Hi Everyone,
Hope you’re all doing well. It’s been a busy week in the Legislature and our district.
We kicked the week off on Monday with a hearing with the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs. We heard testimony on legislation focused on staffing shortages in nursing homes across the state. As the Vice-Chair of the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, I’m taking the needs of our nursing homes very seriously and look forward to working toward improvement.
Tuesday was National Pet Day! I’m so grateful for my cat Finnegan who we adopted through the Westfield Homeless Cat Project. Finnegan and all of Team Velis’ furry friends hope you can spare a couple of extra treats for your furry friends this week in their honor.
On Tuesday I also met with several different substance use recovery and support advocacy organizations at the State House. As Co-Chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use, and Recovery, I always appreciate hearing from groups like this about what their priorities are and how they can be best supported by the state and our local communities.
On Wednesday I had a meeting with Roca Inc. to discuss budget priorities. Roca’s mission is to disrupt incarceration, poverty, and racism through engagement with youth intervention strategies. With two sites in Western MA doing amazing work, it was great to hear about their top priorities moving forward.
Thursday the Senate was in formal session with the highlight on Governor Healey’s bill to establish a separate Housing Secretary in her cabinet. This new position will provide an increased focus on housing issues in in the Commonwealth and I was glad to join my colleagues in a bi-partisan effort to get this bill passed.
I also met with Attorney General Campbell in Boston on Thursday to discuss new reports of the impact that social media is having on the mental health of adolescents. This is a really important priority of mine this session and it is my goal to understand all aspects of this issue so that we can combat the problem in the right way.
I finished off my week with a busy Friday! I joined a wonderful group of students from UMass Amherst for a class, joined a meeting with the Veterans Advocacy Coalition, and stopped by the Holyoke Department of Public Works to visit facilities and discuss how the state can better support their needs.
This week my team held office hours in West Springfield on Wednesday. Next week, we’ll be at the Easthampton COA on Tuesday from 10:30am-11:30am and at the Holyoke COA on Wednesday from 10:00am-11:00am. Feel free to stop by with any questions, comments, concerns, or just to say hello!
If you are unable to make our office hours or need assistance any sooner, I can always be reached at my email: john.velis@masenate.gov or by phone: (413) 572-3920. You can also find me online at senatorjohnvelis.com where you can also sign up for my newsletter!
Best, John Velis