Governor Baker Signs Animal Safety and Protection Legislation

Governor Baker Signs Animal Safety and Protection Legislation

BOSTON – Today, Governor Charlie Baker ceremoniously signed An Act preventing animal suffering and death (S. 2369), which prohibits the confinement of animals to vehicles where they are subject to danger from extreme weather conditions, limits the length animals can be tethered outdoors, and enables first responders and bystanders to assist in their rescue.

“While we hope and expect no one should ever have to act to save a pet or child from such dangerous conditions, we understand those situations unfortunately do arise and lives can depend on a quick response,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “I am pleased this legislation gives first responders and bystanders the tools to take reasonable actions to rescue pets in imminent danger.”

The legislation allows animal control officers, police or firefighters to enter vehicles to rescue an animal and allows citizens to act similarly in rescuing an animal in imminent danger after first calling 911. All first responders will be given immunity from civil or criminal liability and violators will be subject to fines for such conduct.

“This legislation helps ensure the well-being of the pets that many of us consider companions and family, strengthening state laws that prevent the mistreatment of animals in the Commonwealth, ” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito.

“Too many animals have suffered from neglect, whether in a dangerously hot car or chained outside for interminable lengths of time, this bill is an important step in ensuring that in addition to our empathy they have the weight of our laws to defend them,” said Senator Mark Montigny (D – New Bedford) Assistant Majority Leader and Chair of the Senate Committee on Rules, the Senate sponsor of the bill. “This legislation will ensure that reckless and abusive owners face stiff penalties and empower local authorities and the general public to contribute to the wellbeing of our four-legged friends.”

"Most of us treat our pets like family members -- some even better. However, for the poor animals that are neglectfully left in hot cars or tethered inappropriately, this new law is for them," said Lori Ehrlich (D – Marblehead) the House sponsor of the bill, "For the safety of those who cannot save themselves, I'm proud to have proposed and helped pass this bill."

The legislation reduces the number of hours each day during which a dog can be tethered outside from 24 hours to 5 hours, limits tethering to 15 supervised minutes during the hours of 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM, and prohibits any outdoor tethering during severe weather. The bill increases the fines for second offense tethering violations from $100 to $200 and $300 to $500 for subsequent offenses.

MAYOR WALSH ANNOUNCES SUGGESTED READING LIST AS PART OF IMAGINE BOSTON 2030'S ENGAGEMENT PROCESS

MAYOR WALSH ANNOUNCES SUGGESTED READING LIST AS PART OF IMAGINE BOSTON 2030'S ENGAGEMENT PROCESS

Encourages Residents to Join the Conversation About the Future of Our City

BOSTON - Wednesday, August 24, 2016 - As part of Imagine Boston 2030's community engagement process, Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced a suggested reading list that offers residents the opportunity to learn more about the background on some of the history and concepts that are helping to inform conversations about the future of our city. The list of books was determined by members of the Mayor's team, and selected based on their content as its relates to the work of Imagine Boston 2030. The list includes works by practitioners, thinkers and philosophers who write about urban landscapes, physical and otherwise. Recognizing that this is by no means a comprehensive list, the Mayor's team is asking the public to vote on three titles to be added. To cast your vote, please visit here. "Through Imagine Boston 2030, we are engaging residents on the future of our city in ways that have never been done before," said Mayor Martin J. Walsh. "This reading list is another tool we're using to drive engagement and ask people to think about to Boston's first city-wide planning undertaking in 50 years. I encourage all residents to visit their local library branch to pick up at least one of the books on the list and join the conversation about the Boston's future." Since being launched in October 2015, Imagine Boston 2030 has been engaging with thousands of residents to set the direction for the city's growth. Over the last few months, the City has engaged residents through open houses, conversations,street teams, community workshops, text messages, social media and web surveys. The Mayor's Office has partnered with the Boston Public Library to make the Imagine Boston reading list available to all Boston residents. To find your local library branch and borrow a book from the Imagine Boston reading list, please visit here. The full list of books included in Imagine Boston 2030's reading list is below: Reading List "Evicted" by Matthew Desmond "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" by Jane Jacobs "Chain of Change: Struggles for Black Community Development" by Mel King "The Given Day" by Dennis Lehane "Common Ground" by J. Anthony Lukas "All Souls" by Michael Patrick MacDonald "The Power Broker" by Robert Moses "Karma and Other Stories" by Rishi Reddi "The Resilience Dividend: Being Strong in a World Where Things Go Wrong" by Judith Rodin "Villa Victoria: The Transformation of Social Capital in a Boston Barrio" by Mario Luis Small "Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time" by Jeff Speck "The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future" by Joseph E. Stiglitz Youth (Ages 3+) Reading List: "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing" by M. T. Anderson "The City of Ember" by Jeanne DuPrau "Pennies for Elephants" by Lita Judge "What's the Big Idea? Four Centuries of Innovation in Boston" by Stephen Krensky "Make Way for Ducklings" by Robery McCloskey "Fantastic Cities: A Coloring Book of Amazing Places Real and Imagine" by Steve McDonald "Beneath the Streets of Boston" by Joe McKendry "On the Loose in Boston (Find the Animals)" by Sage Stossel About Imagine Boston 2030 Imagine Boston seeks to knit together citywide planning efforts, public engagement and feedback, and City priorities to guide our city into 2030. A citywide plan will serve to implement the ideas set forth and to offer additional ideas for the physical and economic development of Boston. Just as importantly, Imagine Boston 2030 will help Boston's citizens articulate a shared vision for equitable prosperity, innovation, education, health, equity and arts and culture.

麻州預定10/28起過路費徵收全面電子化

            ( Boston Orange 整理)麻州官員22日公佈，預定10月28日全面實施高速公路收費站電子化，大約有一半道路，會向使用麻州政府發放的電子通行證（E-Z Pass）駕車人士，徵收較以往稍高的費用。

        這個新系統使用高掛的龍門架，在車輛通過時自動收費。適用路段包括托賓橋（Tobin Bridge），以及整條麻州公路（Mass Turnpike），桑姆納/卡拉漢（Sumner/Callahan），泰德威廉（Ted Williams）隧道。

            政府官員表示，根據提案，譬如從李市（Lee）到春田市（Springfield）的這段公路，費用會從1.2元增加到1.3元。從西伯洛夫（Westborough）到衛斯頓（Weston），會從70分增加到95分。

            從紐約邊界開車到波士頓市中心，反而費用會降低。在目前的收費系統下，不包括托賓橋和市內隧道，過路費共6.6元，但在新系統下，費用會是6.15元。

            總體來說，持有麻州政府所發放電子通行證（E-Z Pass）者，在麻州內行駛時，有47%的道路會花費比目前少，5%大約一樣，其餘會更貴些。大約14%的道路會增加約5分錢，20%增加10分到20分錢，其餘的增加25分錢或更多。

            政府官員表示，費率會有這麼大的變動，主要是因為新系統要用16個高掛龍門架來取代26個收費站。

            麻州交通長普拉克（Stephanie Pollack）表示，這些高掛龍門架的安裝地點，多年以前就決定了。他們在儘量做到更公平。

            麻州政府將為此事在九月份時舉辦一系列公聽會，10月6日再就此案正式投票表決。

            交通部董事，也是碧樹市（Braintree）市長蘇利文(Joseph Sullivan)建議，在實施之初，給人們一個緩衝期，讓駕車人士暫時不會被徵收更高費用，或者向還未安裝電子通行證者徵收額外費用。

            麻州政府官員22日時還表示，這一改變，原本預計一年可節省5000萬元，現在只能節省500萬元。

            採行新的收費系統後，車輛在收費站前排隊，或慢下來以付費的情況街不再出現。麻州政府官員表示，應可減少擠塞，污染及收費站前意外事故，並為駕駛人是節省時間。

預計到2017年底，收費站都拆了，道路重建了後，駕車人士將更加感覺到新系統帶來的好處。

麻州交通委員會22日投票通過斥資一億三千二百八十萬元來做這事。

實施新收費系統，也意味著麻州政府不再需要聘用收費站收費元。約有510名兼職或全職工作人員將受影響，必須轉任其他工作。麻州交通部將為2014年1月31日受聘的大約312名員工提供優惠退休方案。

波士頓華埠將增加監控攝像機數量

            （Boston Orange訊）紐英崙中華公所和華美福利會，華埠商會攜手，正和波士頓警察局A-1區警長Ken Fong 合作，計劃與城中區企業改善區（BID）一起，更換並增加華埠內的監控攝像機。

            波士頓華埠內有許多熱心人士一直致力改善華埠內的清潔，安全，在紐英崙中華公所的華埠治安巡邏隊之外，華美福利會前任董事長陳美霞和華埠長期義工阮陳金鳳，數年前也和波士頓市府公共工程局（PWD），稽查局(ISD)，波士頓華埠主街等合作，發起成立了“清潔華埠委員會”，從教育，說明市府提供的相關清潔服務與處罰規定做起。

            紐英崙中華公所主席陳家驊日前發信，通知相關人士有關更換/增加監控攝像機一事，說明一旦Fong警長收到廠家報價，就會和社區人士商量。

據悉，各個參與社區將分攤費用。

陳家驊指出，在華美福利會的陳美霞，波市公共工程局的Frank O’Brien等人協作下，平日的每天早上，以及週六，週日，都有人清掃華埠街道。由於有些人在清掃街道日那些天不遵守停車規定， 阻礙了清掃工作，波士頓警察以及交通部已開始開罰單，許多時候還拖吊違規車輛。最近在Frank O’Brien協助下，乞臣街（Hudson）和泰勒街（Tyler）都有強力清洗機刷洗街道。他還允諾重鋪必珠街（Beach）街道。

陳美霞及阮陳金鳳正在積極遊說市府，連必珠街的人行道都重新鋪。

            陳家驊表示，中華公所和華埠商會合作，正籌畫募集更多資金來清掃華埠。他們和曾為北端（North End），畢肯丘（Beacon Hill）等地提供服務的計劃地（Project Place）合作過，也已收到幾個不同清掃時段，方法的提案。 他們相信，由於監管和保險等問題，聘用服務機構比中華公所自己來做這清掃服務會更有效率。

            華埠治安巡邏隊的隊長翁宇才，隊員謝中之等人匯報過了，該隊成員幾乎每天都會在髒亂不堪，經常有垃圾堆得滿地的好事福地（Oxford Place）巷弄撿到針頭。天安門紀念碑一代，也經常可見尋歡客遊蕩，惹事生非，希望警方多派員巡邏，採取行動。

            陳家驊表示，在社區，警察和市府三方合作下，華埠一定會更清潔，安全。

波士頓市議員 8/24日中午辦音樂會 市長表揚五歲小作家

BOSTON CITY COUNCIL TO HOLD

MUSIC ON THE MEZZ FOLLOWING COUNCIL MEETING TOMORROW, AUGUST 24, AT 1:30

波士頓市議會將於8月24日下午一點半，開完議員會議後，在市府大樓三樓大堂舉辦“大堂音樂會（Music On The Mezz）”。該活動免費供大眾參與。

這是波士頓市議會議長吳弭（Michelle Wu）倡議市議員們加強合作關係的活動之一。市議員們已開始每月聚會午餐，並且挑一個主題，邀講者闡述，申論。

這星期的主持人是第二區市議員林乃肯（Bill Linehan），他決定藉著組織一場音樂表演來和大家分享自己對音樂的愛好。

BOSTON- The Boston City Council will host Music On The Mezz following tomorrow’s City Council Meeting. The event is free of charge and open to all. It will begin promptly after the Council meeting concludes, around 1:30PM on the 3rd floor mezzanine of City Hall.

As part of City Council President Michelle Wu’s initiative to foster stronger relationships and collaboration between colleagues, the Councilors have met for monthly lunches with a focus on nongovernmental business. Each Councilor hosts a lunch and chooses the topic or speaker. District 2 City Councilor Bill Linehan takes his turn as host this week and wanted to share his passion for music by organizing a musical performance.

Various Councilors will share their musical talents, backed up by guitar, drums and keyboard, with songs covering a range of musical genres.

波士頓市長馬丁華殊（Marty Walsh）也將於8月24日下午一點，在市府“老鷹室”內，為年僅5歲，住在麥特潘（Mattapan）的本地寫作者暨表演者，Ashton Antoine，舉辦簽書會。
Ashton Antoine出版的這本兒童書兼自傳，名為“ 5 我的魔奇數目（5 My Magic Number）“簽書會。他還將在簽書後，為市長及嘉賓們舉辦小提琴演奏會。

MAYOR WALSH TO ATTEND BOOK SIGNING, VIOLIN PERFORMANCE BY ASHTON ANTOINE, A 5 YEAR-OLD LOCAL WRITER AND PERFORMER Following the book signing, Ashton will perform a violin concert for the Mayor and guests. BOSTON - Tuesday, August 23, 2016 - Tomorrow, Mayor Martin J. Walsh will attend a book signing of "5 My Magic Number," a children's book and biography written by five-year-old Ashton A. Antoine of Mattapan. Following the book signing, Ashton will perform a violin concert for the Mayor and guests.

TREASURER DEB GOLDBERG LAUNCHES OPEN ENROLLMENT FOR WORCESTER COLLEGE SAVINGS PROGRAM

TREASURER DEB GOLDBERG LAUNCHES OPEN ENROLLMENT FOR WORCESTER COLLEGE SAVINGS PROGRAM

Pilot Initiative to Take Place in the City of Worcester 

Worcester, MA – State Treasurer Deb Goldberg, alongside Worcester families, legislators, and community leaders, launched the enrollment for her office’s $eedMA initiative, the first-of-its-kind pilot program for college savings accounts. The kickoff event coincided with the Worcester Public Schools’ (WPS)  third annual “Countdown to Kindergarten” at the Eco-Tarium, Treasurer Goldberg and her staff were onsite to provide programmatic information for parents and begin the process of enrolling students into the $eedMA pilot. The event welcomed all incoming WPS kindergartners and their families for an evening of activities and helpful tips as they begin their first academic experience. An estimated 600 children and families were in attendance.

“Providing every family with access to affordable higher education is critical to strengthening both the Worcester and the state’s economies,” said Treasurer Deb Goldberg. “The tremendous support exhibited by community leadership will provide a blueprint for success, as we expand the $eedMA program across Massachusetts.”

The $eedMA initiative provides kindergarten students in the Worcester Public School System with an initial $50 deposit to establish a Massachusetts 529 college savings account. The initiative, is a partnership between the Massachusetts State Treasury and the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA). It is open to every kindergarten student enrolled in the Worcester Public School System for the 2016-2017 school year, expanding to other communities across the state. Formore information on enrollment and eligibly please visit www.seedma.org.

“MEFA is pleased to be a partner in this initiative with Treasurer Goldberg, her team and the City of Worcester, “ said Tom Graf, Executive Director of MEFA. “It is exciting to work with Worcester families on creating a plan for saving for college.”

“Financial planning is very difficult for many of our families,” said Worcester Mayor Joe Petty. “The $eedMA program is not just about saving for college but it’s about financial literacy. This program is about helping our families change the way they are thinking and talking about their financial futures.”

Treasurer Goldberg created the Office of Economic Empowerment (OEE), led by a deputy treasurer, with the deliberate goal of implementing a range of economic empowerment initiatives, including closing the gender wage gap, increasing access to financial education, improving college affordability, and investing in STEM careers and education.

For more information on $eedMA and the Office of Economic Empowerment please visit www.seedma.org or follow the hashtag #SeedMA.