“This effort to get a municipality to opt in is going to invigorate grass-roots politics in 2023 like you’ve never seen before,” said Senator Michael Barrett, coauthor of the 2021 climate bill that required the creation of the new, optional building code.
Read more…
Concord Indivisible rallies for democracy – The Concord Bridge
Barrett said he was proud to witness the swearing-in of Gov. Maura Healey, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, and Senate President Karen Spilka. “Anyone who saw those three women up there couldn’t help but feel proud,” said Barrett.
He gave a shout-out to Healey for “giving climate change a big upgrade.”
Read more…
Lawmakers walk tightrope on wind power contracts – CommonWealth Magazine
Appearing on The Codcast, Sen. Michael Barrett of Lexington and Rep. Jeffrey Roy of Franklin said they were sympathetic to the challenges the wind farm developers are facing, including rising inflation and interest rates, supply chain difficulties, and the war in Ukraine.
“The world is a different place,” Barrett said. “The war in Ukraine could not have been anticipated. The impact on natural gas prices in Europe and the attraction of LNG toward Europe and away from New England which relies on LNG [liquefied natural gas] for winter heating could not have been entirely anticipated. Supply chain disruptions are real.”
Read more…
Rally at Concord church to demand justice after Jan. 6 uprising – Boston Globe
Other local officials stepped up in Clark’s place Saturdayto rally the crowd and tout the influence that the Democrat from Revere will hold as Democratic whip after she was elected to that role in November.
“Talk about Massachusetts catching a lucky break and seeing one of its truly great legislators on the cusp of assuming national power,” State Senator Mike Barrett said, drawing cheers from the crowd. “Her performance over the last several weeks has been heroic.”
Read more…
The Healey administration begins – Politico
Key lawmakers quickly showed interest in some of Healey’s ideas. Senate President Karen Spilka said she’d “love to sit down” with the new administration about hiring for the T. State Sen. Mike Barrett said there’s impetus to act on Healey’s call for a “climate corridor,” telling reporters that “the Healey stamp, joined with Baker’s prior initiative, gives it that bipartisan character that we really need.”
Read more…