Updated:
Sen. Diana DiZoglio was one of 12 state senators to vote against accepting a conference committee compromise on police reforms in the Commonwealth.
The bill is on its way to Gov. Charlie Baker for his consideration after the bill cleared the Senate by a 28-12 vote, and the House, 92-67, with all Republicans voting against it and more than 30 Democrats joining them. As soon as the report became available Monday night, the Methuen Democrat criticized its timing. DiZoglio took to Twitter to suggest more time is needed to digest the bill.
“After midnight,” DiZoglio, tweeted, “Oh hey good morning! Yes, thank you…for the less than 24 hours you gave your members to review this 129-page bill. #Teamwork. The Senate and the House are becoming strikingly and disturbingly similar these days in terms of process…” She directed the message to Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Robert DeLeo.
DiZoglio was one of eight Democrats and all four Republicans in the Senate to vote against.
In the House local Reps. Linda Dean Campbell, Andy X. Vargas and Christina Minicucci voted in favor while Rep. Leonard Mirra voted against.
The compromise bill proposes to create a Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission that would license all law enforcement in the state every three years, and have the power to revoke that certification for wrongdoing, including the excessive use of force. The bill, however, includes many provisions opposed by police unions, including restrictions on qualified immunity, which protects police in some cases from facing civil lawsuits over their conduct on the job.
The six-member conference committee met its requirement under joint legislative rules to file its compromise bill by 8 p.m. the night before it is to be taken up, and reports of conference committees are subject to up-or-down votes, without amendments.
The conference committee bill was released hours after Black leaders released a video imploring lawmakers to reach an agreement and to adopt the Senate’s approach to the legal doctrine of qualified immunity that shields police from civil lawsuits—the conference adopted the House’s position on that issue.
Michael P. Norton and Matt Murphy contributed to this report.
-Earlier-
Sen. Diana DiZoglio was one of 12 state senators today to vote against accepting a conference committee report on police reforms in the Commonwealth.
As soon as the report became available Monday night, the Methuen Democrat criticized its timing. DiZoglio took to Twitter to suggest more time is needed to digest the bill.
“After midnight,” DiZoglio, tweeted, “Oh hey good morning! Yes, thank you…for the less than 24 hours you gave your members to review this 129-page bill. #Teamwork. The Senate and the House are becoming strikingly and disturbingly similar these days in terms of process…” She directed the message to Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Robert DeLeo.
DiZoglio was one of eight Democrats and all four Republicans in the Senate to vote against.
The final compromise bill, which cleared the Senate by a 28-12 vote, proposes to create a Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission that would license all law enforcement in the state every three years, and have the power to revoke that certification for wrongdoing, including the excessive use of force. The bill, however, includes many provisions opposed by police unions, including restrictions on qualified immunity, which protects police in some cases from facing civil lawsuits over their conduct on the job.
The six-member conference committee met its requirement under joint legislative rules to file its compromise bill by 8 p.m. the night before it is to be taken up, and reports of conference committees are subject to up-or-down votes, without amendments.
The conference committee bill was released hours after Black leaders released a video imploring lawmakers to reach an agreement and to adopt the Senate’s approach to the legal doctrine of qualified immunity that shields police from civil lawsuits—the conference adopted the House’s position on that issue.
Michael P. Norton and Matt Murphy contributed to this report.