Big Wins in the Senate Budget!

Cindy Friedman

As you may know, I joined my Senate colleagues last week in voting on a $41.49 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2019. The final Senate budget makes substantial investments in key areas related to public education, local aid, transportation, health and human services, housing and assistance for low income families.

I’m very pleased that several of my local and policy-related amendments were included in the final version of the Senate budget. In addition, I was proud to vote in favor of several amendments that were adopted by the Senate, including initiatives that would improve elder behavioral healthcare, help cities and towns preserve open space and create affordable housing, expand access to educational opportunities for youth and adults, provide low-income families access to healthy foods, and protect the civil rights of undocumented immigrants.

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Civil Rights & Safety in the Senate Budget

Cindy Friedman

During the recent Senate budget debate, I voted in favor of the Civil Rights and Safety amendment (#1147), which was adopted in the Senate budget. Some of you might be familiar with this language, as it carries a similar intent to Senator Eldridge’s S.1305, better known as the “Safe Communities Act.” There has been a lot of misinformation regarding this amendment, so I would like to take a moment to clear up any confusion.

The amendment would: (1) ensure that local law enforcement resources are used to fight crime and keep local communities safe, not to assist federal immigration enforcement; (2) prohibit state collaboration with the federal government for the purpose of creating a federal registry program based on national origin or other protected characteristics; and (3) guarantee basic due process rights for immigrants detained in state and local facilities.

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Notification bill framed as life-saver in opioid fight Lowell Sun

Cindy Friedman

BOSTON — Securing a commitment for his son to receive substance addiction treatment was a “last chance” effort that Tom Berry made to try to save his life, but without his knowledge Berry’s 20-year-old Stephen was released early and died days later of an overdose.

Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers and the young man’s grieving family on Wednesday to call for a change in state law that would require family to be notified when someone is released from involuntary commitment.

Sen. Cindy Friedman, an Arlington Democrat and co-chairwoman of the committee, asked whether the legislation would conflict with federal health care privacy laws.

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Upcoming Senate Budget Debate

Cindy Friedman

Last week, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means (SWM) released its Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19) Budget proposal. With a total investment of $41.42 billion, the proposal continues to support vital government services, invest in our state’s strengths and confront obstacles to continued growth. I was especially pleased to see the proposed budget include substantial investments in public education, transportation, mental health treatment, and working families.

As you may know, my colleagues and I will be debating this budget proposal on the Senate floor next week. While this proposal includes significant investments and important policy initiatives, I look forward to strengthening the final Senate Budget during the amendment process. To that end, I’ve filed 24 amendments on several topics, including increasing access to mental health and substance use treatment, protecting medically complex and fragile children in the Commonwealth, securing a prevailing wage for quasi-state agency employees, and investing in community organizations and local initiatives throughout the 4th Middlesex district.

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Taylor’s Story

Cindy Friedman

During National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Massachusetts’ Advocacy Day, I had the chance to hear from a young man named Taylor who courageously shared a story about his terrifying experience with law enforcement as an individual with mental illness. Taylor’s story illustrates, in the clearest way possible, how important it is to train our first responders to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental illness, to equip them with de-escalation techniques, and to provide them with appropriate treatment referral options.

This session, I’m advocating for legislation (S.1090) that would create statewide resources for comprehensive crisis intervention training (CIT) for municipal police departments and other first responders. Taylor gave me permission to use his story, and I invite you to read it to gain a better understanding of why CIT for police officers is so important.

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Arlington students ‘kick butt’ at Statehouse Arlington Advocate

Cindy Friedman

BOSTON — May 2 was Kick Butts Day on Beacon Hill. Youth from high schools across the state — members of the 84 Movement dedicated to reducing tobacco use among children and teenagers — gathered and met with legislators. Rep. Sean Garballey was host for the event.

Three Arlington high school juniors, Abi Hodgdon, Erika Siegel and Elizabeth Liakos, accompanied by pediatrician Dr. Carole Allen, participated and met with aides to Sen. Cindy Friedman and Rep. Dave Rogers, as well as with Garballey. The Arlington students were nominees for the 2019 Peer Outreach Award.

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Arlington community responds to hate graffiti at the high school Arlington Advocate

Cindy Friedman

By the afternoon of Wednesday, May 2, the Arlington High School entrance was covered in a rainbow of chalk drawings and messages of solidarity created by AHS students. This artwork was created in response to a hate incident that same morning where a group of young men reportedly broke into the high school, causing damage to several areas inside and spray painting homophobic and anti-Semitic graffiti near the faculty parking lot at the back of the high school.

“I was disheartened to learn that a group of young men vandalized Arlington High School property with homophobic and anti-Semitic graffiti on Wednesday morning,” said state Senator Cindy Friedman, who represents Arlington. “These hate-filled acts are despicable and do not reflect the values of our community. Every student at Arlington High should be able to go to school without feeling threatened or unwelcome.”

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Opioid-control bill advances a step Boston Globe

Cindy Friedman

In their latest effort to stem the opioid epidemic, Massachusetts lawmakers took a step Thursday toward establishing mandatory three-day substance use therapy for those in peril and requiring hospitals to stock buprenorphine or other medication to counter street drugs like heroin and fentanyl.

Senator Cindy Friedman, an Arlington Democrat and the committee’s cochairwoman, said she has concerns about some provisions — including the involuntary holds. A top priority for Friedman is making access to treatment easier, especially for people with both substance use disorder and mental illness. ‘Right now, it’s really tough to get access to treatment, especially if you have a mental illness,’’ Friedman said.

A host of factors affect access to treatment, said Friedman, who listed “insurance companies; rates we pay providers; how insurance companies determine who’s in a network, who’s not in a network; the kind of treatment that’s available for in-patient.’’

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Once-stalled roadwork under DOT review Woburn Daily Times

Cindy Friedman

WOBURN – The long-awaited roadway reconstruction and related work, including traffic signals, on Montvale Avenue from I-93 to 400 feet just west of Central Street is moving along. The Mass. Department of Transportation (DOT) had solicited bids for project on April 3rd and are now reviewing the bids, including the certifying of the low bidder D&R General Contracting.

Key City officials such as Mayor Scott Galvin, DPW Superintendent Jay Duran, City Engineer John E. Corey Jr. and President Richard Haggerty of the City Council have been informed of the progress. And, major state officials representing Woburn such as Rep. James Dwyer, Jay R. Kaufman and State Senator Cindy Friedman have also been notified of the progress.

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A Walk to Remember: NuPath Breaks Fundraising, Attendance Records at Eighth Annual ‘Walk the Walk’ NuPath, Inc.

Cindy Friedman

WOBURN – It is an early Saturday morning at NuPath’s headquarters on New Boston Street in Woburn. An army of volunteers, captained by NuPath’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Brett Reily, are putting the finishing touches on what has arguably been the best six weeks the Organization has ever seen in its fifty years of operation.

State Senator Cindy Friedman was one of several elected officials who ‘Walked the Walk’ and was left with a marked impression of the progressive goals on the organization. “It’s incredible that everyone here could engage at such a high level to raise that much money in such a short amount of time,” she said, looking out towards the crowd.

“All of you are the reason why (local and state elected officials) continue to fight and advocate for people living with disabilities to accomplish your mission of making life’s journey happier, healthier and more fulfilling.’”

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