Letter: “Stop ICE in Massachusetts “

Al Blake, “Letter: Stop ICE in Massachusetts,” Berkshire Eagle, February 18, 2026.

To the editor: Every day, we see horrific violence by federal immigration agents across the country, including here in Massachusetts.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s actions are making all of our communities less safe. Berkshire residents have turned out in big numbers to protests and standouts demanding that our elected leaders do more leading and stand up to the cruelty and lawlessness of the Trump administration.

There was a recent surge of ICE activity in Maine, and Massachusetts could be targeted next, so we must stop being complicit. Gov. Maura Healey and Beacon Hill legislators are finally getting the memo that the public wants to see action. But it matters that we pass legislation that truly meets the moment. Beacon Hill should make it clear: State and local law enforcement should not be assisting ICE and should not be acting as ICE agents. Massachusetts law enforcement must never assist ICE in making civil immigration arrests or ask members of the public about their immigration status. We are the only state with a Democratic governor and Democratic-majority Legislature to still have a statewide 287(g) agreement with ICE. Gov. Healey can end this collaboration with a stroke of the pen.

Al Blake, Becket

Letter: “Some lawmakers throw up their hands, but there’s much that can be done”

Enid Eckstein, “Some lawmakers throw up their hands, but there’s much that can be done,” Boston Globe, January 12, 2026.

Anjali Huynh rightly calls out Massachusetts Democrats for being less aggressive than lawmakers in other blue states in “building an anti-Trump wall,” but I disagree with the contention of some that there is only so much the Legislature can do. It can do plenty.

As legislators returned last week, they confronted a loss of $3.5 billion in annual federal aid, and more in lost tax revenue, due to the Trump administration’s federal tax changes. Many Massachusetts residents will be squeezed by rising health care costs, and tens of thousands risk losing health care coverage or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

Massachusetts can join neighboring states and pass a measure that would raise as much as $400 million in new annual revenue by fighting offshore tax dodging by large global companies such as Apple, Amazon, and Walmart.

The Legislature also can opt out of state-level adoption of the Trump corporate tax cuts and preserve more than $400 million in state revenue this year alone. Maine, Rhode Island, and other states have already done this.

Lawmakers also could use a reasonable amount of the $8.6 billion rainy day fund to fill the holes in key services without a long-term impact on the fund itself. The fund was created to act as a buffer for shortfalls during emergencies by preventing drastic cuts to health care, education, and public safety. This is an emergency.

Massachusetts legislators have many tools in their toolbox, and it is time to start using them.

Enid Eckstein

Jamaica Plain

The writer is on the steering committees of Jamaica Plain Progressives and Raise Up Massachusetts.

Editorial: “Beacon Hill’s new rules are good. They should follow them. “

Jonathan Cohn and Scotia Hille, “Beacon Hill’s new rules are good. They should follow them. ,” CommonWealth Beacon, December 17, 2025.

THIS SUMMER, the Massachusetts Legislature did something that surprised everyone. And, no, we aren’t talking about passing a budget on time. The House and Senate agreed to a set of joint rules for the first time since 2019, including a number of transparency reforms that activists had fought for for years.  

The Massachusetts Legislature has often been ranked as the least transparent in the country, and the opening of this session created a fertile opportunity to change that. Last year, we saw a chaotic end of session that left many key bills on the table, competitive legislative primaries waged over voters’ desire for a more small “d” democratic Democratic Legislature, and a blowout victory for Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s ballot question on auditing the Legislature. Everyday people–and not just advocates deep in the trenches–were seeing that things needed to change.  

Read on here.

Letter: Mayor renews push to ease homeowners’ burden. Will Senate budge?

Jonathan Cohn, “Letter: Mayor renews push to ease homeowners’ burden. Will Senate budge?,” Boston Globe, December 10, 2025.

“At the start of the new legislative session, the state Senate promised a new day for legislative transparency, and senators have stressed that affordability is a top issue for their agenda. But to this point the Senate’s approach to Mayor Michelle Wu’s home rule petition to temporarily shift the tax burden from homeowners to commercial properties has belied both promises (“Property taxes set to jump again: Wu sees another double-digit rise for homeowners,” Page A1, Dec. 4).

The Legislature approved a new, earlier deadline to report bills out of committee, and as a result of new rules, we get to see how legislators voted. But not in the case of Wu’s proposal. The Senate has not allowed the bill to even have a hearing, despite the requirement that committees hold hearings on every bill assigned to them.

Moreover, as Democrats across the country, including here, talk about affordability as a key goal, Wu’s proposal addresses exactly that. It asks the commercial sector to shoulder more of the tax burden than the city’s residents, who are facing high costs and are suffering from the disastrous economic policies of President Trump.

Boston residents are looking at the state Senate, especially vocal opponents of the proposal such as Senator Nick Collins, and asking: Whose side are you on?”

Letter: “State Needs to Step In”

Steve Leibowitz, “Letter: State Needs to Step In,” Cape Cod Chronicle, October 16, 2025.

Editor:
The recent cuts and shutdown at the federal level threaten essential programs that Cape Cod families rely on — everything from food assistance to housing support. While Washington retreats, our state must step forward. The Massachusetts Legislature has a responsibility not just to cushion these blows, but to act boldly and proactively to ensure no resident is left behind.
We cannot wait for federal funds that may never come back. Massachusetts has the resources and ingenuity to protect its most vulnerable communities, but it requires the political will to prioritize people to do so. A more aggressive response — through targeted state funding, innovative partnerships, and stronger safety nets — is not optional; it is a moral obligation.
If we fail to act decisively, the burden will fall hardest on our children, seniors and working families already struggling to make ends meet. This is not the time for incrementalism. Massachusetts should lead by example, proving that even when Washington pulls back, we move forward.

Steven Leibowitz
Brewster

Editorial: Countering Trump-era Policies in Massachusetts and Beyond

Jennifer Debin, “Countering Trump-era Policies in Massachusetts and Beyond,” Dover-Sherborn Hometown Weekly, September 18, 2025.

Dear Editor,

Massachusetts could be doing more to counter the Trump administration’s destructive and chaotic policies.

As Trump escalates, we must too.

All people throughout the country will be harmed by Florida’s troubling decision to eliminate vaccine requirements for schoolchildren following Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s anti-vaccine agenda. We need as many people vaccinated as possible to develop herd immunity. While I appreciate that Massachusetts and Governor Maura Healey are standing up and solidifying our own vaccine policy, a piecemeal state by state approach does  not work for public health issues like communicable diseases.

The governor’s new standing order enables pharmacists to administer the boosters to “all  eligible persons” without CDC approval; this is a start, but not enough. We need our Massachusetts local and federal representatives to step up and take action on the national level. We cannot let anything the Trump administration does be easy. They are acting fast and without regard for the law and are governing for the benefit of a very small fraction of our country.

Women’s health is another area where Massachusetts should lead. We need to continue to bring the fight at every opportunity, challenging both other state governments and federal  policies that aim to limit women’s rights to decide on their own health. How does it make sense to say vaccines are a personal choice but a woman’s own healthcare decisions are not?

Additionally, while federal protections for immigrant students and students with disabilities are in jeopardy, Massachusetts has taken a strong stand to make sure that those rights continue to be protected here. The Commonwealth is a continual leader in public education – our representatives could be bolder, standing up against harmful educational policies on the federal level. 

Massachusetts has established the Protect Education Equity Bill which is an impressive step that allows Massachusetts state law to explicitly affirm the right to a public education for students of all immigration statuses and students with disabilities at a time of rising federal threats to civil rights. This bill is just one example that can be shared with other states. Joining

forces with other states and providing support and sharing of ideas can build a strong coalition against Trump policies.

On immigration, Massachusetts must continue to lead by example as a welcoming place against the hateful and violent actions of this administration, recently exacerbated by ICE’s increased budget and horrific round up quotas, ignoring due process and upending

families. Non-cooperation with ICE at the local level to make safe places for people to be able to work, play, learn, and live is key but the Massachusetts delegation need to increase  challenges at the national level. None of this is normal or okay and we cannot acquiesce.

Lastly, the piecemeal approach to environmental protections will not work and requires a national strategy to be most effective in combating climate change. The Trump administration

halting impactful projects like wind energy are an overreach that will harm us and future generations. 

How can we best support our Massachusetts representatives to think bigger and go beyond our

home state to improve overall quality of life and protect the democracy we love at this tumultuous moment in our country? There is not a simple answer and it can become exhausting addressing so many issues at once, but it is worth challenging Trump-era policies at  

every turn not only for life here in Massachusetts but for the good of the United States.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Debin

Sherborn, MA

LTE: “LETTER: Mass. Deserves Better — Support the Corporate Fair Share Act & Close the Tax Loophole”

Rita Colafella, “LETTER: Mass. Deserves Better — Support the Corporate Fair Share Act & Close the Tax Loophole,” Watertown News,” September 22, 2025.

Dear Editor,

Massachusetts is facing a critical moment. Federal budget cuts are threatening to devastate essential services — Medicaid, SNAP, education, mental health care, and more. These cuts could strip healthcare and food assistance from up to 350,000 residents, blow a $3.5 billion hole in our state budget, and harm over 1 million students. We must act now to protect our communities.

A powerful solution is the Corporate Fair Share Act (An Act Combating Offshore Tax Avoidance, H.3110/S.2033), a proposal that would raise over $400 million in new annual revenue by closing a loophole that allows billionaire global corporations to hide profits offshore and avoid paying their fair share in Massachusetts taxes.  

Right now, Massachusetts only taxes 5 percent of these offshored profits — far less than neighboring states like Rhode Island, Vermont, and Maine, which tax 50–60 percent. The Commonwealth even taxes a smaller share of offshored corporate profits than New Hampshire does. The Corporate Fair Share Act would simply bring us in line with these states and the federal government, increasing our share from 5 percent to 50 percent.

This isn’t a tax hike on small businesses. In fact, only 0.5 percent of all C Corporations report any offshore profits. Most small businesses — LLCs, S-Corps, sole proprietorships — aren’t affected at all. This bill targets the wealthiest multinational corporations that exploit tax havens while our local businesses and families pay their fair share.

And here’s the truth: Massachusetts voters (of which 50 percent are Republican) overwhelmingly support this change.

  • In an August 2020 poll by Echo Cove Research, 84 percent of likely Massachusetts voters supported closing the loophole that lets corporations slash taxes by hiding assets offshore.
  • In an August 2024 poll by Data for Progress, 75 percent of Massachusetts voters agreed that the state corporate income tax should be updated to prevent multinational corporations from using offshore tax havens.
  • In an April 2025 poll by Lake Research Partners, 78 percent of Massachusetts voters supported closing corporate tax loopholes for large, profitable, multinational corporations.

The message is clear: Massachusetts residents want fairness.  We pay our taxes. Our local businesses pay their taxes. It’s time the mega-corporations do the same.  The Corporate Fair Share Act will:

  • Level the playing field for local businesses
  • Protect essential services like healthcare, education, and mental health care
  • Ensure financial stability for future generations

Let’s stop leaving hundreds of millions of dollars on the table. Let’s prioritize the taxpayers of Massachusetts over multinational corporations’ profits. Say no to devastating cuts. Say yes to fairness. Tell the State House to close the loophole ad Support the Corporate Fair Share Act. For more information, visit raiseupma.org/corporate-fair-share.

Rita Colafella
Watertown Resident

Editorial: How Mass. Must Respond To Trump’s Big Ugly Bill

Jonathan Cohn, “How Mass. Must Respond To Trump’s Big Ugly Bill,” Fenway News, September 2025.

In time for July 4, Trump and Congressional Republicans celebrated the passage of their policy wish list, a massive tax cut for the rich and large corporations combined with the biggest rollback of healthcare access in U.S. history, cuts to food assistance and public education, and escalated funding for ICE that puts it on par with the size of other countries’ militaries. It was the most regressive bill passed by Congress in decades.

This all raises the question: how is Massachusetts going to do to respond?

Here are some critical first steps.

First, Massachusetts needs to better protect our essential services from federal cuts. The extreme cuts to health care access, food assistance, education, and other vital programs will hit the state budget hard.

Massachusetts is an affluent state, with a GDP per capita in the top five of states and a total GDP on par with Sweden’s (if only we had their welfare state…). Rather than making cuts that will fall on the backs of the most vulnerable, we should make  sure that the most profitable corporations in our commonwealth are paying their fair share. That’s why we need to pass the Corporate Fair Share bill (H.3110 / S.2033), which would ensure that large multinational corporations like Amazon and Walmart pay more in taxes on the profits they hide in offshore tax havens in places like Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. This bill would make a simple change to the tax code that would put us in line with the federal government and the state of New Hampshire (yes, New Hampshire) and bring in significant new revenue.

Second, Massachusetts needs to better protect our immigrant communities, and that means not being complicit with Trump’s mass deportation agenda. Trump’s $45 billion infusion into ICE means that the administration will be looking for more people to work as immigration agents. Scaling up means that they will want states to offer existing personnel to do their dirty work. We must be clear that we won’t. The Safe Communities Act (H.2580 / S.1681) would ensure that our state and local law enforcement are not being deputized as ICE agents and shore up other vital protections.

Where is Fenway’s delegation on these priorities? Good question. Sen. Liz Miranda, who has a sliver of Fenway along with adjacent neighborhoods of Roxbury and Mission Hill, is the co-filer of both the Corporate Fair Share and the Safe Communities Act, and Sen. Lydia Edwards, who represents Back Bay and East Fenway, is a co-sponsor of both. Rep. Chynah Tyler, who has the Longwood Medical Area as well Roxbury and Mission Hill, joins them on the Corporate Fair Share bill. But Sen. Will Brownsberger, Rep. Jay Livingstone, and Rep. Dan Ryan have yet to do so.

Massachusetts prides itself for its role in our country’s democracy and as a beacon to other states. At this moment, we should do that by making clear that we don’t leave people behind when under attack by a hostile administration.

Jonathan Cohn, Policy Director, Progressive Mass; Secretary, Boston Ward 4 Democratic Committee