Tuesday, July 11, 2023

Dear Chairman Collins, Chairman Cabral, and Members of the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight:

My name is Jonathan Cohn, and I am the Policy Director at Progressive Massachusetts, a statewide grassroots advocacy group working to advance progressive policy here in the Commonwealth.

We urge you to give a favorable report to H.3003: An Act ensuring equitable representation in the Commonwealth, filed by Rep. Tackey Chan and Sen. Jamie Eldridge.

The diversity in our Commonwealth is a source of our strength, and we are continuing to get more diverse. Our state programs, policies, and investments need to understand that diversity in its entirety, and that cannot happen without accurate data. The demographic groups in the Commonwealth are not monoliths, and without disaggregating the data, we risk erasing persistent social, economic, or educational inequalities.

All ethnic subgroups have different histories, background, needs, and challenges. Without accurate data broken down by detailed sub-ethnic groups, critical needs of some communities in areas such as language, economic status, education, and health could be left unmet. Indeed, they already are. We cannot correct the inequities that we cannot see, and we cannot see them without comprehensive data.

Government agencies that currently collect voluntary demographic data based on race or ethnicity of residents should include voluntary subgroup options for Asian, Pacific Islander, Latino, Black and African American, and White. This would highlight and uplift data representing communities including but not limited to Vietnamese, Cambodian, Bangladeshi, Nepalese, Haitian, Cape Verdean, Ethiopian, Somalian, Puerto Rican, Salvadoran, Dominicans, and Colombians. We must also recognize the diversity within the Native American, Middle Eastern, and North African communities in Massachusetts, which currently have limited recognition by the Census Bureau.

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Cohn

Policy Director

Progressive Massachusetts

Progressive Mass signed on to this letter organized by the Coalition for Equal Access to Jobs / Massachusetts Communities Action Network.

January 13, 2021
Michael Heffernan
Secretary of Administration and Finance
State House
Boston, MA 02133
Dear Secretary Heffernan,

The last time the Executive Office of Administration and Finance set goals on hiring of people of color and women on construction jobs was on March 18, 2009. At that time it was set for 15.3% for minorities and 6.9% for women. This was in Administrative Bulletin #14 issued by A&F at www.mass.gov/administrative-bulletin/equal-opportunity-and-non-discrimination-on-state-and-state-assisted-construction-contracts-af-14

Today more than 11 years later, 2020 census data for our state shows it’s 67.6% White, 12.6% Hispanic, 7.2 % Asian, just under 7% Black and 4.7% identifying with two or more groups. SO WE NOW HAVE DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE OF COLOR THAN WHEN A&F LAST SET THESE FIGURES IN 2009.

Additionally, women comprise over 50% of the workforce but less than 4% of building trades workers in Massachusetts. Two recent disparity studies in Springfield and Worcester suggest that at least 9% of women workers have skills transferable to the construction trades. And, we have now seen a rise of women apprentices in union building trades programs to over 10%. We are calling on you to issue a new Administrative Bulletin increasing hiring goals for people of color and women and we would like to meet with you on this issue.

Massachusetts will soon be getting an estimated over $9.3 billion in funds under the Bi-Partisan Infrastructure bill. So let’s get a new Administrative Bulletin so with the increase in jobs from this new funding that will benefit all, so people of color and women could get a fair share of the jobs, if you make and enforce new goals.

We as community groups, unions, civil rights, and social service agencies, local governments call on you to issue a new updated Administrative Bulletin on Equal Opportunity and Non-discrimination on State and State-Assisted Construction Contracts and meet with us on this.

You can reach us at (617) 470-2912, LewFinfer@gmail.com

Sincerely,
NAACP, New England Conference
Greater Boston Building Trades Unions
Building Pathways
La Collaborativa (Chelsea)
Massachusetts Association of CDC’s
Project Right (Boston)
Essex County Community Organization
Pioneer Valley Project (Springfield)
Progressive Resistance Boston
Worcester Interfaith
I Have A Future (Boston)
MA Communities Action Network
YouthBuild Boston
Madison Park Development Corporation
The Neighborhood Developers
350 Mass
Progressive Massachusetts
Action for Equity

cc Jamey Tesler, Secretary of Transportation
James Cowdell, Deputy Chief of Staff at A&F
Gary Blank, Chief Adminstrative Officer, DOT