Beacon Hill Roll Call: House and Senate approve abortion bill and ‘Protect Act’

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call reports local representatives’ and senators’ votes on roll calls from the week of July 27-31.

HOME CARE (H 5627)- House 157-0, Senate 40-0, approved and sent to Gov. Maura Healey a bill that would establish a licensure process for home care agencies that supporters say will ensure that consumers receive quality non-medical services and that home care workers are protected.

The Executive Office of Health and Human Services would implement the licensure process and have the authority to approve licenses, survey and investigate home care agencies and impose fines. Home care agencies would be required to disclose anyone with at least a 5 percent ownership interest in the agency, carry workers compensation and liability insurance and provide appropriate levels of training for their employees.

“Everyone—consumers and workers—will be safer and better served with home care licensure in place,” said lead sponsor Sen. Pat Jehlen (D-Somerville). “This legislation is the culmination of years of collaboration with advocates representing older adults, care providers, unions and regulators to ensure all agencies are vetted, workers are protected and consumers receive high-quality care. The commissions on long-term services and supports and family caregiving are important next steps in providing more affordable options for our residents to access care and services.”

“Once again, the House and Senate answer the call to meet the needs of our older adults and prioritize aging in place,” said Rep. Tom Stanley (D-Waltham). “This legislation follows up last session’s landmark Long-Term Care reform law by strengthening another key pillar of the commonwealth’s continuum of care for older adults and individuals with disabilities—home care. At a time when our aging population is growing and demand for home care is expected to increase, the licensing and oversight process established in this bill for home care agencies is needed more than ever to protect consumers, their families and home care workers.”

“The bipartisan support for this bill in both the Senate and the House showcases the commitment within both chambers to keep aging residents in Massachusetts,” said Sen. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton). “The protections created in this bill will give families the ease of mind that their older relatives will receive safer and higher-quality care at their homes through more training, oversight and accountability in the licensure process and beyond.”

(A Yes” vote is for the bill.)

Rep. James Arciero – Yes, Rep. Simon Cataldo – Yes, Rep. Rodney Elliott – Yes, Rep. Kimberly Ferguson – Yes, Rep. Colleen Garry – Yes, Rep. Kenneth Gordon – Yes, Rep. Natalie Higgins – Yes, Rep. Tara Hong – Yes, Rep. Meghan Kilcoyne – Yes, Rep. Michael Kushmerek – Yes, Rep. Marc Lombardo – Yes, Rep. Tram  Nguyen – Yes, Rep. David Robertson – Yes, Rep. Margaret Scarsdale – Yes, Rep. Dan Sena – Yes, Rep. Jonathan Zlotnik – Yes, Sen. Michael Barrett – Yes, Sen. John Cronin – Yes, Sen. James Eldridge – Yes, Sen. Barry Finegold – Yes, Sen. Cindy Friedman – Yes, Sen. Vanna Howard – Yes, Sen. Bruce Tarr – Yes

THE “PROTECT ACT” (H 5620- House 137-21, Senate on a voice vote without a roll call, approved and sent to Gov. Healey the PROTECT Act that supporters said would establish statewide standards governing interactions between state and local law enforcement and federal immigration enforcement. They said the measure would create among the strongest protections in the nation for residents who have immigrated to their communities; strengthen due process protections; limit civil immigration enforcement in courthouses, public school grounds, hospitals and other sensitive locations; expand protections for victims of crime; and increase transparency, accountability and clarity for correctional facilities and law enforcement relative to civil immigration enforcement.

Provisions bar Massachusetts law enforcement agencies from signing new deputization agreements with federal immigration authorities, except in narrow, criminal-law-focused arrangements that meet additional safeguards; prohibit civil immigration arrests without a judicial warrant at schools, childcare centers, medical facilities and courthouses; establish a civil cause of action against federal officers who violate a resident’s constitutional rights, putting them under the same accountability standards as state and local police; keep state and local police out of federal civil immigration enforcement, barring the use of local resources for that purpose, or detention, based solely on a civil immigration detainer; and protect immigrant crime victims, including trafficking survivors, who assist law enforcement as witnesses, and speeds up review of their special visa applications so they can keep participating in investigations or trials.

“Since the beginning of President Trump’s second term, ICE and Border Patrol agents have continued to harass and disappear innocent Americans with total impunity—a reckless approach that has led to the deaths of American citizens and legal residents and to children being separated from their families,” said House Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy). “Those actions have immigrants in Massachusetts living in fear as they go to work or bring their children to school. And they jeopardize the trust that local law enforcement has worked hard to build. That’s why this legislation is so important, as it takes steps to ensure that all residents in Massachusetts are treated equally under state law, and to protect our communities through practical, thoughtful measures.

“The passage of the PROTECT Act sends a clear message that Massachusetts will continue to stand for fairness, due process and human dignity,” said Sen. Pavel Payano (D-Lawrence). “No parent should fear taking their child to school, seeking medical care or appearing in court because of fear. As someone who immigrated as a child, I know firsthand what it means when a state keeps its promise that if you work hard and contribute to your community, opportunity should never be out of reach. Today, we reaffirm that Massachusetts remains a place where opportunity is earned through hard work, not denied because of fear.”

“I voted ‘No’ because I feel like this bill inappropriately ties the hands of the police officers and sheriffs who put themselves in danger every day to keep our communities safe,” said Rep. Joe McKenna (R-Sutton). “Restricting basic communication and with federal authorities and limiting advance notice when violent offenders, including those convicted of serious crimes, are being released back into our neighborhoods is not sound public service strategy and further drives a wedge between states and the Federal Government. Additionally, I am concerned that much of the bill is simply unenforceable as written given the Supremacy clause. Ultimately, I feel that a cooperative and communicative position with ICE is more productive than deepening the mistrust and adversarial relationship we have.  Massachusetts families deserve police who can work for public safety, which unfortunately this unworkable law does not do.”

“I voted against the PROTECT Act because the bill is prioritizing illegal immigrants in our communities over lawful residents,” said Rep. Kelly Pease (R-Westfield).

(A “Yes” vote is for the bill. A “No” vote is against it.)

Rep. James Arciero – Yes, Rep. Simon Cataldo – Yes, Rep. Rodney Elliott – Yes, Rep. Kimberly Ferguson – No, Rep. Colleen Garry – Yes, Rep. Kenneth Gordon – Yes, Rep. Natalie Higgins – Yes, Rep. Tara Hong – Yes, Rep. Meghan Kilcoyne – Yes, Rep. Michael Kushmerek – Yes, Rep. Marc Lombardo – No, Rep. Tram  Nguyen – Yes, Rep. David Robertson – Yes, Rep. Margaret Scarsdale – Yes, Rep. Dan Sena – Yes, Rep. Jonathan Zlotnik – Yes

BANNING SCHOOL AND PUBLIC LIBRARY BOOKS AND MATERIALS (H 5489) – House 156-1, Senate on a voice vote without a roll call, approved and sent to the governor a bill that supporters said would protect people’s access to library materials and guard against politically motivated book bans in Bay State school libraries and public libraries. The bill requires local policies to be developed using nationally recognized library standards and lays out a process around challenges to library materials. The measure also protects librarians and school library professionals from retaliation.

Provisions include ensuring that students have free and open access to library books and other school library materials by establishing clear standards for library teachers and other employees to follow as they select school library materials; requiring that school library materials be age-appropriate, serve an educational purpose and be chosen based on a teacher or employee’s professional training—leaving aside any of their own personal, political or doctrinal views that could affect whether or not they place the book on the shelf; requiring all school districts, charter schools and local education agencies to adopt their own policies on how to select library materials as long as the policies align with American Library Association standards; guarding against spurious or unfounded challenges to school library books by keeping a book in question on the shelves unless and until a public hearing process has taken place and the appropriate authority has voted to remove it; and protecting school employees and public librarians from professional, civil or criminal penalties based on their selection of library materials.

“The bill we send to the governor’s desk today is a bold statement against the dystopian attempts to ban books in our schools and public libraries,” said Sen. Julian Cyr (D-Provincetown), the lead Senate sponsor of the bill. “Massachusetts is not immune from politically motivated attempts at censorship, and violent threats against librarians have brought real harm to our communities. With this legislation, we safeguard everyone’s right to intellectual discovery, while protecting the people who make our libraries and schools such vibrant places of curiosity and possibility.”

“Libraries are among the last truly open spaces where every person can discover new ideas, encounter different perspectives and see themselves reflected in the stories that shape our communities,” said Sen. Jake Oliveira (D-Ludlow). “This legislation protects the freedom to read by ensuring that decisions about library collections are guided by professional expertise, not political pressure or personal ideology. At a time when intellectual freedom is increasingly being challenged, Massachusetts is reaffirming that access to knowledge, diverse viewpoints and free expression are essential to a healthy democracy.”

“[The bill] makes it more difficult for school committees to challenge book selections made by librarians, especially regarding LGBT+ type books that are usually so explicit that they cannot be read in public meetings or even on YouTube without being age restricted,” Said Rep. John Gaskey (R-Carver), the only legislator to vote against the measure. “This is not about banning books as they are all available in a multitude of locations, especially the public library. This is about protecting youth from explicit material, regardless of the topic.”

A “Yes” vote is for the bill. A “No” vote is against it.)

Rep. James Arciero – Yes, Rep. Simon Cataldo – Yes, Rep. Rodney Elliott – Yes, Rep. Kimberly Ferguson – Yes, Rep. Colleen Garry – Yes, Rep. Kenneth Gordon – Yes, Rep. Natalie Higgins – Yes, Rep. Tara Hong – Yes, Rep. Meghan Kilcoyne – Yes, Rep. Michael Kushmerek – Yes, Rep. Marc Lombardo – Yes, Rep. Tram  Nguyen – Yes, Rep. David Robertson – Yes, Rep. Margaret Scarsdale – Yes, Rep. Dan Sena – Yes, Rep. Jonathan Zlotnik – Yes

ABORTION (H 5595) – House 119-35, Senate on a voice vote without a roll call, approved and sent to Gov. Healey legislation that would loosen restrictions on abortions that can be performed after 24 weeks of gestation. The bill removes existing requirements that limit abortions at 24 weeks of pregnancy or later to four specific medical circumstances, and instead allows licensed physicians and providers to rely on their best medical judgment when caring for patients.

Supporters said that under current law, the four specific categories do not account for the full spectrum of medical conditions encountered by women and their doctors: protecting the patient’s life or physical or mental health, or cases involving a lethal fetal anomaly or a grave fetal diagnosis.

“No family should have to leave Massachusetts to receive the vital medical care their own doctors recommend, especially in the most heartbreaking moments of a pregnancy,” said Sen. Joan Lovely (D-Salem). “With this vote, the Senate makes clear that these deeply personal decisions belong to patients and the physicians who know them best.”

“As the Trump Administration ramps up attacks on reproductive care and abortion access nationwide, Massachusetts must continue closing gaps in care so that women have full autonomy over the care they need, when and where they need it,” said Sen. Robyn Kennedy (D-Worcester). “[The bill] ensures Massachusetts patients do not have to leave the commonwealth to get the care they need, and empowers physicians to support their patients throughout their pregnancies.”

“Throughout relentless attacks on reproductive rights, Massachusetts has prioritized the fundamental rights and health care of its residents,” said Rep. Christine Barber (D-Somerville), House sponsor of the bill. “This bill continues that work. It ensures access to care by empowering physicians to use their professional judgment to make decisions in the best interest of their patients. Pregnancy is complex, and this bill eliminates barriers and guarantees medical expertise as the standard of care. It comes down to a simple, but powerful conviction: decisions about abortion care must remain between a patient and their provider. No one else. With today’s vote, we show our commitment to protecting the rights of our residents of the commonwealth.”

Opponents said the legislation allows elective abortions up to birth based solely on a physician’s professional judgment. They said it eliminates the current requirement that complex late-term abortions be performed in a hospital setting, thus allowing abortions on healthy mothers and healthy infants at a stage when unborn children can feel pain and may be able to survive outside the womb.

“Late-term abortions present a number of significant risks to women, which is why the procedures have long been performed in hospitals,” said Myrna Maloney Flynn, president of Massachusetts Citizens for Life. “There is one reason why pro-abortion activists want to remove hospitals from abortion policy, and it has nothing to do with women’s care or safety. Not one legislator who voted for this has been brave enough to acknowledge the truth, the inconvenient fact that this bill allows heinous dismemberment abortions on perfectly healthy and viable babies. It is accepted science that an unborn baby’s nervous system is developed enough at 24 weeks of pregnancy so that the baby can feel pain. By passing this bill, Massachusetts lawmakers have decided that an abortionist can crush the skull of any infant then tear that baby apart, limb by limb.”

“This bill, pushed by radical pro-abortion activist groups like Planned Parenthood, is a dangerous attempt to remove virtually all remaining protections in the commonwealth for unborn babies,” said the Massachusetts Family Institute in a press release. “It allows abortion past 24 weeks with no requirement of medical justification, meaning abortions could be performed at full term, just days before natural birth, for any reason or no reason at all.”

The release continued, “In addition, current law requires late-term abortions to be performed in a hospital — recognition that a procedure this serious, at this stage of pregnancy, demands a hospital’s resources and safeguards. This bill eliminates that requirement. A late-term abortion could legally be performed anywhere a provider chooses, with none of the protections a hospital setting is meant to guarantee. This is not healthcare – this is a direct attack on the dignity of life.”

(A “Yes” vote is for the bill. A “No” vote is against it.)

Rep. James Arciero – Yes, Rep. Simon Cataldo – Yes, Rep. Rodney Elliott – Yes, Rep. Kimberly Ferguson – No, Rep. Colleen Garry – No, Rep. Kenneth Gordon – Yes, Rep. Natalie Higgins – Yes, Rep. Tara Hong – Yes, Rep. Meghan Kilcoyne – Yes, Rep. Michael Kushmerek – Yes, Rep. Marc Lombardo – No, Rep. Tram  Nguyen – Yes, Rep. David Robertson – Yes, Rep. Margaret Scarsdale – Yes, Rep. Dan Sena – Yes, Rep. Jonathan Zlotnik – Yes

PROTECT THE PRESS WITH A SHIELD LAW (S 3200) – Senate 40-0, approved an amendment creating the Press Shield Law that would prohibit government bodies from compelling journalists to reveal their sources, except in certain limited circumstances and only with clear and convincing evidence that the source disclosure is necessary and there is an overriding public interest in the disclosure.

“As Trump and his Administration accelerate and intensify their attacks on journalism and sources are increasingly afraid to speak up, the Massachusetts Senate takes an historic stand to strengthen our free press and fortify our democracy,” said sponsor Sen. Becca Rausch (D-Needham). “The need for a statutory press shield law in our commonwealth has never been more urgent. By passing this legislation, we show the federal government and our constituents that we will defend the First Amendment and support a free press, without which our democracy cannot survive.”

(A “Yes” vote is for the bill.)

Sen. Michael Barrett – Yes, Sen. John Cronin – Yes, Sen. James Eldridge – Yes, Sen. Barry Finegold – Yes, Sen. Cindy Friedman – Yes, Sen. Vanna Howard – Yes, Sen. Bruce Tarr – Yes

Also up on Beacon Hill

NOW YOU CAN BUY MASS LOTTERY TICKETS ONLINE – The Lottery has launched Mass Lottery Online, featuring a variety of both new and old games that registered players age 21 or older can play on the Mass Lottery app and website on a mobile device, computer or tablet. Profits generated from online sales will be used to fund a grant program to support early childhood education and care.

“The launch of our online platform marks an exciting new chapter for the Lottery as we continue to evolve and meet the needs of today’s players,” said State Treasurer Deb Goldberg, chair of the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission. “Online Lottery will allow us to compete on a more level playing field in the state’s gaming marketplace and sales will help make childcare more affordable for families across Massachusetts.”

“Since selling our first ticket in 1972, the Mass Lottery has become one of the top performing lotteries in the world thanks to our exciting portfolio of games, attractive prize payouts, innovative business and marketing strategies and of course, our dedicated retail partners and loyal player base,” said Mark William Bracken, executive director of the Mass Lottery. “In creating Mass Lottery Online, we took a similar approach that gives our players new play experiences with the same standards they have grown to expect, wherever in Massachusetts they find themselves to be.”

Several popular draw-based games, now sold only at retail stores, will be available for purchase online including Mass Cash, Megabucks, Mega Millions, Powerball and Millionaire for Life. Several games remain available only for retail purchase including traditional Keno, The Numbers Game and The Wheel of Luck.

Mass Lottery Online is also introducing 20 new eInstant Games which are digital games featuring cascading or tumbling symbols that result in instant winning experiences when a cluster of symbols match. Other play styles include key number match and find the symbol.

layers will only be able to be signed in to their account on one device at any given time.

Quotable Quotes

“Reliable, well-maintained harbors are essential for the communities and industries that depend on them every day. These grants will help cities and towns move forward with critical dredging projects that improve safety, support commercial fishing and recreation, and keep our waterfronts strong and competitive.”

—Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll announcing a new round of funding to help Massachusetts coastal communities advance critical dredging projects that improve navigational safety, strengthen working waterfronts and support the state’s maritime economy.

“Families across Massachusetts rely on Department of Transitional Assistance programs to afford groceries and other essential goods. We’re focused on preventing fraud and theft so that these funds are going to the people who need and deserve them. Massachusetts is proud to be leading the nation when it comes to the security and integrity of our EBT programs.”

—Gov. Healey announcing that Massachusetts has become the fourth state in the nation to roll out chip and tap-enabled Electronic Benefit Transfer cards statewide to enhance security and better prevent theft across the system, including for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

“Candidates appearing on the 2026 state election ballot have reported raising $26.3 million and spending $15 million from January 2026 through June 2026.”

—From a report by the Office of Campaign and Political Finance.

“When companies engage in unlawful collusion that increase costs for municipalities, it reduces their ability to fund other critical programs including our libraries, public safety agencies and schools. My office is committed to investigating and eliminating illegal anticompetitive agreements that harm our communities.”

—Attorney General Andrea Campbell announcing a $2.4 million settlement with student transportation services company Beacon Mobility Corporation, to resolve allegations that the company colluded to allocate contracts raising prices and made false statements regarding school bus transportation contracts in Lynn, Dedham and Saugus.

How long was last week’s session?

Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts.

Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session,

During the week of July 27-31, the House met for a total of 28 hours and 38 minutes and the Senate met for a total of 20 hours and 11 minutes.

Mon. July 27 – House 11:02  a.m. to  11:08 a.m. Senate  11:05  a.m. to 1:14 p.m.

Tues. July 28 – No House or Senate session.

Wed. July 29 – House 11:00  a.m. to  4:16 p.m. Senate   1:09  p.m. to  1:23 p.m.

Thurs. July 30 – House 11:00  a.m. to  9:56 p.m. Senate  11:19  a.m. to  7:55 p.m.

Fri. July 31 – House 11:01  a.m. to 11:21 p.m. Senate  12:07  p.m. to 11:19 p.m.

Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at [email protected]. Bob founded Beacon Hill Roll Call in 1975 and was inducted into the New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA) Hall of Fame in 2019.