At the hearing, the Joint Committee heard from Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone that the Metro Mayors Coalition, representing municipalities surrounding Boston, has endorsed the legislation. State Treasurer Deb Goldberg has also endorsed, as well as the Metropolitan Area Planning Council.
The Mass Public Banking Coalition lined up witnesses including coalition members who are CDFI and community development professionals and legal experts on banking. The urgency of racial equity in lending was emphasized by witnesses for The Boston Foundation, BECMA, and the Boston Ujima Project. The importance of lending to women-owned businesses and for climate action was also emphasized.
The Committee got the message that public money needs to be put to work for the public good, to build local prosperity, create jobs, enhance resilience and promote racial justice.
Now the clock is ticking for getting cosponsors. Your legislators must sign on before the Joint Committee takes action on the bill. So please reach out now to urge your Senator and Representative to cosponsor. If you don’t know who represents you at the State House, you can find out here.
Thanks for helping us make history here in Massachusetts!