State Senate candidate Andrea Harrington has called for lifting the state’s cap on the number of people who can hook up solar panels to the grid, continued opposition of new pipeline construction in the state and creating grants to fund energy audits and to retrofit schools and municipal buildings, as part of what she said is an environmental program aimed at “promoting sustainability and addressing climate change.”
In releasing her “comprehensive environmental plan,” the Richmond Democrat — one of three candidates vying in her party’s Sept. 8 primary for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Benjamin Downing — said, “Western Mass should be a statewide leader in embracing the green economy and promoting sustainability. … But we have had to fight to preserve our environment and our health every step along the way.”
In addition to opposing new gas pipelines and “taxpayer surcharges” to pay for new gas infrastructure, as well as lifting the net-metering cap to encourage more renewable energy, the attorney and small-business owner said she wants to create tax credits to help small businesses increase energy efficiency and promote commercial recycling and composting.
Even as Downing is working on negotiating a legislative energy package from bills in the House and Senate, Harrington said she favors “comprehensive energy legislation to make Massachusetts a national and international leader in sustainability, carbon emission reduction, and green job creation.”
She also proposed meeting regularly with local conservation commissioners, selectmen, and non-profit organizations across the district “to develop important regional relationships,” and to fully fund state agencies and programs providing access to open spaces.
Harrington called for new partnerships between businesses, local job training programs and vocational schools “to give our workforce access to the green economy.”
Democratic Governor’s Council candidate Jeffrey Morneau has challenged his primary opponent, Mary Hurley, to two debates in each of the four western counties before the state’s Sept. 8 primary election.
Morneau, an East Longmeadow resident who is president of the Hampden County Bar Association, challenged Hurley, a retired district court associate justice and former Springfield mayor living in East Longmeadow, who he said has so far agreed to only one debate in late August in Hampden County.
“The public and media should challenge each of us about our track records and vision for this public office,” said Morneau. Given the critical justice issues and the diversity of Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin, and Berkshire counties, a debate each week leading up to the Sept. 8 primary is essential to voters. … The next Governor’s Councilor will help select judges and guide our justice system for decades to come. If my opponent doesn’t have time for debates in each county, does she really have the time to represent all the people of Western Massachusetts?”
There is no Republican candidate for the two-year post being vacated by Michael Albano, which means the winner of the primary will likely win the office.