Latest news with #Response2025
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
After a noisy launch, Mass. Senate's response to Trump is in park
More than four months into President Donald Trump's second term, House and Senate Democrats at the State House continue to deem his administration a threat. But they have been unable to agree on a unified legislative response. The latest facet of discord is whether or how to strengthen the state's reproductive and transgender care laws in response to potential federal action, with top senators pursuing a bill that does not have buy-in across the State House hallway. Six weeks ago, Senate President Karen Spilka, D-Middlesex/Norfolk, and her top deputies unveiled legislation that would update the 2022 law shielding reproductive and transgender care from out-of-state legal action. But the measure, touted as the first concrete idea as part of the Senate's so-called Response 2025 initiative, has not progressed and now appears stuck in legislative limbo. The Senate moved to refer it to the Health Care Financing Committee, co-chaired by bill author Sen. Cindy Friedman, D-4th Middlesex. Six weeks later, the House instead sought to refer it to the Judiciary Committee, and the procedural dispute means the measure will remain on ice. In the meantime, a different, Senate-only committee helmed by Friedman is exploring alternate routes. The Senate Committee on Steering and Policy, a catch-all panel tasked with 'assisting the President and the Senate in identifying the major matters which require consideration by the General Court during the pending session,' on Wednesday convened a rare, potentially unprecedented hearing. The Legislature's website lists hearings as far back as April 2007, and no other Senate Committee on Steering and Policy hearing appears in that span. The purpose of the hearing, Friedman told State House News Service, is the 'content of the bill' that's now idling without an agreed-upon committee of jurisdiction. '[The bill] is around making sure that we do everything we can to protect legally sanctioned health care in this commonwealth. It's especially being attacked around reproductive health and gender-affirming care,' she said. 'We're just making sure our i's are dotted, our t's are crossed, people are protected. It's legal, and we want to make sure that other states and the feds don't get in the way of what is our right as a state,' Friedman continued. On Wednesday, Friedman expressed optimism that the House and Senate can get on the same page despite the differing opinions on which committee should review the bill. 'I'm really happy that they assigned it. That's great. We can figure that out,' she said before the Steering and Policy Committee hearing. 'My whole purpose, and this committee's whole purpose, is to move this bill along. It is so important, and the content of it is something that's so critical at this time, given what's happening to the federal government.' 'Any action that would make sense for us to move this quickly, we are open to it,' Friedman added. An aide to House Speaker Ron Mariano, D-3rd Norfolk, said the House thinks the Judiciary Committee is better-equipped to review the bill, which Friedman filed alongside Attorney General Andrea Campbell, because it deals with civil and criminal laws across multiple jurisdictions. Two years ago, the House and Senate disagreed on the landing spot for a 140-page gun law reform package, prompting months of public disputes. The House forged ahead without the Senate, airing the measure in a Judiciary Committee hearing attended only by representatives. While the procedural squabble revealed tensions between House and Senate Democrats, legislative leaders were ultimately able to agree to a final package that Gov. Maura Healey signed into law in July 2024. Senate rules grant the Steering and Policy Committee the ability to initiate legislation as long as the Senate chair of the 'appropriate committee' consents, and the panel plus 'Senate members of the Joint Committee of relevant jurisdiction' host a public hearing before moving a new bill. Progressive groups have been pushing the House and Senate Democratic supermajorities to take quicker action in response to the Trump administration. Jonathan Cohn, policy director at Progressive Massachusetts, ridiculed the pace of legislative activity this session during the organization's lobby day on Beacon Hill. Five months into the term, Cohn said the 'Legislature and governor have only signed three bills into law.' That summation prompted an attendee to gasp loudly before Cohn continued. 'Which shows that the kind of urgency that many of you probably feel about the need to act in Massachusetts is not registering yet in the State House, which is the importance of putting that pressure on them,' Cohn said. One idea progressive activists currently support is legislation banning the sale of personal cellphone location data, a version of which the House approved last term. The Senate never brought forward that House-approved bill for a vote last term, and senators on a joint committee this month advanced a similar measure. State House News Service Reporter Alison Kuznitz contributed to this story. Chicopee City Council to vote on wording of ballot questions 'Global order has been upset': World Affairs Council gauges tariff war impact on Western Mass Mass. AG sues Trump administration over cuts to scientific research Trump proposes a 15% cap on foreign students at Harvard Bye-bye, Big Bird? Trump turns to Congress for help with $9.4B in DOGE cuts to PBS, foreign aid Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
‘America today is starting to feel like Europe in the 1930s': Mass. lawmakers condemn Trump's first 100 days in office
Advertisement 'As someone who lost family members to the Holocaust, I do not say this lightly, but what we are experiencing in America today is starting to feel like Europe in the 1930s,' Spilka said in her 20-minute speech. 'It's not just terrifying, it is enraging — this is not who we are.' 'We must demand more from our elected representatives in Congress to act as the check on unfettered executive power that the Constitution demands of them,' she later added. Massachusetts state lawmakers have slowly become more vocal in opposing the administration as their Advertisement The state Senate this month announced a 'Response 2025″ initiative intended to figure out how to respond to Trump at the state level. So far, they have endorsed a bill seeking to protect those who The 13 Democratic senators who spoke Monday especially criticized 'What we are facing is a capricious, vengeful, and cruel administration that has co-opted federal law enforcement agents and openly defied our courts — the exact opposite of the law and order that Trump and his supporters have proclaimed to actually care about so much," Spilka said. Several touched on other issues. Senator Adam Gomez of Springfield highlighted how efforts to Advertisement What the Legislature can do to push back on Trump's 'firehose of law-defying, anti-democratic and truly, breathtakingly unbelievable actions' is limited, Spilka said. While she and others urged Congress to rein in his administration, it remains controlled by Republicans who endorse Trump's agenda. Some senators noted opportunities where the state can step in, such as by passing already-filed bills to protect immigrants without legal documentation or crafting legislation to shield judges and others targeted by Trump. Senator Barry Finegold of Andover also called to increase funding for the attorney general's office as she The remarks Monday were also intended to reassure residents concerned about the administration's actions, said Senator Lydia Edwards of East Boston. 'We hold up this mirror today and make a recommitment to our constituents: We will not forget you, we will fight, and we do this knowing that we are facing abnormal times and an acute, horrific oppression,' Edwards said. Anjali Huynh can be reached at
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bill bans cooperation with federal health care investigations
BOSTON (SHNS) – Senate Democrats announced a bill Monday morning intended to shield reproductive and transgender care in Massachusetts from out-of-state threats, saying it was part of the response effort to the Trump administration. The bill aims to protect health care professionals and lawyers who represent people who seek reproductive or gender-identity care, by restricting state agencies from cooperating with, or providing information for, federal or out-of-state investigations. Sen. Cindy Friedman of Arlington filed the bill last week. As chair of the Senate Committee on Steering and Policy, Friedman is leading the Senate's response to measures spinning out of President Donald Trump's first few months in office alongside a Republican-led Congress. The Senate has dubbed the effort 'Response 2025.' 'In Massachusetts, we do not discriminate against you depending on the type of health care you need, and this bill builds on our actions in 2022 and further strengthens protections for transgender people and those who have the ability to get pregnant,' Senate President Karen Spilka said in a statement. In a press release, Spilka and Friedman said the bill, which the Senate on Monday referred to the Health Care Financing Committee for review, was designed to 'protect, defend, and lead Massachusetts through oncoming threats from the federal government.' Massachusetts made abortion protected by law in 2020, in anticipation of threats to Roe v. Wade on the federal level. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the court precedent protecting abortion in 2022. In response to that ruling, the Legislature and Gov. Charlie Baker agreed to a 2022 law to protect people in Massachusetts from out-of-state civil or criminal investigations, lawsuits and prosecutions for legally-protected health care, such as abortions. 'We did the first version of this in 2022, and so as we're watching this unfold at the federal level now, we said let's check our laws and make sure we have protections and have no loopholes,' Friedman told the News Service. This is the first bill her committee has filed as part of 'Response 2025.' Friedman said they targeted this for their first action because 'it was something we had done and could start from a very solid base' and was something she and other Senate Democrats 'were concerned about, and knew was coming if Trump won.' The Senate committee worked with Attorney General Andrea Campbell and Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, as well as advocates at the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders to craft the legislation. The bill would make it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate against nonprofit organizations that offer reproductive or gender-identity care to people in Massachusetts. It would also require that companies protect patient electronic medical records to limit out-of-state entities' access to these records. 'Data sharing to the federal government and other entities could put patients and Massachusetts providers at risk—especially those accessing, prescribing, or dispensing medications related to reproductive or gender-affirming care,' the bill's supporters said. 'Gender-affirming care is a legal type of care in Massachusetts,' Friedman said. 'This says, 'You as the federal government and other states cannot determine what is legal health care in Massachusetts. You seem to be so focused on the whole issues around gender, we're not going to allow that because Massachusetts has decided that this is a legal form of health care.' They love to talk about gender-affirming care and women's reproductive health, but we the state get to decide what kind of care is legal and can be delivered in Massachusetts.' Trump has issued executive orders saying the government would only recognize two genders, including on documents like passports; stopping the Bureau of Prisons from reporting the number of incarcerated transgender individuals and moving transgender women into men's prisons; moving to ban transgender people from serving in the military; and attempting to pull funding from institutions providing gender-identity care for trans youth. A number of these executive orders have been paused by court orders. The Friedman bill also seeks to protect access to emergency abortions, by requiring any hospital licensed in Massachusetts to provide this emergency procedure if determined necessary by the patient and provider. Friedman told the News Service this protects people who miscarry, or if a pregnancy becomes dangerous. 'They can't turn anyone away. They have to provide the care that's going to save your life,' she said. The bill's supporters said the Trump administration 'has signaled it may allow hospitals to choose to decline giving emergency abortions, even in life-threatening cases.' She added that she hopes by closing these loopholes, Bay Staters feel safe seeking this care. 'We want to make sure that people in our commonwealth are safe and can get the care they need without fear of being harmed or targeted or sent to prison,' she said. 'It's outrageous. And we want to make sure that people who provide or support people seeking that care are also protected.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
State House Spotlight: Community advocates and addressing federal issues
BOSTON (WWLP) – This week at the State House in Boston, lawmakers split their time between budget matters and federal issues and hearing from advocates from their communities. Lawmakers came together early in the week to commemorate Transgender Day of Visibility, at a time when the presidential administration is targeting transgender people via executive orders. 'We are seeing a hateful effort to erase trans people from public life. These are coordinated and deliberated attacks,' said Provincetown Senator Julian Cyr. The state senate announced a targeted response plan to Trump's federal actions, called Response 2025, that tasks a pre-existing committee with speaking to other senators and putting forth bills. 'We know how to do this, we know how to get together, get the best ideas surfaced, move as quickly as we must do to meet the acute challenges of this time,' said Northampton Senator Jo Comerford. The committee in charge of response is already meant to speak with senators and pitch bills, but the Senate president says naming Trump as a priority will allow a faster and more targeted approach. On Thursday, youth advocates took to Beacon Hill to speak out against the influence of nicotine and tobacco on their communities. 'We all have power. No matter who we are, what we look like, or where we come from, we will always have the power of our voices, our minds, and of each other,' said Hopkinton High School senior Neha Ninan. Also this week, Governor Healey filed a $756 million supplemental budget meant to provide urgent relief to some state-sponsored services, like food access, housing, and child care. The supplemental budget will need to pass the House and Senate before being implemented, and it is expected to cost the state about $545 million. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senate announces 'Response 2025' to Trump administration actions
BOSTON (WWLP) – Massachusetts Senate leaders announced a response plan to the Trump administration, consisting of designating a pre-existing committee to the task of responding to new federal policies, 70 days into Trump's second term. Senators describe their plan as a coordinated effort to protect Massachusetts residents–dubbed 'Response 2025'–by tasking the Steering and Policy Committee with meeting with other senators to come up with strong policies to combat Trump. Notably, meeting with other senators to put forth bills is already the job description of the Steering and Policy Committee, but one western Massachusetts senator says naming Trump's response as a priority will allow for faster action. 'We know how to do this, we know how to get together, get the best ideas surfaced, move as quickly as we must do to meet the acute challenges of this time,' said Steering and Policy Vice Chair Senator Jo Comerford. Senate leaders were asked multiple times how this committee will differ from the normal day-to-day business of the Senate, and they emphasized that it will expedite lawmaking and allow for a more targeted response to Trump. 'That is the idea, to meet with experts, meet with the Senate chairs, to come up with policies that will help alleviate some of the pain,' said Senate President Karen Spilka. While senators did name Trump policies they are specifically concerned with, and they spent time naming past accomplishments, they did not disclose any specific policies or areas of focus for the committee, and no related bills are being filed today. Any policies put forth by this senate committee will need to be approved by the House as well, and President Spilka says she is confident they will be able to reach compromises and pass significant laws this session. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
