Hello Everyone,
I can hardly believe that this was the first week of August. Summer has absolutely flown by. I hope everyone has been taking advantage of the cooler temperatures as well.
After much deliberation, the Senate and the House passed our final version of the Fiscal Year 2024 budget and sent it to the Governor’s Desk Monday morning. From investing in our education and transportation systems, to supporting our behavioral healthcare workforce and providing critical local aid, this budget responds to the pressing challenges our state is facing and invests directly into our Commonwealth’s greatest asset, our residents. I will have more highlights to share soon on specific funding my team secured for the district. For now though, I would like to thank all my colleagues, on both sides of the aisles and both sides of the legislature, for all their hard work in completing this legislation that is vital to the function of our Commonwealth.
I would also like to thank my colleagues for their prioritization of a much smaller, but critical, supplemental budget that we also passed this week for the 2023 Fiscal Year. Included in this was twenty million dollars of flexible funding for rural and farming communities impacted by the recent flooding, many of which are right here in Western Massachusetts. This will make a huge difference in the economic recovery of our region and has already been signed into law this week by Governor Healey.
I would like to congratulate the graduates of the 88th Recruit Training Troop of the Massachusetts State Police, who were officially sworn in Thursday in Springfield. From our district, we will be welcoming new officers Christopher M. Ortega of Agawam, Jesus E. Arocho of Chicopee, John M. Sarnacki of Chicopee, George S. Hotz of Easthampton, Alondra N. Sanchez of Holyoke, David Soto of Holyoke, and Orlando Huertas Jr of Westfield. Through your perseverance and dedication, you have earned the honor of being a Massachusetts State Trooper. Thank you for protecting our Commonwealth and good luck with the start of your careers.
On Thursday morning, Team Velis attended a monthly meeting of many of the Animal Control Officers from Western Mass to better understand issues surrounding animal welfare. I look forward to working alongside all these hardworking officers to better promote the safety of animals in our communities and our office is grateful for their insight!
Next week my office will be holding office hours in Agawam on Monday at 11am in the COA and also at the West Springfield COA on Wednesday at 11am. If you can’t make office hours, I can always be reached by email, john.velis@masenate.gov, by phone, (413) 527-3920, and you can find me online at senatorjohnvelis.com
Sincerely,
John Velis