The Rockport Election results are in and available on the Rockport website https://www.rockportma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif1141/f/pages/tally_ttl_local_election_5-9-23.pdf . New moderator. Same Select Board members.
But… work continues.
Today we feature a letter from Rockporter Sharon Byrne Kishida who is a member of the Massachusetts Paint Stewardship Advocacy Team. Product stewardship is an important part of building a better future. Let’s back this effort!
‘Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Can you Help Me Get Paint Stewardship Legislation Passed in Massachusetts?
We have an opportunity right now to influence our state Representatives and Senators to co-sponsor bills that will reduce waste, environmental impacts and benefit municipalities financially. Getting bills through the Mass state legislature is not easy, but we can increase a bill’s chances by increasing the number of co-sponsors a bill has. Numerous co-sponsors don’t guarantee a bill’s progress, but the bill will have more advocates and will be more visible to Leadership.
I am primarily focused on passing paint stewardship legislation, and in our 2023-2024 legislative session we have 3 nearly identical paint bills that have been filed (good news!) Why am I just focused on one product? Massachusetts needs a Product Stewardship WIN! One that will be successful and demonstrate to our legislators that Product Stewardship (PS) laws work. Product stewardship is foundational to moving us towards a circular economy. Many of our neighboring states are way ahead of us. Maine has 9 EPR laws, for example.
The three paint bills are listed and linked below.
H823 Representative Patricia Haddad
S551 Senator Patrick O’Connor
S542 Senator Susan Moran
Passing one of these bills would make end-of-life management of both latex and oil-based paint easier, more environmentally friendly and less costly for municipalities and consumers. These bills put the paint industry in charge of managing these products, through an advanced recovery fee at the point of purchase. Here is the link to a simple one pager about this legislation.
My Ask
As a member of the Mass. Product Stewardship Council who represents the interests of municipalities, I am asking you to help us get these paint bills off to a strong start by reaching out to your elected legislators to garner as many co-sponsors as possible. Please email or better yet – CALL your representative and senator (find contact info here) to ask them to co-sponsor a paint stewardship bill. (Senators can co-sponsor both senate bills if they want.) I have attached a sample letter /script you can use.
An Important ally, the Mass Municipal Association (MMA) also supports this bill through its 2023 – 2024 Legislative Package.
Want to learn more about this bill, how it works and why it should pass?
A member of the paint advocate team has prepared a short PowerPoint thatone of us can present (zoom or in-person, if nearby) to your municipality, committee, organization, individuals, etc. or that you can present. Let me know if interested!
Please forward, share this email with others. We believe that this law – that has passed and successfully implemented in ten other states – is a no-brainer for Massachusetts, and we want as many people to hear about it and advocate for it as possible.
Thank you for your consideration. Let us hear back from you!
Sharon
Sharon Byrne Kishida
MassDEP, retired
Member of the Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council
Member of the Massachusetts Paint Stewardship Advocacy Team
978 317 9701
Other members of the Paint Stewardship Advocacy Team include:
Waneta Trabert
Director, Sustainable Materials Management Division for the City of Newton
Chair, Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council
Tom Irwin, DO, SM, ChE
Dalton Green Committee–
Best,
Sharon
Sharon Byrne Kishida’
Rockport, MA Democrats 