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HATE CRIMES
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, we have seen a surge in hate crimes across the country based on race, religion, ethnicity or gender identity. Racism and xenophobia are widespread, and we must use the legislative process to protect marginalized and vulnerable communities.
I filed a bill reforming the current hate crimes statutes and adding gender and immigration status to the list of protected classes. We must call out hate and racism when we see it in order to create accountability and ensure that residents feel safe and protected.
ENVIRONMENT
Our district has the most beautiful natural environment, and we should be working to preserve it. At a state level, the effort to address environmental issues is severely underfunded. We only allocate 0.5% of the state’s operating budget to environmental agencies. As a starting point, I advocate for doubling the percentage of funding as well as accelerating our transition from reliance on fossil fuels to 100% clean renewable energy with measures like incentivizing solar development.
With your support, I will push for legislation that fights climate change and protects our natural resources. We recently passed the Public Lands Preservation Act, which prevents the loss of constitutionally protected lands, as well as the Climate Roadmap, which lays out Massachusetts climate policy for the future. This session, I have a bill to require further water quality testing of our rivers after large rain events that cause pollutants to flow into the water. The community relies on our rivers for boating and recreation, and we need to ensure the public knows when these waterways are experiencing high bacteria.
EDUCATION
As a product of public schools, I know how crucial a well-funded school district is to the health of our communities. I am committed to advocating for increased school funding to give every student the opportunity to succeed, and am a strong believer in the value of early education.
I will continue working to increase local reimbursements for special education and regional school transportation funding, and expanding efforts to better assist English learners and economically disadvantaged students. My House colleagues and I are advocates for increased local aid to our public schools, which helps alleviate local property taxes.
This session, I filed a bill that would require a more inclusive school curriculum, so that students are learning a more comprehensive history of our country and its people.
Diversity, Equity
& inclusion
I am proud that Massachusetts has led the country on equality, but there is still more work we need to do. I am committed to advancing protections to ensure that all people are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. I believe in dismantling institutional and systemic inequities to promote justice in the workplace, in healthcare, in education, under the law, and in every aspect of life.
I fully support the Healthy Youth Act, which advocates for science-based, inclusive sex education in public schools. Our diversity is our strength, and I am committed to building more accepting and more inclusive communities.
GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION
Our community values responsible gun ownership, which is why I support measures to prevent gun violence and voted in favor of the 2024 law that bans the possession, transfer or sale of assault-style firearms or large-capacity feeding devices.These were not designed for our homes or workplaces, but for a battlefield. I have represented many survivors of domestic violence and understand that guns should not be in the hands of people who pose a danger to themselves or others. I also want to improve access to mental health care to minimize these dangers and risks to public safety.
SENIORS
Our seniors have built their lives in this community, raised families and worked hard to make our towns more prosperous and vibrant. In turn, it benefits all of us to help them to remain in our community. I work with my colleagues to increase local aid to support programs for our aging population like Meals on Wheels and funding for the Council on Aging.
Together we secured additional funding for the Andover and Boxford Senior Centers in the last budget. I have also filed a bill to better protect individuals against debt collectors, which would help seniors keep current on their property taxes so that they can keep their homes.
WOMEN's health
I am an advocate for survivors of domestic violence, and a defender of reproductive rights. Every woman should be able to make personal decisions about the full range of reproductive health care options. In 2020, I supported the ROE Act, which removed unnecessary barriers to reproductive healthcare. I will continue to defend women’s rights in the face of actions by the federal government.
VETERANS
Our veterans have earned our respect and admiration. During the pandemic, the loss of so many veterans at the Holyoke Soldiers Home was a terrible tragedy. I have joined my colleagues to advocate for reforms and to fund improvements to the Soldiers’ Home. I support expanding veterans’ benefits, while making them more accessible. Veterans are under attack, but in Massachusetts we will fight to ensure they have health care and mental health services, education, and housing assistance.
HEALTH CARE
I am committed to making health care more affordable and accessible, because health care is a human right. As your representative, I advocate for a health insurance system that guarantees access and lowers the cost of health care. I support controlling the rising costs of medication, expanding the definition of affordability to include other out-of-pocket costs such as copays and deductibles, and allowing for a public option for individuals and small businesses. Additionally, I favor establishing a higher care worker minimum wage.
covid-19
Throughout the pandemic, my office sent out COVID-19 newsletters to keep my constituents updated on news and resources available to them. In addition, I sponsored multiple bills to protect frontline healthcare workers, increase unemployment insurance benefits for low wage workers, and provide emergency tax relief to workers who collected unemployment during the pandemic. Constituents can depend on me to respond, and provide information and resources needed, during any health or federal emergency.
ANIMAL PROTECTION
I am an animal lover and a proud dog mom, so protecting animals is personal for me. I co-sponsored a bill to protect animals from convicted abusers to make sure that convicted abusers are not allowed to be in possession of an animal or engage in an occupation or volunteer position where they would be working with animals. I have also added a provision in another bill to protect pets from those convicted of sexual assault.
survivors' rights
Over the past few years, domestic violence rates have increased drastically, and incidents of domestic violence have often become more severe. Whether physical, verbal, sexual, emotional, or any other form, domestic violence is unacceptable.
I have co-sponsored multiple bills aiming to aid victims of domestic violence by expanding the definitions of abuse, improving protections for sexual assault survivors, expanding confidentiality protections, and increasing options for survivors who have been criminalized for actions as a result of their victimization. Additionally, I sponsored bills to protect and compensate victims of sex trafficking, which passed in the House.
THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC
Opioid addiction is a public health crisis. We should not simply brush it aside with arrests and incarceration. Instead, my efforts focus on prevention and treatment. I support programs that educate youth about addiction and identify and support students at risk. I also support programs that educate doctors about safer prescription management.
We can also save more lives by increasing the availability of the overdose reversal agent Naloxone (Narcan) to first responders and caregivers and supporting long-term treatments, including housing for recovering addicts and treatment beds for those suffering from addiction. Prevention and long-term treatment are how we rescue our community from this deadly crisis.
WORKING FAMILIES
I grew up in a working class family and know first hand the challenges and the struggles. Working families deserve programs that train them for good-paying jobs, fair compensation for hard work, job security, and protection from wage theft and exploitation.
I have worked with colleagues to pass three bills that help low-wage workers with unemployment, and I have sponsored or co-sponsored many other bills designed to protect working families. Additionally, I believe we should invest in quality childcare and early education, which will open up more opportunities for parents to provide for their families and advance their children’s future. I will continue to take the lead on these issues and advocate for working families.
TRANSPORTATION
Investing in public transportation and infrastructure is essential to building a better Commonwealth. In the Merrimack Valley, it is important to make commuting options reliable, safe, and affordable. I have been working with my colleagues to increase safety and expand capacity on the commuter rail by advocating for a double-track system. I am committed to advancing solutions that will help the people of our district and throughout the Commonwealth.