Medical marijuana would create ‘huge headache,’ Coakley says With a question poised to go before voters in the fall legalizing medical marijuana, Attorney General Martha Coakley on Thursday said she worried the policy proposal would be difficult and costly to enforce if it passes. “My position is if this passes as a ballot question it’s going to [...]
Staff Members Maureen Vacca and Andrew Beckwith were among the first to testify at the State House this morning on the proposed ‘medical marijuana’ bill, HB 3885. Andrew pointed out that the draft legislation allows for marijuana to be prescribed for any ailment imaginable and that it would be sold by untrained ‘dispensary agents’, not [...]
According to the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition, the lead advocate for the “Bathroom Bill,” their executive director, Gunner Scott, has been elected to Eastern Bank’s Board of Corporators. His term lasts for 10 years. Gunner Scott has been the director of MTPC since 2008. “He” was born a woman, but has since “transitioned” to a [...]
A Constitutional Convention took place today at the State House and was postponed until Wednesday, June 6. MFI was there to closely monitor the proceedings because of two onerous proposals to amend the state constitution: Senate Bill 12 – This amendment, in plain English, would essentially eliminate the citizen initiative process because there are very [...]
According to the Boston Herald, a fundraiser for House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo and other Democrat legislators who have final say over a Mashpee Wampanoag casino bid is also on the tribe’s payroll as a public relations consultant. Brooke Scannell is a $3,000-a-month fundraiser for DeLeo’s PAC, Committee for a Democratic House, as well as [...]
As seems to be the norm with the Judiciary Committee, the room was too small and the number of bills (fifty five!) too many to truly allow the democratic process to proceed. I was there to testify on behalf of MFI against the proposed doctor-prescribed suicide bill, while Maureen Vacca, our director of public policy, [...]
The Newton Tab reports on Holly Ryan, a “transgender woman” who was born a man, and her appointment as the first openly transgendered woman to Newton’s nine-member Human Rights Commission. Mayor Setti Warren appointed her back in January, with the Board of Aldermen unanimously approving her appointment in February. According to the article, the commission [...]
According to Steve LeBlanc writing for the AP, the casino industry “hired a small army of lobbyists” who steadily made the argument for expanded gambling. A review by the AP of state lobbying records, in just the past five years, the gambling total reach $11.4 million. Since 2007, the total gambling lobbying jumped from $1.3 [...]
United to Stop Slots in Massachusetts recently held a conference where citizens committed to prevent casinos from coming to the Bay State shared ideas and created goals for the ongoing effort. The group agreed to continue to move forward with the following goals: Support the “Repeal the Deal” effort to place a referendum on the [...]
After a six-year battle against the “Bathroom Bill,” the MA House approved a bill granting special rights to transsexuals.