Dear Anthony,

Spring has finally sprung! With Western Massachusetts coming into full bloom, I hope this newsletter finds you well.

This month the Healey-Driscoll administration brought back the Governor’s Conference on Travel and Tourism after a ten-year hiatus. The conference brought together legislators, executive leaders, and professional stakeholders in the travel and tourism industry from all across the Commonwealth to discuss the future of the industry in Massachusetts. I was thrilled to be in attendance and to help bring attention to our district’s plentiful contributions to the tourism industry. The Governor stood by her strong support for tourism, specifically highlighting the important value that our district adds to the industry with Tanglewood, Jacob’s Pillow, Shakespeare and Company, MassMOCA, and our many beautiful mountains, lakes, and ski slopes. In the coming years, the hope is to push Massachusetts, the birthplace of our nation, to spearhead the 250th anniversary of the United States. To watch the Governor’s full speech, please see here.

This month my office also hosted the 2nd Annual Beacon Hill in the Berkshire Hills event in Lenox. The event aims to get members of the Massachusetts Legislature and Massachusetts Executive Branch out into Berkshire County to foster meaningful discussions and conversations on issues, and to further ensure that our Westernmost communities never go unseen or forgotten. This year I was pleased to welcome our speakers and would like to give a specific thank you to Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, Housing Secretary Ed Augustus, Senator Julian Cyr (Seasonal Communities Designation), Senator John Velis (Chairperson, Joint Committee on Veterans & Federal Affairs), Senator Jason Lewis (Chairperson, Joint Committee on Education), and Senate President Karen Spilka. 

The Legislature also celebrated Agriculture Day this month. Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll announced over $3 million in grants to support Massachusetts farmers through programs that improve composting efforts, food safety, cranberry bog restoration, stewardship, and business planning. The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) Commissioner Ashley Randle also announced the formation and inaugural members of the Massachusetts Agricultural Youth Council. Comprised of high school seniors, the Ag Youth Council will cultivate and foster the next generation of leaders in the agriculture industry in Massachusetts

Patriots’ Day was also observed this month with the 249th anniversary of the battles of Lexington and Concord. Tensions had been building for many years between residents of the 13 American colonies and the British authorities, particularly in Massachusetts. On the night of April 18, 1775, hundreds of British troops marched from Boston to nearby Concord in order to seize a storage of weapons and ammunition. Paul Revere sounded the alarm, and colonial militiamen began mobilizing to intercept the British column. The confrontations known as the “shot heard round the world” kicked off the 8-year American battle for independence. To learn more about the plans for next years 250th anniversary celebration, see here.

The legislature has been once again hard at work this month. Here are some of the biggest updates:

H. 4529: Massachusetts Senate unanimously approved $375 million in bond authorizations for statewide transportation projects, including the state’s Chapter 90 program, which would create a reliable funding source for local rural infrastructure investments like roads, bridges, regional transit equipment and infrastructure, bicycle infrastructure, and electric vehicle infrastructure, among other things.

Every city and town in the Commonwealth would receive a share of $200 million in funding to be used on maintenance and construction of roads and bridges. $150 million would be allocated equally to six programs targeting specific transportation infrastructure, and $25 million would be allocated to cities and towns through the rural roads program

We are continuing with our recurring Tourism Tuesdays feature! This month, we spotlighted the Governor's Conference on Travel and Tourism, as well as the Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls.

The bridge of flowers was constructed in 1908, originally used by trolleys to convey raw materials from the railroad yard in Buckland across the Deerfield River to the factories in nearby hill towns. Eventually with the trolley company going out of business however, the bridge became obsolete. With the expensive prospect of tearing down the bridge far out of budget, the bridge was eventually rescued by a local couple, Antoinette and Walter Burnham, whose home overlooked the Bridge. Gazing on the weed-infested structure one day, as the story goes, Mrs. Burnham remarked to her husband that “if weeds can grow on that bridge, why not flowers?” The Shelburne Falls Women’s Club took on the project. To learn more about the bridge of flowers, visit their website.

The Massachusetts Poverty Commission will be holding its first public hearing in Springfield on Tuesday, May 14th , 2024. The Commission is tasked with studying ways to promote opportunity, address inequality and make recommendations that would significantly reduce poverty in the Commonwealth over the next 10 years. Findings and recommendations are due to the Legislature by December 31, 2024.

Three public hearings will be held across geographically diverse areas across the Commonwealth. The first public hearing will be hosted at Springfield Technical Community College on Tuesday, May 14th from 3-6pm. We hope you will consider attending and ask that you please share this invitation with your networks, particularly organizations surrounding anti-poverty work. We hope speakers and organizations from the Western Massachusetts region will discuss their work and experience addressing poverty in the Commonwealth.

For individuals interested in testifying either in person or virtually, they can sign up here.

Interested in reading more about Senator Mark's work in the district or at Beacon Hill? Check out #MarkMentions to read stories where Senator Mark is mentioned in the news.

Friends, you will always have my hard work, accessibility, and dedication as I fight for you in the State Senate. We embarked on this journey determined to show up in all of our communities and be as accessible as possible. Please don't hesitate to reach out to our team or myself anytime you need help navigating state government.

With gratitude, 

Senator Paul Mark

Berkshire, Hampden, Franklin, and Hampshire District