FY 2007-2008 Massachusetts House of Representatives Legislative Accomplishments

REORGANIZATION OF GOVERNOR’S CABINET AND SELECTED AGENCIES OF THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT
CHAPTER 6 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In a move to increase efficiency on the state level, the House voted to reorganize the structure of the Governor’s cabinet as proposed by Governor Deval Patrick, elevating energy, housing and working people’s issues to the cabinet level.

IMMEDIATE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT BOND BILL
CHAPTER 27 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House passed a $1.47 billion bond bill to address the immediate capital improvement needs of the Commonwealth, authorizing planned projects that addressed critical repair needs, secured federal grant funds and improved government efficiency through information technology.

BONDING BILL CHANGING THE LIFE OF THE BONDS TO 30 YEARS
CHAPTER 34 OF ACTS OF 2007
The House voted to pass a bill that would extend the life of bonds to 30 years in order to save the Commonwealth money when financing the capital improvement needs of the state.

GAY MARRIAGE
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION
The Legislature voted by an overwhelming margin to uphold equal rights in the Commonwealth and oppose a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Massachusetts.

FY 2008 BUDGET
CHAPTER 54 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
Renewing its commitment to municipalities, the House passed a balanced budget focused on core services such as education and public safety, including a $15 million increase in Lottery aid to cities and towns and more than $3.73 billion for Chapter 70 education funding, a $220 million increase over last year’s allocation. The FY ’08 budget provided an overall increase in appropriations of 4.2 percent over FY 2007.

FILM TAX CREDITS
CHAPTER 63 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
To increase revenue and spur job growth in the Commonwealth, the House passed legislation to provide the burgeoning Massachusetts movie industry with incentives to film here through meaningful tax credits. The impact was immediate, with ‘The Pink Panther 2’ moving its central location to Boston to take advantage of the credits.

GROUP INSURANCE COMMISSION (GIC) FOR MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES
CHAPTER 67 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In acknowledgement that the skyrocketing cost of providing health insurance to municipal workers had become a drain on the coffers of cities and towns across the Commonwealth, the House passed legislation to allow municipal workers and retirees to opt into the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) healthcare plan, which will yield millions of dollars in savings to municipalities that can be used to provide much-needed property tax reductions.

PENSION RESERVES INVESTMENT TRUST (PRIT) FOR MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES
CHAPTER 68 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
Maintaining its commitment to cities and towns throughout the Commonwealth, the House passed legislation to permit the state to take over poorly performing municipal pension systems, a measure that will provide significant savings to municipalities and help provide further property tax relief.

IMPROVING JUROR SERVICE
CHAPTER 78 OF ACTS OF 2007
The House approved legislation to alleviate the current strain on jury resources and allow courts to impanel more cases, bring cases to trial more quickly, reduce or eliminate backlogs and improve the swift and fair administration of justice proceedings.

SALES TAX HOLIDAY
CHAPTER 81 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
For the fourth consecutive year, the House passed legislation to provide consumers with a two day sales tax break and deliver a shot-in-the-arm to businesses throughout the Commonwealth in August. By all reports, the ‘holiday’ was another success for retailers, consumers and the Commonwealth.

IDENTITY THEFT
CHAPTER 82 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
To protect Massachusetts residents from the growing problem of identity theft, the House passed comprehensive legislation to notify the public of data breaches, establish security freezes of accounts subject to identity theft and set standards for disposal of records containing personal data.

MORATORIUM ON INTERNET HUNTING
CHAPTER 83 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
Aligned Massachusetts with 22 other states to ban the hunting of live animals through the Internet and establish a fine of up to $2,500 or imprisonment for 2½ years if a person is found to have participated in Internet hunting.

“BABY SAFE HAVEN” LAW
CHAPTER 86 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
Makes permanent legislation originally passed in 2004 which provides a safe alternative for parents who might otherwise abandon their babies to surrender their newborns, seven days of age or younger, to appropriate personnel at hospitals, police departments or manned fire stations.

EXPANDED ACCESS TO BIRTH CERTIFICATES OF ADOPTEES
CHAPTER 109 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In an effort to simplify the process of obtaining their birth certificates, the House passed legislation to allow adoptees, 33 years or older, to access their birth certificates without a court order.

INCREASED BENEFITS TO THE FAMILIES OF POLICE AND FIREFIGHTERS
CHAPTER 110 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In the immediate wake of the tragic on-duty deaths of two Boston firefighters, the House approved a bill authorizing municipalities to raise funeral expense reimbursements to families of firefighters and police officers killed in the line of duty from $5,000 to $15,000.

UNION AUTHORIZATION CARDS
CHAPTER 120 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House passed legislation allowing public workers who want to unionize the ability to do so by signing majority authorization cards.

FY ’08 SUPPLEMENTAL BUDGET
CHAPTER 122 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House passed a $278.7 million supplemental budget that closed the books on Fiscal Year 2007 and provided approximately $100 million for key economic development initiatives to stimulate emerging industries such as clean energy development and support growth industries such as life sciences.

ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS FOR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
CHAPTER 130 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
To promote a standard and up-to-date system of health records for those enrolled in state health and human service programs, the House passed a bill which would establish a task force to create electronic health records for these individuals.

PROTECTING PATIENT CONFIDENTIALITY
CHAPTER 142 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In order to provide clients of licensed mental health counselors with the same right to confidentiality as clients of psychiatrists, social workers and psychologists, The House passed legislation to protect confidential communications in certain legal proceedings between clients and counselors.

SUPPORT FOR PUBLIC LIBRARIES
CHAPTER 143 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
To sustain and grow the public libraries of the Commonwealth, The House approved an appropriation of $500,000 for municipal libraries facing fiscal hardship.

LABOR REORGANIZATION BILL
CHAPTER 145 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In order to increase efficiency among state agencies, the House approved Governor Patrick’s reorganization of the Labor and Workforce Development secretariat.

DARFUR DIVESTMENT
CHAPTER 151 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In an effort to help weaken the government-sanctioned genocide occurring in Darfur, the House voted to divest the state’s employee pension funds from companies providing financial support to the Sudanese government.

BUFFER ZONE EXPANSION AROUND REPRODUCTIVE CLINICS
CHAPTER 155 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House passed legislation to establish a 35-foot buffer zone around reproductive health clinics in Massachusetts. The legislation builds on existing law to more than double the size of the current buffer zone and establishes a fixed rather than floating no-protest area, 35 feet from the property line of a clinic.

AID TO COMMERCIAL FISHING SECTOR
CHAPTER 160 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House voted to provide financial support to the commercial fishing industry in Massachusetts through an appropriation of no less than $500,000.

TIDELANDS/CHAPTER 91
CHAPTER 168 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House overwhelmingly passed legislation to ensure a new, public-driven review process for large-scale projects being built on the Commonwealth’s many tidelands.

PROPERTY TAX CLASSIFICATION
CHAPTER 169 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House acted to reinstate the current property tax rate for businesses at 175 percent of residential rates in a further effort to help stem the rising tide of residential property tax rates.

TICKET RE-SALE LEGISLATION
H. 4263-ENGROSSED BY THE HOUSE
The House unanimously passed legislation designed to simplify existing laws on the resale of sports, concert and other event tickets while giving broad new protections to consumers victimized by counterfeiters and frauds.

MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE RELIEF
CHAPTER 224 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In the midst of a national and statewide mortgage foreclosure crisis, the House passed bold new legislation to help stem the number of mortgage foreclosures by encouraging banks to help borrowers, providing a new 3-month window to cure defaults and mandating tough new licensing standards for mortgage loan originators.

INVESTMENT IN LIFE SCIENCES SECTOR
CHAPTER 130 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed a 10-year, $1 billion bill to invest in the state’s burgeoning life sciences sector. The economic development package takes a targeted approach to growing high-paying, quality jobs, drawing biotech companies to Massachusetts, and retaining talented scientists and researchers at state institutions.

COMMONWEALTH CORPS
CHAPTER 192 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House passed Governor Patrick’s legislation to establish the Commonwealth Corps, a statewide volunteer and service organization aimed at encouraging residents of Massachusetts to lend their time and service to communities in need.

CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT LEGISLATION
CHAPTER 176 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
Acting to toughen the laws meant to protect our most vulnerable children from abuse and neglect, the House passed legislation to create a new cabinet secretary dedicated solely to child welfare, establish minimum educational requirements for social workers and their supervisors, and order training of mandatory reporters and increase criminal penalties.

GREEN COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2007
CHAPTER 169 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously approved bold energy reform legislation to promote the use of cleaner, renewable energy in Massachusetts. The bill establishes energy goals for the Commonwealth and acts to implement those goals through state-wide clean energy initiatives and reforms. The bill provides incentives to individuals, business owners and municipalities to invest in energy-saving technologies and aims to reduce energy consumption at the state-level.

LIHEAP FUEL-ASSISTANCE APPROPRIATION
CHAPTER 174 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
The House acted to avert a home heating crisis by unanimously approving $15 million in emergency funding to help more than 100,000 elderly residents and low income families stay warm this winter.

CHANGE OF PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY DATE
CHAPTER 179 OF THE ACTS OF 2007
In order to raise the importance of Massachusetts in the Presidential primary, the House approved a measure to move the date of the Presidential primary date ahead to February 5.

CELL-PHONE/TEXT-MESSAGING DRIVING BAN
H. 4477 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
Aiming to increase the safety of our communities and our roads, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill that would prohibit the use of cell phones, without the use of a hands-free device, and ban the sending of text messages while driving.

REORGANIZATION OF COMMONWEALTH’S EDUCATION GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE
CHAPTER 27 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation to reorganize the Commonwealth’s education system, from pre-K through Higher Education. The bill, which would create a cabinet-level secretary of education, was filed by Governor Patrick to coordinate seamlessly each sector of education in the state.

FROZE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE RATE
CHAPTER 42 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House moved to help spur the economy by approving a freeze to the annual unemployment insurance rate, which is expected to save employers $153 million next year.

OCEAN MANAGEMENT BILL
CHAPTER 114 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House acted to clarify existing laws concerning ocean management to allow for clean energy development in areas currently zoned only for traditional energy generation.

GIFT CERTIFICATE LAW
CHAPTER 58 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House voted to update consumer protections to the state gift certificate law by allowing gift certificates to be redeemable at full face value for a period of seven years without deductions or service fees.

REGULATION OF HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTS CONTAINING PHOSPHOROUS
CHAPTER 47 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
In an act to protect consumers from toxins in household cleaning products, the House voted to regulate the distribution and sale of cleaning products containing phosphorous.

TRANSPORTATION BOND AND REFORM LEGISLATION
CHAPTER 86 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved a three-year, $3.5 billion bond bill to finance state transportation projects and deliver direct benefits to cities and towns through funding or Chapter 90 local aid. The House also approved reforms to the state’s transportation infrastructure, included in the bill, which aim to yield savings and maximize efficiencies in the current system, including reforms which call on the administration to create regulations and guidelines for police details on state public work projects while allowing city and town officials to gauge the need for flagmen or police details on municipal projects.

BOOSTER SEAT BILL
CHAPTER 79 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
In a move to increase the safety of child passengers and bring the Commonwealth into line with federal motor vehicle standards, the House passed legislation to require to children to ride in either car seats or booster seats until the age of eight.

HOUSING BOND BILL
CHAPTER 119 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed a $1.3 billion bond bill to create, preserve, and encourage production of affordable housing and capital improvements throughout the Commonwealth. The five-year capital plan will foster long-term economic growth across the state and make homeownership more accessible to all residents.

CORPORATE TAX REFORMS
CHAPTER 173 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House voted to adopt corporate tax reforms proposed by Governor Patrick, to yield $217 million in new revenue to the state.

CIGARETTE TAX INCREASE
CHAPTER 168 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House acted to raise the tax on cigarettes by $1 in an effort to discourage non-smokers, especially youth, from taking up the habit and cause more current smokers to quit, while also raising revenue to offset cost of providing healthcare to patients suffering from chronic illness.

FY 2009 BALANCED BUDGET
CHAPTER 158 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
Renewing its commitment to the cities and towns of the Commonwealth, the House passed a budget which provided an additional $124 million in Lottery distribution to ensure cities and towns are held harmless and receive $935 million in unrestricted local aid. The House also provided a six percent increase over last year in Chapter 70 school aid distribution bringing the total to $3.95 billion.

COMMISSION TO END HOMELESSNESS IN FY 2009 BUDGET
CHAPTER 158 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved $10 million to establish a Commission to End Homelessness that will implement a multi-year housing and support services strategy to ultimately end homelessness.

INCREASED NURSE STAFFING LEVELS
H. 4714 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
Taking a critical step toward improving patient safety, strengthening the nursing workforce and curbing the amount of hospital-acquired infections, the House overwhelmingly passed the landmark ‘Patient Safety/Safe Staffing’ bill.

PROTECTIONS AGAINST PREDATORY INSURANCE SALES TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES
H. 4508 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
The House unanimously passed legislation to protect military service members from insurance fraud. The bill was filed in response to Congressional findings that predatory life insurance sales to military personnel had occurred on military bases nationwide.

REORGANIZATION OF EARLY EDUCATION QUALITY & CARE SYSTEM
CHAPTER 215 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation to complete the creation of and enabling powers for the new Department of Early Education and Care. This legislation provides the new department with the tools needed to make system-wide improvements and establishes a strong platform to bring the Commonwealth a system of universally accessible, high-quality pre-school for all the children of the Commonwealth.

MUNICIPAL AND REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS BOND BILL
CHAPTER 172 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously voted to finance transportation projects across the Commonwealth. Highlights of the $1.5 billion bond bill include: $67 million for design and construction for Fitchburg commuter rail project; $10 million for specific municipal road and bridge projects; $7 million for a mobility assistance program; $50 million in public works money and $20 million for transit-orientated development grant program.

BROADBAND EXPANSION
CHAPTER 164 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House voted to expand broadband access to underserved parts of the state in order to provide all residents of Massachusetts with the same economic and educational benefits afforded to residents of the Commonwealth with unlimited broadband access.

MENTAL HEALTH PARITY
CHAPTER 256 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House overwhelmingly voted to pass landmark mental health parity legislation that will require health plans to cover mental health and substance abuse disorders to the same extent as all other medical conditions.

HEALTH CARE COST CONTAINMENT
CHAPTER 305 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously voted to move the Commonwealth into the next phase of health reform with legislation aimed at curbing health care costs and improving the overall quality of our health care system.

MASSHEALTH EQUALITY
CHAPTER 217 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed the MassHealth Equality Bill to allow married same-sex couples to equal access to the state’s MassHealth Program.

SCHOOL AND DISTRICT ACCOUNTABILITY
CHAPTER 311 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
To strengthen and better coordinate school district accountability and assistance for all public schools, the House passed legislation to promote stronger alignment between required school district performance audits and state targeted assistance for struggling schools and districts.

NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE
H. 4952 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
The House moved Massachusetts one step closer to abandoning the Electoral College system by overwhelmingly voting to guarantee the US presidency goes to the candidate who receives the popular vote in all 50 states.

BIOFUELS INCENTIVE PACKAGE
CHAPTER 206 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously passed legislation to promote the use of advanced biofuels through a first-in-the-nation state gas tax exemption on cellulosic biofuels.

WAGE INCREASE FOR HUMAN SERVICE PROVIDERS
CHAPTER 257 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
In order to retain and attract qualified people to the field, the House passed legislation to raise wages for Human Service workers.

BRIDGE REPAIR BOND BILL
CHAPTER 233 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
To preserve existing transportation infrastructure and improve the safety of state bridges, the House passed $3 billion bridge repair bond bill to fund projects throughout the Commonwealth.

PET RENTAL BAN
CHAPTER 253 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation to ban the leasing of pets to safeguard consumers against the rental of sick or potentially dangerous animals and protect animals from being leased to people who have not undergone a screening process to determine if they are capable of having an animal under their care.

PUBLIC BREAST FEEDING
H. 1568 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
To preserve the rights of nursing mothers, the House passed legislation to guarantee women the right to breast feed in public.

SALES TAX HOLIDAY
CHAPTER 211 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
For the fifth consecutive year, the House overwhelmingly voted to give consumers a two-day sales tax break and provide a shot-in-the-arm to retailers and the economy.

ENVIRONMENTAL BOND BILL
CHAPTER 312 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously approved a $1.64 billion environmental bond bill to preserve and improve the Commonwealth’s “green infrastructure” through targeted investments in open spaces, parks, beaches, and recreation facilities across Massachusetts.

FILM INFRASTRUCTURE TAX CREDITS
H.4784 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
In an effort to draw the movie industry to Massachusetts, the House passed legislation to provide film companies with state tax breaks for building sound stages and other facilities in the Commonwealth.

GENERAL GOVERNMENT BOND BILL
CHAPTER 304 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House unanimously passed a $3 billion bond bill to address general government needs, including information technology and courthouse repairs.

REPEAL OF SO-CALLED 1913 LAW
CHAPTER 216 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
Delivering a major victory to advocates of same-sex marriage, the House passed legislation to repeal a 95-year-old law that prevents gay and lesbian couples from from marrying in Massachusetts.

CHILD PROTECTION LEGISLATION (JESSICA’S LAW)
CHAPTER 205 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation to better protect children from sex offenders through the enforcement of tougher sentences and enhances tracking of online predators.

HIGHER EDUCATION BOND BILL
CHAPTER 258 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed a $2.2 billion capital bond bill to free up scarce operating resources which can be put toward controlling the costs of higher education for families in the Commonwealth.

ROSE KENNEDY GREENWAY
CHAPTER 306 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved legislation sponsored to transfer the management of the Rose Kennedy Greenway from the Mass Turnpike Authority to the Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy.

GREEN JOBS
CHAPTER 307 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
In an effort to grow jobs in the Commonwealth’s burgeoning clean energy sector, the House unanimously approved legislation to encourage green start-up companies to expand in Massachusetts and provide individuals of all income levels with the job skills needed to excel in the state’s budding green economy.

GLOBAL WARMING SOLUTIONS
CHAPTER 298 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation to cap harmful greenhouse gas emissions and put in place a long-term plan to curb emissions in the Commonwealth.

STATE-WIDE TRANS FAT BAN
H. 4346 ENGROSSED IN HOUSE
To improve public health, The House passed legislation to eliminate artificial trans fat from restaurants across the Commonwealth. The bill would require restaurants to remove oils, shortenings and margarines containing trans fat used for frying or in spreads within a year of the act’s passage, while oils or shortenings used for deep frying of yeast dough or cake batter, such as doughnuts will have up to 18 months to be phased out.

SECURE ROLL CALL VOTING
FINAL REPORT FILED WITH RULES COMMITTEE TO ADOPT CHANGES
To help guarantee the sanctity of the roll call voting process in the House Chamber, the House approved recommendations of a special committee, appointed by Speaker DiMasi, to implement a key card system, similar to the one utilized by Congress, for use in the next formal legislative session.

DROPOUT PREVENTION
CHAPTER 315 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
To bring focus and attention to the serious high school drop-out problem facing many communities, the House passed a drop-out prevention bill that requires mandatory reporting by school districts and establishes a drop-out prevention and recovery commission. The commission is charged with responsibility to identify successful programs and policies and make recommendations for the establishment and support of such programs in the Commonwealth.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
CHAPTER 285 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House passed legislation maintaining transition age requirements for students with disabilities.

MIDDLE LEVEL EDUCATION COMMISSION
H. 4800 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
The House passed legislation resolving to revive and continue the special commission relative to middle education in the Commonwealth.

CREATION OF STATE 911 DEPARTMENT
CHAPTER 223 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
In an effort to support and improve public safety, the House approved legislation to create a state-wide 911 department and improve funding for 911 services though a new 911 surcharge.

FY 2008 DEFICIENCY BUDGET
CHAPTER 302 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved $16.2 million to address immediate deficiencies in Fiscal Year 2008 and $70.7 million for other appropriations in Fiscal Year 2009. The allocation included funding for a one-time authorization of the Division of Health Care Finance and Policy to assess excess insurer funds held in reserve and the imposition of a one-time, $20 million increase in the Health Safety Net Trust Fund assessment paid by providers.

LOCAL AID IN FY 2008 DEFICIENCY BUDGET
CHAPTER 302 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
During fiscal years 2007 and 2008 the Commonwealth held cities and towns harmless from the effects on local aid payments from a $236 million shortfall in expected lottery revenue. To support these payments a supplemental budget transferred the $236 million from the Commonwealth’s General Fund to the State Lottery Fund.

CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH BILL
CHAPTER 321 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved legislation to allow children suffering from mental illness to access care through their insurance plans, expand access to mental health screenings, and provide early educators with the tools needed to better serve students suffering from mental illness.

REGULATION OF LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS IMPORT TERMINALS
CHAPTER 295 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
To improve public safety, the House passed legislation to require a minimum 5,000-foot distance from an LNG tank to homes, schools, hospitals and elderly complexes.

IRAN DIVESTMENT
H. 4970 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
Acting to weaken the influence of Iran and its leaders who pose a threat to peace in the Middle East, The House moved to divest public employee pensions from companies that do business with Iran.

COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT FOR PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
H. 4959 ENACTED BY HOUSE
In an effort to support retired public employees and teachers, the House approved a modest adjustment to retired employee pensions to account for cost of living increases.

RACETRACK SIMULCASTING EXTENSION
CHAPTER 290 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
The House approved legislation to extend simulcasting of horse and greyhound races at Massachusetts-based racetracks.

DAIRY TAX CREDITS
CHAPTER 308 OF THE ACTS OF 2008
To keep dairy farms of the Commonwealth thriving, the House passed legislation to create a commission to analyze and recommend ways to update farming technology and create a dairy farmer tax credit program to boost sales through targeted marketing campaigns.

COVENANTS FOR SOCIAL WORKERS
H. 1873 ENACTED BY HOUSE
The House adopted legislation to change statues related to social worker covenants. In the absence of the statute, employers were permitted to block mental health consumers from being treated by a social worker who stopped working in a particular setting. The new statute will allow consumers to continue treatment with their therapist regardless of their social worker’s change in employer.

LOWERED LEGAL AGE OF BLOOD DONORS
H. 4547 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
The House passed legislation to allow minors aged 16 and up to donate blood with parental consent.

SUICIDE PREVENTION
H. 2165 ENGROSSED BY HOUSE
The House passed legislation to create a special commission to study and resolve ways to curb the number of suicides in Massachusetts.