BOSTON- Last week, Senator DiDomenico testified before the Joint Committee on Education in support of legislation he has long championed in the Massachusetts Senate, An Act relative to healthy youth, also known as the Healthy Youth Act. 

S.318 would ensure that Massachusetts schools electing to provide their students with sex education use age-appropriate and medically accurate curriculum that covers a comprehensive range of topics. The legislation also calls for sex education to be inclusive and appropriate for students regardless of gender, race, disability status, sexual orientation and gender identity.  

“Sex education is essential to young people’s health, personal relationships, and life goals,” said Senator DiDomenico in his testimony. “Massachusetts youth deserve to have the information, resources, and skills they need to make smart decisions, protect their health, and build the bright future they deserve— without shame or judgement. The Healthy Youth Act  ensures just that, equipping our young people with the tools they need to build healthy relationships and understand the importance of consent. I am incredibly grateful to the Chairs of the Education Committee for their previous support of this critical legislation, and I am looking forward to continue working with them to ensure that this is the legislative session that the Healthy Youth Act is passed into law.” 

Currently, when Massachusetts public schools provide their students with health education that covers sexual activity, there is no guarantee that the information provided is age-appropriate or medically accurate. This legislation changes this by requiring school districts that offer sex education to follow certain guidelines to ensure students are provided with age-appropriate, medically accurate, and comprehensive information, including:  

·         benefits of delaying sex; 

·         human anatomy, reproduction, and sexual development; 

·         effective contraceptive use; 

·         prevention of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs); 

·         relationship and communication skills to form healthy relationships; 

·         coverage of affirmative, conscious and voluntary consent; and 

·         age-appropriate information about gender identity and sexual orientation, including resources that offer support to LGBTQ students. 

The legislation does not require schools to offer sex education and also protects parent’s’ right to remove their children from all or part of sex education if they chose to do so — an action protected by state law. In addition, it provides districts that teach sex education curriculum with updated guidance on how to notify parents about these programs.  Notification to parents and guardians must be in English, as well as any other commonly spoken languages by parents. Districts must also have a process for parents to review the program instruction materials prior to the start of the course, if the parents request it.  

Sex education programs have repeatedly been shown to work best when they emphasize the value of delaying sex, while also teaching students about the importance of protecting themselves from unintended consequences. As demonstrated by numerous studies, comprehensive sex education programs have been proven to delay the initiation of sex, increase use of contraception, lower the rates of STIs and unintended pregnancy among teens, and reduce reported levels of bullying towards LGBTQ youth in school. 

A 2018 poll conducted by EMC Research showed overwhelming bipartisan support for sex education in Massachusetts, with 92% of likely voters agreeing that students should receive sex education in high school and 89% of likely voters agree that sex education should include comprehensive information, such as how to build healthy relationships and understand consent. 

Over the past three legislative sessions, the Healthy Youth Act has repeatedly received a favorable report from the Joint Committee on Education and has been passed by the Massachusetts Senate.

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BOSTON– Senator Sal DiDomenico has joined forces this legislative session with Representative Adrian Madaro of East Boston and a coalition of immigrant and civil rights advocates from across the Commonwealth to introduce new legislation that would ensure equal access to government services, programs, and activities for people with limited English proficiency. DiDomenico and Madaro have filed S.2040/H.3199, An Act relative to language access and inclusion, to standardize, and provide enforcement mechanisms for, language access at public-facing state agencies. 

Massachusetts is one of the most linguistically diverse states in the country, with 1 in 10 residents having limited English proficiency. However, there is currently no comprehensive language access statute in Massachusetts to ensure that non-English speaking residents have a fair and equitable opportunity to obtain an education, apply for benefits, receive housing assistance, or represent themselves in court. While Massachusetts has long needed to build the capacity of public-facing state agencies to meet the language access needs of an increasingly diverse population, the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically exposed the incapacity of state agencies to provide consistent services in other languages.

Last week, DiDomenico and Madaro hosted a virtual State House briefing in conjunction with Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Mass Law Reform Institute, and South Coast Counties Legal Services to educate legislators and staff on the crucial and timely need for this new piece of legislation. 

“This bill is truly a matter of equity and justice for so many people living in this Commonwealth, especially the residents of my district,” said DiDomenico. “Non-English speaking residents absolutely deserve to have equal access to public health information, education, unemployment assistance, healthcare, housing, and other crucial services, especially those related to the COVID-19 pandemic. I am very proud to partner with the Language Access For All Coalition on this critical piece of legislation and look forward to working with them to get this bill across the finish line this legislative session.”

An Act relative to language access and inclusion would mandate, standardize, and enforce language requirements for state-funded programs by requiring agencies to translate websites and documents and provide oral interpretation services into non-English languages spoken in the state, including American Sign Language. A Language Access Advisory Board would provide oversight, technical assistance, and relief mechanisms to those who haven't received adequate language access under the proposed legislation.   

In addition to DiDomenico and Madaro, speakers at the legislative briefing included Dawn Sauma, co-Executive Director of the Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence, Pastor Dieufort Fleurissaint of Haitian-Americans United, Inc., and Dr. Neenah Estrella-Luna, Northeastern University professor and community advocate focused on community and institutional equity, inclusion and belonging. 

This legislation is currently pending before the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight. 

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BOSTON– In celebration of Project Bread’s 53rd Annual Walk for Hunger event, Senator Sal DiDomenico participated in a live panel discussion on his Universal School Meals legislation. Each year, Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger gathers people, organizations, and businesses together as a community to make the statement that hunger in Massachusetts is unacceptable. In addition to raising funds to support Project Bread’s anti-hunger work, this year’s Walk for Hunger helped to raise awareness on the new Feed Kids Campaign, an initiative led by Project Bread in support of SD519/HD1161, An Act relative to universal school meals, filed by Senator DiDomenico and Representative Andy Vargas.

An Act relative to universal school meals would allow every student who wants or needs a school breakfast or lunch to receive it—at no cost to their family and with no requirement to sign up or provide income or other information. Just as no student is required to pay fees at public schools when they enter the classroom, there would be no financial barrier in the school cafeteria.

“It was a pleasure to joining Jen Lemmerman of Project Bread and my House partner Representative Vargas in this fantastic panel discussion on our Universal School Meals bill. Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, too many in our Commonwealth were struggling to meet their most basic needs. Today, the COVID crisis has shed a stark light on the state of hunger in Massachusetts, especially for kids, ” said DiDomenico. “We have a moral responsibility to take immediate action to end childhood hunger in Massachusetts, and we simply cannot do so without providing universal school meals to every child, free of charge. I am so grateful for all that Project Bread does to fight hunger here in Massachusetts, and I am very proud to partner with them once again on this critical legislation.”

Right now, 1 in 5 Massachusetts families with kids is hungry, and 27 percent of children experiencing food insecurity in Massachusetts are not eligible for free or reduced-price school meals. However, as a result of flexibilities granted in response to the pandemic, every student in Massachusetts currently has access to free school meals. The barrier presented by cost and paperwork was temporarily removed at the federal level because this crisis put a spotlight on the need to ensure the right to the most basic of necessities—food—for all kids. Consequently, thousands more Massachusetts children and teens have been able to get free breakfast and lunch at hundreds of meal sites across the Commonwealth.

Despite this important step forward, without state-level legislation in place, there is a possibility that barriers to school meals will return once the waivers expire post-pandemic. To keep school meals accessible for all students, Senator DiDomenico, Representative Vargas, and the Feed Kids Coalition joined forces seeking a bold solution to end childhood hunger by ensuring that every student receives the nutrition they need while they are in school. 

This is the first legislative session this bill has been filed. More information about the bill and the Feed Kids Campaign can be found at the FeedKidsMa.org. 

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