Press Releases

State Senate investigates “Fine Time”

senmikeb
Press Release

BOSTON — The State Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight has completed a first-of-its-kind investigation of “fine time” in Massachusetts — the practice by district court judges of incarcerating defendants solely for failure to pay fines, fees or court costs.

State Sen. Mike Barrett (D-Lexington), Chair of the Committee, called the findings “eye-opening.”  He and Committee staff identified 105 instances of fine time in 2015 in just three Massachusetts counties — Essex, Plymouth and Worcester.  In 60% of the cases, the defendant had at some point been verified as indigent; ten were described as unemployed; five, as homeless.  Yet all 105 individuals were imprisoned for failure to pay fees and fines.

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Senate bill bars credit checks in hiring

senmikeb
Press Release

To provide a measure of relief to Massachusetts job applicants, the State Senate has approved a bill, sponsored by State Senator Mike Barrett (D-Lexington), to restrict the use of credit reports in hiring and promotions.

“People see their credit reports dinged due to circumstances they couldn’t reasonably foresee — their spouse becomes ill, they get laid off, or they hit a combination of student debt and under-employment,” said Barrett.  “All these things are regrettable, but none should stop them from getting back on their feet.”

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Dry your tee? Senate brings back the old way

senmikeb
Press Release

To promote energy conservation, the State Senate has taken the surprising step of legally reaffirming residents’ rights to a traditional but increasingly threatened practice — the option of hanging laundry out to dry on a clothesline.

State Senator Mike Barrett, chief sponsor of the policy change, says clothesline use is often barred by condo and homeowner associations.  Environmentally speaking, he says, that’s unfortunate.

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Senate budget increases funding for the disadvantaged

senmikeb
Press Release

During recent Senate debate on the state budget, the body adopted several amendments offered by State Senator Mike Barrett, D-Lexington, to fund programs that assist people living in especially difficult circumstances.

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Report: Home insurance rates yield high profits, get little scrutiny

senmikeb
Press Release

A report by the State Senate lambasts the process of setting Massachusetts home insurance rates and calls for immediate changes to state law to protect residents.

In 2015 the Massachusetts Division of Insurance considered, and granted, requests by several of the state’s biggest insurers to raise their rates on homeowners coverage by as much as 9%. Yet neither the public, nor state legislators, nor insurance experts in the state Attorney General’s office, were informed of the requests.

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People with disabilities testify against exclusion from proposed health Office

senmikeb
Press Release

An initiative to reduce health disparities linked to race and ethnicity should be widened to include people with disabilities, according to experts and self-advocates who turned out en masse at the State House.

A proposed new Office of Health Equity is directed explicitly to work in tandem with the existing Massachusetts Health Disparities Council, already tasked with a three-part focus on race, ethnicity and disability.  Yet recent legislative action, little noticed, seeks to exclude people with disabilities from the scope of the new Office, de-aligning its mission from that of the Council.

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Health equity push expands to include disability and gender

senmikeb
Press Release

An initiative to reduce health disparities linked to race and ethnicity has widened to include women and people with disabilities, thanks to a bill just passed by the State Senate.

Health disparities are gaps in access to care or in actual outcomes that confront certain groups disproportionately.  As they relate to disabilities, health disparities include inaccessible doctors’ offices, ill-equipped examination rooms and frustrating communications barriers.

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Health equity push expands to include disability and gender

senmikeb
Press Release

An initiative to reduce health disparities linked to race and ethnicity has widened to include women and people with disabilities, thanks to a bill just passed by the State Senate.

Health disparities are gaps in access to care or in actual outcomes that confront certain groups disproportionately.  As they relate to disabilities, health disparities include inaccessible doctors’ offices, ill-equipped examination rooms and frustrating communications barriers.

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Senate passes bill to close gender pay gap

senmikeb
Press Release

The State Senate has passed a bill to close the wage gap between men and women workers in Massachusetts.  The legislation, which passed unanimously, mandates equal pay for comparable work, boosts wage transparency and requires the hiring process to be fair.

Women comprise almost half the state’s workforce, but earn roughly 82% of what men make.  African American women earn 66 cents for every dollar made by male workers; Latina women only 54 cents.

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Bike advocates press for road safety measures

senmikeb
Press Release

Bicyclists from around Massachusetts gathered at the State House recently to call for new road safety measures to prevent traffic injuries and deaths. One of the bills before the Transportation Committee sets a minimum distance for cars to pass bicyclists; another aims to stop cars from blocking bike lanes.

Both pieces of legislation are authored by State Senator Will Brownsberger, D-Belmont, and backed by local State Senator Mike Barrett, D-Lexington. Barrett, a committed cyclist, is a longtime supporter of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail and other pathways across his district. He says the Legislature should act on bike safety now.

Barrett on the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail.
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