THE HOUSE AND SENATE
Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ and senators’ votes on roll calls from the week of Dec. 21-25.
POLICE CHANGES (S 2963)
House 107-50, Senate 31-9, approved and sent to Gov. Charlie Baker a new version of a bill making major changes in the state’s policing system. The House and Senate adopted some of Gov. Baker’s amendments including scaling back a moratorium on the use of facial recognition software by law enforcement and limiting the influence of a civilian-led commission over police training.
A key provision creates an independent, civilian-led commission with the power to investigate police misconduct and to certify, restrict, revoke or suspend certification for police officers and maintain a publicly available database of decertified officers. Other provisions include banning the use of chokeholds; limiting the use of deadly force; requiring police officers who witness another officer using force beyond what is necessary or rea
The Massachusetts legislature succeeded Tuesday in overriding Gov. Charlie Baker's veto of legislation establishing a right to abortion and expanding access to late-term procedures as blue states continue to erect a pro-choice firewalls against a right-trending Supreme Court.
Massachusetts' legislature overrode its Republican governor's veto of a bill on Tuesday that expanded abortion access in a variety of ways, including allowing 16-year-old girls to obtain abortions without parental consent.
Abortion Access Expanded in Mass. as Legislature Overrides Baker s Veto Beginning today, pregnant people who once faced near-insurmountable barriers accessing abortion care can now seize the right to control their own bodies, said Senate President Emerita Harriette Chandler
Published December 29, 2020 •
Updated on December 29, 2020 at 3:11 pm
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Abortion rights will be formally codified in Massachusetts law and access to the procedure will be expanded after the Senate on Tuesday joined the House in overriding Gov. Charlie Baker s veto of the legislation.
The bill, known as the ROE Act, expands access to abortion beyond 24 weeks in cases of fatal fetal anomalies and lower the age of consent from 18 to 16. Current state law allows abortions after 24 weeks only to preserve the life or health of the mother.
Beacon Hill Roll Call: Dec. 14 to Dec. 18, 2020
Published: 12/25/2020 5:00:22 PM
Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ and senators’ votes on roll calls from the week of Dec. 14 to Dec. 18.
Governor’s abortion amendments (H 5179) The House, 49 to 107, and the Senate, 8 to 32, rejected Gov. Charlie Baker’s amendments to a section of the state budget approved by the House and Senate that changes some of the abortion laws in the state. The section lowers the age from the current 18 to 16 at which a minor can choose to have an abortion without parental or judicial consent. Baker’s amendment would bring the age back to 18.