REPRESENTATIVE ULTRINO COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS FOCUS ON WORKING FAMILIES, SENIORS

REPRESENTATIVE ULTRINO COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS FOCUS ON WORKING FAMILIES, SENIORS

Rep. Ultrino appointed to Labor and Workforce, Children and Families; reappointed to Elder Affairs, Health Care Finance

BOSTON – State Representative Steven Ultrino (D-Malden) was appointed to four committees focused on supporting children and families, workers, seniors, and access to affordable health care. For his second term, Representative Ultrino was reappointed to the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs and the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, and was also appointed to two new committees, the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development and the Joint Committee on Children and Families. The committee appointments underscore the importance fighting for working class families and seniors, a primary focus of Representative Ultrino’s first term in 2015-2016.

“I’m excited to continue working for Malden’s seniors and working class families on these committees,” said Representative Ultrino.

Last session, Representative Ultrino’s service on the Elder Affairs and Health Care Financing Committee focused on providing supports, keeping costs low, and improving access to quality services. Representative Ultrino also hosted multiple forums and events for seniors, and facilitated conversations on elder homelessness, affordable public transportation for seniors, and more.

“Our seniors built the foundation of our community, and we have a responsibility to provide them with the resources they need to succeed later in life,” said Representative Ultrino. “The high cost of housing, health care, and other services too often pushes seniors out of their homes and away from our community. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues and Elder Affairs Secretary Alice Bonner to protect our seniors from fraud, homelessness, hunger, and other problems.”

Representative Ultrino’s appointment to the Health Care Financing Committee comes at a time of great uncertainty and concern at the national level as the federal governments debates whether to eliminate or modify the Affordable Care Act. This session, the Health Care Financing Committee is preparing to address any changes at the federal level to maintain high access to health care while limiting growth in spending.

“No matter what happens in Washington, we believe in Massachusetts that everyone deserves access to quality, affordable health care,” said Representative Ultrino. “We don’t yet know how the federal health care system will change, but I am resolute in protecting access to health care as a human right in our state.”

Representative Ultrino’s newer committee appointments, the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development and the Committee on Children and Families, deal with legislation particularly relevant to Malden’s working class families. Several of Representative Ultrino’s legislative priorities, including paid family leave and a living wage, are likely to go through these committees.

Most of the legislature’s committees are joint committees with members appointed from both the House and the Senate. All legislation is referred to a committee and requires a favorable committee recommendation in order to go to the House floor and, eventually, to passage.

In addition to four legislative committees, he also represents the House on the state’s Economic Empowerment Trust Fund Board and on the Special Commission on Local and Regional Public Health.

Steven Ultrino was sworn in to his second term as State Representative on January 4^th, 2017.