On Tuesday, the Legislature’s Transportation Committee heard testimony on several bills aimed at expanding use of electric cars. One proposal, backed by Reps. Ann-Margaret Ferrante, D-Gloucester, and Lenny Mirra, R-West Newbury, would reauthorize the rebate program for low-emission and electric vehicle purchases up to $75,000 and create a new rebate offering a $400 discount on…
As fall begins and our formal sessions resume at the State House, I want to update you on some of the important work that is happening on Beacon Hill and around Cape Ann! First, some exciting news on education. The Joint Committee on Education released an education funding reform bill last week that fully implements…
Donald Trump’s trade war with China has economic salvos striking in places you’d never expect. Like, say, the retaliatory tariffs that are bursting over the New England lobster industry. In September 2017, US lobstermen shipped over 1,100 metric tons to China alone. Distributors selling more lobsters resulted in beneficial stable prices for lobstermen and more…
State Rep. Ann Margaret Ferrante, D-Gloucester, said the trade wars are hurting not just lobstermen but other sectors of the seafood industry connected to it, such as processors, wholesalers, supermarkets and restaurants. “The lobster is commodity that feeds a chain of industries,” she said. “You’re talking about a supply chain of about five industries that…
Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante, of Gloucester, said in a June letter that the state’s lobstering industry “has become collateral damage in the Trump Administration’s trade war with China.” Ferrante has proposed a bill that would require state officials to prepare an annual strategic report for the state’s commercial fishing and shellfish industry. The evaluation would come…
State Rep. Ann Margaret-Ferrante, D-Gloucester, a cosponsor of the legislation, told Statehouse reporter Christian Wade: “We’re living in a time where I think most people would agree that there’s more of a chance of a fetus being exposed to opioids than alcohol. We really need to have a discussion about what is happening to these…
State Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante (D-Gloucester) today announced the availability of $300 in annual household electricity savings through JOE-4-SUN, the state’s largest Low-Income Community Shared Solar program. The initiative from Boston-based Citizens Energy Corporation, launched earlier this month, offers discount solar credits to about 2,000 low-income Massachusetts families each year. “This is a terrific new program…
The fiscal year 2020 budget also includes $580,000 in amendments authored by Tarr and state Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante, D-Gloucester, to fund Cape Ann initiatives in public safety, water quality, economic development, marine genomics research, the Blue Economy, as well as community celebrations in Gloucester and Essex. Read more on the Gloucester Daily Times website→
This week, I joined my colleagues in the Massachusetts House of Representatives to pass a balanced fiscal year 2020 budget that invests heavily in education, economic development, and local aid, strengthens Cape Ann’s local economy and celebrates its history. The funding in this year’s budget for Cape Ann is reflective of our area’s people, our…
Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante (D-Gloucester) joined her colleagues in the Massachusetts House of Representatives to unanimously pass legislation investing $1.3 billion to help cities and towns across Massachusetts fund infrastructure projects aimed at fighting climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The legislation establishes a $1 billion, 10-year grant program – known as GreenWorks – to…
