Contact Your State Senator/Representative

 

Find your state senator and your state representative, check their voting record, and then customize the email template below.

 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Dear [Senator/Representative],

 

As a citizen of Boston/Massachusetts, I have been very troubled by the behavior of Marty Walsh and Boston 2024. The bid was developed without any open community meetings, and it still has not been released in full to the public. The meetings that Mayor Walsh and Boston 2024 have finally begun to host have consistently proven themselves not to be a good faith effort at engaging the community. Residents are left with more questions than answers, as Walsh and Boston 2024 dismiss valid concerns or defer answers to the indefinite future with phrases like “proof of concept phase.” It is simply unacceptable for a private, unelected group like Boston 2024 to have such an impact on the policymaking and planning of the city and the state, and it sets a dangerous precedent.

 

[Paragraph about your specific reasons for opposing the Olympic bid, including how the Olympics would affect your neighborhood]

 

I am writing to you to urge you to ensure that Boston and the State of Massachusetts do not write blank checks to the International Olympic Committee. Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Rosenberg have both stated that no public funds from the State of Massachusetts will be used for the Olympics. This should not be left to the good faith of future legislators, but should be enshrined into law, covering the many ways in which public funds could be given (insurance policies, direct bailouts, tax exemptions and credits, discounted sale/leasing of state land, waived lease fees, etc.).

 

I urge you, as well, to support legislation that prohibits the City of Boston from signing any document that binds it as a financial guarantor for Boston 2024’s private efforts.

 

Every single Olympics since 1960 has experienced cost overruns, with an average cost overrun of 179%. It is unacceptable for this burden to be borne by the City of Boston or the State of Massachusetts, when so many of our public services remain underfunded.

 

Sincerely,

[Name]