My last week....

So, here I sit on the morning of December 31, 2010 in the final week of my service as a State Representative. The end of the year is a time for reflection, and here are a few of what I think were some of the highlights of my time in office.

• Massachusetts Health Care Law- A first of its kind law now being looked at by other states and was a blueprint for the law passed by congress last year. This law has been a success for it's initial goal of eliminating the uninsured as 95% of Mass residents now have some form of health insurance. As a supporter of Single Payer systems I still believe that the state will have to eventually adopt the Single Payer system to control costs.
• Equal Marriage- Probably the biggest civil rights issue of my adult lifetime so far ( I am too young to remember the 1960's). I  was proud to have supported and voted to not write discrimination into the Massachusetts Constitution and support the right of same sex couples to marry.
• Rural Broadband- More people in rural western Mass have broadband than when I took office. I was proud to have worked on, and voted for the state's $40 million broadband investment bill, which included my $15 million amendment.
• Infrastructure Projects- Berkshire Mall Road, Mount Greylock Summit Road, Route 2-Shelburne repaving, South Street,-Dalton are just a few of the many projects I was able to help get the state to move forward with that had been long delayed and needed by the district.
• Constituent Service- The lifeblood of a public servants work. Whether it was helping a local business secure a grant, getting fuel or food assistance to a family, fighting with an HMO to get a denied treatment decision overturned, or any of the many examples of helping people, this is the kind of day to day work that a State Representative does that I am going to miss the most.

 My service, for me, was never about making it a lifelong career. It was instead about serving for a time and making my district and the lives of the people who live here a little bit better. My thanks to the many people who made my service possible. It has been a great six years, and I was proud and privileged to have been elected to serve.

Thanks,
Denis