Joan Meschino, Author at Joan Meschino

House of Representatives Passes Legislation Funding Key Local Transportation Maintenance and Repairs

(BOSTON) - Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) joined her colleagues in a vote to pass a $350 million spending bill that adds $200 million to the Chapter 90 program to fund local road and bridge repairs and calls for an additional $150 million to be spent on other municipal transportation efforts. The Chapter 90 Program grants municipalities annual funding to improve and invest in local transportation networks. The $200 million allocation in the legislation will be added to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund and subsequently distributed to each municipality. The bill’s additional $150 million investment for municipal transportation projects includes $40 million for repairing non-federally aided roads and bridges, $30 million for the Municipal Small Bridge Program, $30 million for the Complete Streets Program, $25 million for municipal grants to increase access to mass transit and commuter rail stations, and $25 million for municipal grants to enhance bus transit. “Ensuring . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-04-01T17:05:24-04:00April 1st, 2022|Transportation + Infrastructure|

Representative Joan Meschino Joins Colleagues to Welcome Ireland Education Minister Norma Foley, Celebrates Launch of South Shore Irish Heritage Trail Website

(BOSTON) - On St. Patrick’s Day, Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) joined her colleagues to welcome Ireland’s Minister for Education Norma Foley to the House of Representatives, and she celebrated the launch of the South Shore Irish Heritage Trail website. During a speech given to the House of Representatives on Thursday, Minister Foley commented on the characterization of this year’s celebration of St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland, sharing that the holiday is marked by feelings of unity and solidarity in response to losses from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Minister Foley also emphasized the unique and robust connection between Massachusetts and Ireland, citing Ireland’s economic ties to the Commonwealth. Minister Foley’s remarks lend weight to the website launch of The South Shore Irish Heritage Trail, which will celebrate the cultural connections between the Commonwealth and Ireland when it opens in May. For years, the Scituate/West Cork Sister City . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-03-17T17:04:21-04:00March 17th, 2022|Other Topics|

Massachusetts House of Representatives Passes Groundbreaking Offshore Wind Legislation

(BOSTON) - Today, Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) joined her colleagues in the House of Representatives in a vote to pass H.4515, An Act advancing offshore wind and clean energy, which makes historic investments in and establishes incentives for increased offshore wind development in the Commonwealth. The legislation would establish a $50 million tax incentive program for capital investments and employment in the wind sector, fund wind technology and innovation through utility bill surcharges, create new environmental and fishing industry-related requirements for offshore wind projects, and institute important cost containment safeguards for the wind energy bidding process. In addition, the legislation directs electric utilities to develop grid modernization plans and submit them for review, and the bill calls for a study conducted by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center and the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) to examine the viability of a solicitation for energy storage installations. The bill also . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-03-03T18:02:11-05:00March 3rd, 2022|Energy + Environment|

Hingham’s Emmanuel Oppong Recognized for Black Excellence by Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus

(BOSTON) - On the last day of Black History Month, Hingham resident Emmanuel (Manny) Oppong received recognition from the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus during the Caucus’ 2022 Black Excellence on the Hill event. Mr. Oppong was nominated to receive this recognition by State Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) for his commitment and dedication to bettering the Commonwealth, both within Hingham and on a larger scale. As a Board Member and Steering Committee Member on the Hingham Unity Council (HUC), Mr. Oppong is an active and impactful voice on the council's leadership team. He has moderated several "community talk" events hosted by the Council on race and issues impacting the LGBTQ+ community, navigating complex topics with grace and an eye toward inclusion. Through his involvement in these events and the council, he continues to elevate marginalized voices in the local community and foster critical dialogue among those with different perspectives. In . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-02-28T19:58:42-05:00February 28th, 2022|Other Topics|

Hingham Public School District Secures $16,272 Grant to Support Language Learners

(BOSTON) - This week, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) announced that Hingham Public Schools was one of 22 districts that will receive an FY22 Proficiency-based Outcomes in Languages Other than English Grant. This competitive grant program is a way that DESE supports World Language (WL), Heritage Language (HL), Dual Language (DL) and English Language Learner (ELL) programs and districts in their efforts to support or improve such programs in pre-K, elementary, and/or secondary schools. Districts were able to apply for funding to fulfill either one or both of the following program goals: Goal 1: Collect and analyze data pertaining to proficiency in languages other than English to improve World Languages, Heritage Languages, and English Learner programs. Goal 2: Support educators to teach for proficiency in languages other than English by aligning to the proficiency-based standards and high-leverage teaching practices described in the 2021 Massachusetts World Languages . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-02-25T16:55:37-05:00February 25th, 2022|Budget and Grants|

Following Joint Rule 10 Deadline, Representative Meschino’s Bills Receive Favorable Reports and Extensions

(BOSTON) - State Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) will continue to pursue a robust legislative agenda following her successes after the recent Joint Rule 10 deadline, in which most Joint Committees must issue their recommendations for the next steps of bills under their review. Four bills filed by Representative Meschino received favorable reports and will continue to move forward in the legislative process. Highlighting these successes is the Joint Committee on Housing’s favorable report of H.3838, An Act to create and implement a Massachusetts Flexible Housing Subsidy Pool Program to address the medically complex needs of disabled men, women, and children experiencing homelessness. This legislation will braid public and private funding to meet the needs of homeless individuals, families, and unaccompanied youth across the continuum of care. Two of Representative Meschino’s bills before the Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities also received favorable reports. An Act to provide notice to counsel of changes in . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-02-15T14:30:51-05:00February 15th, 2022|Energy + Environment, Housing, Transportation + Infrastructure|

Supportive Housing Bill Led by Rep. Meschino, United Way Reported Out Favorably by Joint Committee on Housing

Press Release by United Way (BOSTON) – State Representative Joan Meschino, United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley and Heading Home today announce that the Joint Committee on Housing has reported out favorably legislation that would create a flexible funding stream to support trauma-informed service delivery, regional coordination efforts, and integrated services for individuals, youth and families experiencing homelessness. The legislation, introduced by State Representative Joan Meschino this session, would align existing resources to create a Massachusetts Flexible Housing Pool (MFHP), a nimble pot of public and private funds to help meet the complex housing and health needs of individuals, youth, and families experiencing homelessness. The goal of this bill is to expand supportive housing and services for adults, youth, and families experiencing homelessness, and enable funds to get out quickly and equitably to those that need it most. “This legislation re-envisions our approach to addressing homelessness in the Commonwealth,” . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-02-04T16:22:33-05:00February 4th, 2022|Housing|

Representative Joan Meschino Awarded Legislator of the Year by MassAccess

(BOSTON) - On January 26, 2022 at its Annual Meeting, MassAccess presented Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) with the organization's Legislator of the Year award for her work to support community media centers. During the virtual meeting, Executive Director of Winchester Community Access and Media, David Gauthier introduced Representative Meschino and presented her with the award. The award recognizes Representative Meschino’s advocacy for community media centers, and in particular her efforts to pass H.130, An Act relative to a streaming entertainment operator’s use of the public rights-of-way. The legislation seeks to align the successful franchise fee system with the current era of digital streaming, modernizing the obligations to entertainment providers who are using public rights of way (telephone poles, conduits, sidewalks, etc.) to deliver their product. Following the model of cable franchises, the bill would impose a 5% fee on digital streaming providers which are using public rights of way . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-02-02T15:19:25-05:00February 2nd, 2022|Other Topics|

Plymouth County Announces Substantive Test Kit Procurement for Municipalities

(BOSTON) - On January 21, Plymouth County Chair Sandy Wright informed Plymouth County legislators that Plymouth County has secured nearly 400,000 COVID-19 antigen rapid tests to be distributed in the County’s municipalities this week. Plymouth County was able to secure these test kits using the last of its money from the CARES Act. Though cases in the most recent surge of COVID-19 have recently peaked and numbers have begun to decline again, test kits remain in high demand throughout the Commonwealth. Municipalities represented by Representative Meschino received the following allocation of kits and tests: Hingham: 8,370 kits with 16,740 tests; Hull: 3,690 kits with 7,380 tests; and Scituate: 6,570 kits with 13,140 tests. “Adequate COVID-19 test kit availability continues to be a pressing issue on the South Shore and across the Commonwealth,” said Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull). “I am so appreciative of Plymouth County officials for the foresight and . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-01-28T16:35:54-05:00January 24th, 2022|Public Health|

Mass. Seeks to Claw Back at Least $2.7 Billion in Jobless Benefits It Says Were Incorrectly Paid

By Larry Edelman, Globe Staff, in the Boston Globe The Department of Unemployment Assistance made overpayments on about 719,000 claims in 2020-2021. It’s going after recipients even if they weren’t at fault. In the early months of the pandemic, when nearly 700,000 local jobs disappeared in a flash, the Baker administration was caught in a bind: There was a massive backlog of unemployment claims, but laid-off workers needed money fast or a bad economic crisis would only get worse. The Department of Unemployment Assistance rushed to get benefit checks out the door ASAP, even as vetting applicants was made more complicated by the sheer volume of work and confusing eligibility rules for new federal relief programs. While delays persisted, the DUA says it ultimately delivered $33 billion in state and federal jobless payments in 2020 and 2021 to almost 4 million people. But the state’s efforts have been marred by costly . . . Read More

Joan Meschino2022-01-18T14:06:11-05:00January 18th, 2022|Op-Eds + Articles|

Joan

About Joan Meschino