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Date: 11/11/2020
WESTERN MASS. – After securing the Second Hampden and Hampshire District state Senate seat during the Nov. 3 election, state Sen. John Velis discussed his goals and challenges ahead of his first full term in office.
Before getting into anything, Velis said one of his top priorities was helping the area recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“First and foremost has to be COVID-19 recovery; it’s going to be an immediate and all-consuming issue in terms of how we recover. Small business, the hardships people are facing in the Second Hampden and Hampshire District, it’s absolutely critical to advocate for them,” he said.
While the Senate and House are facing difficult budget seasons, Velis said he is going to make sure his constituents have a seat at the table.
“We’re entering a difficult budget season with the House releasing theirs next week and then the state Senate releasing theirs the following week. Every lawmaker is going to be asked to do more with less. I need to zealously advocate for the constituents that elected me to ensure we have a seat at the table,” he said.
One of the ways Velis said he wants to stand out in legislature is by providing a bipartisan voice in the state Senate.
“One thing that is a priority of mine is continuing to be that voice in Massachusetts politics that doesn’t look at things just through the lens of the political party that happens to be next to my name. I think that’s critical to our nation, the healing and the working together,” he said.
For education, Velis said he wanted to remove the stigma some students face by choosing to go to a trade school over a public high school.
“I think we need to do a better job of pushing back on that stigma that young men and women who go to trade schools and vocational schools should be looked down upon. I’ve got any number of buddies who went to trade schools and they’re making a lot more money than I am, and I think we need to promote that,” he said.
Along with advocating for trade schools, Velis said he wants to make sure Student Opportunity Act funding goes back to normal for the next budget year after funds were cut because of the pandemic.
“The Student Opportunity Act, K-12 education, was funded at criminal levels for students, teachers, educators and school district. We cannot allow IEP and special [education] students to be forgotten. A big part of that Student Opportunity Act was funding for special education, we cannot allow not fully funding the act to go beyond the next budget year,” he said.
“When legislation comes up, one of the first questions I’m going to ask myself is what impact does this have on Western Massachusetts. If the answer is no, I’m going to raise a good amount of hell down there,” he added.
Velis said one of his concerns as a result of the pandemic was how it affected people with mental health and substance abuse issues.
“I think one of the failures that I don’t think we’re talking about enough right is what we did and how we advocated for folks who suffer from mental health and substance abuse disorders. I think it’s absolutely going to be a collateral consequence of this pandemic,” he said.
If mental health services, such as the Fowler Wing at Baystate Noble Hospital close, Velis said the patients and workers in those facilities need to have an alternative place to go.
“In a perfect world, if the Fowler is going to close, what I want to see is a viable alternative for all of the people that would be impacted by that, whether it’s the patients, the staff, or the hospital. I want to know where that Westfield State [University] student or that person from the Forum House we heard talk, I want to know where they are going to go if they need those services. We need a place for those people to go,” he said.
As a member of the Legislative Oversight Committee investigating the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, Velis said their goal is to make sure something like that never happens again.
“The plan is to have these hearings, issue a report, and then have the report lead to legislature. Our job, simply put, is to make sure this never, ever happens again at the Holyoke Soldier’s Home or another facility,” he said.
After doing several ride-alongs with the State Police and local departments, Velis said he understands the point of view for law enforcement with the pending legislation, which has currently spent three months in the Conference Committee.
“This is one that is just replete with gray areas and nuance. One of the concerns I have is the unintended consequences of this thing. Here we are three months later, and it hasn’t come out of Conference Committee yet. As far as I’m concerned, that’s a good thing because it tells me the conferees are realizing how complex this issue is and are trying to get it as right as possible,” he said.
One of the pieces of legislation Velis said is a priority for him is filing a law about burn pit exposure for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to help veterans in Massachusetts sign up for the national registry.
“Think of anything that needs to be discarded, from tires to batteries, the solution was to just burn it. One of the things we’ve come to see is causing a lot of veterans to get sick. The bill would require every veteran’s service organization in Massachusetts to hand out information on registering,” he said.
Velis added that he wants to be the hardest worker his district has ever seen.
“To all of my constituents out there, my obligation to all of you is to be the hardest-working and most accessible elected official this district has ever had,” he said.