Karen E. Spilka

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill allowing private attorneys taking individual public-defense assignments to buy group health coverage through the public-counsel committee, at no cost to the state or committee. The available history records its Judiciary Committee referral. The official source was reverified on October 17, 2026; that verification date substitutes for an unavailable historical action/publication date.

October 17, 2026Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a spending amendment that banned bump stocks and trigger cranks and funded other state needs. It also created a substance-use treatment fund and required insurers to certify children’s community mental-health coverage. The Senate adopted her replacement text 28–8. A conference bill carrying these policies became law in November 2017.

November 3, 2017Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored disclosure of financial rewards for switching patients to equivalent drugs. Her bill required prescribers to inform patients and pharmacists to inform both patients and prescribers. It went to a study order in March 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored a Medicaid waiver request excluding spousal income and assets from certain home-care eligibility decisions. The proposal covered adults ages 19 through 60 with progressive physical disabilities needing nursing-home-level care. The 2015 bill went to study in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a secure, voluntary online registry for healthcare and end-of-life instructions. The bill included accessible forms, authorized access, provider checks and a registry symbol on identification cards. It ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored access to emergency allergy medicine stocked by businesses and organizations. The bills addressed training, prescriptions, reporting and liability protections. A later draft focused on restaurants. It passed the Senate in July 2016 but did not pass the House.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored insurance coverage for medically needed services for children with developmental delays. The bills included therapy, behavioral support and related care for children under 19. Later versions extended the state’s autism-coverage framework. The 2015 bill went to study in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a regional jail for women awaiting trial or serving county sentences in six eastern counties. The proposal included specialized programs and medical services. It ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored insurance protections after breast-cancer surgery, including patient-and-doctor decisions on hospital stays. The bills covered reconstruction, qualified second opinions and care for related swelling. Her study amendment was rejected during health-reform debate on May 17, 2012. The 2015 bill went to a study order in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored health-study and insurance-survey data comparing results by sex, race and income. The proposal required valid comparisons for women, racial minorities and low-income participants. The 2015 bill received no further action before January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored restrictions on prison placements for people civilly committed for addiction treatment. The 2015 version allowed exceptions for violence, escape risk or serious medical needs preventing less intensive care. It also addressed treatment capacity. The bill went to study in May 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a task force improving health-coverage enrollment for former foster youth. It reviewed automatic enrollment, outreach, shared data and quarterly Medicaid tracking. The bill received no further action before January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 acupuncture proposal covering insurance and reimbursement rules, treatment-scope definitions and a study commission. A revised bill retained specified coverage requirements but received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring mammography notices explaining breast density and discussing supplemental screening, with specified liability and evidence limitations. A revised bill received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 prescription-spending proposal linking a separate annual drug cost-sharing cap to the federal high-deductible-plan minimum deductible. The revised Senate bill retained private-plan caps but dropped the GIC clause; it passed the Senate in July 2014 without final House action.

July 22, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring disclosures when clinicians profited from product sales. Its revised successor removed the broad disclosure regime and instead authorized direct sale of two aesthetic prescription products under safety rules; it received no final action.

July 15, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2014 clinic-access bill authorizing time-limited written withdrawal orders after actual obstruction, with civil and criminal enforcement. The revised July 2014 law allowed orders covering up to 25 feet and eight hours, and used lower Attorney General civil penalties than the Senate draft.

July 15, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill recognizing qualifying fair-value family-caregiver contracts in MassHealth asset determinations, with service descriptions, reasonable pay and refunds of unearned advance payments. Its companion moved to study in June 2014.

June 30, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring inpatient medication-use and side-effect information acknowledged by the patient or health-care proxy. It moved to a study order.

April 28, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill restoring federally optional adult MassHealth benefits to January 2002 levels, including dental services and specified Basic and Essential dental-benefit parity. It moved to study in April 2014.

April 28, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 prescription step-therapy bill preventing repeat failure requirements for continuously enrolled subscribers and providing the lowest preferred-class copayment after completing the protocol, with specified conditions. It moved to study in March 2014.

March 25, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill imposing ordinary-care liability on carriers and managed-care organizations for medical decisions and certain controlled-agent failures, subject to defenses and scope exceptions. It moved to study in March 2014.

March 25, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill limiting patient cost sharing for specified initial cancer screenings and physician-ordered follow-up tests during the same year. It moved to study in March 2014.

March 25, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill improving mental-health crisis and treatment access for otherwise eligible people with autism or related conditions, with trained clinicians and agency coordination. It moved to study in March 2014.

March 13, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2013–14 nursing-facility financing, workforce and bed-hold proposals. A revised bed-hold bill allowed ten days per medical event and ten nonmedical days annually, replacing different earlier limits; the wider workforce and financing proposals also received no final action.

February 27, 2014Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2013–14 juvenile mental-health review proposals, including community alternatives to detention, confidential voluntary assessments, care coordination and a limited Springfield pilot requiring approval before statewide expansion. The bills moved to study.

January 31, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill prohibiting licensed professionals from providing or advertising sexual-orientation or gender-identity change efforts to minors, with discipline, reporting and consumer-protection enforcement. Supportive counseling and identity exploration were excepted. Its successor received no final action.

January 18, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring specified insurance plans to cover treatment of PANDAS and PANS, including intravenous immunoglobulin. It received no final action.

January 18, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2013–14 bills restricting financially conflicted laboratory referrals. Their later successor replaced the referral ban with a study of anatomic-pathology utilization and ownership; that revised measure received no final action.

January 17, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring specified private insurance and public-employee plans to cover screening, diagnosis and treatment for people under 21 at Medicaid EPSDT-equivalent scope. It received no final action.

January 17, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill allowing qualifying for-profit hospitals to compete for Distressed Hospital Trust Fund grants while retaining the other eligibility conditions. It moved to a study order.

January 16, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored limits on Medicaid hospital penalties for avoidable readmissions above expected levels. The proposal used risk adjustment and lower penalties for improving hospitals. Her bill joined a House proposal in May 2014. That proposal did not pass.

January 16, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pregnancy care and limits on restraints for incarcerated women. The resulting law covered screening, prenatal care, nutrition, recovery and limits on isolation. It became law May 15, 2014. The final law allowed some front handcuffs during transport beyond her original exceptions.

January 16, 2013Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 Medicaid-continuity bills and co-offered an adopted 2010 Senate amendment keeping otherwise eligible children covered for up to twelve months despite excess income, ending sooner at annual review. She later co-sponsored a parent-inclusive waiver proposal and co-offered a 2012 amendment directing express-lane renewals and prepopulated forms while studying continuous eligibility.

May 24, 2012Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered health-reform amendments on May 17, 2012. The Senate adopted her joint proposals for diagnostic-accuracy and provider-price studies, prevention grants and workplace wellness support. It also adopted her proposal adding health-industry voices to an advisory council. The August 6 law retained these initiatives with changes, including industry representation on the Health Policy Commission advisory council. The law assigned the price commission a study and recommendations, without imposing price caps. Prevention funding remained subject to grant and reporting rules. Rejected proposals addressed insurance for court-ordered child mental-health care, obstetrics access, sex-aware health data and reporting by race and income.

May 17, 2012Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation requiring insurers to pay for separately billed cervical cytology screenings performed during annual physical examinations. The bill ended the session without passage.

June 20, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored eliminating patient cost sharing for federally specified preventive services under Commonwealth Care, the state’s subsidized health-insurance program. The bill went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored revised anatomical-gift rules covering donor decisions, family priorities, procurement, hospital and medical-examiner cooperation, and registry access. The law, approved February 22, 2012, also addressed online donor registration, education and voluntary contributions.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored statewide child-psychiatry consultation and care-coordination proposals with insurer or surcharge-payer funding. The 2011 proposal advanced to a committee draft but ended without passage. A later version specified telephone consultation for children under 19 at least five days a week and also ended without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored studying nursing homes organized into home-style units of no more than 14 residents. The proposal addressed resident-directed care, consistent staffing, financing and regulatory barriers. It ended the 2011–2012 session without passage; a later version also failed.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a state Alzheimer’s project coordinating research, treatment, public agencies and an annually updated care plan, with public advisory meetings and attention to disparities. The proposal joined another bill that went to study in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring hospital checklists to prevent medical errors and healthcare-associated infections. A later draft replaced mandatory use with state guidance and reports on hospital checklist use. The proposal ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored protecting patients’ access to ongoing mental-health providers after insurance-network changes. The proposal retained network-rate payment and limited additional patient charges to justified costs. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored protecting Medicaid eligibility after asset transfers made for fair value or purposes unrelated to qualifying for assistance. The proposal identified circumstances shifting the burden of proof to the agency. Its replacement bill ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation counting premiums and expected deductibles, copayments and coinsurance when determining whether health insurance was affordable under the state coverage mandate. It also expanded the unaffordability exemption. The bill went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation clarifying independent healthcare consent for minors living apart from their parents and managing their own finances. The bill removed distinctions based on parental permission, time living apart and the source or size of their income. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored screening criminal defendants for military service and allowing 14-day continuances for veterans’ assessments and treatment or diversion planning. The bill also required court-personnel training and annual outcome reports. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored licensing for behavior analysts and assistants, with education, supervised practice, examinations, professional exceptions and discipline. The revised law, approved January 8, 2013, placed the profession under an expanded existing board and included limited transition routes for experienced practitioners.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored residential support for eligible older adults and temporary presumed MassHealth eligibility after discharge. The same bill covered paid spouse caregivers and personal care for people needing supervision or reminders. The 2011 proposal went to study in 2012; later versions went to study in 2014.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored Medicaid telehealth coverage and trained aides’ administration of specified noninjected medicines under nurse supervision. The proposal also addressed annual home-health rates and hospital-transition payments tied to avoiding readmission. The bill went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored insurance coverage for clinicians’ consultations needed for children’s mental-health diagnosis and treatment, lasting at least 15 minutes. The proposal also treated medication management and neuropsychological assessments as medical benefits. Her joint amendment during health-reform debate was rejected on May 17, 2012. The standalone bill went to a study order in December.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation protecting students’ self-administration of prescribed inhalers, epinephrine, cystic-fibrosis enzymes and diabetes treatments. A revised bill became law on January 8, 2013, including secure but unlocked epinephrine storage at nurse-designated risk locations, accessible only to authorized people.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation permitting manufacturer drug coupons and rebates to reduce patients’ costs, with pharmacy-neutral access and protections for insurance design and health-data privacy. It also required a study of premiums and brand versus generic use. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored routine HIV-screening and consent reforms. The revised law, approved April 27, 2012, permitted verbal informed consent for testing while retaining written consent for disclosure of results or identity. It omitted the broader mandatory test-offer and care-linkage requirements.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded health benefits for uninsured children through age 18 who were otherwise ineligible for MassHealth. Earlier proposals included emergency, surgical, vision, mental-health, dental, equipment and hearing benefits. The later version retained unlimited primary-care sick visits, discretionary dental, drug and behavioral-health benefits, and cost reporting. The proposals ended their sessions without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation extending eligibility for state group health insurance to employees of private human-service providers working under state health, human-services and elder-affairs contracts. The bill went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored nursing-workforce investment and safe-staffing plans, including training support, direct-care nurse participation, public reports, fatigue limits and patient-handling standards. The bill allowed tailored staffing remedies rather than a single statewide ratio. It went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored studying direct-care staffing, turnover, wages, training and future long-term-care needs. The proposal also addressed credentials, worker referrals and support for consumers employing care workers. Its replacement bill went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored dementia-care staff training, activities, building safeguards and disclosure standards, including training in ordinary nursing homes. The law was signed on July 8, 2012. It did not establish higher reimbursement solely for meeting these standards.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored rights for continuing-care retirement residents to organize, receive financial information and comment on facility plans. The final law included qualified fee explanations and consultation rights without guaranteeing a governing-board seat. It was signed on January 8, 2013.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored licensing and professional standards for clinical exercise physiologists, including education, supervised experience, examinations and a temporary experienced-practitioner route. An early version created an independent board; later proposals added clinical-exercise representation to the allied-health board. Her 2011 bill required a master’s degree, clinical training and examinations, with an alternative route based on prior education and experience. The proposals ended the reviewed sessions without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying long-term-care options, consumer choice, reduced reliance on MassHealth nursing-home beds and incentives for conversion to other services. It received no further action after reaching joint Rules.

January 4, 2011Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring an emergency medication-access plan covering lost or expired prescriptions, no-extra-cost substitutes, transportation failures and telephone assistance. Its revised version moved to a study order.

October 28, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill excluding a community spouse’s retirement accounts from the other spouse’s Medicaid asset calculation when regular distributions were made or the community spouse remained employed. It moved to a study order.

October 28, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 vaccine-financing bills establishing an insurer-supported childhood-vaccine purchasing system, coverage without cost sharing and a confidential vaccination registry. The versions differed in insurer and federal-vaccine exceptions; both moved to study.

October 28, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 cigarette-tax-funded lung-cancer screening and research trust, with low-income and minority screening priorities, diagnostic follow-up and administrative limits. It moved to a study order.

October 12, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill giving municipal subscribers transferred into state group insurance parity with state employees for specified insurance amounts and benefits. It moved to a study order.

September 30, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 health-coverage bill expanding outreach, eligibility for specified elderly or disabled noncitizens, retroactive provider reimbursement and notice protections, and barring lifetime benefit caps. It moved to a study order.

September 27, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 organ-donation registration bills and a related transplant-medication notification bill. The resulting 2010 law created donor-registration support, a fund and council, online registry access and voluntary registry contributions, and retained physician notice for substituted transplant immunosuppressants. The final law omitted proposed tax-return registration and antihemophilic-drug provisions.

July 29, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 midwifery-licensing proposal. Its revised bill addressed certified professional-midwife licensing, credentials, informed consent, referrals and emergency transfer, and nurse-midwife testing and prescribing authority. A further House substitute remained pending without final enactment shown.

July 26, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill providing at least $100,000 for analysis of designated stroke hospitals and a full-time compliance surveyor. It moved to a study order in July 2010.

July 15, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill allowing manufacturers to provide prescription-drug rebates directly to consumers even when insurance paid part of the cost. It reached House Ways and Means; the available history shows no later action.

May 20, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill adding dedicated school-nurse staffing to foundation-budget calculations and accountability. The proposal left its numerical staffing factor unfilled. It moved to a study order.

May 17, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 proposals for an Alzheimer’s state-plan commission involving patients, caregivers, providers and agencies. They required public input and a plan assessing needs and service gaps before the commission expired. The House proposal moved to a study order.

April 29, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring only one medical authorization for insurance coverage of nonprescription enteral formula across state and commercial health plans. It moved to a study order.

April 22, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying drug-rehabilitation needs, access and capacity for Department of Children and Families clients, with former clients represented. It reached House Ways and Means; the available history shows no later action.

March 18, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission reducing delays in obtaining medical equipment for children with special health-care needs. A revised resolve passed the Senate but later moved to a study order in the House.

March 11, 2010Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pre-arrest diversion based on Framingham’s joint police and mental-health clinician response. That proposal included training, assessments, referrals and grants. Her later bill authorized clinically appropriate community treatment and diversion pilots, subject to funding and public-safety safeguards. It entered a broader substance-use draft in June 2010 that did not pass.

January 13, 2009Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a refundable income-tax credit covering 30% of a hearing aid’s cost, capped at $400. The proposal allowed one hearing aid every five years. The Senate rejected the amendment on May 21, 2008.

May 21, 2008Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation standardizing physician credentialing forms and setting deadlines for decisions on substantially complete applications. Also co-offered a 2005 amendment setting a 30-day deadline, or 45 days for specified national carriers, which the Senate adopted. The standalone proposals later reached study orders.

April 24, 2008Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a bill removing children’s public-health-coverage premiums when an adult in the household was enrolled in Commonwealth Care. It was accompanied by broader health-cost legislation in 2008.

April 14, 2008Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation addressing foster children’s best interests, medical screening, caseworker training, life-support decisions and serious-abuse referrals. Its committee draft stalled. A separate July 2008 child-welfare law included matching safeguards, with changed medical-review requirements and an expanded existing professional council; the original proposal itself did not become law.

November 5, 2007Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a full-time state dental director and a public-health oral-health office supporting prevention, access, fluoridation and statewide surveillance. The Senate rejected the amendment in May 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored annual breast MRI insurance coverage from age 25 for women meeting specified cancer-risk criteria. Eligibility included personal or family cancer history, genetic mutations and abnormal biopsy findings. The bill went to a study order in April 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing sexual-assault nurse examiner training and certification, pediatric qualifications, forensic standards and designated services, advised by a multidisciplinary board. The core programme became law in August 2006.

August 1, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring at least one full-time registered nurse in every public school. The proposal also addressed school physicians, nurse practitioners and suitable facilities. It went to a study order in 2006.

June 8, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation requiring HMOs to give members aged 65 or older 120 days’ written notice before coverage ended, including reasons, appeal information and next steps. The refile accompanied a different Medicare-supplement proposal that later reached a study order; passage of the notice requirement was not established.

June 5, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored barring prior approval and other Medicaid restrictions on specified medicines treating mental illness. The proposal included antipsychotics, antidepressants and anticonvulsants. It went to a study order in May 2006.

May 30, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment preventing MassHealth from reassigning a beneficiary from a contracted specialty behavioral-health organization without the beneficiary’s written or verbal consent. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 25, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered temporary prescription protections for Prescription Advantage members and MassHealth beneficiaries also enrolled in Medicare during July through December 2006. The amendment provided a 30-day supply, followed by a free 72-hour supply, when Medicare billing failed, and addressed excess Medicare cost sharing. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 25, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a federal waiver request and regulated plan for importing FDA-approved medicines from Canada. The proposal covered residents and specified public programs, with supplier licensing, testing, tracking and safeguards passing savings to consumers. It went to study in April 2006.

April 10, 2006Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a Commonwealth Care health-insurance exchange for eligible individuals and small groups. It provided plan choice, enrollment and premium collection, carrier and benefit standards, public oversight and startup funding. It also allowed specified departures from coverage mandates. The Senate adopted the amendment during its November 2005 health-reform debate.

November 9, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment adding licensed clinics to the providers eligible for targeted investments from a proposed Health Care Access and Investments Trust Fund. The Senate adopted her amendment in November 2005, then adopted a replacement fund section that omitted the added clinic language.

November 9, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered funding amendments during the November 2005 economic-investment bill debate. Adopted proposals included Ashland and Framingham redevelopment funds, Hopkinton trade-tourism support and regional STEM internships. Other proposals, including transportation, arts, environmental and medical-study funding, were rejected.

November 3, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored restoring health benefits for eligible legal immigrants and broader emergency Medicaid coverage. Her bill advanced into the 2006 health-reform legislation. The final law included qualifying legal immigrants in Commonwealth Care and extended MassHealth Essential to eligible older or disabled immigrants. The latter provision survived the governor’s veto on May 24, 2006.

October 31, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a federal Medicaid waiver application for intensive home and community services for children with autism at risk of institutionalization. The resulting law required provider qualifications, language-accessible enrollment, coordination with school services and annual reports. It was approved October 5, 2005; federal approval remained a separate step.

October 5, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment extending MassHealth coverage to otherwise eligible former foster youth under 21 who had been in state custody at 18. It also requested a cost study of coverage for all otherwise eligible people under 21. The amendment was rejected in 2005.

May 24, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment adding suicide prevention and reducing suicide among Department of Youth Services youth to a budget youth-mental-health provision. The Senate adopted it in 2005.

May 23, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a new department supporting adults with disabilities or chronic conditions outside specified existing agencies. Revised bills instead used interagency agreements and existing service networks. They covered personal care, respite, housing modifications, accessible technology and consumer choice. The proposal ended the 2005–2006 session without passage.

January 26, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored workers’ compensation changes covering causation, treatment payments, emergency hearings, disability benefits and disfigurement awards. The bill also required health coverage while injury liability was disputed. It went to study in February 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a review of healthcare and environmental conditions for women at MCI Framingham, compared with community standards. The proposal examined access, treatment and staffing and sought $200,000 for the review. Versions went to study orders in 2006 and 2008.

January 26, 2005Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored expanding nondiscriminatory HMO access to chiropractic and foot-care services, including provider participation and requested chiropractic referrals. The proposal set outside-network benefits at least 80% of network benefit levels. It went to a study order in March 2004.

March 29, 2004Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation allowing enrollment in the state catastrophic prescription-drug programme after an HMO ended contracts with a member’s physicians, specialists or hospital. The proposal reached the House Medicaid committee in 2004 and received no further action.

February 5, 2004Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored allowing licensed hospitals, clinics and community health centers to establish retail prescription pharmacies under state controlled-substance law. The bill went to a study order in September 2003.

September 11, 2003Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored the Senate bill restricting commercial trade in ivory and rhinoceros horn, with exceptions for antiques, instruments and other uses. It added fines, seizure rules and a wildlife-enforcement fund. The Senate passed the bill, but the House took no further action.

June 21, 2018Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill banning nonprescription dextromethorphan sales to people under 18 and requiring photo identification. Prescription sales were exempt. The bill received no further action after committee referral.

August 14, 2017Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill for an independent commission to study health effects of electromagnetic fields, including school Wi-Fi. The bill excluded appointees with financial interests in the affected industries. It received no further action after reaching Senate Rules.

January 23, 2017Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored phasing out plastic microbeads in personal-care products and over-the-counter drugs during 2018–2020. The proposal included daily civil penalties and court enforcement. It went to a study order in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored a 50% income-tax credit for home energy improvements, capped at $1,000 for single-family homes. The cap reached $1,500 for multi-unit homes. Earlier versions also proposed property-tax relief. The 2015 bill had no recorded passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored restrictions on BPA in young children’s toys, care products and food containers. The bills required safer replacements. The later version added civil penalties up to $5,000, doubled for repeat offenses. It went to study in March 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored new rules for selling or leasing unused state land. The bills included local purchase rights, affordable housing, public review and sharing proceeds with municipalities. They also protected specified conservation land. The 2015 version went to study in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 healthy-food retail financing proposal for underserved communities, using loans, grants, technical assistance and economic-impact reporting. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 climate-risk assessment proposal covering sea-level and storm scenarios, public and utility assets, resilience and relocation costs, and public hearings. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring landlords and condominium associations with at least three units to provide recycling means and information where a local recycling programme operated. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and co-sponsored water-resource funding proposals from 2005 through 2014, including restricted local water-impact funds and broader water-infrastructure financing. The revised law, approved August 5, 2014, provided planning and technology grants, loan assistance and local financing options, including a voter-approved property-tax surcharge up to three percent. That surcharge differed from the earlier water-use and growth-fee proposals.

August 5, 2014Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring recycling by state agencies, courts and the legislature, including specified materials, lease provisions and larger-agency tonnage reports. A revised July 2014 bill received no final action.

July 24, 2014Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 poaching-enforcement and Wildlife Violator Compact proposal addressing penalties, restitution, reciprocal license suspensions and due process. A revised bill passed the Senate in June 2014 but received no final House action.

June 19, 2014Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 electric-vehicle proposal addressing grid access, charging, off-peak rates, safety training, infrastructure barriers and transportation-finance studies. It moved to a study order.

May 21, 2014Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 energy-efficiency equity bill requiring neighborhood-level programme data and benchmarks, fair-labor and workforce planning, and proposed 2025 weatherization targets. It moved to a study order.

March 6, 2014Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill applying youth-sales, school and smoke-free restrictions to electronic cigarettes and limiting free samples, with an FDA medical-product exception. A revised bill received no final action.

August 20, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 transmission-line vegetation-management bill requiring approved plans, municipal and abutter notice, public input and specified restoration protections. It moved to a study order.

January 30, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored legislation creating a state programme to assess safer alternatives to toxic chemicals, require feasible substitutions and assist businesses and affected workers. The 2005 proposal reached a study order. Versions in 2011 and 2013 reached revised drafts that changed chemical priorities, funding and implementation dates, and ended their sessions without passage.

January 30, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill directing incentives for innovative water solutions in environmental remediation and state-funded pilot testing of water technologies. It moved to a study order.

January 18, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill increasing specified tobacco excises and dedicating additional revenue to prevention, cessation and enforcement. FDA-approved cessation and medical products were excepted. It moved to a study order.

January 18, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 hydraulic-fracturing wastewater disposal ban. A successor also proposed a 2015–2024 moratorium on hydraulic fracturing itself; it received no final action.

January 18, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 annual school suicide-prevention training proposal. Its successor reduced training to two hours once every five years, with approved materials, referral information and a liability limitation; it received no final action.

January 17, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored bottle-return reforms, including higher handling payments, free collection and relief for small stores. She also co-sponsored expanded deposits on drinks such as water and tea. A 2014 replacement proposed a fee after waste-reduction targets were met, followed by ending deposits four years later. That replacement ended the session without passage.

January 15, 2013Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered health-reform amendments on May 17, 2012. The Senate adopted her joint proposals for diagnostic-accuracy and provider-price studies, prevention grants and workplace wellness support. It also adopted her proposal adding health-industry voices to an advisory council. The August 6 law retained these initiatives with changes, including industry representation on the Health Policy Commission advisory council. The law assigned the price commission a study and recommendations, without imposing price caps. Prevention funding remained subject to grant and reporting rules. Rejected proposals addressed insurance for court-ordered child mental-health care, obstetrics access, sex-aware health data and reporting by race and income.

May 17, 2012Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored converting four Hopkinton conservation parcels for the Route 85 bridge project over the Sudbury River. Two temporary land-use diversions were limited to five years. The law was signed on November 3, 2011.

April 4, 2011Opposes Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a process for municipalities to buy electricity distribution systems, with public review, regulated valuation, allocation of existing obligations, renewable-energy planning and service standards. A revised bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring larger stores’ plastic checkout bags to be compostable. A later draft also required marine degradability and covered specified chains, pharmacies and supermarkets, with reusable or paper alternatives. It ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored municipal animal-control reforms. The law signed August 2, 2012 addressed licensing, rabies, kennels, officer training, dangerous-dog hearings and animal care. It prohibited breed-specific rules and created conditional shelter and spay-neuter funding. It also covered pets in protective orders and set impoundment and euthanasia rules and restricted tethering.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored shielding and efficient illumination for publicly funded outdoor lights, with safety exceptions. Earlier versions allowed operational, aesthetic and cost-effectiveness waivers. Her later bill added limits on dangerous private-property glare, lighting-cost reviews and utility rates for part-night service. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring hospital checklists to prevent medical errors and healthcare-associated infections. A later draft replaced mandatory use with state guidance and reports on hospital checklist use. The proposal ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored limits of 80 square feet and 30 feet in height for new service-advertising signs on the Massachusetts Turnpike. The bill also barred lighting existing oversized signs before 6 a.m. or after 10 p.m. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored limits on phosphorus in detergents and lawn fertilizers. The revised law, approved August 29, 2012, regulated plant nutrients more broadly and restricted lawn phosphorus unless testing or new turf justified it. It replaced fixed application restrictions with state rulemaking and omitted the detergent limits.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored physical education in every grade, with licensed teachers, national standards, state evaluation and a physical-education coordinator. She also co-sponsored a version adding charter schools, nutrition, medical exemptions and 30 minutes of daily activity for younger students. A revised bill dropped the daily-minute requirement and ended the 2013–2014 session without passage. The earlier bill also failed.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a commission studying health and safety effects of electric and magnetic fields from transmission lines. The proposal required recommendations for legislation. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored routine HIV-screening and consent reforms. The revised law, approved April 27, 2012, permitted verbal informed consent for testing while retaining written consent for disclosure of results or identity. It omitted the broader mandatory test-offer and care-linkage requirements.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored prohibiting the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority from diverting Connecticut River water for drinking supply. The proposal preserved existing source-water rights and stewardship. It went to a study order in May 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored school-coach CPR certification requirements, with an exception for physically disabled coaches. The 2011 bill ended without passage. A later version added defibrillator training; the final law, approved October 31, 2014, required CPR certification and took effect August 1, 2015.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored zero-interest-equivalent financing for water-pollution projects, including an earlier version also covering drinking water and feasible three-to-one fund leveraging. Her later bill changed the general water-pollution loan rate from 2% to zero. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a corporate deduction for half the cost of employee home energy audits combined with basic efficiency work. The work required an approved energy plan. The bill went to a study order in November 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a public-health volunteer registry and activation system, including interstate aid, liability protections and injury benefits for activated volunteers. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill preventing condominium boards from demanding liability promises before approving specified energy-saving improvements. It covered insulation, doors, windows and lighting. The bill went to a study order in October 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored review of older lead-test kits after federal recognition of a newer test. Her bill required a public hearing on health protection and cost before updated rules. It received a favorable report in April 2012 but did not pass.

January 20, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored broader uses for local preservation funds, including significant public buildings and playground improvements. Her bill also included energy-saving and renewable-energy work. It went to a study order in August 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored stronger dam oversight, repair and removal powers, including attention to abandoned dams and environmental harm. The resulting law established inspections, an inventory, financing tools and a dam-and-seawall fund. It was signed January 9, 2013, with penalties below her earlier proposal.

January 19, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring child-care, foster-care and similar facilities to certify that children could not access recalled or unsafe products, with approved-retrofit and inaccessible-antique exceptions. It reached Ways and Means without further action.

January 4, 2011Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill making the septic-repair tax credit refundable, removing the failed-system prerequisite and extending unused-credit carryforward from five to ten years. It retained annual and total credit caps. The bill moved to a study order.

December 13, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill adding residential geothermal-energy property to the existing renewable-energy income-tax credit. It moved to a study order.

December 13, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 vaccine-financing bills establishing an insurer-supported childhood-vaccine purchasing system, coverage without cost sharing and a confidential vaccination registry. The versions differed in insurer and federal-vaccine exceptions; both moved to study.

October 28, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 cigarette-tax-funded lung-cancer screening and research trust, with low-income and minority screening priorities, diagnostic follow-up and administrative limits. It moved to a study order.

October 12, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 food-policy council bill linking Massachusetts agriculture, healthy-food access, farmer viability and protection of land and water. The revised measure became law in August 2010, establishing a 17-member advisory council, public input and annual recommendations; it did not itself appropriate the suggested food subsidies.

August 9, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored legislation requiring a bittering agent in qualifying antifreeze to reduce accidental poisoning. As enacted, it required 30–50 parts per million denatonium, ingredient records and limited liability protection, with vehicle and wholesale-container exceptions. It became law in July 2010.

July 19, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill making biothermal recovery eligible for Renewable Energy Trust assistance even when it did not generate electricity. It moved to a study order.

June 2, 2010Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a voluntary regional public-health district for MetroWest towns. The plan covered shared staffing, local representation, audits, employee protections and state aid with local matching funds. It went to a study order in July 2010.

January 13, 2009Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill requiring heart-rhythm tests before public-school students joined interscholastic sports. Its public history recorded referral to committee in January 2009, without later passage.

January 13, 2009Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Offered adopted amendments coordinating children’s behavioral-health guidelines and school truancy-prevention support. The August 20, 2008 law retained agency consultation, certified-program guidance and technical assistance. A third adopted amendment removed billing-code language from a working-group provision.

August 20, 2008Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored restrictions on BPA and specified phthalates in toys and child-care products, including tighter rules for mouthable products for young children. The bill required safer substitutes and excluded specified toxic replacements. It reached Senate Ways and Means in April 2008 but did not advance further.

April 28, 2008Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a temporary property-tax exemption for value added by qualifying renewable-energy equipment, excluding property principally used in the energy business. The Senate rejected the amendment in January 2008.

January 9, 2008Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka offered adding railroad and transit rights-of-way to boundaries qualifying filled tidelands for a licensing exemption. The Senate rejected the amendment on July 31, 2007. The November law retained the public-way definition without her proposed railway and transit addition.

July 31, 2007Opposes Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a full-time state dental director and a public-health oral-health office supporting prevention, access, fluoridation and statewide surveillance. The Senate rejected the amendment in May 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored successive proposals seeking up to $400,000 for traffic-noise barriers along eastbound Route 9 beside Hartford Street in Natick. The first reached a study order in 2005; the House accepted an adverse report on the refile in March 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored income and corporate-tax credits for certified green buildings, tenant spaces, fuel cells and solar power. The proposal included cost limits, larger construction credits in economic-development areas, annual professional certification and indoor-air monitoring. It went to a study order in March 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a confidential, voluntary registry of biological-family health histories to support adoptees’ and descendants’ preventive care. The proposal later accompanied a vital-records bill that omitted the registry. Neither vehicle enacted the proposed registry during the session.

January 11, 2007Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored statewide greenhouse-gas reporting, emission limits, planning and enforcement. The resulting law was signed on August 7, 2008. It set 2020 emissions limits 10%–25% below 1990 levels and a 2050 reduction of at least 80%. It also required climate review in specified state environmental decisions and safeguards for disadvantaged communities. Her separate agency-planning proposal used different reduction targets and ended the session without passage.

January 11, 2007Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restricting mercury-containing products and requiring collection and recycling. The resulting mercury-management law, approved on July 28, 2006, established phased sales restrictions, manufacturer-funded vehicle-switch recovery, product labels and special disposal rules, with exemptions and recycling requirements for particular products.

July 28, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restricting routine cleaning products in schools, day care, public buildings and shared public-housing areas to a safer-products list, with worker training, exceptions and enforcement. The final committee draft added asthma-related performance criteria and removed a hospital commission and pilot. It remained in House Ways and Means without further action.

June 6, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a permanent, independent commission on gay and lesbian youth. Its duties included school and community suicide- and violence-prevention efforts, agency recommendations and annual reports, with public meetings and diverse membership. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 24, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing statewide shaken-baby prevention, including newborn-parent education, professional training, support for affected families and surveillance. The November 2006 law retained those elements subject to appropriation and added good-faith liability protection, advisory consultation and annual evaluation and reporting.

April 10, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a half-cent-per-gallon heating-oil tax funding spill cleanup, research and tank-replacement grants up to $1,000. Cleanup assistance depended on financial need and unsuccessful insurance or loan requests. The proposal retained homeowner liability and went to a study order in March 2006.

March 29, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a motor-vehicle excise exemption for qualifying alternative-fuel and electric vehicles. The same bill raised the general excise rate from $25 to $30 per $1,000 of value. It went to study in March 2006.

March 29, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored and cosponsored expanded child-nutrition access, including free breakfast in high-needs schools, summer meals and after-school snacks. The proposals also provided multilingual applications, extended food-assistance office hours and caseworker continuity. The later bill went to study in March 2006.

March 23, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored streamflow legislation that advanced to a committee draft requiring state streamflow policies and regulations based on natural variation and protection of aquatic life. The draft ended the session in Senate Ways and Means without passage.

March 2, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill banning the sale or marketing of cigarettes with specified characterizing flavors, while exempting tobacco and menthol flavors. The bill reached House Ways and Means in 2006 without further action.

February 28, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored environmental-justice legislation requiring community mapping, language access, public participation and enhanced environmental review near affected communities. The original also proposed cumulative-pollution limits and special facility notices; the successor dropped those provisions. The successor reached Senate Ways and Means without further action.

February 15, 2006Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored product energy-efficiency standards that became law in November 2005, with narrowed product coverage, phased standards, testing and certification. She later cosponsored a 2009–10 expansion covering televisions, audio and DVD equipment, water dispensers, food-holding cabinets, portable lighting and spas. That expansion went to study.

November 22, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered funding amendments during the November 2005 economic-investment bill debate. Adopted proposals included Ashland and Framingham redevelopment funds, Hopkinton trade-tourism support and regional STEM internships. Other proposals, including transportation, arts, environmental and medical-study funding, were rejected.

November 3, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored bottled-water mineral-content labels. A revised 2003 bill replaced the explicit mineral list with permitting, water testing and federal minimum labeling standards. It passed the Senate but stalled in the House. Her later specific mineral-label proposal went to study in October 2005.

October 13, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment establishing a Marine and Inland Resource Protection Trust Fund for coastal, inland-water, recreation and geographic-information work. It allowed gifts, grants, fees and other receipts to support that work without further appropriation, with nonreversion and audit rules. The Senate adopted it in 2005 after deleting an exemption from indirect-cost assessments.

May 24, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment adding suicide prevention and reducing suicide among Department of Youth Services youth to a budget youth-mental-health provision. The Senate adopted it in 2005.

May 23, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation making electronics producers responsible for discarded-product collection and recycling, including orphan products. The final committee draft used producer fees to reimburse participating municipalities and processors and added reporting, sales and export safeguards. It reached House Ways and Means in March 2006; enactment was not established.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored free retailer collection and recycling of previously sold or replacement mobile phones, including return arrangements for delivered purchases. The proposal required consumer information, recycling reports and compliance in state purchasing. It went to study in December 2005.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored drug-forfeiture proposals directing a share of proceeds to community treatment and prevention, with the remainder split between prosecutors and police and detailed fund reporting. The 2003 proposal reserved 20%; the 2005 bill’s operative text raised that share to 50%. Both proposals went to study.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a review of healthcare and environmental conditions for women at MCI Framingham, compared with community standards. The proposal examined access, treatment and staffing and sought $200,000 for the review. Versions went to study orders in 2006 and 2008.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation protecting old-growth forests through inventories, reserve buffers, public petitions and limits on development and timber cutting, with exceptions for restoration, research and emergencies. A changed proposal reached House Ways and Means in 2005 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restricting designated toxic pesticides in public facilities and nonagricultural professional uses, with a priority list, pesticide-use reporting and enforcement. The final committee draft placed the list with an agriculture-based advisory subcommittee. It remained in House Ways and Means without further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored repeated proposals to acquire land or secure development protections for the Greater Callahan greenway in Framingham, Sudbury, Southborough and Marlborough, adding protected parcels to Callahan State Park. The earlier proposal went to study, the 2005 version reached House Ways and Means without advancing, and the 2009–10 refile also went to study.

January 26, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill supporting embryonic stem-cell and regenerative research using informed, uncompensated donations. It allowed specified nonprocreative research techniques while prohibiting transfer of cloned embryos or parthenotes to a uterus. The bill received no further action before the 2007 session end.

January 5, 2005Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored applying cleanup requirements to farmland converted to other uses after January 2002. The proposal limited specified former farmers’ liability for ordinary lawful pesticide or fertilizer use to $500,000 or half the land’s converted value, whichever was less. It went to study in May 2004.

May 13, 2004Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored civil penalties of up to $10,000 for commercial fuel-delivery spills exceeding 100 gallons on public roads. The proposal directed penalties to affected municipalities in addition to cleanup liability. It went to study in April 2004.

April 8, 2004Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a pollution-mitigation charge on sulfur-emission allowances transferred for use in specified acid-rain source states. The proposal dedicated receipts to energy efficiency, renewable-energy research and monitoring, with exceptions protecting existing contracts and restricted transfers. It went to study in February 2004.

February 26, 2004Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a resolution urging Congress to approve permanent nuclear-waste storage at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, citing stranded waste at Rowe. The House adopted it on June 11, 2002.

June 11, 2002Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored broader eligibility for state programs supporting older industrial communities. Her later proposal included municipalities with 65,000–250,000 residents meeting specified neighborhood poverty and income tests. The 2015 bill went to a study order in April 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored tuition relief for employees of state-funded human-service providers and their spouses. An explicit revised bill instead offered loan repayment for qualifying new social workers and credentialed direct-care workers. Eligibility ended at five times poverty-level income, with payments capped at $250 monthly for 48 months. A later version narrowed eligibility to a 100-person social-worker pilot. Neither approach passed in these sessions.

January 15, 2015Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 resolution asking Congress to protect major social programmes and support public investment and jobs. It also sought corporate tax loophole closure, higher-income taxes, and reductions in military spending and the Afghanistan war. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 three-year family self-sufficiency pilot combining training, work study, job placement, case management and emergency help, with a minimum share of current TAFDC participants. Its companion received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a jobs package covering agency business advisers, workforce training, manufacturing and education. It included unpaid training internships with unemployment benefits, worker protections and limited employer tax credits. The package also addressed public purchasing and local energy improvements. It went to study in September 2014.

January 18, 2013Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored passing eligible child-support collections through to families receiving public assistance without reducing their aid. The proposals also returned collected support to former recipients. An earlier version ended assignment of pre-assistance arrears and extended these policies to state-funded assistance. Neither version passed during the reviewed sessions.

February 4, 2011Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored public-assistance reforms counting education toward work requirements, removing specified asset limits, protecting education funding and productive savings, and increasing work-expense deductions. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring housing-stability screening at welfare applications and other contact points, homelessness-prevention benefits for eligible low-income households and protected savings for permanent housing. It reached Ways and Means without further action.

January 4, 2011Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored cash-assistance rewrites covering benefits, savings, work expenses, training, childcare, appeals and subsidized jobs. The proposals retained time limits, family-cap rules and fraud penalties while revising good-cause protections and sanctions. A 2006 conference bill stalled after gubernatorial amendments. She offered adopted amendments to a 2007 Senate-passed version that stalled in the House. Her later bill received a favorable committee report in March 2010 but did not pass.

January 13, 2009Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill setting aside certain benefit reductions for homeless cash-assistance recipients to obtain or keep housing. The savings stayed outside benefit asset limits. The committee reported it favorably in March 2010, but the bill did not advance further.

January 12, 2009Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored bills providing bulk purchases or leases of school computers and software, sales-tax relief and grants for low-income students, with a district contribution. The bills went to study. She later co-offered a $1 million transfer for educational-technology activities, which the Senate rejected in 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a commission studying how to create and maintain quality jobs, with legislative, government, labor, business and unemployed-worker representation. A revised commission became law on January 7, 2009. It required recommendations in June 2009 and did not itself create a jobs program.

January 11, 2007Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation raising the minimum wage and proposing annual inflation adjustments, higher tipped wages and public-employer coverage. The law passed over the governor’s veto on July 31, 2006, raised the hourly minimum to $7.50 in 2007 and $8 in 2008; the indexing, tipped-wage and public-employer provisions did not survive.

July 31, 2006Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a bill increasing the state earned-income tax credit to 30% of the federal credit, or 40% for families with at least three children. It also required employer notices and broader outreach. The bill was sent to study.

April 12, 2004Supports Reduce Wealth Gap

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored the Senate’s wage-theft bill expanding contractor liability, stop-work orders and recovery of unpaid wages. It included small-business exceptions and a compensation fund for workers and some contractors. The Senate passed it 38–0. The House took no further action.

June 21, 2018Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored bills extending death benefits to MassDOT highway-construction workers killed on duty. She later cosponsored a broader bill adding MassDOT employees to the public-employee death-benefit law, with coverage dating back to September 2010. The later bill moved to a study order in June 2018.

January 23, 2017Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a 2006 paid-leave bill and sponsored later versions through 2017. The early bills proposed 12 weeks of leave, initially at full wages and later 80%, capped at $750 weekly, funded by employee premiums alongside family tax deductions and a work-family council. Later versions changed to employer funding and then shared contributions. Her 2016 amendment was adopted, and the revised leave bill passed the Senate but stalled in the House. The 2017 bill proposed 16 weeks of family leave, 26 weeks of medical leave and job protections, with combined leave limited to 26 weeks. It received no further action after a 2018 committee transfer.

January 23, 2017Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a bill extending public-employee death benefits to public works employees. The bill moved to a study order in June 2018.

January 23, 2017Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored comparable-work pay-equity bills from 2009 through 2015 and offered an adopted amendment clarifying compensation protections. The final 2016 law prohibited gender-based pay differences for comparable work and restricted salary-history inquiries, with specified exceptions and a defense for employers conducting good-faith pay reviews.

February 4, 2015Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill extending nonprofit and health-care collective-bargaining coverage to professional employees and repealing the church-related-employer unemployment-insurance exclusion. A separate religious-order-member exception remained. The bill received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill restricting employment and licensing use of credit reports, with legal exceptions, consent and adverse-action notice protections, dispute procedures and enforcement. It moved to study in September 2014.

September 25, 2014Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 wage-claims bill. The August 2014 law tolled wage-claim deadlines during specified Attorney General proceedings, extended minimum-wage claims from two to three years and required three years of payroll records.

August 20, 2014Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 energy-efficiency equity bill requiring neighborhood-level programme data and benchmarks, fair-labor and workforce planning, and proposed 2025 weatherization targets. It moved to a study order.

March 6, 2014Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a jobs package covering agency business advisers, workforce training, manufacturing and education. It included unpaid training internships with unemployment benefits, worker protections and limited employer tax credits. The package also addressed public purchasing and local energy improvements. It went to study in September 2014.

January 18, 2013Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored added rider and labor representation on transportation boards, including voting rights and public comment. Her bill also required community-led service reviews and a study of transit-vehicle work in Massachusetts. It went to study in September 2014.

January 18, 2013Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2013–14 bills prohibiting hiring exclusions and job advertisements based on current unemployment, with retaliation protections and enforcement. Employers could still consider employment history. The measure reached Ways and Means without final action.

January 17, 2013Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored earned sick-time proposals accruing one hour per 30 hours worked for personal and family health needs and domestic-violence matters. Revised versions used employer-size tiers of paid and unpaid leave, with carryover and retaliation protections. The bills ended without passage or went to study.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored presuming correctional workers’ disabling or fatal infectious diseases arose from their work after a clean physical examination. The proposal allowed contrary evidence. It went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored allowing quick-service shift supervisors without effective hiring or firing power to share employee tips. The bill also added gratuity violations to wage-law enforcement. It ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation extending eligibility for state group health insurance to employees of private human-service providers working under state health, human-services and elder-affairs contracts. The bill went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored eight weeks of gender-neutral, job-protected parental leave for qualifying employees after birth or adoption. The proposal protected accrued benefits and required notice about longer agreed leave. A revised proposal advanced in May 2012 but ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored protections for temporary workers, including job-assignment notices and restrictions on fees, deductions, misleading placements and transportation charges. The revised law, approved August 6, 2012, retained those protections with professional-service exceptions and state enforcement. It took effect January 31, 2013.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored nursing-workforce investment and safe-staffing plans, including training support, direct-care nurse participation, public reports, fatigue limits and patient-handling standards. The bill allowed tailored staffing remedies rather than a single statewide ratio. It went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored studying direct-care staffing, turnover, wages, training and future long-term-care needs. The proposal also addressed credentials, worker referrals and support for consumers employing care workers. Its replacement bill went to a study order in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored workplace-violence risk assessments, prevention plans, incident records, staff training and response teams for social workers. A revised 2012 bill reached the governor but was pocket-vetoed in January 2013. A later version covering more human-service workers and volunteers went to study in April 2014.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored collective-bargaining rights for publicly subsidized family-childcare providers. The law signed August 1, 2012 recognized them as public employees solely for bargaining and dues. It preserved parent choice and licensing oversight, and barred strikes and eligibility for state employee benefits.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored school discipline reporting, continued education during exclusions, appeals and dropout-prevention measures. Related legislation became law on August 6, 2012, with major provisions starting July 2014. The law limited ordinary misconduct exclusions to 90 school days and required educational services and public discipline data. Her broader proposals for attendance through age 18, driving penalties and paid parent leave were omitted.

February 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill providing workers’ compensation when a workplace injury aggravated a veteran’s service-related injury, regardless of the earlier injury’s contribution. It received no further action after committee referral.

January 4, 2011Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill removing the special unemployment disqualification treating temporary-help workers as voluntarily quitting if they failed to contact the agency for reassignment. It left other unemployment conditions in place and moved to a study order.

August 19, 2010Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 pension bill raising the cost-of-living adjustment base from $12,000 to $16,000, permitting higher local bases and extending funding schedules. It was consolidated with alternative pension-adjustment proposals in a bill referred to Ways and Means, with no further action shown.

February 22, 2010Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored local health-insurance consultation with employee and retiree representatives. Her bills required written majority recommendations from a ten-member committee, including eight union representatives. They required an annual meeting at least 90 days before contract expiration. The proposals ended the reviewed sessions without passage.

January 13, 2009Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered a $5 million early-education quality reserve to raise subsidized-provider rates and support worker salaries, benefits, professional-development stipends and programme quality. It included equal-percentage wage adjustments. The Senate adopted the amendment in 2008.

May 21, 2008Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a $1.6 million wage adjustment for direct-care workers earning under $25,000 at private human-service providers contracted by the Department of Youth Services. The proposal required equal-percentage increases in addition to other adjustments. The Senate rejected it in 2008.

May 21, 2008Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation repealing the scheduled expiration of special benefits for public employees serving on active military duty, including salary differentials and specified accrual protections. The proposals remained in House Ways and Means without further action in the 2005–2006 and 2007–2008 sessions.

January 11, 2007Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored staged reimbursement increases dedicated to reducing community direct-care workers’ compensation gap with comparable state workers. Revised versions changed the deadlines and added workforce standards, audits and restrictions on anti-union spending. A 2007 version reached Senate Ways and Means but did not advance further.

January 11, 2007Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation raising the minimum wage and proposing annual inflation adjustments, higher tipped wages and public-employer coverage. The law passed over the governor’s veto on July 31, 2006, raised the hourly minimum to $7.50 in 2007 and $8 in 2008; the indexing, tipped-wage and public-employer provisions did not survive.

July 31, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored legislation adding school nurses to the professional-teacher-status statute. The provision became law over the governor’s objections in July 2006.

July 24, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restricting routine cleaning products in schools, day care, public buildings and shared public-housing areas to a safer-products list, with worker training, exceptions and enforcement. The final committee draft added asthma-related performance criteria and removed a hospital commission and pilot. It remained in House Ways and Means without further action.

June 6, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a criminal-record reform amendment providing rehabilitation certificates, limits on record disclosure and employment use, and opportunities to dispute records used for adverse decisions. It also proposed nonconviction sealing, juvenile and acquittal-related record-purging procedures, and a study of shorter conviction-sealing periods. The Senate adopted the amendment in 2006.

May 25, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation excluding Social Security payments from the calculation that reduced unemployment benefits. The committee’s combined draft preserved that exclusion and reached House Ways and Means in March 2006; enactment was not established.

March 22, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation granting eligible employees up to two paid hours to vote, with advance notice and employer scheduling rules. The proposal reached a study order in 2006.

January 26, 2006Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment preserving existing law and collective-bargaining constraints on a proposed requirement that municipalities offer employees the opportunity to purchase employer health insurance. It removed language that would have overridden those constraints. The amendment was rejected in 2005.

November 9, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation expressly applying the referenced National Guard and active-reserve retirement-service-credit provisions to personnel regardless of veteran status. The petition advanced after a rules suspension in 2005 but received no further action.

July 20, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation proposing $79.26 million for University of Massachusetts collective-bargaining agreements and $26 million for state and community-college agreements, including salary adjustments and back pay. The bill reached House Ways and Means in 2006 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restricting the use of public contract and grant funds to influence employees’ union choices, with certification, separate accounting, investigations and repayment remedies. The proposal reached House Ways and Means in 2006 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a three-year birth and adoption leave pilot offering up to 12 weeks of benefits at unemployment-insurance rates. Employer contributions, size-based tax credits and a dedicated trust supported the proposal. It offset overlapping payments and preserved separate leave rights. The bill went to study in March 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored workers’ compensation changes covering causation, treatment payments, emergency hearings, disability benefits and disfigurement awards. The bill also required health coverage while injury liability was disputed. It went to study in February 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored experience-based minimum salaries for assistant district attorneys and victim-witness advocates, subject to funding. Proposed prosecutor floors ranged from $35,000 to $65,000; advocate and child-interview specialist floors started at $32,000. The bill went to study in July 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation establishing a rebuttable presumption that disabling or fatal respiratory disease following harmful workplace conditions was job-related for public retirement benefits. The proposal reached a study order in March 2004.

March 23, 2004Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation requiring refunds of accumulated deductions for very small annual public pensions and allowing member-requested refunds for pensions in the next specified range. The proposal reached a study order in March 2004.

March 23, 2004Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored limiting compelled work beyond scheduled shifts and 40 hours weekly in healthcare facilities and charitable homes for older people. The bill also proposed repealing a specified overtime-pay exemption. It went to a study order in October 2003.

October 30, 2003Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation doubling motor-vehicle fines and penalties in marked road-construction areas. The House accepted an adverse report on the proposal in October 2003.

October 22, 2003Supports Labor Rights

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored the replacement charter for Framingham’s economic-development corporation. The law authorized redevelopment, loans and revenue bonds, with city oversight, audits and public reports. It withheld the corporation’s own eminent-domain power and required a two-thirds City Council vote for city financial obligations. The bill became law in December 2022.

December 1, 2022Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored Ashland’s replacement town charter. It set rules for Town Meeting, elected boards, the town manager, recall elections and public appointments. It also required budget planning, quarterly financial reports and a town code of conduct. The measure became law in January 2019.

January 9, 2019Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a resolution seeking a federal constitutional amendment on corporate rights and campaign spending limits. A revised version removed its call for a constitutional convention. The Senate adopted the remaining resolution 37–1, but the House took no final action.

June 21, 2018Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored an adopted amendment lowering a city-population threshold for campaign-fund bank reporting from 75,000 to 65,000. Her text replaced the original Framingham-only bill with a broader change to state law. The amended bill became law in March 2018.

March 15, 2018Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored bills in 2015 and 2017 allowing public bodies to hold online discussions with public access, notice, authentication and archived messages. The bills barred votes and formal actions during those discussions. Both moved to study orders.

January 23, 2017Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored annual public reports on state tax disputes, settlements, appeals, case delays and the five largest disputed tax issues. The bill ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored statewide toll authority with receipts, public hearings and written comment periods before toll changes. Her bill also required explanation of rejected funding alternatives. It went to a study order in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored expanding the independent child advocate’s investigations and oversight of services for children. The proposal included joint appointment by three state officials, limited terms, an advisory council, records access and subpoena powers. Its replacement bill ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 local-option searchable financial-reporting website proposal covering municipal and school-district finances, with confidentiality exceptions, retention and state assistance. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 5, 2014Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring county and municipal employees to receive state-prepared conflict-of-interest summaries within 30 days of starting work. The proposal also required updated summaries after legal changes and signed acknowledgments. The bill went to a study order in July 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored electronic public-records access rules covering usable formats, separation of confidential data, copying fees and access safeguards in government contracts. The bill also required searchable online records and database indexes. It went to a study order in August 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored limits on criminal-intelligence centers’ collection, retention and sharing of personal information. The proposal restricted political and religious surveillance and required five-year reviews, public audits and Inspector General oversight. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored taxpayer protections covering audit delays, meeting notice, refunds, interest and public notice of tax rules. The proposal also removed an interest delay tied to favorable tax-appeal decisions. It went to a study order in June 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored disclosure and return of contractor rebates to public colleges and universities. Her bill required sworn statements covering direct and indirect rebates and barred payments under contracts missing the required terms. It went to a study order in June 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a commission studying online municipal bills, public notices, records and reports. Its review covered costs, legal barriers and recommended legislation. The bill received a favorable report in September 2009 but did not advance further.

January 14, 2009Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored legislation requiring municipal group-health insurance claims trust funds to undergo audits within 90 days of the fiscal year’s close. The earlier proposal stalled in House Ways and Means, and the refile reached a study order in 2006.

March 30, 2006Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored state-agency paperwork and public-information reforms covering advance notices, request instructions, privacy, security and access. The later bill changed its threshold from documents over four pages to large information releases. The bills went to study in 2004 and 2006.

February 9, 2006Supports Anti-Corruption

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored closed executive sessions for contract-negotiation strategy when public discussion harmed government bargaining. The proposed secrecy ended after contract execution. The bill received a favorable report and further committee transfers in 2003 but did not advance further.

December 1, 2003Opposes Anti-Corruption

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Announced that the Senate and the House reached agreement to extend remote and hybrid meetings for public bodies in Massachusetts through June 2027. She said hybrid meetings increased access, engagement, and transparency in local government.

March 17, 2025Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill expanding Housing Court coverage through six regional divisions and five additional judges. It required regular court sessions across the state, including MetroWest. Her standalone bill moved to a study order in March 2018.

January 23, 2017Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored bills in 2015 and 2017 allowing public bodies to hold online discussions with public access, notice, authentication and archived messages. The bills barred votes and formal actions during those discussions. Both moved to study orders.

January 23, 2017Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill connecting municipalities with technology startups through testing, grants, purchasing help and shared public data. A revised draft added outreach for women, veterans and minorities in technology. The bill received no further action after reaching Senate Rules.

January 23, 2017Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a secure, voluntary online registry for healthcare and end-of-life instructions. The bill included accessible forms, authorized access, provider checks and a registry symbol on identification cards. It ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored new rules for selling or leasing unused state land. The bills included local purchase rights, affordable housing, public review and sharing proceeds with municipalities. They also protected specified conservation land. The 2015 version went to study in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored economic reviews of transportation projects costing more than $10 million before their inclusion or rescheduling in state plans. The bills examined growth and public benefits. The 2015 version received no further action before January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored coordinated transportation planning for economically connected areas split across regional boundaries. The bills linked funding decisions to jobs, commuting and infrastructure needs. The 2015 version went to a study order in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a task force improving health-coverage enrollment for former foster youth. It reviewed automatic enrollment, outreach, shared data and quarterly Medicaid tracking. The bill received no further action before January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 local-option searchable financial-reporting website proposal covering municipal and school-district finances, with confidentiality exceptions, retention and state assistance. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 5, 2014Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 procurement bill creating an under-$100,000 open-source contract exception with public notices, shared city contract records and revised bid-rejection procedures. It also proposed specified low-value and materials exceptions to notice and Central Register publication rules. It moved to study.

June 4, 2014Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 commission to review government efficiency, service performance, duplication, contracts and possible reorganization. It moved to a study order.

June 4, 2014Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a Holliston law consolidating highway and water functions into a public-works department, transferring water-commission powers and establishing director qualifications and public budget procedures. It was approved in July 2014.

March 12, 2014Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored legislation creating the Metacomet regional emergency-dispatch district for Franklin, Norfolk, Plainville and Wrentham, with a public governing board, member assessments and financing powers. It became law in July 2013.

February 1, 2013Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2013–14 school-reporting review bills addressing duplicated mandates and administrative costs. Their joint successor created a task force to review reporting requirements and consolidate forms; it received no final action.

January 30, 2013Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a broad 2013–14 streamlined-sales-tax proposal. Its successor narrowed the measure to federally contingent remote-seller collection, software, audit and filing rules; it did not retain the original tax-rate reduction and received no final action.

January 14, 2013Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 Medicaid-continuity bills and co-offered an adopted 2010 Senate amendment keeping otherwise eligible children covered for up to twelve months despite excess income, ending sooner at annual review. She later co-sponsored a parent-inclusive waiver proposal and co-offered a 2012 amendment directing express-lane renewals and prepopulated forms while studying continuous eligibility.

May 24, 2012Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a state Alzheimer’s project coordinating research, treatment, public agencies and an annually updated care plan, with public advisory meetings and attention to disparities. The proposal joined another bill that went to study in December 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded municipal collaboration through regional services, joint-powers agreements, shared entities and grants. The bills addressed governance, auditing, borrowing, purchasing and liability. The 2011 proposals went to study; later versions also ended without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored online small-business impact statements for proposed regulations, covering affected businesses, compliance costs, conflicts and effects on starting businesses. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored daily fines for utilities leaving replaced poles beyond removal deadlines. A later draft instead proposed a statewide pole database, transfer priorities, possible municipal fines and an advisory council. It ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored training and certification for local veterans’ service officers, including an initial knowledge test and five-year renewal. The bill also addressed supervision and noncompliance. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored grants for planning, feasibility studies and transition costs when school districts shared or regionalized special-education services. A revised bill replaced the grants with a study of services, coordination, transitions and costs, subject to funding. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored six-year reviews of state agencies by a legislative and public commission, with hearings, effectiveness assessments and proposed abolition or continuation. The bills preserved existing debts and contracts and addressed records and employees during closure. The 2011 and later versions went to study.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored electronic public-records access rules covering usable formats, separation of confidential data, copying fees and access safeguards in government contracts. The bill also required searchable online records and database indexes. It went to a study order in August 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored centralized health-insurance claims data with privacy rules, shared agency access and limits on fees. The 2012 health law established the database under a new health-information agency. It retained privacy and data-sharing duties, with changes to her proposed governance.

January 20, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored taxpayer protections covering audit delays, meeting notice, refunds, interest and public notice of tax rules. The proposal also removed an interest delay tied to favorable tax-appeal decisions. It went to a study order in June 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying municipal regionalization and shared services, including costs, opportunities and implementation barriers. It moved to a study order.

September 13, 2010Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored district-financing proposals that went to study and co-offered an adopted 2005 inflation-factor amendment. She later co-sponsored the 2010 economic-development package and offered adopted amendments on agency coordination, regional-service eligibility and financing powers. The revised law changed district-financing valuations and duration, established Growth Capital Corporation financing and regional business assistance, transferred HEFA to MassDevelopment, required small-business regulatory reviews, raised small-claims jurisdiction to $7,000 and extended qualifying development approvals by two years.

August 5, 2010Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal to study moving regional transit employees into state group health coverage and allowing transit authorities to operate services directly. It required analysis of costs, benefits and the private-operator restriction. It moved to a study order.

August 5, 2010Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill allowing charter-school trustees to participate in educational collaboratives and state collective purchasing. It moved to a study order.

July 7, 2010Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying a statewide bulk heating-fuel purchasing collaborative for schools and municipalities, including procurement, storage, distribution and legal issues. It reached House Rules; the available history shows no later action.

June 28, 2010Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a commission studying online municipal bills, public notices, records and reports. Its review covered costs, legal barriers and recommended legislation. The bill received a favorable report in September 2009 but did not advance further.

January 14, 2009Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a voluntary regional public-health district for MetroWest towns. The plan covered shared staffing, local representation, audits, employee protections and state aid with local matching funds. It went to a study order in July 2010.

January 13, 2009Supports Government Efficiency

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an amendment directing review and use of available federal toll credits and unobligated transportation funds. It sought to maximize federal credits and dedicate at least 25% of collected funds to permitted regional-transit capital or other expenditures. The Senate adopted it in July 2008.

July 10, 2008Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka offered applicant-funded outside consultant review of highway-access and traffic-signal permits. The proposal limited fees to reasonable costs and provided conflict-of-interest appeals, separate accounts and refunds of unused funds. The Senate rejected it on July 10, 2008.

July 10, 2008Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored standardized medical-insurance claim forms and coding and co-offered an adopted 2005 amendment requiring Medicare codes and formats. A revised bill passed the Senate in December 2006 but stalled in the House. The 2008 replacement reached Senate Rules and ended without further action in January 2009.

May 5, 2008Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored replacing Medway’s charter with professional administration, reorganized departments, consolidated appointments and procurement, and stronger financial reporting. The proposal retained open town meeting and included officer-recall and removal safeguards. The law signed April 15, 2008 revised the recall timetable and required local voter acceptance before the charter took effect. It also retained transition and incumbent protections.

January 7, 2008Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a confidential pilot testing whether agency resident records improved jury, voter, street and census lists. The proposal required security controls and reports and preserved existing statutory methods pending later legislation. The Senate adopted the amendment on May 23, 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered continuing training for local veterans’ agents and directors at multiple locations, including an annual statewide conference. The Senate rejected the amendment on May 23, 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill creating a central database and annual public reports on developmental-disability service applicants, recipients and people whose applications were unsuccessful. It aimed to identify unmet service needs. The proposal advanced through a new draft but received no further action after returning to House Ways and Means.

January 11, 2007Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a statewide legal and best-practices guide for locating social-service facilities, with interagency consultation, an interim report and a completed guide. The Senate amended the bill in May 2006; it stalled in House Ways and Means.

March 28, 2006Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored allowing Medway to borrow up to $3 million over ten years for operating costs. The law signed May 1, 2006 created a stability fund and conditional state and local financial oversight. It required audits, budget reports and increasing reserves, with controls on further borrowing and deliberate overspending.

March 23, 2006Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored state-agency paperwork and public-information reforms covering advance notices, request instructions, privacy, security and access. The later bill changed its threshold from documents over four pages to large information releases. The bills went to study in 2004 and 2006.

February 9, 2006Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored a study of caseloads by job title across state and state-funded human-service providers. The proposal required recommended changes, cost estimates and a report within 120 days. Her bills advanced to budget committees during 2004–2005 but did not pass.

December 12, 2005Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered three amendments in 2005 to establish expedited permitting for locally designated commercial and industrial development sites. They combined grants and an interagency board with 180-day local permit reviews, notice and appeal procedures, conditional approvals and parallel state reviews. All three amendments were rejected.

May 23, 2005Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring quarterly reports on family-shelter applications, approvals, denials, household circumstances, shelter use and costs, and subsequent housing outcomes. It also tracked homelessness-prevention costs and results. The accompanying proposal reached House Ways and Means without further action.

April 21, 2005Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored regular household employment surveys, employer vacancy and turnover surveys, and evaluation of workforce programs using payroll-tax data. A business, labor and education commission oversaw quality and publication. The bill went to study in October 2003.

October 30, 2003Supports Government Efficiency

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 health-coverage bill expanding outreach, eligibility for specified elderly or disabled noncitizens, retroactive provider reimbursement and notice protections, and barring lifetime benefit caps. It moved to a study order.

September 27, 2010Supports Immigration

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored in-state tuition proposals in 2005 and 2009–10 for qualifying Massachusetts high-school graduates, including undocumented students. Both required at least three years of Massachusetts high school and excluded specified nonimmigrant visa holders and the medical school. The later version added taxpayer-identification and immigration-application affidavit requirements, including a 120-day deadline after eligibility. The House rejected the earlier proposal in January 2006; the later bill went to study.

July 21, 2010Supports Immigration

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored restoring health benefits for eligible legal immigrants and broader emergency Medicaid coverage. Her bill advanced into the 2006 health-reform legislation. The final law included qualifying legal immigrants in Commonwealth Care and extended MassHealth Essential to eligible older or disabled immigrants. The latter provision survived the governor’s veto on May 24, 2006.

October 31, 2005Supports Immigration

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a study of licensing and undocumented drivers and cosponsored alternative identification documents for specified licenses and registrations. An accompanying bill narrowed the proposal to accepting individual taxpayer identification numbers in place of Social Security numbers. It did not advance after a 2003 committee referral.

July 14, 2003Supports Immigration

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored the replacement charter for Framingham’s economic-development corporation. The law authorized redevelopment, loans and revenue bonds, with city oversight, audits and public reports. It withheld the corporation’s own eminent-domain power and required a two-thirds City Council vote for city financial obligations. The bill became law in December 2022.

December 1, 2022Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored the law allowing Ashland to fund grants and loans for private economic-development projects. Eligible uses included business costs, property improvements and equipment. The law required public rules and annual reports on funding and recipients.

January 9, 2019Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored the Senate’s wage-theft bill expanding contractor liability, stop-work orders and recovery of unpaid wages. It included small-business exceptions and a compensation fund for workers and some contractors. The Senate passed it 38–0. The House took no further action.

June 21, 2018Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored school-foundation-budget reform and offered a substantive 2016 education amendment. The amendment proposed a seven-year update for special education, low-income pupils, English learners and health-insurance costs, with additional charter-school discipline safeguards; it was adopted in the Senate but did not become law. Her 2017 bill proposed an appropriation-dependent schedule to implement the 2015 commission recommendations and revised the funding formula. Its later Senate version received no final House action.

May 10, 2018Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a spending amendment providing $15 million for schools serving students displaced by hurricanes in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It also added money for the state discrimination agency and planning training. The Senate passed the amended bill 38–0. The measure became law in February 2018.

February 16, 2018Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a spending amendment that banned bump stocks and trigger cranks and funded other state needs. It also created a substance-use treatment fund and required insurers to certify children’s community mental-health coverage. The Senate adopted her replacement text 28–8. A conference bill carrying these policies became law in November 2017.

November 3, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored the Senate package raising pay for legislative leaders, statewide officials and judges. It set added pay at $80,000 for chamber leaders and $65,000 for Ways and Means chairs. It also set lawmakers’ expense allowances at $15,000 or $20,000. The Legislature overrode Governor Baker’s veto, making it law.

February 2, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored and sponsored toll-freeze and commuter-discount proposals from 2002 through 2017. Earlier bills froze tolls, limited increases by inflation or actual costs, and funded discounts through Turnpike revenues, fuel taxes or Big Dig recoveries. One paired a freeze with a 23- or 24-cent gasoline tax and debt and local-road funding; another proposed transferring the western Turnpike to the highway department. These bills went to study or ended without further action. Her 2008 amendment discounting 50% of post-2002 toll increases was rejected. Later bills froze tolls at 2008 rates, then January 2017 rates. The 2017 bill allowed reductions and required a study of tolls on untolled roads, including possible border tolls. It went to study in April 2018.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill expanding Housing Court coverage through six regional divisions and five additional judges. It required regular court sessions across the state, including MetroWest. Her standalone bill moved to a study order in March 2018.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored bills recognizing proficiency in English and another language with a diploma seal. An earlier version also created a dual-language education office and grants. Later versions retained a voluntary seal under state guidelines. Her 2017 standalone bill moved to a study order in March 2018.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored bills extending death benefits to MassDOT highway-construction workers killed on duty. She later cosponsored a broader bill adding MassDOT employees to the public-employee death-benefit law, with coverage dating back to September 2010. The later bill moved to a study order in June 2018.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a 2006 paid-leave bill and sponsored later versions through 2017. The early bills proposed 12 weeks of leave, initially at full wages and later 80%, capped at $750 weekly, funded by employee premiums alongside family tax deductions and a work-family council. Later versions changed to employer funding and then shared contributions. Her 2016 amendment was adopted, and the revised leave bill passed the Senate but stalled in the House. The 2017 bill proposed 16 weeks of family leave, 26 weeks of medical leave and job protections, with combined leave limited to 26 weeks. It received no further action after a 2018 committee transfer.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill connecting municipalities with technology startups through testing, grants, purchasing help and shared public data. A revised draft added outreach for women, veterans and minorities in technology. The bill received no further action after reaching Senate Rules.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a bill extending public-employee death benefits to public works employees. The bill moved to a study order in June 2018.

January 23, 2017Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored restoration of surviving spouses’ pensions reduced or ended by remarriage before July 2000. Her proposal excluded back payments. The 2015 bill received no further action before the session ended in January 2017.

January 15, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a regional jail for women awaiting trial or serving county sentences in six eastern counties. The proposal included specialized programs and medical services. It ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored tuition relief for employees of state-funded human-service providers and their spouses. An explicit revised bill instead offered loan repayment for qualifying new social workers and credentialed direct-care workers. Eligibility ended at five times poverty-level income, with payments capped at $250 monthly for 48 months. A later version narrowed eligibility to a 100-person social-worker pilot. Neither approach passed in these sessions.

January 15, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 healthy-food retail financing proposal for underserved communities, using loans, grants, technical assistance and economic-impact reporting. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 service and volunteer initiative including K–12 service learning, a higher-education student corps and an appropriation-dependent choice of loan repayment, tuition aid or housing support. A revised bill retained those tools but received no final action.

January 6, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill financing police training through a private-passenger auto-insurance policy surcharge, with remittance and reserved-fund rules. It reached Ways and Means without final action.

January 6, 2015Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and co-sponsored water-resource funding proposals from 2005 through 2014, including restricted local water-impact funds and broader water-infrastructure financing. The revised law, approved August 5, 2014, provided planning and technology grants, loan assistance and local financing options, including a voter-approved property-tax surcharge up to three percent. That surcharge differed from the earlier water-use and growth-fee proposals.

August 5, 2014Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 firearm proposal combining a gun-and-ammunition surcharge for violence prevention, gun-show regulation, a .50-caliber weapon restriction and licensing and large-capacity weapon rules. It moved to a study order.

July 15, 2014Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill restoring federally optional adult MassHealth benefits to January 2002 levels, including dental services and specified Basic and Essential dental-benefit parity. It moved to study in April 2014.

April 28, 2014Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 proposal dedicating institutional savings and property-sale proceeds to human-services provider payments. A revised bill proposed separate 20-percent allocations for provider payments, deeply affordable housing and a self-direction contingency fund; it received no final action.

January 31, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 disability-services bill allowing voluntary self-direction through individual budgets, and co-offered a related budget amendment that was rejected. The August 2014 Real Lives law retained self-direction with qualified-provider, financial-management and oversight safeguards. It omitted the original 40-percent Templeton savings fund and 90-day provider-change provisions.

January 30, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill directing incentives for innovative water solutions in environmental remediation and state-funded pilot testing of water technologies. It moved to a study order.

January 18, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill increasing specified tobacco excises and dedicating additional revenue to prevention, cessation and enforcement. FDA-approved cessation and medical products were excepted. It moved to a study order.

January 18, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a jobs package covering agency business advisers, workforce training, manufacturing and education. It included unpaid training internships with unemployment benefits, worker protections and limited employer tax credits. The package also addressed public purchasing and local energy improvements. It went to study in September 2014.

January 18, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored state reimbursement of local costs for special congressional elections. Her bill used an existing fund, capped payments at net costs and barred deficit spending. It went to a study order in June 2014.

January 17, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 Turning 22 proposal for competitive-employment, residential and transition supports. Its successor retained employment targets, needs prioritization and facility-sale proceeds for services, but dropped the original specified appropriations and received no final action.

January 14, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 unaccompanied-homeless-youth housing and support-services proposal. The resulting January 2015 law established a commission and funding-dependent housing, health, education, employment and case-management services for youth under age 24, with attention to minors and LGBT youth.

January 10, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill authorizing regional-transit enterprise accounts and special-obligation financing for approved projects, with pledged project revenue and reports. It excluded ordinary net service costs and did not make the bonds Commonwealth general debt. It received no final action.

January 9, 2013Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered health-reform amendments on May 17, 2012. The Senate adopted her joint proposals for diagnostic-accuracy and provider-price studies, prevention grants and workplace wellness support. It also adopted her proposal adding health-industry voices to an advisory council. The August 6 law retained these initiatives with changes, including industry representation on the Health Policy Commission advisory council. The law assigned the price commission a study and recommendations, without imposing price caps. Prevention funding remained subject to grant and reporting rules. Rejected proposals addressed insurance for court-ordered child mental-health care, obstetrics access, sex-aware health data and reporting by race and income.

May 17, 2012Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored locally approved school reserves for unexpected out-of-district special-education tuition and transportation costs. The reserve was capped at 2% of annual net school spending, with spending allowed without another appropriation. A revised bill ended the session without passage.

December 9, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored broader Community Preservation financing and recreation and housing uses. The standalone bill ended without passage. Related July 2012 budget provisions expanded eligible work and local funding options and revised matching and equity distributions. They retained spending floors and permanent property restrictions.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored municipal animal-control reforms. The law signed August 2, 2012 addressed licensing, rabies, kennels, officer training, dangerous-dog hearings and animal care. It prohibited breed-specific rules and created conditional shelter and spay-neuter funding. It also covered pets in protective orders and set impoundment and euthanasia rules and restricted tethering.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded municipal collaboration through regional services, joint-powers agreements, shared entities and grants. The bills addressed governance, auditing, borrowing, purchasing and liability. The 2011 proposals went to study; later versions also ended without passage.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored state reimbursement of municipal expenses for special elections filling public-office vacancies, after certification by the state auditor. The 2011 bill went to a study order in October 2012; she also co-sponsored a later version of the same reimbursement provision.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored grants for planning, feasibility studies and transition costs when school districts shared or regionalized special-education services. A revised bill replaced the grants with a study of services, coordination, transitions and costs, subject to funding. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a middle-skills council and regional training academies linking community colleges, vocational schools, adult education and employers. A revised bill retained coordinated training, credentials, grants and employment support, subject to funding. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored community-housing financing for people with disabilities alongside stronger accessibility standards. A revised bill retained capital authorizations but narrowed the immediate statutory access requirements to rulemaking. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored zero-interest-equivalent financing for water-pollution projects, including an earlier version also covering drinking water and feasible three-to-one fund leveraging. Her later bill changed the general water-pollution loan rate from 2% to zero. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored minimum monthly shelter benefits of $600 for eligible veterans and dependents without separate heating costs. The proposal set a $500 minimum for those paying heating costs. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored grants for towns facing unusually high public-safety costs tied to state-supported facilities and services. A later version added school and support costs for children placed outside their hometowns. It received a favorable report in March 2012 but did not pass.

January 19, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored grants covering up to half the cost of rail-crossing improvements needed for train-horn quiet zones. Eligible work included gates, medians, enforcement and public education. The 2011 bill went to a study order in July 2012.

January 19, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored alternative increases in state reimbursement for unusually high special-education costs. One version offered 80% reimbursement with a lower eligibility threshold and shared transportation costs. Another used 75% reimbursement with lower thresholds for collaborative and district placements. Later bills proposed full reimbursement above four times the funding benchmark. None of these standalone formulas passed during the reviewed sessions. A broader 2016 replacement omitted the full-reimbursement formula and also failed.

January 19, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored stronger dam oversight, repair and removal powers, including attention to abandoned dams and environmental harm. The resulting law established inspections, an inventory, financing tools and a dam-and-seawall fund. It was signed January 9, 2013, with penalties below her earlier proposal.

January 19, 2011Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored repeated youth-violence and gang-prevention proposals creating a commission, school and community grants, job referrals and evaluation. A dedicated fund included voluntary tax-return contributions and an administrative spending limit. The earlier bill received no further action, and the 2009–10 refile went to study.

November 10, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 vaccine-financing bills establishing an insurer-supported childhood-vaccine purchasing system, coverage without cost sharing and a confidential vaccination registry. The versions differed in insurer and federal-vaccine exceptions; both moved to study.

October 28, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill creating a local-aid stabilization fund, depositing annual surplus money until its principal reached $2 billion and limiting withdrawals to periods of declining revenue. It aimed to maintain specified municipal aid and moved to a study order.

October 12, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 cigarette-tax-funded lung-cancer screening and research trust, with low-income and minority screening priorities, diagnostic follow-up and administrative limits. It moved to a study order.

October 12, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill dedicating excess registry fees to regional transit service restoration, mobility assistance and local roads, with specified funding priorities and reports. It moved to a study order.

September 2, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored educator-quality proposals from 2003 through 2010 covering an endowment, master-teacher mentoring, evaluations, licensing and induction, professional development and district grants. Versions changed bargaining, dismissal and funding safeguards. The 2009–10 refile omitted an earlier intensive new-teacher recruitment and training rewrite. A related $3.5 million planning-grant amendment was rejected in 2007. Earlier proposals ended in study orders or stalled, and the 2009–10 bill also went to study.

August 16, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored district-financing proposals that went to study and co-offered an adopted 2005 inflation-factor amendment. She later co-sponsored the 2010 economic-development package and offered adopted amendments on agency coordination, regional-service eligibility and financing powers. The revised law changed district-financing valuations and duration, established Growth Capital Corporation financing and regional business assistance, transferred HEFA to MassDevelopment, required small-business regulatory reviews, raised small-claims jurisdiction to $7,000 and extended qualifying development approvals by two years.

August 5, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill shifting specified MBTA Big Dig debt service to the state, setting a funding baseline and limiting fare growth, with service and environmental review requirements. It moved to a study order.

July 26, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill reimbursing out-of-district special-education transportation for school systems using a transportation collaborative whose provider accepted state rates. It moved to a study order.

July 20, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 pension bill raising the cost-of-living adjustment base from $12,000 to $16,000, permitting higher local bases and extending funding schedules. It was consolidated with alternative pension-adjustment proposals in a bill referred to Ways and Means, with no further action shown.

February 22, 2010Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored legislation creating a separate Natick fund for off-site parking payments. The enacted law lets selectmen spend its principal and interest on new parking in designated downtown mixed-use and housing districts without further appropriation. It was approved in September 2009.

September 16, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a school-funding rewrite covering staffing, materials, facilities and added student needs. It proposed 15-student classes in kindergarten through third grade, with a waiver for high-performing districts. The bill went to a study order in May 2010.

January 15, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored removing Turnpike and Tobin Bridge tolls while raising the gasoline tax from 21 to 41 cents, with inflation adjustments. Other versions she co-sponsored proposed 32- or 50-cent rates and retained different western or border tolls. The proposals divided revenue among roads, transit and Big Dig debt. None passed; her bill received an unfavorable committee recommendation in April 2010.

January 15, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored matching grants for after-school and community health, arts, recreation and education programs. The proposal included parent-led local councils and limits on replacing existing funding. A revised statewide coordinating-council bill passed the Senate in July 2010 but stalled in the House.

January 14, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a voluntary regional public-health district for MetroWest towns. The plan covered shared staffing, local representation, audits, employee protections and state aid with local matching funds. It went to a study order in July 2010.

January 13, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pre-arrest diversion based on Framingham’s joint police and mental-health clinician response. That proposal included training, assessments, referrals and grants. Her later bill authorized clinically appropriate community treatment and diversion pilots, subject to funding and public-safety safeguards. It entered a broader substance-use draft in June 2010 that did not pass.

January 13, 2009Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored allowing Franklin to borrow outside its debt limit for underground utilities, with repayment over up to 20 years. The proposal required identifying project areas and council findings about public welfare. It ended the 2007–2008 session without passage.

September 25, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored and cosponsored dropout-prevention proposals covering tutoring, counselling, career programmes, family support and an attendance age of 18. Earlier committee drafts stalled. The resulting August 2008 law required standardized graduation and dropout reporting and a study commission; grants and raising the attendance age remained recommendations for study.

August 14, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored the comprehensive early-education and care proposal that became law in 2008. It established licensing, coordination, workforce-development and quality rules, with safeguards against high-stakes assessments of young children. It also provided voluntary prekindergarten through public and private providers, subject to appropriation.

July 31, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an amendment directing review and use of available federal toll credits and unobligated transportation funds. It sought to maximize federal credits and dedicate at least 25% of collected funds to permitted regional-transit capital or other expenditures. The Senate adopted it in July 2008.

July 10, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment authorizing $75 million to retire regional transit authorities’ revenue-anticipation debt and associated interest, subject to certification requirements. The Senate rejected it in May 2008.

May 21, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a $5 million early-education quality reserve to raise subsidized-provider rates and support worker salaries, benefits, professional-development stipends and programme quality. It included equal-percentage wage adjustments. The Senate adopted the amendment in 2008.

May 21, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a $1.6 million wage adjustment for direct-care workers earning under $25,000 at private human-service providers contracted by the Department of Youth Services. The proposal required equal-percentage increases in addition to other adjustments. The Senate rejected it in 2008.

May 21, 2008Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored bills providing bulk purchases or leases of school computers and software, sales-tax relief and grants for low-income students, with a district contribution. The bills went to study. She later co-offered a $1 million transfer for educational-technology activities, which the Senate rejected in 2007.

May 23, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment extending child-care subsidy eligibility to families in which parents or other relatives received SSI or children received cash assistance without adult benefits. The Senate adopted it in May 2007. The final budget permitted a pilot for those families after already-eligible children were served and funds remained.

May 23, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a full-time state dental director and a public-health oral-health office supporting prevention, access, fluoridation and statewide surveillance. The Senate rejected the amendment in May 2007.

May 23, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation proposing $2 million in nonprofit technical-assistance and training grants for businesses with 20 or fewer employees. Also co-offered a related $1.5 million grant amendment, which the Senate rejected in 2007. The standalone bill remained in House Ways and Means without further action.

January 11, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation repealing the scheduled expiration of special benefits for public employees serving on active military duty, including salary differentials and specified accrual protections. The proposals remained in House Ways and Means without further action in the 2005–2006 and 2007–2008 sessions.

January 11, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored staged reimbursement increases dedicated to reducing community direct-care workers’ compensation gap with comparable state workers. Revised versions changed the deadlines and added workforce standards, audits and restrictions on anti-union spending. A 2007 version reached Senate Ways and Means but did not advance further.

January 11, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a state transportation infrastructure bank offering project loans, leases and credit guarantees. Successive bills added separate rail financing alongside highway and transit accounts, revenue-backed bonds, repayment safeguards and audits. The later bill went to study in March 2008.

January 11, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored repeated bills requiring annual adjustments in daily payments to foster, adoptive and guardianship families to reach federally recommended USDA levels. The 2005 bill received no further action; the 2007 refile entered a combined new draft that also received no further action by January 2009.

January 11, 2007Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation barring state and local applications for federal abstinence-education grants. Also co-offered a budget amendment deleting an abstinence grant and a related school-funding proviso; the Senate adopted it in 2007. The final budget retained the comprehensive-sexuality-education condition, and the standalone grant-bar proposal reached a study order in 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored repealing the Turnpike Authority’s local-tourism grant program. The House accepted the committee’s recommendation against passage in July 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored legislation creating a restricted Franklin retiree-health trust. The final law required actuarial payment schedules, biennial valuations and limits on amortizing liabilities and later benefit increases. It was enacted over the governor’s veto in July 2006.

July 26, 2006Supports Government Spending Reduction

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring at least one full-time registered nurse in every public school. The proposal also addressed school physicians, nurse practitioners and suitable facilities. It went to a study order in 2006.

June 8, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill providing additional grants for dual-language immersion programmes. She also co-offered $370,000 for Framingham dual-immersion evaluation, best practices and professional development: the Senate adopted the 2006 amendment and rejected the later 2007 and 2008 versions. The earlier school-grant bill went to study.

May 25, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered temporary prescription protections for Prescription Advantage members and MassHealth beneficiaries also enrolled in Medicare during July through December 2006. The amendment provided a 30-day supply, followed by a free 72-hour supply, when Medicare billing failed, and addressed excess Medicare cost sharing. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 25, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered expanded-learning-time grants for longer school days, academic instruction, enrichment and teacher preparation. The Senate adopted a $6.5 million version in 2006 and rejected a $26 million version in 2008. Later cosponsored a bill establishing the same 300-hour grant programme in statute, with performance agreements and at least $1,400 per pupil recommended; its committee draft stalled in 2010.

May 25, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing statewide shaken-baby prevention, including newborn-parent education, professional training, support for affected families and surveillance. The November 2006 law retained those elements subject to appropriation and added good-faith liability protection, advisory consultation and annual evaluation and reporting.

April 10, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored additional school aid for qualifying growing communities, including 25 extra construction-reimbursement percentage points. The proposal also covered 35% of operating costs for five years and half of start-up costs, subject to funding. It went to a study order in April 2006.

April 3, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a half-cent-per-gallon heating-oil tax funding spill cleanup, research and tank-replacement grants up to $1,000. Cleanup assistance depended on financial need and unsuccessful insurance or loan requests. The proposal retained homeowner liability and went to a study order in March 2006.

March 29, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored presumed housing-assistance eligibility for homeless applicants, permanent placement within 180 days and interim housing. The proposal also required continuing housing and financing plans. It went to a study order in March 2006.

March 27, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored allowing Medway to borrow up to $3 million over ten years for operating costs. The law signed May 1, 2006 created a stability fund and conditional state and local financial oversight. It required audits, budget reports and increasing reserves, with controls on further borrowing and deliberate overspending.

March 23, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation restoring the general statutory formula for municipal lottery distributions and directing excess fiscal 2006 balances into city and town payments. The proposal ended in House Ways and Means without passage.

March 9, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation reserving at least half of specified third-party school receipts for school-committee accounts and allowing educational spending without further appropriation, while protecting required school spending and aid calculations. The proposals remained in House Ways and Means without further action.

March 2, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation adjusting school-aid calculations for projected enrollment growth or decline and reconciling projections with actual enrollment. Also cosponsored a variant adding a foundation-budget aid floor. The proposals reached study orders in 2004 and 2006.

February 23, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation offering public-college tuition and fee grants to experienced early-childhood educators pursuing degrees or teacher certification. It conditioned benefits on graduates’ continued work in early-childhood education. A replacement omnibus bill omitted that scholarship scheme and instead provided broader curriculum and training support.

February 9, 2006Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered funding amendments during the November 2005 supplemental-budget debate. The Senate adopted funds for the Medway Senior Center and Framingham’s Atheneum Hall. It rejected proposals for winter-cost assistance, library repairs, parks, rail trails, storm recovery and other local projects.

November 15, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a Commonwealth Care health-insurance exchange for eligible individuals and small groups. It provided plan choice, enrollment and premium collection, carrier and benefit standards, public oversight and startup funding. It also allowed specified departures from coverage mandates. The Senate adopted the amendment during its November 2005 health-reform debate.

November 9, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered funding amendments during the November 2005 economic-investment bill debate. Adopted proposals included Ashland and Framingham redevelopment funds, Hopkinton trade-tourism support and regional STEM internships. Other proposals, including transportation, arts, environmental and medical-study funding, were rejected.

November 3, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored restoring health benefits for eligible legal immigrants and broader emergency Medicaid coverage. Her bill advanced into the 2006 health-reform legislation. The final law included qualifying legal immigrants in Commonwealth Care and extended MassHealth Essential to eligible older or disabled immigrants. The latter provision survived the governor’s veto on May 24, 2006.

October 31, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a federal Medicaid waiver application for intensive home and community services for children with autism at risk of institutionalization. The resulting law required provider qualifications, language-accessible enrollment, coordination with school services and annual reports. It was approved October 5, 2005; federal approval remained a separate step.

October 5, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment establishing a Marine and Inland Resource Protection Trust Fund for coastal, inland-water, recreation and geographic-information work. It allowed gifts, grants, fees and other receipts to support that work without further appropriation, with nonreversion and audit rules. The Senate adopted it in 2005 after deleting an exemption from indirect-cost assessments.

May 24, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered three amendments in 2005 to establish expedited permitting for locally designated commercial and industrial development sites. They combined grants and an interagency board with 180-day local permit reviews, notice and appeal procedures, conditional approvals and parallel state reviews. All three amendments were rejected.

May 23, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation proposing $79.26 million for University of Massachusetts collective-bargaining agreements and $26 million for state and community-college agreements, including salary adjustments and back pay. The bill reached House Ways and Means in 2006 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored state rate-setting rules for social-service providers, reflecting reasonable costs, inflation, new requirements and geographic differences. The proposal included provider and consumer consultation, volume adjustments and appeals, with specified program exclusions. It went to a study order in May 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a three-year birth and adoption leave pilot offering up to 12 weeks of benefits at unemployment-insurance rates. Employer contributions, size-based tax credits and a dedicated trust supported the proposal. It offset overlapping payments and preserved separate leave rights. The bill went to study in March 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing a state-administered federal grant programme for safer walking and cycling near schools, including sidewalks, crossings, traffic calming and safety education. The proposal reached House Ways and Means in 2005 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation providing emergency rental-arrearage assistance to low-income families at risk of losing their housing, subject to appropriation, assessment and community stabilization support. The bill reached House Ways and Means without further action.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a $72.80 monthly personal-needs allowance for qualifying nursing, chronic-hospital and rest-home residents. The proposal covered income shortfalls and linked future increases to state supplemental payments. Its companion advanced to House Ways and Means in April 2006 but did not pass.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored drug-forfeiture proposals directing a share of proceeds to community treatment and prevention, with the remainder split between prosecutors and police and detailed fund reporting. The 2003 proposal reserved 20%; the 2005 bill’s operative text raised that share to 50%. Both proposals went to study.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill creating a separately invested Franklin infrastructure and capital fund. It allowed earnings to support infrastructure and address Bellingham power-plant impacts, restricted principal for seven years and excepted $3.5 million for a property-compensation settlement. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored experience-based minimum salaries for assistant district attorneys and victim-witness advocates, subject to funding. Proposed prosecutor floors ranged from $35,000 to $65,000; advocate and child-interview specialist floors started at $32,000. The bill went to study in July 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring a five-year plan and costed priority lists for developmental-disability residential, day, transportation and family-support services. It proposed interim vouchers, employment incentives, institutional-resource transfers and federal-waiver funding to reduce waiting lists. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation establishing a special PTO/PTA license plate and an education fund receiving its proceeds. The plate and fund provisions became law in July 2004 through a broader special-plate bill.

July 28, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation providing growth aid to rapidly growing, underfunded school districts and incorporating that aid into the following base-aid calculation. The proposal reached a study order in May 2004.

May 17, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored and cosponsored legislation allowing eligible MBTA communities without fixed-route bus service to form or join regional transit authorities and receive capped credits against MBTA assessments. Also co-offered matching amendments adopted in 2005 and 2006; the enabling provisions became law in June 2006. Later assessment-waiver and funding amendments were adopted by the Senate in 2008.

March 24, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a pollution-mitigation charge on sulfur-emission allowances transferred for use in specified acid-rain source states. The proposal dedicated receipts to energy efficiency, renewable-energy research and monitoring, with exceptions protecting existing contracts and restricted transfers. It went to study in February 2004.

February 26, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored recruitment bonuses and increased loan repayment for certified math and science teachers. The bill doubled proposed monthly loan payments from $150 to $300 for 48 months. It went to study in January 2004.

January 29, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored free remedial instruction and MCAS test preparation until students passed the graduation requirement or stopped trying. The bill went to a study order in 2004.

January 5, 2004Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored industry-college training partnerships offering grants up to $100,000 with an equal private match. The proposal excluded incumbent-worker and on-the-job training, limited support to two cycles and required evaluation. It went to study in October 2003.

October 30, 2003Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a revolving home-modification loan fund for families of severely disabled children, with income-adjusted interest, five- to ten-year repayment and no income cutoff. It was accompanied by a broader disability-housing proposal that passed the Senate. The housing portion’s later new draft received no further action.

May 22, 2003Opposes Government Spending Reduction

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored bills criminalizing female genital mutilation of children and transporting children for the procedure, with prevention, training, child-protection services and civil remedies. The later version changed penalties and extended the civil filing period. The 2015 and 2017 bills moved to study orders.

January 23, 2017Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a three-foot clearance rule for drivers passing bicycles. Drivers lacking enough space within their lane faced a requirement to change lanes safely or wait. The bill went to a study order in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored identity-theft protections, including police reports, credit corrections, victim assistance and limits on stolen personal information. Later versions added technology protections, faster victim guidance and breach-notice deadlines. The 2015 bill went to a study order in April 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 missing-person reporting and identification bill. The revised January 2015 law addressed missing-child records, identification information, AMBER Alert criteria and agency coordination; it did not retain the original blanket 24-hour, four-hour and five-day deadlines.

January 7, 2015Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 youth-sports violence proposal establishing complaint hearings, attendance bans, a public offender registry and enhanced penalties, with appeal rights. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill financing police training through a private-passenger auto-insurance policy surcharge, with remittance and reserved-fund rules. It reached Ways and Means without final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 firearm proposal combining a gun-and-ammunition surcharge for violence prevention, gun-show regulation, a .50-caliber weapon restriction and licensing and large-capacity weapon rules. It moved to a study order.

July 15, 2014Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 sex-offender registry and child-safety proposal covering address reporting, information sharing, case-specific disclosure and reclassification, together with child-abuse definitions and reporting and recidivism review. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 30, 2014Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 poaching-enforcement and Wildlife Violator Compact proposal addressing penalties, restitution, reciprocal license suspensions and due process. A revised bill passed the Senate in June 2014 but received no final House action.

June 19, 2014Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 secondary-metals licensing and anti-theft bill requiring seller records, reporting, police access and a ten-day holding period, with penalties and a separate abandoned-foreclosure-property registry. A revised Senate bill restored the ten-day hold after an intermediate reduction, but received no final action.

November 20, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored the PAWS animal-cruelty programme, including a registry proposal. The revised August 2014 law required veterinary reporting, increased cruelty penalties and commissioned a registry-feasibility study; it did not establish the original fifteen-year registry.

October 8, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored legislation creating the Metacomet regional emergency-dispatch district for Franklin, Norfolk, Plainville and Wrentham, with a public governing board, member assessments and financing powers. It became law in July 2013.

February 1, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring autism-related police and corrections recruit training, including de-escalation, sensory needs, rights and autistic adult presenters. A companion advanced without final action.

January 31, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored inclusion of household pets and service animals in emergency plans and public preparedness information. The Senate passed the bill 38–0. It became law on March 24, 2014.

January 17, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored stronger penalties for repeat assaults against family or household members. Later versions added certain out-of-state convictions, restricted case deferrals and required intervention programs unless the court made findings. The 2013 bills went to study in June 2014.

January 16, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored liability protection for unpaid design and construction professionals providing approved disaster help. The law covered good-faith work and excluded gross negligence or intentional misconduct. It was signed August 5, 2014, with a later effective date.

January 16, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored stronger penalties for courthouse assaults, intentional disruption and work-related threats against legal officials and lawyers. The bills included prison terms and fines. The 2013 version went to a study order in June 2014.

January 15, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored adding cash bail to domestic-violence release conditions and extending detention procedures after release-condition violations. The bills went to study orders during 2010–2014.

January 14, 2013Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored criminal penalties for parents, guardians or caretakers who knowingly failed to report a child’s death within 24 hours. The proposal required notification to police or emergency medical personnel. The bill included prison terms and a fine of up to $10,000. It went to a study order in July 2012.

July 12, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation adding email addresses, online aliases and domain names to sex-offender registration, change notices, information access and enforcement rules. The bill went to a study order in July 2012.

April 13, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored municipal animal-control reforms. The law signed August 2, 2012 addressed licensing, rabies, kennels, officer training, dangerous-dog hearings and animal care. It prohibited breed-specific rules and created conditional shelter and spay-neuter funding. It also covered pets in protective orders and set impoundment and euthanasia rules and restricted tethering.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation giving approved special-education schools access to authorized criminal-history information for screening current and prospective employees, including available out-of-state and federal records. The bill went to a study order in July 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation extending child-endangerment protections to people with lasting impairments limiting their ability to care for or protect themselves. The bill also added indecent assault on a person with a disability to the covered offenses. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a replacement interstate compact governing juvenile supervision, transfers and returns, with shared rules, an interstate commission, state oversight and enforcement. The bill barred secure detention of specified status offenders and nonoffenders. It went to a study order in May 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored gender-identity protections in employment, housing, education and hate-crime laws, enacted in November 2011. The final law omitted the original public-accommodation provisions. She also co-sponsored a later bill adding public-accommodation protections; it went to study in July 2014.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a public-health volunteer registry and activation system, including interstate aid, liability protections and injury benefits for activated volunteers. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored trafficking crimes, stronger penalties and victim protections, including child safe-harbor proposals. The revised law, approved November 21, 2011, established trafficking offenses, forfeiture and victim remedies, and care pathways for exploited children. Those pathways retained prosecutorial objections and possible restoration of criminal proceedings.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring new dealer-supplied semiautomatic firearms to imprint identifying information on fired cartridge cases. The bill retained serial-number rules and imposed escalating fines for each gun. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored workplace-violence risk assessments, prevention plans, incident records, staff training and response teams for social workers. A revised 2012 bill reached the governor but was pocket-vetoed in January 2013. A later version covering more human-service workers and volunteers went to study in April 2014.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored grants for towns facing unusually high public-safety costs tied to state-supported facilities and services. A later version added school and support costs for children placed outside their hometowns. It received a favorable report in March 2012 but did not pass.

January 19, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill defining criminal attempt through a purposeful substantial step, listing corroborating conduct and allowing a complete, voluntary renunciation defense subject to exceptions. It received no further action after Judiciary referral.

January 4, 2011Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored repeated youth-violence and gang-prevention proposals creating a commission, school and community grants, job referrals and evaluation. A dedicated fund included voluntary tax-return contributions and an administrative spending limit. The earlier bill received no further action, and the 2009–10 refile went to study.

November 10, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill banning electronic communications by operators of moving school buses, with emergency exceptions, and requiring approaching drivers to stop for yellow as well as red flashing school-bus signals. It moved to a study order.

October 21, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored successive sex-offender name-change bills from 2005 through 2010, requiring notice within seven days and notifications to police, the FBI and authorized recipients. Earlier versions permitted state-prison sentences and discretionary downstream disclosure. The 2009–10 version instead proposed up to two and a half years in a house of correction and required the authorized notifications. The bills went to study.

October 18, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill extending criminal sexual-material definitions to electronically transmitted text, email, instant messages and mobile devices, including electronically stored images. It moved to a study order.

October 18, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring police training on mental illness and intellectual disabilities, less intrusive emergency responses, diversion and legal rights, with practitioner and consumer input. It moved to a study order.

September 13, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring evacuation chairs in residential buildings over four stories or above the reach of the highest fire ladder, with regulations and inspections. It moved to a study order.

September 13, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored legislation establishing a Silver Alert response for missing adults with serious memory impairments. The enacted law provided geographically focused alerts, responder training and a reverse-911 plan, subject to available funds. It became law in August 2010.

August 10, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill strengthening penalties for unauthorized removal of stone walls or fences, including reconstruction, damages, possible imprisonment and a driving-license suspension or delay. It reached Senate Rules; the available history shows no later action.

June 14, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring police to provide domestic-abuse information covering shelters, counseling, hotlines, legal help, protective orders and victim compensation. It moved to a study order.

May 19, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 school anti-bullying and conflict-resolution proposals. The resulting 2010 anti-bullying law retained instruction in peaceful conflict resolution and established school prevention plans and responses to repeated bullying, including online conduct. The original libel proposal was omitted; the law did not create a private right of action.

May 3, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an adopted 2006 harassment-protection amendment and co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill for civil protection orders without a family relationship. The February 2010 law provided no-contact and stay-away relief, confidentiality and emergency orders. It used a narrower harassment definition and omitted the earlier mandatory firearm-surrender requirement.

February 9, 2010Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pre-arrest diversion based on Framingham’s joint police and mental-health clinician response. That proposal included training, assessments, referrals and grants. Her later bill authorized clinically appropriate community treatment and diversion pilots, subject to funding and public-safety safeguards. It entered a broader substance-use draft in June 2010 that did not pass.

January 13, 2009Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered a $250,000 school bullying-prevention amendment, including $50,000 for state administration and an online resource repository and $200,000 for Bridgewater State’s aggression-reduction centre. The Senate adopted the amendment in May 2008.

May 21, 2008Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation setting sex-offender classification and hearing deadlines before release, increasing specified child-rape penalties and post-release probation, and imposing geographic exclusions from child-oriented places. The proposal reached a study order in August 2008.

April 1, 2008Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Jointly petitioned for child-welfare information sharing with other states screening prospective foster or adoptive parents. The resulting law allowed specified disclosures and retention of unsubstantiated reports for future safety assessments. It was approved January 11, 2008; it did not authorize general public access.

January 11, 2008Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation addressing foster children’s best interests, medical screening, caseworker training, life-support decisions and serious-abuse referrals. Its committee draft stalled. A separate July 2008 child-welfare law included matching safeguards, with changed medical-review requirements and an expanded existing professional council; the original proposal itself did not become law.

November 5, 2007Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation making the newborn safe-haven law permanent and cosponsored a related proposal adding emergency-responder surrender after a 911 call. The combined committee draft led to the August 2007 law removing the June 2008 expiration and requiring biennial reports; the proposed new 911 surrender clause did not survive.

August 6, 2007Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored repeated bills requiring manufacturers and dealers to submit fired projectiles and shell casings for a police ballistic database. The proposals allowed substitute regional testing and imposed graduated penalties for violations. Both the 2005 and 2007 versions went to study.

January 11, 2007Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation expanding sex-offender registration, supervision and victim protections, including an earlier intensive-parole proposal. The resulting July 2008 law retained heightened penalties for specified child sexual assaults and rapes, electronic-record investigative procedures and prosecution reporting. The original registry and intensive-parole framework was absent from the final five-section law.

January 11, 2007Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill tightening eligibility for firearm carry licenses and requiring 20 hours of safety training, including four hours of shooting. It proposed a specific compelling safety reason or sport-and-target restrictions, expanded disqualifications and treated specified continuances without findings as convictions. The bill was sent to study in 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored bicycle-safety legislation covering police training, safe passing and turning, door opening, two-abreast riding and citations separate from motor-license penalties. A narrower final bill passed both chambers in December 2006. The governor vetoed it on December 31, and the session ended without an override.

December 31, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing sexual-assault nurse examiner training and certification, pediatric qualifications, forensic standards and designated services, advised by a multidisciplinary board. The core programme became law in August 2006.

August 1, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an amendment banning mobile-phone use while driving for junior operators and learner-permit holders, with exceptions for specified emergency calls. It proposed escalating suspensions, retraining or retesting requirements, parental notices and enforcement as a primary offense. The amendment was rejected in July 2006.

July 27, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored counting federal convictions under the state habitual-offender law. Her 2003–2004 and 2005–2006 bills went to study orders.

July 10, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation removing criminal indictment time limits for specified sexual offences, conspiracies and accessories, with constitutional retroactivity and severability provisions. The proposal reached a study order in July 2006.

July 10, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a 15-year driving-license suspension after a manslaughter conviction involving a motor vehicle, beginning upon first release from custody. The bill went to study in July 2006.

July 5, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment creating a permanent, independent commission on gay and lesbian youth. Its duties included school and community suicide- and violence-prevention efforts, agency recommendations and annual reports, with public meetings and diverse membership. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 24, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing statewide shaken-baby prevention, including newborn-parent education, professional training, support for affected families and surveillance. The November 2006 law retained those elements subject to appropriation and added good-faith liability protection, advisory consultation and annual evaluation and reporting.

April 10, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a study of prisoner release, victims’ rights and existing and automated victim-notification systems. The bill received a favorable report in January 2006 but did not advance beyond Senate Rules.

January 11, 2006Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored successive proposals expanding identity-fraud law to cover deceptive collection of identifying information for fraud or false documents. The bills added financial identifiers, deceased people and businesses, with penalties, venue rules and a lawful-police-work exception. The versions reached study orders in 2006, 2008 and 2010.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored 2003 and 2005 proposals expanding criminal-investigation subpoenas for electronic-provider records while excluding communications content and visited internet locations from that subpoena power. They also established cross-state warrant and subpoena service, five-day production, judicial challenges and authentication rules. The earlier bill went to study; the later proposal reached House Ways and Means without further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing licensure, training and treatment standards, complaints and discipline for adult and juvenile sex-offender treatment providers. The proposal reached a study order in June 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation establishing a state-administered federal grant programme for safer walking and cycling near schools, including sidewalks, crossings, traffic calming and safety education. The proposal reached House Ways and Means in 2005 and received no further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill expanding civil penalties for abuse, neglect, mistreatment and property misappropriation involving elderly or disabled patients and residents. It broadened caretaker and disability definitions and proposed stronger criminal penalties for assaults, reckless abuse or neglect and sexual assault. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring ten days of unsuspended imprisonment for driving after a license suspension for refusing or failing a chemical test. It also proposed an additional year of suspension and barred continuances without findings for that offense. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill protecting domestic-violence plaintiffs’ home and work addresses and contact information from defendants and public inspection. It also restricted records involving minors while preserving specified victim, advocate, prosecutor and police access. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored youth helmet requirements for bicycles and recreational wheeled vehicles, retailer notices and protection against using helmet violations as contributory-negligence evidence. The law approved August 27, 2004 applied through age 16, narrower than her original proposal through age 17.

August 27, 2004Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored initial and annual background and suitability checks for paid and volunteer workers serving young people and people with developmental disabilities. The proposal included criminal, driving and police records, appeals, inspections and provider penalties. It went to study in May 2004.

May 13, 2004Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation criminalizing possession of tools used to defeat store security devices when accompanied by intent to steal. The proposal reached a study order in April 2004.

April 8, 2004Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored requiring an arrest warrant after 90 days for people leaving Massachusetts without reasonable support for a spouse or child. The bill went to a study order in April 2004.

April 8, 2004Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation extending school employees’ emergency-first-aid liability protection to school-sponsored events and field trips. The proposal reached a study order in March 2004.

March 25, 2004Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation doubling motor-vehicle fines and penalties in marked road-construction areas. The House accepted an adverse report on the proposal in October 2003.

October 22, 2003Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored legislation authorizing Framingham police to exercise their powers, including bylaw enforcement, in publicly accessible buildings and property owned or controlled by the housing authority. It became law in October 2002.

October 9, 2002Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 journalist-shield bill protecting confidential sources and unpublished reporting, with an imminent-terrorism exception and a demanding test for compelled unpublished evidence. The official history shows Judiciary referral without a later disposition. The official source was reverified on October 17, 2026; that verification date substitutes for an unavailable historical action/publication date.

October 17, 2026Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored juvenile-court and record-clearing bills, including S.944 and S.947, that fed the broader 2018 justice law. Her proposal also sought juvenile jurisdiction through age 20. The final law instead studied that expansion and kept jurisdiction at ages 12 through 17. It added limited record erasure for offenses before 21, school-policing safeguards and courtroom-restraint limits.

April 13, 2018Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill favoring placement of siblings together in foster care and adoption. It required strong evidence for separation, continued contact and quick court review. The bill received no further action after reaching Senate Ways and Means.

January 23, 2017Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill strengthening limits on restraints for pregnant prisoners and during at least six weeks after childbirth. It required staff training, reports after restraints and public compliance reports. The bill received no further action after reaching Senate Ways and Means.

January 23, 2017Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored successive bills tightening government access to private electronic data. Earlier versions set warrant and criminal-subpoena procedures, customer notices and emergency exceptions. The 2017 version also regulated phone-tracking devices and required deletion of unrelated data. That bill moved to a study order in March 2018.

January 23, 2017Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored hearing and medical-privacy protections for drivers facing license suspension because of disability. The bills required written medical evidence of danger and prompt decisions. The 2015 version went to a study order in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored restrictions on prison placements for people civilly committed for addiction treatment. The 2015 version allowed exceptions for violence, escape risk or serious medical needs preventing less intensive care. It also addressed treatment capacity. The bill went to study in May 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored foster-care proposals covering prevention plans, family participation in placement decisions, school stability, credit repair and abuse reviews. Earlier versions required a statewide school-stability plan; the package added attendance and record-transfer duties. Other versions barred specified criminal-record entries and probation investigations arising from care proceedings. A revised 2014 package ended without passage on January 6, 2015. Parental-rights proposals required court findings before restoration; later versions added failed-adoption and young-adult cases. The 2017 version went to study in March 2018.

January 6, 2015Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill allowing specified court findings and protective or voluntary-service orders for abused, neglected or abandoned young adults aged eighteen through twenty. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 30, 2014Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2013–14 juvenile mental-health review proposals, including community alternatives to detention, confidential voluntary assessments, care coordination and a limited Springfield pilot requiring approval before statewide expansion. The bills moved to study.

January 31, 2013Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill requiring autism-related police and corrections recruit training, including de-escalation, sensory needs, rights and autistic adult presenters. A companion advanced without final action.

January 31, 2013Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored removing civil filing deadlines for child sexual abuse claims in 2005 and extending those deadlines in 2013. The earlier unlimited-deadline bill went to study. The 2014 law adopted thirty-five-year and seven-year discovery limits, childhood tolling, related negligence claims and specified retroactivity.

January 18, 2013Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored sentencing and parole changes for people convicted of murder committed at ages 14 through 17. Later proposals added youth-specific findings, rehabilitation reviews and alternatives to life sentences. The 2013 bill went to study in July 2014.

January 16, 2013Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pregnancy care and limits on restraints for incarcerated women. The resulting law covered screening, prenatal care, nutrition, recovery and limits on isolation. It became law May 15, 2014. The final law allowed some front handcuffs during transport beyond her original exceptions.

January 16, 2013Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored adding cash bail to domestic-violence release conditions and extending detention procedures after release-condition violations. The bills went to study orders during 2010–2014.

January 14, 2013Opposes Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored allowing courts to erase criminal records caused by fraud, mistaken identity or other good cause. The proposal covered related court and probation records and barred access after expungement. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored screening criminal defendants for military service and allowing 14-day continuances for veterans’ assessments and treatment or diversion planning. The bill also required court-personnel training and annual outcome reports. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a replacement interstate compact governing juvenile supervision, transfers and returns, with shared rules, an interstate commission, state oversight and enforcement. The bill barred secure detention of specified status offenders and nonoffenders. It went to a study order in May 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored trafficking crimes, stronger penalties and victim protections, including child safe-harbor proposals. The revised law, approved November 21, 2011, established trafficking offenses, forfeiture and victim remedies, and care pathways for exploited children. Those pathways retained prosecutorial objections and possible restoration of criminal proceedings.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored limits on criminal-intelligence centers’ collection, retention and sharing of personal information. The proposal restricted political and religious surveillance and required five-year reviews, public audits and Inspector General oversight. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored school discipline reporting, continued education during exclusions, appeals and dropout-prevention measures. Related legislation became law on August 6, 2012, with major provisions starting July 2014. The law limited ordinary misconduct exclusions to 90 school days and required educational services and public discipline data. Her broader proposals for attendance through age 18, driving penalties and paid parent leave were omitted.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored repealing old criminal restrictions on abortion and contraception and removing marital restrictions on access to contraception. The proposal also revised written consent for abortion outside emergencies. It went to a study order in October 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored allowing community restorative-justice programs in juvenile cases, police referrals and diversion or rehabilitation. The proposal excluded sexual offenses and domestic or family violence. It ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation charging a $50 administrative fee per case file for requests to seal adult or juvenile criminal records. The bill went to a study order in July 2012.

February 4, 2011Opposes Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored community help for runaway and truant children and families before court involvement. The resulting 2012 law replaced older proceedings with confidential, noncriminal assistance cases and added legal counsel and limits on confinement. The final law omitted her proposed attendance age of 18.

January 20, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored bills protecting homes, tools, vehicles, benefits and other property from debt collection. They also barred jail solely for unpaid debt and improved small-claims notices. The 2011 version went to a study order in October 2012.

January 19, 2011Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal to examine gender-responsive services for girls involved in juvenile justice, including training, contracts, racial and gender data, educational outcomes and girls’ own input. A revised commission resolve passed the Senate in December 2010; no final enactment appears in the linked history.

December 16, 2010Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 commission to study pretrial diversion for first-time nonviolent young adult offenders, including screening, services and record sealing. It moved to a study order.

October 18, 2010Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring police training on mental illness and intellectual disabilities, less intrusive emergency responses, diversion and legal rights, with practitioner and consumer input. It moved to a study order.

September 13, 2010Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored pre-arrest diversion based on Framingham’s joint police and mental-health clinician response. That proposal included training, assessments, referrals and grants. Her later bill authorized clinically appropriate community treatment and diversion pilots, subject to funding and public-safety safeguards. It entered a broader substance-use draft in June 2010 that did not pass.

January 13, 2009Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka jointly offered studies on collecting juvenile-justice contact data by race, ethnicity, gender, age and location. The proposal covered police, courts, detention, supervision and diversion, followed by a Child Advocate summary. The Senate adopted it on May 21, 2008.

May 21, 2008Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation setting sex-offender classification and hearing deadlines before release, increasing specified child-rape penalties and post-release probation, and imposing geographic exclusions from child-oriented places. The proposal reached a study order in August 2008.

April 1, 2008Opposes Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation removing criminal indictment time limits for specified sexual offences, conspiracies and accessories, with constitutional retroactivity and severability provisions. The proposal reached a study order in July 2006.

July 10, 2006Opposes Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered a criminal-record reform amendment providing rehabilitation certificates, limits on record disclosure and employment use, and opportunities to dispute records used for adverse decisions. It also proposed nonconviction sealing, juvenile and acquittal-related record-purging procedures, and a study of shorter conviction-sealing periods. The Senate adopted the amendment in 2006.

May 25, 2006Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored ending restrictions on greyhound-care and adoption funding based on an organization’s past or present position on dog racing. The bill advanced to House Ways and Means in February 2006 but did not pass.

February 2, 2006Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a study of prisoner release, victims’ rights and existing and automated victim-notification systems. The bill received a favorable report in January 2006 but did not advance beyond Senate Rules.

January 11, 2006Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a review of healthcare and environmental conditions for women at MCI Framingham, compared with community standards. The proposal examined access, treatment and staffing and sought $200,000 for the review. Versions went to study orders in 2006 and 2008.

January 26, 2005Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring ten days of unsuspended imprisonment for driving after a license suspension for refusing or failing a chemical test. It also proposed an additional year of suspension and barred continuances without findings for that offense. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Opposes Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an administrative appeal for underground-storage-tank reimbursement decisions, covering eligibility and payment amounts. The proposal preserved nonadjudicatory initial decisions but allowed a formal appeal under state administrative law. The House rejected it in April 2004.

April 27, 2004Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation requiring specific judicial findings before disclosure of privileged sexual-assault or domestic-violence counselling records, with in-camera review, protective orders and appeal safeguards. The proposal reached a study order in March 2004.

March 25, 2004Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Jointly sponsored Hopkinton’s property-tax relief bill for qualifying older homeowners with limited income. The law set relief at 50% to 200% of the prior state circuit-breaker credit. It shifted costs within the residential tax levy and allowed renewal every three years.

August 22, 2018Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored new rules for selling or leasing unused state land. The bills included local purchase rights, affordable housing, public review and sharing proceeds with municipalities. They also protected specified conservation land. The 2015 version went to study in July 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 service and volunteer initiative including K–12 service learning, a higher-education student corps and an appropriation-dependent choice of loan repayment, tuition aid or housing support. A revised bill retained those tools but received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 proposal for appropriation-dependent grants of up to $10,000 for accessible housing changes or moves by Marathon bombing victims with qualifying limb loss or loss of use. It received no final action.

May 6, 2013Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 proposal dedicating institutional savings and property-sale proceeds to human-services provider payments. A revised bill proposed separate 20-percent allocations for provider payments, deeply affordable housing and a self-direction contingency fund; it received no final action.

January 31, 2013Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 voluntary sober-housing certification proposal with training, standards and restrictions on state referrals. The standalone bill ended without passage. Related provisions enacted in the July 2014 budget established voluntary accreditation, rent and safety protections, complaints procedures and certified-housing referral requirements, while allowing uncertified homes to operate.

January 16, 2013Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 Turning 22 proposal for competitive-employment, residential and transition supports. Its successor retained employment targets, needs prioritization and facility-sale proceeds for services, but dropped the original specified appropriations and received no final action.

January 14, 2013Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 unaccompanied-homeless-youth housing and support-services proposal. The resulting January 2015 law established a commission and funding-dependent housing, health, education, employment and case-management services for youth under age 24, with attention to minors and LGBT youth.

January 10, 2013Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored broader Community Preservation financing and recreation and housing uses. The standalone bill ended without passage. Related July 2012 budget provisions expanded eligible work and local funding options and revised matching and equity distributions. They retained spending floors and permanent property restrictions.

February 4, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored community-housing financing for people with disabilities alongside stronger accessibility standards. A revised bill retained capital authorizations but narrowed the immediate statutory access requirements to rulemaking. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored minimum monthly shelter benefits of $600 for eligible veterans and dependents without separate heating costs. The proposal set a $500 minimum for those paying heating costs. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill requiring public-housing authorities to show new tenants their units and fix problems before occupancy. It also covered tenants transferring apartments. The bill went to a study order in October 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored foreclosure protections requiring lenders to compare affordable loan changes with foreclosure and verify ownership documents. Related legislation became law on August 3, 2012. It required good-faith review for specified high-risk mortgages and ownership affidavits. She also sponsored and offered foreclosure mediation proposals that failed. The final law established only a mediation feasibility study. Earlier co-sponsored legislation also contributed to a 2010 law protecting tenants and extending foreclosure cure periods.

January 20, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored bills counting qualifying apartments within existing homes toward local affordable-housing requirements. They also allowed property-tax exemptions for affordable-unit improvements for up to 15 years. The 2007 and 2011 versions went to study in 2008 and 2012, respectively.

January 19, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring housing-stability screening at welfare applications and other contact points, homelessness-prevention benefits for eligible low-income households and protected savings for permanent housing. It reached Ways and Means without further action.

January 4, 2011Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored senior and disability property-tax relief proposals from 2003 through 2015, covering deferrals, local credits and exemptions, work-off allowances, circuit-breaker relief and outreach. An early combined draft narrowed to deferrals and stalled. The 2009–10 package broadened hardship eligibility, extended lower-interest timing for deferrals after death, raised the work-off allowance and proposed a credit for taxes or qualifying rent above eight percent of income, capped at $1,000. It went to study. Later disability-credit and municipal-service-fee proposals also ended without passage.

October 12, 2010Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 bills enabling a named nonprofit to build and operate veterans’ housing with financing and stipend protections. The final 2009 veterans law replaced that model with a housing-capacity study and competitive procurement of private operators using federal and private funding.

November 11, 2009Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill setting aside certain benefit reductions for homeless cash-assistance recipients to obtain or keep housing. The savings stayed outside benefit asset limits. The committee reported it favorably in March 2010, but the bill did not advance further.

January 12, 2009Supports Housing Affordability

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an amendment requiring reasonable individualized shelter self-sufficiency plans, with good-cause exceptions. It limited monthly TAFDC reductions to $148.50, reserved that money for permanent-housing costs and barred additional savings requirements. The Senate rejected it in 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored successive proposals requiring property assessors to consider deed-recorded use restrictions, including affordable-housing restrictions, when valuing taxable property. The proposals reached study orders in 2004 and 2008.

January 11, 2007Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored presumed housing-assistance eligibility for homeless applicants, permanent placement within 180 days and interim housing. The proposal also required continuing housing and financing plans. It went to a study order in March 2006.

March 27, 2006Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation providing emergency rental-arrearage assistance to low-income families at risk of losing their housing, subject to appropriation, assessment and community stabilization support. The bill reached House Ways and Means without further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored changes to zoning and subdivision law covering master plans, site review, development rights and impact fees. The proposal also addressed mediation, minor subdivisions, housing affordability and recreation land. A separate co-sponsored bill contained the same impact-fee authority. Both went to study orders in 2004.

May 27, 2004Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored reserving at least 25% of transferred former state-hospital land for supported housing, with a 50-year restriction. The revised bill omitted that reservation and instead addressed surplus-property procedures and agency capital proceeds. It stalled in House Ways and Means in 2004.

April 1, 2004Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a revolving home-modification loan fund for families of severely disabled children, with income-adjusted interest, five- to ten-year repayment and no income cutoff. It was accompanied by a broader disability-housing proposal that passed the Senate. The housing portion’s later new draft received no further action.

May 22, 2003Supports Housing Affordability

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Jointly sponsored Hopkinton’s property-tax relief bill for qualifying older homeowners with limited income. The law set relief at 50% to 200% of the prior state circuit-breaker credit. It shifted costs within the residential tax levy and allowed renewal every three years.

August 22, 2018Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a bill favoring placement of siblings together in foster care and adoption. It required strong evidence for separation, continued contact and quick court review. The bill received no further action after reaching Senate Ways and Means.

January 23, 2017Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka offered a supplemental budget rewrite funding public defenders, child welfare, emergency housing, public health and negotiated employee benefits. After changes, it became law on April 1, 2016. The law retained voluntary youth services through age 21 and hospital funding. It omitted her proposed voter-data sharing provisions.

March 24, 2016Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored a new interstate agreement governing foster and adoptive placements. It assigned each state’s duties and established shared assessment, supervision, rulemaking and enforcement. Later versions added private-adoption safeguards. The Senate passed the 2015 bill 37–0, but the House did not act further.

January 15, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored restoration of surviving spouses’ pensions reduced or ended by remarriage before July 2000. Her proposal excluded back payments. The 2015 bill received no further action before the session ended in January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka repeatedly sponsored a Medicaid waiver request excluding spousal income and assets from certain home-care eligibility decisions. The proposal covered adults ages 19 through 60 with progressive physical disabilities needing nursing-home-level care. The 2015 bill went to study in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored expanding the independent child advocate’s investigations and oversight of services for children. The proposal included joint appointment by three state officials, limited terms, an advisory council, records access and subpoena powers. Its replacement bill ended the 2015–2016 session without passage.

January 15, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a task force improving health-coverage enrollment for former foster youth. It reviewed automatic enrollment, outreach, shared data and quarterly Medicaid tracking. The bill received no further action before January 2017.

January 15, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 healthy-food retail financing proposal for underserved communities, using loans, grants, technical assistance and economic-impact reporting. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill extending nonprofit and health-care collective-bargaining coverage to professional employees and repealing the church-related-employer unemployment-insurance exclusion. A separate religious-order-member exception remained. The bill received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 resolution asking Congress to protect major social programmes and support public investment and jobs. It also sought corporate tax loophole closure, higher-income taxes, and reductions in military spending and the Afghanistan war. It received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored foster-care proposals covering prevention plans, family participation in placement decisions, school stability, credit repair and abuse reviews. Earlier versions required a statewide school-stability plan; the package added attendance and record-transfer duties. Other versions barred specified criminal-record entries and probation investigations arising from care proceedings. A revised 2014 package ended without passage on January 6, 2015. Parental-rights proposals required court findings before restoration; later versions added failed-adoption and young-adult cases. The 2017 version went to study in March 2018.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 three-year family self-sufficiency pilot combining training, work study, job placement, case management and emergency help, with a minimum share of current TAFDC participants. Its companion received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 developmental-disability eligibility and community-services bill. Its revised successor addressed intellectual disability, autism and Prader-Willi syndrome, functional needs, licensing, safety and reporting, but received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill recognizing qualifying fair-value family-caregiver contracts in MassHealth asset determinations, with service descriptions, reasonable pay and refunds of unearned advance payments. Its companion moved to study in June 2014.

June 30, 2014Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill allowing specified court findings and protective or voluntary-service orders for abused, neglected or abandoned young adults aged eighteen through twenty. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 30, 2014Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill restoring federally optional adult MassHealth benefits to January 2002 levels, including dental services and specified Basic and Essential dental-benefit parity. It moved to study in April 2014.

April 28, 2014Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill improving mental-health crisis and treatment access for otherwise eligible people with autism or related conditions, with trained clinicians and agency coordination. It moved to study in March 2014.

March 13, 2014Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 proposal for appropriation-dependent grants of up to $10,000 for accessible housing changes or moves by Marathon bombing victims with qualifying limb loss or loss of use. It received no final action.

May 6, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2013–14 juvenile mental-health review proposals, including community alternatives to detention, confidential voluntary assessments, care coordination and a limited Springfield pilot requiring approval before statewide expansion. The bills moved to study.

January 31, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 proposal dedicating institutional savings and property-sale proceeds to human-services provider payments. A revised bill proposed separate 20-percent allocations for provider payments, deeply affordable housing and a self-direction contingency fund; it received no final action.

January 31, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 disability-services bill allowing voluntary self-direction through individual budgets, and co-offered a related budget amendment that was rejected. The August 2014 Real Lives law retained self-direction with qualified-provider, financial-management and oversight safeguards. It omitted the original 40-percent Templeton savings fund and 90-day provider-change provisions.

January 30, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 commission to examine older LGBT residents’ health, housing, financial security, care needs and disparities, with older LGBT members represented. It moved to a study order.

January 16, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 voluntary sober-housing certification proposal with training, standards and restrictions on state referrals. The standalone bill ended without passage. Related provisions enacted in the July 2014 budget established voluntary accreditation, rent and safety protections, complaints procedures and certified-housing referral requirements, while allowing uncertified homes to operate.

January 16, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 Turning 22 proposal for competitive-employment, residential and transition supports. Its successor retained employment targets, needs prioritization and facility-sale proceeds for services, but dropped the original specified appropriations and received no final action.

January 14, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 unaccompanied-homeless-youth housing and support-services proposal. The resulting January 2015 law established a commission and funding-dependent housing, health, education, employment and case-management services for youth under age 24, with attention to minors and LGBT youth.

January 10, 2013Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 Medicaid-continuity bills and co-offered an adopted 2010 Senate amendment keeping otherwise eligible children covered for up to twelve months despite excess income, ending sooner at annual review. She later co-sponsored a parent-inclusive waiver proposal and co-offered a 2012 amendment directing express-lane renewals and prepopulated forms while studying continuous eligibility.

May 24, 2012Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored exempting qualifying senior and disability transportation charities from used-car dealer licensing for specified vehicle transactions. The exemption covered vehicles acquired from riders or for their benefit, including transportation credits. The bill ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

November 17, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored passing eligible child-support collections through to families receiving public assistance without reducing their aid. The proposals also returned collected support to former recipients. An earlier version ended assignment of pre-assistance arrears and extended these policies to state-funded assistance. Neither version passed during the reviewed sessions.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored protecting Medicaid eligibility after asset transfers made for fair value or purposes unrelated to qualifying for assistance. The proposal identified circumstances shifting the burden of proof to the agency. Its replacement bill ended the 2011–2012 session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored residential support for eligible older adults and temporary presumed MassHealth eligibility after discharge. The same bill covered paid spouse caregivers and personal care for people needing supervision or reminders. The 2011 proposal went to study in 2012; later versions went to study in 2014.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded health benefits for uninsured children through age 18 who were otherwise ineligible for MassHealth. Earlier proposals included emergency, surgical, vision, mental-health, dental, equipment and hearing benefits. The later version retained unlimited primary-care sick visits, discretionary dental, drug and behavioral-health benefits, and cost reporting. The proposals ended their sessions without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded transition planning for students with disabilities, including adult-agency participation before school exit. The proposal included employment and housing support, benefits counseling and reports of unmet needs. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored trafficking crimes, stronger penalties and victim protections, including child safe-harbor proposals. The revised law, approved November 21, 2011, established trafficking offenses, forfeiture and victim remedies, and care pathways for exploited children. Those pathways retained prosecutorial objections and possible restoration of criminal proceedings.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation barring public schools from excluding children in state custody from after-school activities because of an inability to pay fees. Districts and child-welfare officials were assigned plans to remove those barriers. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored minimum monthly shelter benefits of $600 for eligible veterans and dependents without separate heating costs. The proposal set a $500 minimum for those paying heating costs. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored public-assistance reforms counting education toward work requirements, removing specified asset limits, protecting education funding and productive savings, and increasing work-expense deductions. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill requiring public-housing authorities to show new tenants their units and fix problems before occupancy. It also covered tenants transferring apartments. The bill went to a study order in October 2012.

January 20, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored community help for runaway and truant children and families before court involvement. The resulting 2012 law replaced older proceedings with confidential, noncriminal assistance cases and added legal counsel and limits on confinement. The final law omitted her proposed attendance age of 18.

January 20, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring housing-stability screening at welfare applications and other contact points, homelessness-prevention benefits for eligible low-income households and protected savings for permanent housing. It reached Ways and Means without further action.

January 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying long-term-care options, consumer choice, reduced reliance on MassHealth nursing-home beds and incentives for conversion to other services. It received no further action after reaching joint Rules.

January 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill continuing voluntary foster-care support to age 21 for qualifying education, work or medical circumstances, with court reviews, youth-directed transition plans and efforts to reopen cases. It reached Ways and Means without further action.

January 4, 2011Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill excluding a community spouse’s retirement accounts from the other spouse’s Medicaid asset calculation when regular distributions were made or the community spouse remained employed. It moved to a study order.

October 28, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored senior and disability property-tax relief proposals from 2003 through 2015, covering deferrals, local credits and exemptions, work-off allowances, circuit-breaker relief and outreach. An early combined draft narrowed to deferrals and stalled. The 2009–10 package broadened hardship eligibility, extended lower-interest timing for deferrals after death, raised the work-off allowance and proposed a credit for taxes or qualifying rent above eight percent of income, capped at $1,000. It went to study. Later disability-credit and municipal-service-fee proposals also ended without passage.

October 12, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 cigarette-tax-funded lung-cancer screening and research trust, with low-income and minority screening priorities, diagnostic follow-up and administrative limits. It moved to a study order.

October 12, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 health-coverage bill expanding outreach, eligibility for specified elderly or disabled noncitizens, retroactive provider reimbursement and notice protections, and barring lifetime benefit caps. It moved to a study order.

September 27, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill removing the special unemployment disqualification treating temporary-help workers as voluntarily quitting if they failed to contact the agency for reassignment. It left other unemployment conditions in place and moved to a study order.

August 19, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 bill requiring police to provide domestic-abuse information covering shelters, counseling, hotlines, legal help, protective orders and victim compensation. It moved to a study order.

May 19, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2009–10 proposal for a commission studying drug-rehabilitation needs, access and capacity for Department of Children and Families clients, with former clients represented. It reached House Ways and Means; the available history shows no later action.

March 18, 2010Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored companion 2009–10 bills enabling a named nonprofit to build and operate veterans’ housing with financing and stipend protections. The final 2009 veterans law replaced that model with a housing-capacity study and competitive procurement of private operators using federal and private funding.

November 11, 2009Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored cash-assistance rewrites covering benefits, savings, work expenses, training, childcare, appeals and subsidized jobs. The proposals retained time limits, family-cap rules and fraud penalties while revising good-cause protections and sanctions. A 2006 conference bill stalled after gubernatorial amendments. She offered adopted amendments to a 2007 Senate-passed version that stalled in the House. Her later bill received a favorable committee report in March 2010 but did not pass.

January 13, 2009Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a bill setting aside certain benefit reductions for homeless cash-assistance recipients to obtain or keep housing. The savings stayed outside benefit asset limits. The committee reported it favorably in March 2010, but the bill did not advance further.

January 12, 2009Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-petitioned foster-child permanency legislation requiring consideration of in-state and out-of-state placements, review of continued out-of-state placements and transition services from age 16. The resulting January 2008 law also required age-appropriate consultation with children on permanency plans and steps to finalize placements.

January 11, 2008Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation addressing foster children’s best interests, medical screening, caseworker training, life-support decisions and serious-abuse referrals. Its committee draft stalled. A separate July 2008 child-welfare law included matching safeguards, with changed medical-review requirements and an expanded existing professional council; the original proposal itself did not become law.

November 5, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored a bill requiring public education to recruit and retain more foster and pre-adoptive parents. The Senate passed it in October 2007, but it received no further action after referral to House Ways and Means.

October 16, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored legislation making the newborn safe-haven law permanent and cosponsored a related proposal adding emergency-responder surrender after a 911 call. The combined committee draft led to the August 2007 law removing the June 2008 expiration and requiring biennial reports; the proposed new 911 surrender clause did not survive.

August 6, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-offered an amendment requiring reasonable individualized shelter self-sufficiency plans, with good-cause exceptions. It limited monthly TAFDC reductions to $148.50, reserved that money for permanent-housing costs and barred additional savings requirements. The Senate rejected it in 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment assigning Project Bread responsibility for a community hunger-prevention programme and requiring a strategic plan and research on hunger prevention and effects. The Senate adopted it in May 2007, and the duties appeared in the final July budget.

May 23, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment extending child-care subsidy eligibility to families in which parents or other relatives received SSI or children received cash assistance without adult benefits. The Senate adopted it in May 2007. The final budget permitted a pilot for those families after already-eligible children were served and funds remained.

May 23, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered $100,000 for a task force examining service needs of adults with autism who lacked an intellectual disability. The proposal required recommendations by June 2008. The Senate rejected the amendment on May 23, 2007.

May 23, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill creating a central database and annual public reports on developmental-disability service applicants, recipients and people whose applications were unsuccessful. It aimed to identify unmet service needs. The proposal advanced through a new draft but received no further action after returning to House Ways and Means.

January 11, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored repeated bills requiring annual adjustments in daily payments to foster, adoptive and guardianship families to reach federally recommended USDA levels. The 2005 bill received no further action; the 2007 refile entered a combined new draft that also received no further action by January 2009.

January 11, 2007Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered temporary prescription protections for Prescription Advantage members and MassHealth beneficiaries also enrolled in Medicare during July through December 2006. The amendment provided a 30-day supply, followed by a free 72-hour supply, when Medicare billing failed, and addressed excess Medicare cost sharing. The Senate adopted it in 2006.

May 25, 2006Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored requiring a state measure of whether household income covered Massachusetts living, work, family and tax costs. The proposal aimed to measure needs beyond federal poverty guidelines. It went to a study order in March 2006.

March 27, 2006Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored presumed housing-assistance eligibility for homeless applicants, permanent placement within 180 days and interim housing. The proposal also required continuing housing and financing plans. It went to a study order in March 2006.

March 27, 2006Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored and cosponsored expanded child-nutrition access, including free breakfast in high-needs schools, summer meals and after-school snacks. The proposals also provided multilingual applications, extended food-assistance office hours and caseworker continuity. The later bill went to study in March 2006.

March 23, 2006Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation excluding Social Security payments from the calculation that reduced unemployment benefits. The committee’s combined draft preserved that exclusion and reached House Ways and Means in March 2006; enactment was not established.

March 22, 2006Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka sponsored a study of caseloads by job title across state and state-funded human-service providers. The proposal required recommended changes, cost estimates and a report within 120 days. Her bills advanced to budget committees during 2004–2005 but did not pass.

December 12, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored restoring health benefits for eligible legal immigrants and broader emergency Medicaid coverage. Her bill advanced into the 2006 health-reform legislation. The final law included qualifying legal immigrants in Commonwealth Care and extended MassHealth Essential to eligible older or disabled immigrants. The latter provision survived the governor’s veto on May 24, 2006.

October 31, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored a federal Medicaid waiver application for intensive home and community services for children with autism at risk of institutionalization. The resulting law required provider qualifications, language-accessible enrollment, coordination with school services and annual reports. It was approved October 5, 2005; federal approval remained a separate step.

October 5, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a voluntary income-tax contribution fund covering basic expenses for activated National Guard and reserve members and their families. The proposal used a designated charity, public summaries and confidential individual records. The Senate passed an amended bill in July 2005, but it did not become law.

July 20, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered an amendment extending MassHealth coverage to otherwise eligible former foster youth under 21 who had been in state custody at 18. It also requested a cost study of coverage for all otherwise eligible people under 21. The amendment was rejected in 2005.

May 24, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring quarterly reports on family-shelter applications, approvals, denials, household circumstances, shelter use and costs, and subsequent housing outcomes. It also tracked homelessness-prevention costs and results. The accompanying proposal reached House Ways and Means without further action.

April 21, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored state rate-setting rules for social-service providers, reflecting reasonable costs, inflation, new requirements and geographic differences. The proposal included provider and consumer consultation, volume adjustments and appeals, with specified program exclusions. It went to a study order in May 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored legislation providing emergency rental-arrearage assistance to low-income families at risk of losing their housing, subject to appropriation, assessment and community stabilization support. The bill reached House Ways and Means without further action.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a new department supporting adults with disabilities or chronic conditions outside specified existing agencies. Revised bills instead used interagency agreements and existing service networks. They covered personal care, respite, housing modifications, accessible technology and consumer choice. The proposal ended the 2005–2006 session without passage.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka co-sponsored a $72.80 monthly personal-needs allowance for qualifying nursing, chronic-hospital and rest-home residents. The proposal covered income shortfalls and linked future increases to state supplemental payments. Its companion advanced to House Ways and Means in April 2006 but did not pass.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored drug-forfeiture proposals directing a share of proceeds to community treatment and prevention, with the remainder split between prosecutors and police and detailed fund reporting. The 2003 proposal reserved 20%; the 2005 bill’s operative text raised that share to 50%. Both proposals went to study.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a bill requiring a five-year plan and costed priority lists for developmental-disability residential, day, transportation and family-support services. It proposed interim vouchers, employment incentives, institutional-resource transfers and federal-waiver funding to reduce waiting lists. The bill was sent to study in 2006.

January 26, 2005Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Sponsored proposals allowing eligible Framingham seniors with gross income up to $40,000 to defer property taxes. The detailed version provided interest, equity limits, surviving-spouse continuation and a recorded lien recoverable from sale or the estate. Both versions were sent to study in 2004.

April 12, 2004Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Cosponsored reserving at least 25% of transferred former state-hospital land for supported housing, with a 50-year restriction. The revised bill omitted that reservation and instead addressed surplus-property procedures and agency capital proceeds. It stalled in House Ways and Means in 2004.

April 1, 2004Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-offered at least $104,123 for Framingham High School’s school-age parenting project during a supplemental-budget debate. The House adopted the joint amendment on November 13, 2003.

November 13, 2003Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Co-sponsored a revolving home-modification loan fund for families of severely disabled children, with income-adjusted interest, five- to ten-year repayment and no income cutoff. It was accompanied by a broader disability-housing proposal that passed the Senate. The housing portion’s later new draft received no further action.

May 22, 2003Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: archives.lib.state.ma.us

Spilka offered annual budget amendments from 2005 through 2018 covering schools, workforce training, housing, legal aid, disability services and local programs. Some changed spending; others addressed eligibility, reporting and agency rules. The Senate adopted some proposals and rejected others. Adopted examples included $4 million for workforce training and specified school grants in 2016. Her 2017 package removed a twelve-month housing-assistance exclusion. Her 2018 package addressed cremation of unclaimed remains and required a sustainability assessment before specified lobster-processing changes. These were her named amendments, including proposals offered jointly with other legislators. The source record distinguishes Senate decisions from final-budget enactment. Earlier adopted motions funded state foresters and five new pretrial mental-health diversion programmes.

May 25, 2018Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored school-foundation-budget reform and offered a substantive 2016 education amendment. The amendment proposed a seven-year update for special education, low-income pupils, English learners and health-insurance costs, with additional charter-school discipline safeguards; it was adopted in the Senate but did not become law. Her 2017 bill proposed an appropriation-dependent schedule to implement the 2015 commission recommendations and revised the funding formula. Its later Senate version received no final House action.

May 10, 2018Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored a spending amendment providing $15 million for schools serving students displaced by hurricanes in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It also added money for the state discrimination agency and planning training. The Senate passed the amended bill 38–0. The measure became law in February 2018.

February 16, 2018Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored a study of later start times for middle and high schools, including effects on health and learning. It also examined resources needed for later schedules. The combined measure received no further action after reaching Senate Ways and Means.

January 23, 2017Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored bills recognizing proficiency in English and another language with a diploma seal. An earlier version also created a dual-language education office and grants. Later versions retained a voluntary seal under state guidelines. Her 2017 standalone bill moved to a study order in March 2018.

January 23, 2017Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored and jointly sponsored bills requiring genocide education in the state history curriculum, including the Holocaust, Armenian genocide and other atrocities, with teaching materials and educator training. The 2015 and 2017 bills moved to study orders.

January 23, 2017Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Cosponsored school improvement-plan approval bills with thirty-day and later forty-five-day school-committee review deadlines. The earlier version also required superintendent approval. The final 2016 law assigned approval to superintendents after consultation with school committees and required plans to be submitted by July 1.

January 15, 2015Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored requiring charter-school applications to assess local education and financial effects. Applicants also faced a requirement to protect remaining district schools’ financial ability to educate students. The bill went to a study order in June 2016.

January 15, 2015Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored income-tax deductions for municipal water, sewer and trash fees at a primary residence. She also co-sponsored versions covering municipal trash charges, school transportation and student activity fees. These proposed deductions from the same category of taxable income. Early versions went to study in 2006 and 2008. None of these standalone bills passed during the reviewed sessions.

January 15, 2015Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 service and volunteer initiative including K–12 service learning, a higher-education student corps and an appropriation-dependent choice of loan repayment, tuition aid or housing support. A revised bill retained those tools but received no final action.

January 6, 2015Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Sponsored and cosponsored foster-care proposals covering prevention plans, family participation in placement decisions, school stability, credit repair and abuse reviews. Earlier versions required a statewide school-stability plan; the package added attendance and record-transfer duties. Other versions barred specified criminal-record entries and probation investigations arising from care proceedings. A revised 2014 package ended without passage on January 6, 2015. Parental-rights proposals required court findings before restoration; later versions added failed-adoption and young-adult cases. The 2017 version went to study in March 2018.

January 6, 2015Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 early-educator tax-credit proposal. Its successor replaced the original credit based on 30 percent of the federal earned-income tax credit. It specified refundable $200 or $600 credits tied to qualifications and work requirements, and received no final action.

July 21, 2014Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 public nursing-degree transfer bill setting associate-to-bachelor credit and nursing-core requirements and a total-credit ceiling subject to approval. It moved to study in June 2014.

June 5, 2014Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored 2009–10 and 2013–14 public higher-education tuition and fee-waiver proposals for veterans, National Guard members and Massachusetts-resident Armed Forces Reservists. The earlier version required available federal-aid applications and reporting; the later reservist extension moved to a study order.

January 18, 2013Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Co-sponsored a 2013–14 bill making instruction on working people and the labor movement mandatory within the state history framework. It moved to a study order.

January 17, 2013Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored locally approved school reserves for unexpected out-of-district special-education tuition and transportation costs. The reserve was capped at 2% of annual net school spending, with spending allowed without another appropriation. A revised bill ended the session without passage.

December 9, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored physical education in every grade, with licensed teachers, national standards, state evaluation and a physical-education coordinator. She also co-sponsored a version adding charter schools, nutrition, medical exemptions and 30 minutes of daily activity for younger students. A revised bill dropped the daily-minute requirement and ended the 2013–2014 session without passage. The earlier bill also failed.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored separate tax credits for half of public-school transportation and activity fees, each capped at $500. The bill also exempted children’s books from sales tax. It went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored using each district’s five-year average special-education enrollment in school funding calculations, replacing assumed enrollment shares. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored grants for planning, feasibility studies and transition costs when school districts shared or regionalized special-education services. A revised bill replaced the grants with a study of services, coordination, transitions and costs, subject to funding. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a civics curriculum and graduation-course proposal covering government, social movements, current events and community projects. A revised bill retained model units, youth advice and pilot evaluation but ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored a middle-skills council and regional training academies linking community colleges, vocational schools, adult education and employers. A revised bill retained coordinated training, credentials, grants and employment support, subject to funding. It ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored expanded transition planning for students with disabilities, including adult-agency participation before school exit. The proposal included employment and housing support, benefits counseling and reports of unmet needs. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored an early-literacy programme covering birth through third grade, evidence-based teaching, screening, teacher training and family engagement. The revised law, approved September 26, 2012, established a nine-member advisory panel and planning and reporting duties.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored requiring school curriculum standards at every grade to teach peaceful ways to resolve personal disputes. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation barring public schools from excluding children in state custody from after-school activities because of an inability to pay fees. Districts and child-welfare officials were assigned plans to remove those barriers. The bill went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored legislation establishing specialist credentials for educators helping students with disabilities move into further education, work and independent living. A revised bill became law on March 9, 2012, creating an endorsement with coursework and practical experience for special-education teachers and rehabilitation counselors.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored school discipline reporting, continued education during exclusions, appeals and dropout-prevention measures. Related legislation became law on August 6, 2012, with major provisions starting July 2014. The law limited ordinary misconduct exclusions to 90 school days and required educational services and public discipline data. Her broader proposals for attendance through age 18, driving penalties and paid parent leave were omitted.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored public-assistance reforms counting education toward work requirements, removing specified asset limits, protecting education funding and productive savings, and increasing work-expense deductions. The bill ended the session without passage.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka co-sponsored school-bus fee rules allowing charges up to transportation costs while exempting legally required transportation and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. The bill also permitted income exemptions and sibling discounts and barred distance-based fees. It went to a study order in September 2012.

February 4, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored a commission studying oversight of publicly funded for-profit schools. The review covered recruitment, loans, fees, audits, credit transfers and student counseling. A revised bill reached House Ways and Means in May 2012 but did not pass.

January 20, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored financial-literacy teaching in the state math framework. Her bill covered credit, borrowing, housing, saving, retirement, banking and gambling risks, with an advisory group. She also co-sponsored an earlier version requiring curriculum materials and objectives for every grade. A revised bill reached House Ways and Means in August 2011 but did not pass. The earlier versions also failed.

January 20, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov

Spilka sponsored grants for towns facing unusually high public-safety costs tied to state-supported facilities and services. A later version added school and support costs for children placed outside their hometowns. It received a favorable report in March 2012 but did not pass.

January 19, 2011Supports Public Education Quality

Source: malegislature.gov