Dear Brothers and Sisters of N.A.P.E. MA Chapter 4, I am sending you this emergency letter because once again your license is under attack. Currently there are 2 bills, House Bill 2208 and Senate Bill 917, that if they pass they will change the license law and the Department of Public Safety as we currently know it. The first Bill, House Bill 2208 would eliminate the requirement of a licensed fireman or engineer in attendance, at all times, of high pressure boilers in excess of 501 horse power, when they appeal to the Commissioner. The Bill suggests that automatic controls, subject to failure at any time, could replace the constant attendance of an experienced licensed fireman or engineer on large high-pressure boiler plants. This dangerous and risky bill would overturn the requirements of the past 100 years to maintain high-pressure boiler safety. The second Bill, Senate Bill 917, would eliminate the Chief of Inspections and the Division of Inspection in the Department of Public Safety. This position and division has existed for over 100 successful years, without political interference, to promoted boiler and pressure vessel safety in the Commonwealth. This bill makes drastic and substantive changes that will negatively affect public safety under the guise of efficiency. If passed this Bill would change the scope of the Chief of Inspections from a person concerned with public safety, to a person concerned of political appointment. So once again we are called on to do our part and there are several things you must do to defeat these bills. First, The Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security will have the first hearing on this bill. As of this writing, we do not have a hearing date but we do have a list of Senators and Representative who are on this committee and 4 of them are from Western Mass. They are: Stephen Brewer – Vice Chair, DISTRICT REPRESENTED Hampden, Hampshire And Franklin. Brimfield, Holland, Monson, Palmer and Wales, in the county of Hampden; Ware, in the county of Hampshire; and Orange and Warwick, in the county of Franklin.State House E-Mail: Stephen.Brewer@state.ma.us (617)-722-1540Senator Stephen Buonicoti - DISTRICT REPRESENTED: Hampden — Chicopee, ward 2, precincts A to D, inclusive, ward 4, precincts A to C, inclusive, ward 5, precincts A and B, and Springfield, wards 1, 3 and 4, ward 5, precincts A and B, ward 6, and Agawam and West SpringfieldState House E-Mail Address: Stephen.Buoniconti@state.ma.us (413)733-9991Senator Gale Candaras - DISTRICT REPRESENTED: First Hampden and Hampshire. — Springfield, ward 2, ward 5, precincts C to H, inclusive, wards 7 and 8, East Longmeadow, Hampden, Longmeadow, Ludlow and Wilbraham, in the county of Hampden; and Belchertown, precincts B and C, and Granby, in the county of HampshireE-Mail: Gale.Candaras@State.ma.us (413)-599-4785
Second, I am asking you to join Chapter 146. This will be the sole organization responsible for fighting these bills and they have put together a great web site that is constantly being update with valuable information. The site is: http://sites.google.com/site/chapter146assn/Home On their site, they also have the included letters that you can copy and paste into your e-mail and send out. 3. Stay abreast of all the developments by attending our Chapter meetings. We need your support and participation to ensure the success of our industry. Once again, these are serious issues. In the current economic crisis, you can bet that businesses will try to save a buck by eliminating the need to have licensed operators. We must band together and defeat these bills. Regards, Anthony Lucia |