By: State Senator Katy Ives – April, 2017 Early Voting passed into law in 2014 and this past presidential election was the first in which residents were allowed to vote before Election Day. This is an advantageous concept for many people that want to vote but can’t get to the ballot box on one given […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives – Oct. 2016 On July 31, the formal legislative session technically ended, meaning that between August and January, no formal voting on major bills takes place. In the months leading up to the beginning of a new formal session in January, I’m focusing in on what bills are priorities for […]
By: State Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives August, 2018 In July, the Massachusetts Senate passed legislation to promote the use of ignition interlock devices by OUI offenders, which test a driver’s blood-alcohol content before starting a car. Mothers Against Drunk Driving and AAA Northeast have endorsed the use of the devices as an effective means to […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives May, 2016 Kinder Morgan, a Houston, Texas-based energy infrastructure company, submitted its first letter related to their Northeast Energy Direct Project (NED Project) to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on September 15, 2014. It detailed a plan to construct 177 miles of new pipeline from Wright, New York to […]
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is due to make a formal recommendation on whether to adopt the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) test or to continue with the MCAS test at their meeting on November 17. In the final weeks leading up to the decision, the debate […]
By: State Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives July, 2015 In June, I attended the Methuen City Council’s special meeting where Kinder Morgan, a Houston-based energy infrastructure company, presented their plan for a proposed natural gas pipeline that would travel through Methuen, Massachusetts. I joined Representative Linda Dean Campbell and concerned residents to speak during the public […]
Massachusetts Legislators, members of the media and 1st amendment advocates testified last month before a joint House and Senate committee on Beacon Hill, asking legislators to add penalties to the state’s fake public records law. The law, MGL Ch. 66, states that the keeper of records in any municipality or public agency must turn over public […]
NEIL HARRINGTON IS THE POSTER BOY When I started this journey to reform our state’s public records law five years ago I had no idea that the Town of Salisbury would feature so prominently in my motivations to add stiff penalties for officials who refuse to turn over public documents. Yet, here we are. […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives – June, 2015 Last week, I testified on a bill I filed, S.1700, An Act Relative to Obtaining Information, before the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight. This bill promotes access to information, available to all, within a reasonable time frame and for residents to have recourse in […]
Listen to or Download Hour 1: Methuen Mayor Steve Zanni talks about running for reelection, the new turf at Nicholson Stadium, and more. Listen to or Download Hour 2: State Senator Katy Ives talks about her transparency bill, S-1700 which will penalize public officials who refuse to comply with the state’s public records law. Ives also […]
By: Kathleen O’Connor Ives – January, 2015 In my first legislative session we passed a number of significant laws, including requiring nursing homes, rest homes, or other long term care facilities to first obtain informed, written consent if psychotropic medications are to be administered, along with a description of the side effects. We also passed […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives Dec. 2014 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death in the United States. It disproportionately impacts women and is caused by smoking and poor air quality. It severely impacts quality of life by causing a shortness of breath, which makes it difficult to do the […]
Political Deceptions Valley Patriot columnist and member of the Methuen School Committee, DJ Deeb wrote in his column this month that voters should choose Republican candidates in the upcoming state elections. Deeb listed a number of reasons to make his case, but is now issuing a public apology to Democrat State Representative Linda Dean Campbell […]
By: Christine Morabito – March 2014 Because of its proximity to Interstates 495, 95 and 93, the Merrimack Valley has been uniquely impacted by a shocking increase in heroin and prescription drug abuse. The drugs are reportedly entering Massachusetts by way of New York City and the Texas border. Making matters worse, the now inexpensive heroin […]
March 16, 2014 The days of public officials refusing to comply with the state’s public records law are almost over. So says State Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives (D), Newburyport who told the Valley Patriot on Wednesday that a Massachusetts joint House and Senate Committee on Public Administration has given a favorable recommendation to House Bill H2846, an […]