Franklin Matters: Rausch Report: Season’s Greetings from Beacon Hill (December 2024)

Friday, December 20, 2024

Rausch Report: Season’s Greetings from Beacon Hill (December 2024)

The newsletter was shortened for publication here. Too view the full contents, please visit -> https://mailchi.mp/masenate/monthlynewsletter-18244537

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Rausch Report: Season’s Greetings from Beacon Hill (December 2024)

Season's Greetings from Beacon Hill! Frog Pond is full of skaters, the State House halls are festively decorated, and school groups of holiday singers have brought seasonal cheer all month long. We're fortunate to have similar sentiments at community events throughout our district. I hope you and your family are having a warm and bright December. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, all, or none of them, may this holiday season and the new year bring you rest, comfort, peace, and joy.

Something you might not expect about the end of the legislative session is that it's very busy! In addition to holiday happenings and farewell speeches from outgoing lawmakers, we're also preparing for the imminent start of a new term. I've been meeting with fellow legislators, local government partners, constituents, advocates, and policy experts to inform the legislation I will file in January. Stay tuned to my social media and newsletter for a winter avalanche of legislative news next month!

Read on in this month's Rausch Report for end of session legislative updates, a snapshot of events I've attended this month, a roundup of upcoming festive events throughout our district, and more.

For real-time updates, please follow me on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram. If you are a constituent and need assistance, please don't hesitate to call me and my team at (617) 722-1555, email me at becca.rausch@masenate.gov, or attend upcoming office hours. We are here to help.

Yours in service,

Senator Becca Rausch

SIGNED INTO LAW

Early in December, Governor Healey signed into law the final budget to close the books on Fiscal Year 2024, including an allocation of $565 million in federal dollars to MassHealth, supplemental reconciliation funding for universal school meals program, and $162 million for the Student Opportunity Act reserve fund to support increases in aid for K-12 schools.

ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE

Today, both chambers voted to approve a major bill to tackle substance use disorder and help address the opioid crisis. The bill will expand access to lifesaving opioid reversal drugs such as Narcan and mandate that insurance providers cover them. It establishes liability protections for public health and harm reduction organizations and expands prescriber training and insurance coverage for non-opioid pain treatment.

The bill also requires the Department of Public Health to study alcohol- and drug-free housing, including the safety and recovery of sober home residents in the Commonwealth. I'm proud to have supported recovery housing in this year's budget, securing $50,000 to provide training on opioid antagonists and overdose responses for public higher education institutions with substance abuse recovery student housing. The bill now goes to the Governor's desk for her signature.