Campaign Phone
413-717-5041
I support Election Day Registration (EDR) because it helps more people participate in our democracy by making it easier to vote, particularly those who have moved or missed registration deadlines. It removes barriers for people who feel marginalized including minorities and young people. It accommodates citizens with unpredictable schedules or those who get interested in the election later in the process. EDR is also a backstop against voter fraud because it helps keep voter rolls current and accurate. Opponents who cite an increased administrative burden, financial costs, and the risk of mistakes miss the point. The integrity of our electoral system must never be in question. Everyone’s right to vote must be our top priority.
The climate crisis threatens our environment and economy, particularly in the Berkshires where they are inextricably interdependent. We must address the crisis with urgency and innovation. My priorities are: invest more in renewable energy and incentives to accelerate the shift; enhance energy efficiency by upgrading building codes, retrofitting existing structures and expanding the Mass Save program; provide more transportation options to cut emissions and improve mobility; conserve more forests and wetlands for carbon sequestration; support sustainable farming and food networks to feed local economies; educate the public so we all understand the implications of our actions; and enforce transparency and accountability in permitting.
Housing and economic development go hand-in-hand. The Affordable Homes Act takes a big step in the right direction with priorities on infrastructure to support new development, rehab and modernization of public housing, and allowances for ADUs. Let’s build on this momentum by expanding existing programs such as the AG’s Abandoned Home Receivership program, promoting intergenerational and co-living models, expanding “final mile” grants for qualified first-time homebuyers, increasing community block grants and funding for housing rehab and community revitalization projects, and investing more in local community land trusts and affordable housing trust funds to grow our supply of safe, accessible homes that residents can afford.
We need to streamline our administrative systems and strengthen our infrastructure to integrate immigrants into our communities with empathy, transparency, and accountability — without compromising current demand. It’s not about inventing new services. We must make the ones that already exist more accessible. Speeding up the work permitting process and capping shelter stays helps reduce system bottlenecks. The Berkshire Alliance to Support the Immigration Community (BASIC) is a grassroots model for connecting immigrants to local sources for food, clothes, housing, jobs, healthcare, childcare, education, transportation, and more without stressing the system or creating redundancy. It is replicable and I will advocate for it as a model.
The transportation challenges in our largely rural district are holding back our economy, putting our environment at risk, and making daily life extra hard for our most vulnerable neighbors. My priorities are: 1) provide more reliable, safe, and accessible mass and micro-transportation services for everyone; 2) accelerate the shift to electric vehicles so as our population grows our reliance on fossil fuels doesn’t; and 3) improve access to existing rail service such as a shuttle service to the Wassaic, NY station for trains to NYC, and make east-west rail service between Pittsfield and Boston a reality. Accomplishing these priorities will pay back to the economy, the environment, and overall quality of life in the Commonwealth.
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