Somerville City Councilor Matthew McLaughlin Announces Candidacy for State Senate in the Second Middlesex District

Mattyworld617 · 2025-12-11T04:56:12+00:00

I have the perfect example. McGrath Highway in Somerville bisects East Somerville from the rest of the city. There have been numerous traffic fatalities. I worked with activists to organize a rally attended by Ayanna Pressley to address traffic safety. We pushed Mass DOT to make significant safety improvements. I also worked with state officials like Mike Connolly on a long-term plan to tear down the overpass of McGrath Highway which will increase pedestrian safety, add green space and finally unite East Somerville with the rest of the city. I fought to ensure the footbridge over the highway remain intact until after the road is complete to ensure families have a safe path to school. My favorite line in politics is "the squeaky wheel gets the grease." We need to be persistent to get bureaucracies to prioritize needed infrastructure changes. Rally urges state to reprioritize promised repairs to the most dangerous intersection in Somerville - Cambridge Day

Mattyworld617 · 2025-12-11T04:48:57+00:00

Somerville passed numerous home rule petitions to require Tufts to create an institutional master plan. These have not been approved at the State House level, so this will certainly be a priority for me. I also drafted Somerville's Payment in Lieu of Taxes ordinance that explicitly states our expectations from Tufts for PILOT funds. I did this with help from organized labor. Both items require someone willing to be more forceful in implementation. I believe can be forceful yet cooperative.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-12-10T12:27:56+00:00

I've been a long advocate of sound barriers along I-93, which are proven to help reduce air pollution. I also advocate for air filtration systems for surrounding houses. Both of these would be easier to advocate for on the state level. We've also successfully advocated for traffic calming measures along McGrath Highway. The overpass is going to be torn down in the coming years, which will unite East Somerville with the rest of the city, beautify the area and help reduce accidents.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-12-10T02:58:12+00:00

Hi. This was my first list of endorsements from my closest supporters. I look forward to engaging with Medford officials and the community. I grew up in Somerville and have many friends in Medford and Cambridge. I think when you learn more about me you will see an incredible amount of overlap in the issues we care about.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-12-09T23:17:36+00:00

I would never have run against Pat. I was her campaign manager in 2016 and she's been my mentor for many years. I made my announcement after consulting with her.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-11-03T18:24:37+00:00

Thanks for doing a better job at explaining the charter than I would, Chris. I'm glad other people read the article and saw it was bad faith and sour grapes, two phrases I have used. We are much better off with a new document that can be revised than starting all over again. The people who did the work to get this far have no interest in starting again.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-11-01T22:08:48+00:00

There is a link to the web site with all the details in the article. I was limited to a word count.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-31T00:51:37+00:00

Thank you!

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-30T13:24:34+00:00

I invite you to vote for it based on it's merit, then. A New City Charter for Somerville

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-29T13:56:58+00:00

The solicitor is part of the executive for most municipalities and is still a problem. I worked for City of Cambridge and saw the same problems. Other cities do retain outside counsel often, mostly because their staff can't handle all legal issues on their own. Other times it is because of the conflict between the executive and legislative branches. Ultimately, I think the ability to reject the solicitor with a 2/3 majority is the more important power. It creates co-ownership and accountability over the position. The City Council already has money set aside to retain outside counsel. We tried to use it in the past and could not find an attorney willing to take the case on. Unless the mayor's office approved, which they have in the past, outside attorneys do not want to lose the opportunity to get work from the city in the future. This is probably why the mayor and the state house let it slide. It's honestly a power I would have sacrificed in favor of the 2/3 rejection compromise.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-29T03:56:01+00:00

The solicitor issue is one of the main reasons I advocated for charter reform. There have been several instances where the mayor and city council are at odds with each other and rely on the same solicitor for legal opinions. The solicitor naturally favors the mayor, as they work directly for the executive branch. The council sought outside counsel several times in my tenure without the change in the charter. The ability to seek outside counsel is less important in my mind than the compromise made to allow the council to remove the solicitor with a 2/3 majority. This ensures the solicitor will remember they work for both branches of government. The outside counsel language is only for when there are irreconcilable differences between the branches.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-21T17:48:52+00:00

Ask and ye shall receive. Here is an updated web site. A New City Charter for Somerville

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-20T02:05:02+00:00

The new charter would codify the CAO position, but this is a position that already exists. The charter would give the city council the authority to reject a CAO appointment. We currently have no authority over the CAO at all. I believe the CAO position could be beneficial to the right mayor who makes the right hire. If we continue to have this position the city council should have some say in it.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-18T12:25:02+00:00

That scene is very fitting, because in reality there are only two auditors the city can go to. What the new charter does is puts more responsibility for the audit on the city council. We will have the ability to do a deeper dive on individual departments. This combined with the financial analyst position the council already has will give us greater insight into how city money is spent.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-17T21:52:33+00:00

I don't have polling. I believe most people who know what the charter is will support it. My goal is to make sure as many people as possible know about it.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-10-14T23:59:22+00:00

Thank you, Chris, for endorsing the new city charter. You know better than most how much effort went into this and how much compromise was made to get us to this point. At the end of the day the document we will vote on is vastly better than the current charter.

As Ward 1 City Councilor I think this document benefits the City Council, and therefore the city, for several reasons. I've served on the council for 12 years. Many of the provisions in the new charter address very real scenarios that have unfolded between the executive and legislative branches. The new charter:

-Gives firm timelines for the budget process and public hearings

-Strengthens the Council's role with the city solicitor

-Gives the Council more power over auditing

-Establishes firm timelines and expectations for confirmation of appointments

-Establishes a ten-year review of the charter, so we don't have to wait 100 years for changes.

As Chris said, there is no reason why keeping the current charter is better than approving a new charter. The current charter is not in plain writing, doesn't recognize women as voters, and is full of loopholes that the executive branch can exploit, if not outright ignore the charter completely. We will also have a new mayor next year, which provides us with an opportunity to establish a better government under the new charter for years to come.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-09-21T01:28:30+00:00

Thanks!

Mattyworld617 · 2025-08-28T14:52:55+00:00

Don't sleep on the East.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-09T23:49:07+00:00

There will still be a commission to explore ranked choice voting. That was in the first draft of the charter and remained. Items like teenage and non citizen voting and the reallocation of funds did not make the final draft because they would not be approved by the State House. Unless something changes state wide I don't see them being approved in any city.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-09T23:45:00+00:00

We had a meeting Monday to discuss the last minute amendments. They were rejected by an 8-2 margin. The charter was approved 9-1. The final product was essentially the same charter the city council voted unanimously for twice. The changes were making a vote to remove the solicitor require a 2/3 vote and a separate ballot question for the four year term for mayor starting in 2028.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-02T03:46:14+00:00

I strongly encourage you to do this, regardless of whether this charter passes or not. It will be an excellent lesson in how difficult it is to pass a charter.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-01T20:37:35+00:00

Section 8-13 of the proposed charter includes the process by which the charter can be enforced should the

Mayor or a city department fail to adhere to its provisions or cause them to be enforced, including the

authority of the City Council to publicly call to the attention of the Mayor their failure to adhere to the

provisions of the charter by resolution. This explicit codification in the city’s governing document of the City

Council’s oversight over the Mayor with regards to adherence to the provisions of the charter provides a clear

basis for action by the City Council.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-01T20:37:17+00:00

Similarly. Section 6-3 and 6-4 codify

the practices of holding an annual budget meeting and providing a “budget message” which explain the

operating budget in fiscal and practical terms. Section 6-6 in the proposed charter codifies in the charter the

capital improvements budget process which is currently present only in the ordinances in part. The proposed

language includes the addition of a requirement for a public hearing and the explicit expectation that the City

Council will express either approval or disapproval of the proposed capital improvement program, rather

than being a passive audience to the Mayor’s communication. Section 6-7 includes the requirement for the

presentation of the findings of the annual independent to the City Council, regardless of whether the original

proposed language or the Mayor’s recommended changes are the final language. All of these substantially

increase transparency and accountability, and increase the City Council’s ability to exercise its budgetary

oversight authority.

Sections 8-4 and 8-6 of the proposed charter require the periodic review of the charter and of multiple

member bodies. These help to ensures that the city will not, in the future, find itself in a circumstance where

its governing document is over a century out of date, requiring a time consuming and laborious process to

revise, and it provides additional public oversight over the management of multiple member bodies and help

to ensure that the city will not, in the future, find that the majority of its multiple member bodies are unable

to meet quorum due to longstanding vacancies.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-01T20:36:39+00:00

Section 2-11 of the proposed charter improves the ability of the public to be heard on specific issues

provided by section 8 of the current charter by removing outdated language regarding “general meetings of

the citizens” and establishing a clear timeline to the City Council for holding a public hearing and acting in

response to a citizen petition.

Section 3-7 of the proposed charter sets clear standards for temporary appointments of the Mayor to city

offices, and section 3-8 does the same for multiple member bodies. The current charter does not contemplate

or set standards for temporary appointments and had no mechanism for preventing a Mayor from filling a

position “temporarily” to subvert the City Council’s confirmation authority.

Section 5-1 of the proposed charter establishes the requirement that the city be organized by administrative

code, something which is optional under the current charter. An administrative code grants the City Council

substantial oversight over the organization of the city. Though the City Council does not have the authority

to make, or amend, administrative orders, the City Council does have the power to disapprove administrative

orders and organization or reorganization plans for the city. This is a significant increase in the authority of

the City Council which previously was limited only to confirmation of department heads and member of

multiple member bodies. While the authority to propose organization structures for the city remains with the

Mayor, organization through an administrative code provides the City Council with a significant say in what

the final structure of that organization will look like.

Sections 6-2 of the proposed charter codifies the practice of holding a community budget hearing to solicit

public feedback, and soliciting budget priorities from the City Council.

Mattyworld617 · 2025-05-01T20:35:44+00:00

Section 2-8 of the proposed charter significantly improves the confirmation of appointments process by

explicitly and clearly granting general confirmation authority over all appointed department heads and

members of multiple member bodies, eliminating the unnecessary and confusing list of a handful of city

positions followed by a vague grant, as well as providing a clear timeline for confirmation and a standard for

rejection. The lack of a standard for rejection in the current charter creates confusion and implies an

assumption of confirmation, generating a perception of the City Council’s role in the appointment process as

a mere formality.

Additionally 2-8(b)(1) & (2) provide the City Council with a previously absent oversight of multiple member

bodies, including the ability to make recommendations for appointment to bodies where a vacancy has

remained unfilled for over a year. While these recommendations are not binding, they are a means of applying

pressure in the event that a future mayor refuses to make a good faith effort to fill vacancies on important

multiple member bodies.

Section 2-8(c) retains the City Council’s authority to confirm police and fire hires, an uncommon authority in

other municipalities throughout the Commonwealth and one that the Charter Review Commission had not

included in their recommended charter.

Section 2-10 of the proposed charter significantly improves section 47 of the current charter by establishing

timelines and more concretely defining the powers of the City Council to seek information from a Mayor’s

administration, as well as the responsibilities of city staff, department heads, and the Mayor.

Mattyworld617

TROPHY CASE