I hope that you are enjoying a wonderful summer. Our family celebrated the recent milestone of Madison’s graduation from Loyola University Maryland, and I am happy to have all three kids at home together for the summer. 

While it seems like just yesterday, in early January I was honored to be sworn in for my 5th term in office with Jim joining me for the swearing in festivities. Governor Baker administered the oath to legislators for his last time and Lieutenant Governor Polito gave remarks in the chamber she had served in for ten years before becoming a statewide leader. The Governor and Lieutenant Governor served in some very challenging times, and I am grateful for their leadership and service. The next day we witnessed a historic day as the Commonwealth's and nation's first female Governor and Lieutenant Governor partnership, and first lesbian Governor, became officially sworn in.   

I am honored to have been chosen by my 62 colleagues in the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators as Co-chair for this Legislative Session, leading it with Senator Joan Lovely and working closely with our Executive Director Nora Bent. The bipartisan, bicameral Caucus was established in 1975 with a mission to enhance the economic status and equality of women and to encourage and support women at all levels of government. Our Caucus Board recently met with Governor Healey and Lt. Governor Driscoll to discuss our Caucus Strategic and Legislative Priorities. Senator Lovely and I also co-authored an Op-Ed on the important work of the Caucus that ran in the Boston Herald and Worcester Telegram, you can read it here.

In February I taped an episode of Conversations with Hannah with Representative Kimberly Ferguson to talk about the beginning of the 193rd Legislative Session. You can watch the show here.  

This summer I am pleased to have two interns. Rohil Mahan is a rising senior at Saint John’s High School, and Vishnu Angiras is a rising senior at Shrewsbury Public Schools. Rohil and Vishnu have been attending forums, hearings and other State House events, providing key research on legislation I have filed and policy areas of interest, and drafting responses to constituent inquiries. Rohil’s first day he attended a Women’s Caucus Quarterly Meeting with Secretary of Economic Development Yvonne Hao speaking, and on Vishnu’s first day he watched Shrewsbury Town Manager Kevin Mizikar and I testify before the Joint Committee on Revenue on a local bill. Happy to welcome them both to the State House for the summer!

In June, we welcomed the Shrewsbury High School Division 1 Girls Hockey State Champions to the State House to celebrate their amazing Championship win this past March!! Senator Moore and I enjoyed spending time with these fierce champions and proudly introducing the team to Governor Maura Healey and LG Kim Driscoll, who shared their own love of athletic competition with the team. The Governor and LG said the hockey team were the first team to bring their trophy in with them to visit! The team was also recognized during informal session, got to hang out on the balcony off the Governor’s office, and took a tour of the State House. I loved having all the team members in my office for a fun picture too. Having grown up in hockey rinks watching my brothers play it was pretty sweet celebrating these amazing young champions, and incredible Coaches, Athletic Director, Trainer and top supporter Pam Panarelli! 

Beacon Hill

With the start of a new session comes new Committee assignments. House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. re-appointed me as the Ranking Minority Member on both the Joint Committees on Public Health and Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, and also asked me to serve as the Ranking Minority Member on the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, and as a Member of the House Committee on Ethics. We have been very busy with hearings on bills that were filed this session. In January, I filed 30 bills and have been working to advocate for my bills being on early hearings so that I have as much runway as possible to get them advanced. The majority of the bills I filed are focused primarily in the areas of public health, food security, revenue, financial services, and housing.

In June, Senator Moore and I attended a Shrewsbury Select Board meeting to brief the Board on the status of the FY24 budget, the local priorities we are advocating for, and to provide an update on the emergency shelter site in Shrewsbury for people experiencing homelessness. The state is working to respond to the unprecedented number of families who are not safely housed, and the state shelter system is full, so hotels and motels are also being used in this emergency period. Both Shrewsbury and Westborough have emergency shelter sites, and I have been working closely with town and school leadership and my colleagues in the delegation, Senator Moore and Rep. Donaghue, to advocate for and support the efforts of local officials, and to ensure that there are sufficient provider services to support the needs of the families.

$1.1BTax Relief Package: On April 13, H3770, An Act to improve the Commonwealth’s competitiveness, affordability, and equity, was engrossed by the House of Representatives on a vote of 150-3. The wide-ranging bill, which I voted for, consists of a series of tax relief provisions that would:

• Double the Senior Circuit Breaker tax credit from $1,200 to $2,400
• Increase the tax deduction available to renters from $3,000 to $4,000
• Lower the tax on short-term capital gains from 12 percent to 8 percent in the first year of implementation and then to 5 percent in year two
• Raise the estate tax threshold from $1 million to $2 million, and eliminate the “cliff effect” by making the tax applicable only to the value of the estate that exceeds $2 million
• Reduce corporate excise taxes for companies that operate in more than one state by assessing the tax using a single sales factor, rather than the current assessment that is based on in-state sales, local payroll and property holdings
• Expand the state match on the federal Earned Income Tax Credit from 30 percent to 40 percent
• Provide for a combined child-care and dependent care tax credit totaling $310 per dependent in the first year, $455 in the second year and $600 beginning in the third year, while also eliminating the current cap on the tax credit.

Unfortunately, the bill also calls for changes to the voter-approved Chapter 62F law, which was passed in 1986 but has only been triggered twice in the last 37 years, first in 1987 and again in 2022. Chapter 62F ensures that excess tax revenues are returned to the state’s taxpayers whenever revenue collections in a fiscal year exceed an annual cap tied to wage and salary growth, which resulted in nearly $3 billion in excess revenues being returned to taxpayers last year in the form of a rebate. Under the current Chapter 62F law, the amount of money returned to taxpayers corresponds to a percentage of their individual tax liability. H3770 includes language that proposes any future 62F payouts instead be distributed to all taxpayers in an equal amount, regardless of their income or tax liability.

During floor debate on the bill, the House Republican Caucus offered an amendment to strike the proposed changes made to 62F. I supported the amendment, believing it was important to uphold the will of the state’s voters and not tinker with the law, but it was defeated on a vote of 26-128.

The Senate passed their own, smaller version of a tax relief package, and a Conference Committee is working to negotiate the differences between the House and Senate bills. The final bill will be brought back to each chamber for consideration before advancing to the Governor’s desk. 

$388.6M Supplemental Budget: In March, I voted for a $388.6 million supplemental budget that funded critical state programs and services while temporarily extending several pandemic-era policies, including authorizing municipalities to continue providing for remote participation in public meetings until 2025.

H3548 was approved unanimously on a vote of 153-0 in the House of Representatives and 39-0 in the Senate before being signed into law by Governor Maura Healey. The supplemental budget incorporates aspects of two bills previously filed by Governor Healey to offset funding shortfalls in several state programs and to recapitalize other state initiatives through bond authorizations.

The funding in the bill helped address food insecurity issues by providing $65 million to fund the free school meals program through the end of the current academic year. It also included $130 million for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to ensure that families in need had access to healthy food options, since the additional federal benefits allotted during the pandemic ended on March 2. Another $2 million was included to reimburse SNAP recipients who were the victims of benefits theft.

Housing and shelter programs are also a focus of the supplemental budget, with $45 million for emergency family shelter assistance, along with $15.7 million for the Residential Assistance to Families in Transition (RAFT) program. The bill also provided support to childcare providers who struggled during the pandemic, by authorizing $68 million for the Commonwealth Cares for Children C3 Stabilization Grants program, which helps early education and care providers cover their day-to-day operational and workforce costs.

The supplemental budget also assisted municipalities by allowing the continued use of remote and hybrid meetings of public bodies, as well as reduced quorum requirements for town meetings, until March 31, 2025. It also authorized a one-year extension of outdoor dining options for restaurants, and gives them the ability to continue serving cocktails, beer and wine in conjunction with food takeout orders until April 1, 2024.

The bill also permanently authorized public corporations and non-profits to hold certain meetings remotely. In addition, it permanently allowed notaries to conduct remote online notarization using communication technology and directed the Secretary of State to implement regulations relative to remote notarizations by January 1, 2024.

In addition to the $388.6 million in direct spending, House Bill 3548 authorized $740.3 million in borrowing for multiple state programs, including:

• $400 million for MassWorks, which provides infrastructure project grants to cities, towns and public entities
• $140 million for the Clean Water Trust
• $1 million for grants and technical assistance to municipalities and regional applicants to support planning and locally driven initiatives related to community development, housing production, workforce training and economic opportunity, childcare and early education initiatives and climate resilience initiatives
• $34 million to provide assistance to projects that will improve, rehabilitate or redevelop blighted, abandoned, vacant or underutilized properties by increasing housing production, supporting economic development projects, and increasing commercial building accessibility to persons with disabilities
• $8 million for the Smart Growth Housing Trust Fund
• $125 million for the Massachusetts Technology Park Corporation for a matching grant program for tech-based innovation
• $14 million for the Massachusetts Technology Park Corporation for a matching grant program for manufacturing
• $9.3 million for the Massachusetts Broadband Incentive Fund
• $15 million for higher education manufacturing grants
• $30 million to fund broadband infrastructure for public entities

FY24 State Budget Update: In late April, the House of Representatives unanimously approved a $56.2B budget for FY24, following three days of debate on 1,566 amendments filed by House members. The approved House budget funds Chapter 70 education aid at $6.58 billion, an increase of $595.8 million, and funds Unrestricted General Government Aid (unrestricted local aid), which can be used by communities to support a wide range of municipal services, at $1.25 billion, an increase of $19.7 million. The House proposal will provide Shrewsbury with $20,971,468 in direct education aid and $3,278,528 in unrestricted state aid; Westborough will receive $11,912,580 in direct education aid and $1,363,861 in unrestricted state aid, for the new fiscal year that begins July 1.

I am pleased to share that several local earmarks I filed were adopted - $75,000 for Shrewsbury Youth and Family Services to provide mental health services, $30,000 for furniture for the Shrewsbury Public Library Children’s Room, $15,000 for automated external defibrillators for Shrewsbury's recreation programs and athletic fields, and $45,000 for the Westborough Cedar Swamp Restoration, which I co-filed with Rep. Kate Donaghue.

The Senate voted on their version of the FY24 state budget in May and a Conference Committee is still now negotiating the differences – as has unfortunately been the practice over my time in office, we have already started the fiscal year and had to pass a 1/12^th budget to fund July. 

One of the highlights each year during budget week is when the NEADS Service Dogs visit the State House, arranged each year by my colleague and friend Rep. Kim Ferguson. I always support the earmark to help fund NEADS each year as well. 

Food System Caucus

I continue to spend a significant amount of my time working to end hunger and strengthen our local food system. The Food System Caucus has 158 members and is the second largest Caucus on Beacon Hill, second only to the Democrat Caucus. We have prioritized legislation for the session and are working to advocate both at the State House and in the broader landscape, working with many partners in and outside of government.

White House Conference on Hunger, Health and Nutrition: As a founder and Co-Chair of the Massachusetts Legislature’s Food System Caucus, I was honored to attend the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health last fall alongside several amazing anti-hunger colleagues and FSC Co-Chairs, including Representative Andy Vargas, Representative Mindy Domb, Senator Jo Comerford, and Senator Sal DiDomenico. Food security advocates and leaders from Massachusetts including Jean McMurray from the Worcester County Food Bank and Shon Rainford of the Worcester Regional Food Hub also attended. The conference is a credit to Congressman Jim McGovern’s relentless commitment to addressing hunger, as he has long championed the moral imperative to ensure no person lacks access to healthy food. I am grateful to him for including me in the Conference. Our Commonwealth’s highly effective, bipartisan approach to combatting hunger and improving nutrition was also reflected in the work of the other Conference Co-Chairs, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN), and the late Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN). While the first White House Conference on Hunger was convened by President Richard Nixon in 1969, today 1 in 10 Americans are food insecure and diet-related diseases account for an enormous percentage of our healthcare spending. We also need to support local agriculture, producers, and fishers, thereby ensuring that our food production is locally and nationally sustained. The conference featured many critical conversations and an incredibly inspiring call to action by Chef José Andrés of World Central Kitchen, who reminded us that we put a man on the moon in 1969, so surely we can solve the logistical and distribution challenges in a food abundant nation to meet the goal that nobody is hungry by 2030. 

Central MA Center on Food Equity: I joined Congressman McGovern and Central MA leaders in the fight to end hunger for the launch of the Central MA Center on Food Equity, a project of the Worcester County Food Bank. This new Center brings three key intersecting coalitions together to collaborate in identifying gaps, resources and opportunities in Central MA to end hunger.

Community Servings: Members of the Food System Caucus toured Community Servings in Jamaica Plain in May. Community Servings provides medically tailored meals to clients across the Commonwealth who are living with severe, critical, and chronic illnesses such as HIV, cancer, and kidney disease. Over the past 33 years, they have provided more than 11 million meals to those in need. With 10 dietitians on site, they offer 15 medical diets designed to improve the health of their clients through nutritionally appropriate food, adopting the food is medicine philosophy. Clients who receive their home-delivered, medically tailored meals had a 16% net reduction in average monthly healthcare costs. Community Servings currently serves 288 communities and 2,400 clients a day across Massachusetts and aim to keep their purchasing dollars local, working with Community Harvest, Commonwealth Kitchen, and other local farms to produce their home-grown food. Community Servings is also home to a food license and job training program, and they are currently workings to develop pediatric diet and high-risk pregnancy meal programs as well. 

Healthy Incentives Program: The Food System Caucus Co-Chairs and the MA Food System Collaborative hosted a Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) Action Day. Farmers, legislators, consumers, and advocates spoke about the HIP program and gave members of the Legislature an opportunity to learn about this state program and the importance of maintaining its funding. The Healthy Incentives Program provides matching funds to SNAP recipients when they purchase fresh, locally grown produce from local farms. The program has become a national model, and was mentioned at the White House Conference on Hunger, Health and Nutrition.

End of Emergency SNAP Benefits Briefing: In February, the Food System Caucus held a  briefing with core anti-hunger organizations in Massachusetts including Children’s Health Watch, the Food Bank of Western MA, Greater Boston Food Bank, Worcester County Food Bank, Project Bread and the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), ahead of the final emergency allotment of SNAP benefits so that legislative members and staff were aware of resources to help people in need.

The COVID-related Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) extra benefits or "Emergency Allotments" had the last issuance to Massachusetts SNAP households on March 2^nd. These extra SNAP benefits have been issued to SNAP households since the onset of COVID in March of 2020. In the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, Congress ended SNAP extra benefits. For the Commonwealth, this end to roughly $90M per month in federal nutrition benefits impacted 640,000 SNAP households, and increases the reliance on our four food banks and many food pantries for many families and individuals who lack access to enough food.

Forums and Briefings

Project 351: Project 35 is an amazing organization inspired by the unwavering belief that young people lead in powerful and transformative ways in every community in the Commonwealth. Each year, educators nominate one 8th grader from all 351 cities and towns for a year-long, unique service and leadership development opportunity that kicks off with a statewide day of service on MLK Jr. weekend. I was pleased to co-host a briefing with colleagues in May  to celebrate Project 351. Congratulations to Shrewsbury’s Ambassador Prisha Nair and Westborough’s Ambassador Anoushka Fernandes!

Veterans Inc.: Veterans Inc hosted a legislative briefing in their Worcester headquarters to provide an update on all of their comprehensive services and programming offered to veterans. They also gave us a tour and shared their vision for future renovations to the historic armory where they are headquartered, which would allow for even more opportunities to serve our nations veterans. I am grateful to Veterans Inc. for their work supporting our nations selfless veterans.

Worcester County Superintendents Association: The Worcester County Superintendents Association hosted legislators to talk about several major funding and legislative issues impacting public education. I had previously met with Shrewsbury Superintendent Joe Sawyer and School Committee Chair Lynsey Heffernan to discuss several of the funding issues, particularly the 14% increase in tuition cost to Chapter 766 schools that provide out-of-district special education services, and the impact it would have on local school budgets, as well as our inability to provide access to vocational education. The House budget does now contain some additional direct funding to school districts to help cover this increased cost of Chapter 766 schools and I continue to work with school and state officials and my colleagues to address the lack of capacity in our vocational schools.

GO Red for Women: Members of the Legislature joined the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators and the American Heart Association for our annual Go Red for Women Event. More than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of a hospital in the United States each year and women experience 20% longer wait times than men once they get there. One of the strategic priorities of the Women’s Caucus is to address gender and racial disparities in healthcare. 

Women’s Leadership Breakfast: The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Susan F. Smith Center held a Women’s Leadership Breakfast, focused on advancing equity in breast and gynecologic cancer care. Our new Massachusetts Health and Human Services Secretary Kate Walsh spoke, along with a terrific panel of incredible oncologists from Dana-Farber. I had the pleasure of attending with several colleagues and an overview of a bill I have cosponsored on breast cancer equity and early detection was discussed as critical legislation.

Denim Day: Members of the Legislature wore denim on this solemn day to honor Sexual Violence Awareness Month and all the survivors of sexual assault. Denim Day started in Italy in 1992 after a ruling by the Italian Supreme Court overturned a rape conviction because the victim has been wearing tight clothes and therefore, “consent was implied”. Since then, this day brings awareness to victim blaming and myths surrounding sexual violence. 

Cancer Awareness Caucus Briefing: The Caucus, which I chair, hosted a briefing on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’s impact on cancer treatment options. Lei Ding, Senior Vice President, Market Access and Commercial Capabilities at Astellas Pharma US, shared with us both the positive aspects, including improving affordability of prescription drugs, and unintended consequences on the development of treatment options for cancer patients.

Public Health Lobby Day: The Massachusetts Public Health Association (MPHA) hosted a Public Health Lobby Day, and I was honored to join my colleagues Senator Jo Comerford and Rep. Denise Garlick to speak on the importance of our bill H2204/S1334 to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of local public health services, SAPHE 2.0. It was great to see a room full of MPHA members, stakeholders, legislators, and additional advocates showing their continued support for our local public health infrastructure. I look forward to advancing this legislation again this session and this time having the Governor sign it.

Local Funding

Al-Hamra Academy: Congratulations to Al-Hamra Academy for receiving a $6,100 grant from the Mass Cultural Council’s FY23 STARS Residencies Program. The goal of this program is to support creative learning in Massachusetts and address social-emotional challenges that have risen in the Commonwealth throughout the pandemic. The program provides funding to K-12 Massachusetts schools to support residencies of three days or more with a teaching artist, scientist, or humanist.

Mass Cultural Council Grants: Al-Hamra also received a $2,500 FY23 Projects and Festivals Grant from the MA Cultural Council, along with MA Beijing Chinese Language School and the Westborough Cultural Council. These grant aim to support publicly available cultural activities and programs. There were also 5 grants to Shrewsbury individuals for cultural sector recovery totaling $25,000 awarded.

Town of Westborough: The town received a 2023 Municipal Cybersecurity Awareness Grant for an estimated 200 municipal employees to receive access to cybersecurity awareness training licenses. This year's grant program is being funded by $250,000 in capital funds authorized by the Legislature. The grant program is administered by the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security and will provide over 50,000 employees from municipalities and public-school districts across the Commonwealth with critical cybersecurity training to better detect and avoid cyber threats.

Speaking Engagements

MA Commission on the Status of Women: It was wonderful to celebrate the Commission’s 25th Anniversary and acknowledge their important role in elevating the needs of women and girls in the Commonwealth. I was excited to represent the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators in sharing our congratulations and gratitude from all 62 members and my Co-Chair Senator Lovely. I was also so happy to have four of the women I have nominated and who have served as past Commonwealth Heroines join me tonight at the event: Beth Casavant, Maribeth Lynch, Maureen Johnson and Jody Hensley. Former Governor Jane Swift and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll shared excellent advice and their own personal experiences as women in leadership. 

MA Women’s Political Caucus: The Caucus hosted the Women's Leadership Breakfast, and I was honored to be one of four panelists to discuss how to make the Massachusetts economy more inclusive. The Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators has as one of our strategic priorities to Elevate Women's Economic Opportunity and Eliminating Barriers, which speaks directly to how we can grow our economy in the Commonwealth and ensure economic stability and mobility for women. It was great to network with so many incredible women.

Ending Hunger in Massachusetts Forum: In January, I joined Senator Jo Comerford, Erin McAleer of Project Bread and Catherine D’Amato of the Greater Boston Food Bank to speak at the State House News/Masster List Event on Ending Hunger in Massachusetts. Our panel discussed the White House Conference on Hunger, Health, and Nutrition and we spoke of Massachusetts long history of leadership in working to end hunger, how each of us fits into the food security conversation and the next steps our state can take to end hunger by 2030, tackle diet-related disease and strengthen the local food system. Our Moderator, Karen Holmes Ward of WCVB, acknowledged the bipartisan work and team effort here in the Commonwealth towards meeting these goals. 

Harvard Women’s Law Association: In April, I joined Boston City Councilor Ruth Louijeune in addressing the membership on what it’s like to run for office, the importance of women running for office, how women can get involved with campaigns, among other things.

White House Conference on Hunger, Health, and Nutrition Debrief: Following my attendance at the White House Conference on Hunger, Health, and Nutrition, I was grateful for the opportunity to join with key anti-hunger advocates in Worcester to discuss the conference and the work we need to collectively complete to meet the goal of ending hunger by 2030. My thanks to Gina Plato-Nino and the Worcester Task Force on Food Security for bringing our debrief panel together and for all their work and advocacy around our shared goal.

Nutritional Security/Food is Medicine Summit: I was honored to join Congressman Jim McGovern, USDA Deputy Under Secretary Stacy Dean and so many amazing providers and advocates for a regional Nutritional Security/Food is Medicine summit at Worcester State, hosted by the USDA, Root Cause Coalition and ProMedica Health. The summit is one of several across the country as a follow-up to the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. I was grateful for the opportunity to speak about how Massachusetts is working to meet the Conference goals to end-hunger by 2030 and tackle diet-related disease, while also strengthening the local food system.

Rare Disease Day: On National Rare Disease Day, I participated in a panel discussion with rare disease experts and advocates that was hosted by the NORD Center for Excellence for Rare Disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital. The panel including Dr. Walla Al-Hertani, Nathan Grant who is a doctoral student and family member to a rare disease patient, Pamela Gavin from the National Organization of Rare Diseases (NORD), and Dr. Stephanie Sacharow, on a panel hosted by Dr. Olaf Bodamer, Director of the NORD Center of Excellence at Boston Children's Hospital Center. Our panel discussed challenges faced by people diagnosed (or trying to be diagnosed) with a rare disease, rare disease policy, state funding, advocacy, and bridging various gaps in care, as well as the work of the Massachusetts Rare Disease Advisory Council (RDAC). I am excited to continue my work as a member of the RDAC and will continue to uplift the experiences of those with rare diseases and fighting to make sure all of their needs are met on a daily basis.

495/MetroWest Partnership: I spoke at the annual Day on the Hill for the Partnership about the work of the delegation advocating for transportation priorities. The MetroWest and Central MA legislative delegations have, and will continue to, work together to minimize the disruptions to commuters during the projected 8–10-year construction timeline of the much-needed Allston Multimodal Project. While there is now a preferred conceptual plan for the massive project, construction is still a way off, as financing for the project has not been finalized and permits, construction contracts and final engineering of the project are still to be done. You can read more here.

Community Events & Recognitions 

Transitions: I am happy to have helped celebrate the service of several public servants in recent months. In January I gathered with town staff and other local officials at Shrewsbury Town Hall to thank Assistant Town Manager Kristen Las for her more than 12 years of dedicated service and to wish her well in her next role as Westford Town Manager. I also visited with Westborough Town Clerk Wendy Mickel shortly before her retirement to thank her for her almost thirty years of exemplary service in the Town Clerk’s Office. Shrewsbury resident Marty Suuberg also stepped down after many years of service and leading the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. Many professional colleagues and advocates joined in celebrating Marty’s work at DEP. In March, I joined the celebration for Jim Robbins on his retirement after over 30 years working for the town of Westborough, most recently as long-time Town Planner. Then I traveled to another wonderful gathering with many colleagues, state officials and farmers, this one celebrating John Lebeaux’s eight years of impactful leadership and dedicated service as Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. Finally, while I could not attend the Select Board meeting due to being at the State House debating the FY24 budget, Jim presented a citation for me to Moe Depalo for his 30-years of dedicated service, thoughtful approach and fiscal prudence on the Shrewsbury Select Board! Thank you to all for your public service!

Donahue Rowing Center: Fortunate to attend a beautiful dedication of two new crew racing shells named for Jim and "Babs" Donahue and Ken Burns, all who had an incredible impact on rowing and whose families have been an integral part of Shrewsbury crew since its inception in 1937.  The occasion also included the unveiling of an Eagle Scout project about the wonderful history of SHS Crew, with a newly constructed boathouse “Wall of Fame." 

Westborough Economic Development Committee Awards: Happy to see all of the terrific economic activity in Westborough and to honor all of the 2022 Economic Development Award winners recognized by the EDC. Massachusetts Secretary of Economic Development Yvonne Hao gave an excellent keynote overview of her work leading the state's effort to grow our economy.

Memorial Day: As always, Shrewsbury and Westborough both beautifully honored the sacrifice of all those that gave their last measure of devotion to our nation. 

Local Events and Initiatives

Spending time in Shrewsbury and Westborough supporting local initiatives, connecting with community members at ribbon cuttings and events, and speaking on issues important to our district are the most rewarding aspects of being State Representative. While not an exhaustive list, here is a sampling of some initiatives and events from the past few months:

Market Basket: In January, I got a sneak peek at the 88^th Market Basket, now open on Route 20 in Shrewsbury, at the site of the former Edgemere Drive-In. Stocked with over 50,000 items, as well as a Market Cafe and a NB Spirits shop, the store has been super busy!

Lakeway Business District: Pleased to attend the Lakeway Business District Annual Breakfast Meeting held at Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union to get caught up on all the work they undertake to support the area.

Girl Scouts: In February, I spoke at a multi-level Girl Scout Troop meeting where troop members were learning about government and how it works, with my focus being on state government and serving as a State Representative.

Fresenius Kidney Care: Senator Moore and I visited with staff at the Shrewsbury site to learn more about their dialysis services, medical equipment, and patient care, and to watch a live demonstration of dialysis.

Meals on Wheels: In March, I helped deliver meals in Shrewsbury. I am grateful to all the volunteers who help serve and deliver nutritious food to seniors who are frail, and home bound in our community.

Corridor 9/495 Chamber of Commerce: The Chamber hosted its annual Legislative Breakfast in March, where I joined members of the legislative delegation in answering a broad range of questions posed by the Moderator Mark Donahue and questions directly from the audience. As a former small business-owner, I am always pleased to discuss issues pertinent to the chamber members.

UMass UWiL: In March, I attended the UMass Women into Leadership Public Service Dinner at the flagship Amherst campus. UWiL is a competitive leadership and professional development program at UMass Amherst designed to encourage and prepare more undergraduates to pursue public service and public leadership after graduation.

Realtors Association of Central MA: I attended a fun event at Mechanics Hall celebrating 100 years of the Realtor Association of Central MA, currently being led by Shrewsbury resident Lee Joseph! Thank you to Kathy McSweeney for always inviting me to be part of Realtor events, it was so fun to see so many Realtor friends celebrating this milestone!

Ideal School Contest Winner: The Massachusetts School Building Authority and State Treasurer Goldberg’s host a “My Ideal School” contest, with a goal to promote discussion among first grade students and their teachers around how thoughtful construction and design of school buildings supports student learning. This year, Riddhima Walavalkar of Hasting Elementary School in Westborough won the Grand Prize! Representative Donaghue presented Riddhima with a citation at the State House from both of us to congratulate her on her outstanding work.

Urban Farm in Worcester: In April I visited the Regional Environmental Council’s Urban Farm in Worcester with United Way Executive Director, Tim Garvin, Congressman McGovern and colleague Sen. Robyn Kennedy, to view the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education funded After School and Out of School Time Rebound Program: YouthGROW. The $50,000 awarded to REC for this program is used for agriculture-based youth employment and leadership programming. 

MA Academy of Math and Science at WPI: Absolutely blown away by the amazing applications developed by the insightful teams of students, all designed to solve problems that students have identified. Our country's future is so bright with these incredibly caring, smart, hard-working and motivated young people!

Shrewsbury Town Center Association: I joined members and supporters of the STCA to hear about their efforts to bring business owners, town officials and individuals invested in our downtown together. Grateful for the work of the Association!

Shrewsbury Country Shoppe: I stopped in to present Debbie Cottam with a citation celebrating her fifth anniversary - it isn’t easy to be a local small business, especially during the pandemic!

Contacting my office 

As a reminder, please reach out to my office at [email protected] and you can reach my office at 617-722-2810.

While this email is not inclusive of all my work, I hope the information is relevant and helpful. My prior update emails can be found here on my website in the “Updates from Hannah” section and I will continue to post regular updates on my State Representative Facebook page. 

Please do not hesitate to reach out if I can be of assistance.