News Clips

U.S. News and World Report

Under the bill, motorists could only use their cellphones, or other electronic devices such as GPSs, with hands-free technology. It also would be illegal to access social media, make video calls or use any camera function while driving.

“If you are poor and your car is a little older, you should still avoid distracted driving but these fees are going to hit you very hard,” said Barrett, whose amendment to lower the progression of fines to $50, $100 and $150 was defeated on a 26-12 vote.

Read the article on the bill on distracted driving

Wicked Local Lexington

“I’m extremely happy to be here. This project was a little bit larger than the project that put solar panels on my house, and it just shows you how quickly solar energy is moving as a utility enterprise,” State Senator Mike Barrett, D-Lexington, said at the ceremony. “Massachusetts really is a leader here and it began with folks at the grassroots level that encouraged individual communities to move out front to do this.”

Read the article on Lexington’s new solar farm

MetroWest Daily News

“We need a carbon price to get us to carbon neutral and beyond,” said Gene Fry, an environmental scientist from Brookfield. The Earth is warming, he said. Carbon dioxide needs to be reduced and, in doing so, the state can create jobs and expand the economy. His testimony drew some of the largest applause of the night.

Read the article on the Commonwealth Conversations Tour

The Boston Globe

The author of the Massachusetts bill, State Senator Mike Barrett, said he, too, was inspired by the New York bill. He added a few local provisions that would also require presidential and vice presidential candidates to fill out the same statement of financial interests that all Massachusetts candidates must.

Barrett said he approaches the bill with a good-government lens, not a partisan one.

Read the article on the financial transparency movement

The Lexington Minuteman

“The committee’s jurisdiction covers everything from cell phones to alternative energy to public utility reform to carbon pricing,” Barrett said. “Being Senate Chair doesn’t give me access to any more of my colleague’s votes. I’m going to have to be patient and a good listener to build needed consensus.”

Read the article on my new committee appointment

The Boston Globe

In January, Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson offered to send inmates to Texas to assist with Trump’s plan to build a wall along the Mexico border.

In response, Senator Michael Barrett filed a bill intended to make that plan more difficult by requiring state approval for such a program.

Barrett worries Trump’s victory will embolden longtime conservatives like the sheriff and also encourage a new slate of state and local politicians to run for office espousing the same ideals. “I think you’ll see a lot of Trumps popping up,” Barrett said.

The Lexington Democrat also filed a bill that would require people running for president to release their tax returns in order to appear on the ballot in Massachusetts. Despite public pressure, Trump bucked a decades-old tradition of doing so.

Read the article on a number of key bills

State House News

“The level of support is coming on a little faster than I expected, but then global warming is heating up a little faster than we all expected,” said State Senator Mike Barrett, the bill’s chief sponsor.

Read to article on the growing support of carbon pricing

State House News

“I think that one likely development we’ve got to keep an eye on is the appearance of mini-Trumps all around the country,” Barrett told the News Service. “I think the Trump era is not just about the new president, it’s about a style of policymaking by provocation and outrage. You’re going to see mini-Trumps arise in Massachusetts. Politicians are amply rewarded for stirring the pot, and I think our approach here should be fundamentally different, more level-headed, more even-handed.”

Read the article on my bill

Boston.com

“Until recently many Americans just assumed that the stature of the Office of the President ensured the observance of certain practices that are unwritten but responsible and well-established, one of which is the disclosure by candidates of recent tax returns and, by extension, possible conflicts of interest. The 2016 election shattered this confidence. I hope we can come together to rebuild it.”

Read the article on my presidential tax returns bill

The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe’s Editorial Board weighs in on my committee’s recent report on “fine time” in Massachusetts — the practice by district court judges of incarcerating defendants solely for failure to pay fines, fees or court costs.

Read the editorial on “Fine Time”