17th Essex
Andover
Barry Finegold has been a relentless advocate for Andover residents as their State Senator. As a State Representative, he worked diligently in the House to secure much-needed funds for the town. In 2008, he secured over $150,000 for the continuation and improvement of Andover Youth Services, to make sure this valuable resource is available for many generations of Andover kids to come.
Dracut
Since being elected to the Senate in 2010, Barry has been tirelessly advocating for the citizens of Dracut. This year, he sponsored and pushed for an amendment to the education collaboratives oversight bill that will help Dracut's school committee ensure that the town's funds are being spent wisely. The amendment will require the executive director of each education collaborative to go before the school committee every year, present its budget, and answer questions. Barry is proud that the amendment was adopted and included in the final bill.
Lawrence
Barry Finegold has been fully committed to Lawrence and its citizens as their State Senator and has worked with the Legislature to allocate funding and aid to the city on a number of occasions.
In 2011, Senator Finegold secured $631,000 to rehire police officers that were laid off by the city the previous year. Seven officers were able to return to work to increase patrols throughout the city thanks to these funds. Barry plans on fighting for renewal of this grant in fiscal year 2013.
Barry was also helpful in obtaining federal funding for the Lawrence Fire Department to bring their staff levels back up to an acceptable level.Tewksbury
As a former student in Tewksbury Public Schools, Barry Finegold has strongly advocated on behalf of the students in Tewksbury. The town needed a new high school due to increased enrollment and a deteriorating facility. Barry was an early supporter of the new high school project and pushed for the construction of a new, energy efficient and technologically advanced facility. He was also instrumental in securing funding from the Massachusetts School Building Authority , who funded 60 percent of the project.
Barry was a leader in passing legislation to end mismanagement and financial abuses at Special Education Collaboratives. No such regulations were in place before this legislation. Barry filed an amendment that will require the executive director of each education collaborative to go before the school committee every year, present its budget, and answer questions. Barry is proud that the amendment was adopted and included in the final bill. The idea came out of a meeting with the Tewksbury School Committee who were upset up the fiscal abuse happening at MSEC.
