Progressive Massachusetts proudly announces our 2017-2018 Legislative Agenda for the 190th session of the Mass General Court.
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The Moral Urgency of Now: Massachusetts Must Lead.
We are watching the federal government under President Donald Trump, with little braking from the Republican Congress, move us rapidly in a fascist direction that deeply contradicts Massachusetts values and liberties. Resistance is imperative.
What are the ways we can resist? Where can we effect the most dramatic changes, shape a progressive alternative and protect the most people vulnerable under this regime?
Our efforts on the national scene are important–but our impact, as liberals served by Democrats in a majority Republican Congress, is unfortunately, realistically, quite limited.
But, we can make Massachusetts a blue, progressive fortress against Trumpism. There is no excuse for not passing a vigorous progressive agenda in one of the bluest states in the country.
We are no longer in normal times. We cannot abide our super-majority Democratic lawmakers playing by the old rules, the old hesitancies and cautions. This is a moral imperative: through our democratic system, we can must resist, chart an alternative, progressive, path forward, and firmly and proudly establish and protect a system of true justice–in all its dimensions–for all.
Our recent survey of our members’ (your) issues of top concern served as a guide for the Progressive Mass Issues Committee (PMIC). Over several weeks, committee reached out to legislators, advocates, and allies, to learn about their priorities and the bills to be filed that address them, to explore what bold proposals would galvanize Beacon Hill, and to assess the issue movements with advocacy momentum and energy behind them.
Setting Progressive Goals and a Road Map for Action
Through this intensive process of research, outreach, deliberation, and member input, PMIC has crafted our multi-issue 2017-2018 Progressive Legislative Agenda. Following the four broad planks of our Progressive Platform, the Progressive Legislative Agenda represents a multi-issue road map for the next two years of advocacy for the progressive activist.
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As many in the BMG community already know, there are specific points of inflection in the life cycle of legislation, when grassroots action and advocacy is more important and has greater impact. Simply stated, timing matters.
We aim to reach out to our progressive network and membership at time-sensitive moments and ask for your action. The first action of many over the next two years: pushing legislators for Co-Sponsorship. And it needs to be done by Friday.
ProgressiveMass.com/takeaction:
Before Friday (the House’s deadline), please contact your State Representative and State Senator, and ask them to cosponsor the bills on our progressive agenda (both House and Senate versions, House and Senate members can cross-cosponsor). All the information, including plain text to copy/paste, if you should require that, is at our action kit: ProgressiveMass.com/takeaction
Note–while the deadline to cosponsor House bills is Friday, February 3rd at 5:00 pm, State Representatives and State Senator can cosponsor Senate bills at any point in the two-year session.
As a statewide, multi-issue, grassroots organizations committed to pushing our state Legislature and Governor to be more progressive, and hold them accountable when they’re not, Progressive Mass believes that the first step towards building a progressive agenda on Beacon Hill begins with outreach and conversations with your state legislators, and asking them to cosponsor and support critical legislation. And when you do reach out to your legislators, we want to hear what you learn. Drop us a line: issues @ progressivemass.com
