e-mail us at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com or call us at (617) 720-1562. Beacon Hill Roll Call Volume 49 - Report No. 48 November 25-29, 2024 Copyright © 2024 Beacon Hill Roll Call. All Rights Reserved. By Bob Katzen G ET 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:// massterlist.com/subscribe/ THE HOUSE AND SENATE:There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. The 2025-2026 legislative session is scheduled to begin in January. One of the fi rst orders of business in the Senate will be the adoption of the rules under which the Senate will operate during the next two years. One of the proposed changes that will be debated is an attempt by the Republican minority to make it more difficult for the Senate to conduct late-night sessions. The makeup of the new Senate will consist of 36 Democrats and four Republicans. Under current rules, a twothirds roll call vote is required for the Senate to conduct its session beyond 8 p.m. A separate two-thirds roll call vote is required for the Senate to continue beyond midnight. For the 2023-2024 session, the Republicans proposed two changes to those rules. The fi rst would require a separate two-thirds vote for the session to continue after 10 p.m. and go until midnight. The second would require a unanimous vote for the Senate to meet beyond midnight. “I voted in favor of these amendments as a check on how the Senate operates beyond normal business hours,” said Sen. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton). “It’s important that these [changes take place] … going into the next legislative session, in order to discourage the habit of debating and passing legislation under the cover of darkness and bring more transparency to the legislative process.” “The Senate rejected a couple of rule changes in order to justify more secrecy,” said Paul Craney, a spokesperson for the Mass Fiscal Alliance. “It’s a tremendous disservice to the taxpayers and their constituents. The Senate should not be meeting in the very late or early morning hours to conduct their offi cial business. Unfortunately, in Massachusetts, the legislative process is very broken.” Opponents of the two new rules say the current Senate rules are suffi cient. “On rare occasions to complete critical work such as lowering housing costs or reforming the prescription drug industry, the Senate meets beyond regular business hours and into the evening,” said a spokesperson for Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland). “Under the Senate rules approved by members for the [2023-2024 session], twothirds of the members must vote in order to continue a session beyond 8 p.m. and twothirds must also vote in order to continue beyond midnight.” Here is how your local senators voted on the two new rules for the 2023-2024 session. The same two new rules will likely be considered by the incoming 2025-2026 session. REQUIRE A TWO-THIRDS VOTE TO GO BEYOND 10 P.M. Senate 4-34, rejected an amendment that would require a two-thirds vote for the Senate to continue any session beyond 10 p.m. and continue the session until midnight. This would be in addition to a current Senate rule that requires a two-thirds vote to continue a session beyond 8 p.m. and a two-thirds vote to continue a session beyond midnight. Amendment supporters said requiring the two-thirds vote will ensure that late-night sessions between 10 p.m. and midnight, when legislators are tired and many citizens are already sleeping, do not become the norm but are allowed only when a vast majority of senators favor it. Amendment opponents said the current rules requiring a two-thirds vote to go beyond 8 p.m. and another two-thirds vote to go beyond midnight are suffi cient and argued there is no need to add another layer. (A “Yes” vote is for requiring a two-thirds vote to go beyond 10 p.m. and continue until midnight. A “No” vote is against it.) Sen. Brendan Crighton No REQUIRE UNANIMOUS VOTE TO GO BEYOND MIDNIGHT Senate 4-34, rejected an amendment that would require a unanimous vote for the Senate to continue any session beyond midnight. Current Senate rules require a two-thirds vote to go beyond midnight. Amendment supporters said sessions after midnight, when taxpayers are sleeping, and some members are barely awake, are irresponsible and should only be held if 100 percent of the senators agree there is a major emergency. Amendment opponents said going beyond midnight currently is only done when there is an emergency. They said it is often impossible to get a unanimous vote on anything and argued it is not wise to give a single member the power to essentially adjourn the Senate. (A “Yes” vote is for requiring a unanimous vote to go beyond midnight.A “No” vote is against requiring it.) Sen. Brendan Crighton NoALSO UP ON BEACON HILL BAN NICOTINE AND TOBACCO – A trio of legislators announced they plan to co-sponsor legislation aimed at eventually ending the sale of all nicotine and tobacco products in the Bay State. Sen. Jason Lewis (D-Winchester) and Reps. Tommy Vitolo (D-Brookline) and Kate Lipper-Garabedian (D-Melrose) said they will fi le the bill for consideration in the 2025-2026 legislative session. The proposal will not take away the right to purchase nicotine and tobacco products from anyone who is already legally able to do so. Instead, the measure would prohibit people under 21 who are not currently old enough to legally purchase nicotine and tobacco products, to ever be lawfully able to purchase these products in Massachusetts. “We all know the devastating health eff ects of nicotine and tobacco products, especially on our youth who are targeted by Big Tobacco,” said Sen. Lewis. “This bill will save countless lives and create a healthier world for the next generation.” “This legislation treats everyone fairly,” said Rep. Vitolo. “Those who are not old enough now to obtain nicotine products will never be old enough to buy them in Massachusetts. Those who are old enough today will always be old enough. This problem is going to take a generation to solve, and with this legislation we can solve it, one day at a time.” “We already have laws that prevent tobacco retailers from selling to anyone under 21 - and they check IDs diligently,” responded Peter Brennan, executive director of the New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association. “The current system works. Prohibiting adults from purchasing legal tobacco products in a regulated environment such as local stores is a misguided infringement on adults’ rights and will do nothing to address youth tobacco use.” ATTORNEY GENERAL CAMPBELL ISSUES CITATIONS TO SOME BURGER KING FRANCHISE OWNERS - Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced that her office has issued citations totaling more than $2 million against Northeast Foods LLC, a company which operates dozens of Burger King franchise locations across the Bay State, for violating various state employment laws, including child labor laws. The citations include restitution for unpaid wages and penalties. Campbell alleges that the operator violated Massachusetts’ child labor laws, between January 2022 and March 2023 when it scheduled minors for work during legally prohibited hours and in excess of the state’s limit of nine daily working hours for workers that are 16- and 17-years old. She also alleges that the Burger King franchise operator failed to pay minimum wage and make timely payments to workers, and in some instances, failed to pay any wages to workers. “Our workplace laws exist to provide crucial rights and protections to our workforce,” said Campbell. “My offi ce will continue to enforce these laws to protect and empower workers, including young workers who contribute to their communities and gain new skills and experiences.” AUDIT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EARLY EDUCATION AND CARE - State Auditor Diana DiZoglio released the results of an audit of the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC), reviewing the period from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2022. EEC, which licenses approximately 9,000 childcare-related programs that support an average of 55,000 children daily, has responsibilities including providing fi nancial assistance for childcare services to families with low incomes, providing parenting support to families and providing professional development opportunities to employees in the fi eld of early education and care. The audit’s fi ndings include charges that EEC did not conduct licensing visits to residential programs within the required timeframes. The report noted that EEC cannot ensure that its residential programs operate within safe and healthy environments if it does not complete licensing visits within the required period. The report also alleges that EEC did not review or initiate investigations of all reports of suspected child abuse and neglect in its licensed programs and failed to conduct all required background record checks for all employees of its licensed residential programs. “Our Early Education and Care audit has identifi ed serious issues that put children at risk,” said DiZoglio. “These concerns must be immediately addressed so children are protected. We urge the administration to respond with the urgency that this matter requires and look forward to our post-audit review in six months to track progress on our recommendations.” $3.8 BILLION TO ADDRESS BEACON | SEE PAGE 15
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