Weekly Political Report – Week Ending November 11, 2011

The Weekly Political Report is prepared by a political consulting group, Rasky/Baerlein, and shared with me by John Nunnari.

Congressional Maps Approved by Redistricting Committee
On Thursday, the Joint Committee on Redistricting unanimously approved legislation that redraws the state’s Congressional districts to reflect the loss of one seat. The proposal includes the following changes:

• The minority population of the Eighth Congressional district, held by Congressman Michael Capuano, will grow from 52% to 56.6%.
• The districts of Congressmen William Keating and Stephen Lynch would change dramatically, putting the two into the same district unless Congressman Keating moves to his summer house on Cape Cod, something that he announced earlier this week that he would do. Cape Cod would be part of a new, incumbent free district that would stretch from the Cape and Islands across Plymouth and Bristol County to Fall River.
• Congressman Lynch would lose some Boston neighborhoods and would pick up the suburban city of Quincy and parts of the South Shore.
• Western Massachusetts communities currently represented by retiring Congressman John Olver would be split among the two districts currently represented by Congressman James McGovern and Congressman Richard Neal.
• Congressman McGovern’s Third Congressional District would expand westward to absorb Worcester, Hampshire, and Franklin counties as well as Northampton and Amherst.
• Congresswoman Nikki Tsongas’s district would gain the communities Gardner, Pepperell, Clinton, Fitchburg, Lunenburg, and Marlborough while losing Billerica, Tewksbury, and part of Andover.

The proposed Congressional districts are scheduled to be debated and likely approved on Tuesday.

Several Bills Pending as November Recess Approaches

With only three days left before the Legislature breaks for a seven-week recess, several major bills remain in conference committee. Six-member conference committees are negotiating compromise language for the anti-trafficking, pension reform and casino bills and must meet an 8 p.m. Tuesday deadline to recommend consensus bills for consideration on Wednesday, the final day for formal sessions in 2011. Bills that emerge from conference committees are not subject to amendment, and are only subject to up or down votes of acceptance in both branches followed by enactment votes. Both branches are scheduled to hold informal sessions Monday and formal sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday. Governor Patrick has ten days to act on bills approved by the Legislature. The Legislative Session does not end until July 31^st and these bills can stay active until that time. Legislative leaders are pushing for votes on several major bills before the November recess.

Senate Votes Unanimously in Support of Omnibus Crime

On Thursday, the Senate unanimously adopted legislation that reforms the state’s parole and sentencing laws. The bill includes a proposal to deny parole eligibility to three-time violent felons and makes changes in gun and sentencing laws. Mandatory minimum sentences for certain drug crimes would be reduced and applied to current inmates, making them eligible for parole if they’ve served the new reduced sentence. Many of the proposals in the Senate bill are still pending before the House-controlled Judiciary Committee, which has not yet recommended legislation.

Green Communities Oversight Hearing

The Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy held an oversight hearing on Tuesday to hear from stakeholders involved in the implementation of the Green Communities Act of 2008, which reformed the state’s energy policy by making commitments to electric and natural gas energy efficiency programs, renewables, and clean fossil fuels. The committee invited administration officials, utility companies, energy purchasers, energy-related businesses, environmental and advocacy groups, as well as Green Communities and the Massachusetts Municipal Association to testify during the hearing, which began at 10am and adjourned at 6:30pm.

John Nunnari, Assoc AIA
Executive Director, AIA MA
jnunnari@architects.org
617-951-1433 x263
617-951-0845 (fax)

MA Chapter of American Institute of Architects
The Architects Building
52 Broad Street, Boston MA 02109-4301
www.architects.org