Chris Lisinski
State House News Service

Tenants who faced evictions in the past could petition to have those court records sealed under a bill advancing through the Massachusetts Legislature.

The Judiciary Committee unanimously voted last week to advance its version of legislation (H 4934) aimed at limiting the obstacles that residents face acquiring rental housing based on past history. Supporters of the proposal include the Boston City Council, which last year called for passage of a different version. The council argued that because eviction records are permanently public that makes it more difficult for those who have faced housing removal in the past to find stable homes.

Under the committee version of the bill, anyone with a court record of a fault eviction or lessor action can file a petition to have the record sealed if no additional action has been brought against them for three years. No-fault evictions could be sealed under a similar process without a mandatory time frame outlined in the bill. Parties in the original case would not need to be notified of the petition to seal the records for fault or no-fault evictions.

The legislation also bans consumer reporting agencies from disclosing the existence of or using eviction records unless they had been available for public inspection in a court within 30 days of a report. It also forbids filing of actions against minor defendants.

Judiciary Committee Co-chair Rep. Claire Cronin’s office told the News Service that the committee reported the bill favorably “with no dissenting votes.” The measure was sent to the House Ways and Means Committee. Housing protections have emerged as an important focus during the COVID-19 pandemic and related economic crisis, though the underlying bills on which the committee version was based had been filed at the start of the legislative session in January 2019.

New Bedford City Councilors Debora Coelho and Hugh Dunn have now missed all six New Bedford 2021 budget meetings.

Here are the final attendance records for the final two meetings:

Monday, August 10th
Present:
Abreu
Baptiste
Carney
Giesta
Gomes
Lima
Lopes
Markey

Wednesday, August 12th
Present:
Abreu
Baptiste
Carney
Giesta
Gomes
Lopes
Markey
Morad

The attendance logs for the first four meetings can be found here.

The final budget meeting and vote is on Aug 24.

Due to COVID-19, New Bedford City Council meetings are held on Zoom which makes attendance very easy. Councilor Dunn has stated, “My absence has no impact on my ability to effectively represent my constituents as we navigate the budget process.” Councilor Coelho hasn’t responded to an email request but announced her retirement shortly after getting elected.

The FY2021 budget review comes during a COVID-19 pandemic, shrinking revenues, and mayor requested cuts to the police and fire departments. The budget will determine the need for future property tax increases and fees, so the City Council’s role in the budget process is considered the single most important job city councilors have.

Two men were arrested for the July 26 shooting of two men at Petro Mart on Coggeshall Street in New Bedford to include a leader in the New Bedford Black Lives Matter movement.

According to New Bedford police, 24-year old Tyrell Woodis-Pina of Fairhaven and Giovanni Vale-Valentin of New Bedford have both been charged with discharging a firearm along with numerous weapons-related offenses. Another suspect, 23-year old Brian Ortiz of 2110 Phillips Rd. Apt. #19 in New Bedford, remains at large. A warrant is out for his arrest on numerous firearms-related charges.

Tyrell Woodis-Pina, a resident of Fairhaven, is one of the two people that manage the New Bedford Black Lives Matter Facebook page with over 1,600 followers and has been at many of the Black Lives Matter protests in New Bedford earlier this year. Here’s Tyrell Woodis-Pina live on the Black Lives Matter Facebook page on July 23rd complaining that the police arrested his pregnant girlfriend.

Woodis-Pina’s Facebook page shows him at a Black Lives Matter rally in New Bedford during the day of June 2nd:

According to New Bedford records, Woodis-Pina was one of two people arrested for disorderly conduct the night of June 2nd after protesters illegally marched down Route 18.

Earlier in the day on June 2nd, after Black Lives Matters protestors shut down the New Bedford/Fairhaven bridge for a short time, Woodis-Pina threatened physical violence on a New Bedford Guide reporter (me) while simply covering the protest.

Woodis-Pina messaged New Bedford Guide to remove some protest photos that were sent to us and posted. He sent us a private message on May 30:

These are the photos, sent to use by someone at the protest, Woodis-Pina was concerned about:

Woodis-Pina states that he was shot last year and posted about going to court in March:

Woodis-Pina messaged us in October, telling us that his uncle shot him.

Since the death of George Floyd the vast majority of Black Lives Matters protesters in New Bedford and throughout the south coast, Massachusetts area have been peaceful. Black Lives Matter groups in places like New Bedford are unofficially organized and anyone can step up to be a leader. According to the Black Lives Matters New Bedford’s page transparency, two people run the page and since Tyrell Woodis-Pina went live from the page, he is one of them. While Tyrell Woodis-Pina is not the leader of the New Bedford Black Lives Matter movement, he is a leader in the movement with over 1,600 Facebook followers and active in the protests.

Katie Lannan
State House News Service

New state guidance set to take effect Monday outlines what youth and adult amateur sports activities will be allowed to take place — and with what safety precautions — during the current phase of the state’s reopening plan.

The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs said its guidance “applies to K-12 school and other youth sports activities,” and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association said in a statement posted to Twitter that it is awaiting “accompanying guidelines from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.” The document categorizes sports into three levels of COVID-19 transmission risk, based on the amount of close contact required or expected, with different limitations for each.

Lower-risk activities, like tennis, golf, gymnastics and cross country, can hold individual or socially distanced group activities, competitive practices, competitions and outdoor tournaments. For the other two risk levels, competitive practices and competitions are only allowed with modifications in place. They can participate in individual or distanced activities like non-contact workouts, aerobic conditioning and drills the way the sport is traditionally played. Sports including baseball and softball, team swimming, volleyball and field hockey are deemed moderate risk. The higher-risk category includes football, basketball, competitive cheer, ice hockey and ultimate Frisbee.

According to Mayor Mitchell’s 2021 budget proposal, costs to City government are going up, state aid is uncertain, and local revenue is in decline. This recipe ensures your property taxes will go up, likely a lot.

On average, homeowners in New Bedford saw an increase of $220 in 2019 and $114 in 2020 raising the total average increase to $334 over the past two years. Unless significant federal or state aid flows to the city, the burden will fall on commercial and residential property owners. The mayor’s revenue graph foreshadows an increase in property taxes, but how much is still to be determined:

The New Bedford City Council is currently reviewing the budget and votes on the final budget on August 24. The more they cut, the lower your property taxes increase will likely be – but an increase is coming. Cuts would also mean fewer government services. The biggest issue with municipal government is there isn’t much discretionary spending to cut – most of the budget is mandated spending. Cutting services is also unpopular, even during a COVID-19 pandemic. Expect very little cuts, if any, and higher property taxes in the future.

The real fight will be later in the year when City Council and the Assessors office decide who takes it on the chin the most, commercial or residential property owners. Much of it will decide on state and federal aid amounts. Regardless, it will be a burden that will be a tough pill to swallow. Many businesses have either gone away or faced severe revenue shortfalls due to COVID-19 and the restrictions the State has placed on them. Investment property owners are facing an indefinite rent moratorium. Many homeowners are feeling the pinch of reduced work hours. Higher taxes will be the final straw for a lot of people, but make no mistake, they are coming.

There’s lots of talk about getting rid of qualified immunity for police officers, but what about getting rid of judicial immunity for judges who make decisions that result in death, rape, or violence against the public? Ending judicial immunity for judges is the only way to hold judges accountable and to ensure the victims of judicial negligence get justice.

What is judicial immunity? Per Law Library:

“Judicial immunity protects judges from liability for monetary damages in civil court, for acts they perform pursuant to their judicial function. A judge generally has immunity from civil damages if he or she had jurisdiction over the subject matter in issue.”

Shawn McClinton – kidnapper and rapist

39-year old Shawn McClinton had two prior rape convictions and was being held for a third rape charge before he was set free after the Massachusetts Bail Fund posted his $15,000 bail. He was released on July 15th and arrested and charged for a fourth rape with a knife three weeks later.

According to the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board, McClinton was convicted of raping and abusing a child in June of 1994 and convicted again of rape in July of 2007. He was arrested yet again and charged with kidnapping, two counts of aggravated rape and assault and battery in 2018. These kidnapping and rape charges were the reasons he was being held before a judge allowed the Massachusetts Bail Fund to bail him out on July 15th.

Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins stated: “This individual has violently and sexually assaulted women and children in the past. His release on July 15th allowed him the opportunity to sexually assault and harm again. And unfortunately, he did. According to its website, the Massachusetts Bail Fund’s stated mission is to ‘Free Them All’ and provide bails of up to $2,000 in Essex, Suffolk, and Worcester counties.

These bails are often posted for low-level, misdemeanor offenses which end up punishing poor people and not serving any legal or public safety purpose. However, aggravated rape, kidnapping for the purpose of sexual assault, strangulation, and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon are not low-level misdemeanors. They are violent felonies. And the person they bailed out is a sexual predator that hurts and rapes women and children. The Massachusetts Bail Fund posted $15,000 and set McClinton loose on our community. They don’t care that he is a Level 3 sex offender. They don’t care that he has raped women and children before. They have no responsibility to or compassion for the victims and survivors of his crimes, or the families that he has destroyed. I do.”

The Massachusetts Bail Fund should be held accountable, but so should the judge who decided that a two-time convicted rapist being held on a third violent rape charge should be released on a $15,000 bond. Judges need to be the adult in the room. Crazy people that want to abolish bail, prisons, and courts should not get their way by releasing violent people onto the streets to rape, assault, and murder us.

Judges who fail to protect the public should be held accountable. Contact your legislator and ask them to get rid of judicial immunity.

Both New Bedford Guide and Fall River Reporter asked the community about their experience with the Massachusetts Pandemic Unemployment Assistance office. Many people sent messages about the dreadful customer service, the near-impossible standards that need to be met, the snail-like pace they have in responding, their identities being stolen which lead to denial of assistance to the person who did nothing wrong, and a host of other negative issues.

Have you had a negative experience with the Massachusetts Pandemic Unemployment Assistance office? Email info#newbedfordguide.com.

_______________________________________________________________________

“Regarding unemployment. Took me months to get it. Still have not received a nickel for my daughter. Have uploaded birth certificate, tax return and social security number. They either can’t verify she exists or they say she’s not a US resident. Been an ongoing issue since March.”-Dan Martins.

_______________________________________________________________________

“I applied for PUA 14 weeks ago. I received a determination that I was approved but payments were pending due to an unresolved issue. The issue is proving my identity.

I am 55 and sent them what I had, an expired photo id, my social security card, and an old birth certificate. I was denied because they could not prove my identity. They asked for nothing more.

Someone told me I needed a newer birth certificate and should have sent a marriage certificate to prove the name change. These things cost money, which I don’t have because my unemployment hasn’t paid.

I filed an appeal but was told that they have no idea when they would be doing them. I am to the point where I don’t even know why I bother to claim every week. Heck, I even had taxes taken out. All I can do now is wait.” -Anonymous.

_______________________________________________________________________

“On April 4th I started receiving unemployment assistance. On May 16th my claim was canceled.

Apparently they could not confirm my identity and there was fraud and stolen identities across the state. After weeks of hang ups, being put on hold, asking for a status on the claim, I finally got a request for more documents. I then sent my birth certificate, my social security card front and back, my 2019 tax returns, my license front and back (though it was expired, it was a real license), and a selfie with me holding the license.

Then followed another few weeks of “hang ups, being put on hold, asking for a status on the claim.” I received a letter saying that they lifted to denial and the documents were sufficient.

A few days later they reneged and said it wasn’t enough and I was back on denial. By this time it has been about 7-8 weeks of me with zero incoming coming in, meanwhile having to pay rent, utilities, internet, groceries, etc.

I immediately filed an appeal and went back into the cycle of “hang ups, being put on hold, asking for a status on the claim.” for almost 2 weeks before I finally go a live person to talk to. John was VERY nice, said he would talk to his supervisor. This was about July 28th. He got back on the phone and said “We never received your proof that you filed taxes in 2019, please resend that with anything else that would prove your identity. This is when I explained my expired driver’s licenses.

I had a stroke which left me with partial blindness in both eyes, partial paralysis on my left side, loss of balance and I was not having any more acute strokes, but was having micro-strokes averaging a few times a month. I did not renew my driver’s license because of my eye and balance issues, and because of the strokes I was continuing to have which could lead to serious injury (myself or others) or even death if I had one while driving.

I did what John asked, I sent all of the documents I mentioned above, PLUS gas and electric bills, my medical records, my Census receipt after I filled it out, proof of health care, and a 1099-HC – all documents with my name and address on them. He also mentioned that any appeal hearings wouldn’t happen until the end of the year – that means I am supposed to suck it up and accept the loss of income the past few months and wait 6 more months for it to be resolved.

That is unacceptable and what is also unacceptable is to ask people to be in a financial hole for a VERY SIMPLE issue that can be easily resolved in minutes – not months. The documents I provided – almost a dozen – were sufficient.

The irony of it all is that they are simultaneously denying my appeal, discontinued my assistance, and demanding I pay the money back. Think about that for a minute.

Who are they going to go after to get the past assistance checks before my discontinuation? So, they believe I am who I say I am enough to go after me to get past checks, but not enough to continue it? They will bang on my door, say I am not who I say I am but asking that very same person to pay back past money? Well, which one is it? Am I who I say I am or not? It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad.

There is no other way to explain this beyond simple incompetence.”-Anonymous.

_______________________________________________________________________

“I saw your post on Facebook and had to email and share my dreadful experience with unemployment.

I was a senior at UMass Amherst when the pandemic hit. We were sent home for Spring Break on March 13th and told that classes would be delayed for the two weeks following break, and then the situation would be re-evaluated for the remainder of the semester. I began my drive home only to receive an email during the drive saying that classes were officially canceled for the school year. I was almost home when it hit me that my income and employment were going to come to a screeching halt. At school, I worked three jobs and was a babysitter once a week. After we were sent home, I was thankfully able to keep one of those jobs, working as a remote Resident Assistant.

I had heard that unemployment benefits could be collected if you had a significant decrease in your income, which I did. So, I applied for the regular Unemployment Insurance which I was denied from because I did not make enough money, which is ironic to me. Then, I heard about the PUA program that was described to me as Unemployment for those who were working part-time and “gig” jobs. I was grateful to have this option and was approved for PUA. I received about 5 weeks of benefits until I was notified that someone tried to use my information to collect, so I was asked to verify my identity. After I did that, they denied all of the remaining weeks and told me I was supposed to be collecting Unemployment Insurance rather than Pandemic Unemployment Assistance.

Ever since then, I have been jumping through all of the hoops that they have presented, but make nearly impossible. I have been on the phone with them countless amounts of times trying to straighten things out, but usually, just end up having to submit more verification or information. It has been the most frustrating process, as I am eligible for about three and a half months’ worth of benefits, but have only received about a month’s worth. I was out of work for months, making no money and at my current summer camp job, our hours were severely cut due to the lack of campers attending. I am thankful for what I did receive, and I understand that other people are struggling more than I am, but it has all been such a headache. Being a recent undergraduate, I am now entering the workforce in a recession and without the money that I qualified for.

Thanks for letting me share my story!”-Kristina Mello.

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“I am a victim of identity theft. I work hard as a CNA and took care of my mother who was in hospice. My mom just passed away on June 30th and I went back to work. My first day back my client had a situation that put me out of work I then applied for unemployment.

Long story short I found out that I was a victim of fraud and still haven’t received anything. I have nothing and to make the situation worse I now have found out that my bank account as well has been compromised. I don’t get it. I have filed all paperwork with the state police local and unemployment fraud paperwork as well. SMH! Nobody cares”-Missy Bryant.

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Gov. Charlie Baker has had enough of people holding large private gatherings and disregarding COVID-19 mitigation strategies like social distancing. So on Friday, he indefinitely paused the state’s economic reopening, lowered the outdoor gathering limit, and empowered the police to enforce coronavirus-related orders.

Amid reports of large parties and unauthorized gatherings, Baker said “some residents feel a bit too relaxed about the seriousness of this virus.” He said he was putting the tighter restrictions in place in response to the uptick in COVID-19 cases that Massachusetts has seen in recent weeks.

“People need to understand that big groups — especially if people don’t distance and don’t wear face coverings, and don’t do any of the things that have been talked about and discussed time and time again — create, in many cases, spread,” Baker said during a State House press conference. “And that’s a big part of why we’re enhancing enforcement for local police and State Police, and why we’re lowering our gathering limit for outdoor events, and why we’re also, at the same time, going to engage a multidisciplinary effort around public health and public safety with the communities that have demonstrated that they are, in fact, higher-risk here in Massachusetts.”

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts rose nearly 25 percent between July 29 and Aug. 5, and has been steady or climbing for nearly a month as new COVID-19 infections are once again outpacing recoveries.

The governor said the second step of Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan will be put on hold and the gathering limit for any outdoor event will be reduced from 100 to 50 as of Tuesday. The limit for indoor gatherings will remain at 25, but Baker said the limits apply to all types of locations on public or private property. The revised order also mandates that everyone wears a mask or face covering anywhere that more than 10 people from different households could mix.

Movie theaters, gyms, casinos, museums and more were allowed to reopen in early July as part of Phase 3. The Baker administration referred to it as “Step One of Phase III” but did not fully detail what would be included in the second step of Phase 3. On the state’s reopening website, it lists indoor theater or concert hall performances, and laser tag, roller skating, trampolines and obstacle courses as the activities that would be allowed to reopen in step two of Phase 3.

Baker said Friday that he was authorizing all state and local police to enforce the orders, and that people who host events — even on private property — that exceed gathering limits will be subject to fines. He also announced the creation of a COVID Enforcement and Intervention Team that will ramp up enforcement efforts and coordinate intervention efforts in yet-to-be-named high-risk communities.

“We have to work hard, always, harder in some respects than ever, to contain COVID-19 and keep our economy open for business,” Baker said. “We also want to keep this virus out of our communities as we head into the fall so we can give our kids a chance to get back to school.”

The governor’s end-of-week announcement was met with scorn from the National Federation of Independent Business, which whacked Baker for slowing down the timeline to reopen for businesses.

“It is extremely disappointing that Governor Baker is choosing to roll back the state’s reopening, especially with Massachusetts now facing the worst unemployment rate in the nation. Many of these businesses, that were patiently waiting for Phase 3 part 2 to begin, may now never reopen their doors again,” Christopher Carlozzi, state director of the local chapter of NFIB, said. “Instead of delaying the opening of certain businesses, many taking every step imaginable to keep workers and customers safe, the administration should pursue the private gatherings that are causing the problems.”

Though he said there have been issues with restaurants and bars — “bars are closed in Massachusetts and bars masquerading as restaurants also need to be closed,” he said — the governor on Friday suggested that the coronavirus is primarily spreading in Massachusetts at social gatherings, not mainly in the workplace or at businesses that have reopened.

“When you chase a lot of the contact tracing, the biggest issue we have is people who are familiar with people being familiar with them in big groups,” he said.

He added, “If you think about a party, take a Fourth of July party or even a birthday party: 40 or 50 people in somebody’s backyard, moms and dads, the kids, all the rest; nobody wearing a face mask, nobody socially distancing; one or two people there who are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic; hugs, handshakes, high fives, dancing, who knows, right? A whole bunch of people walk away from there little ticking clocks that are gonna go off at some point. And they go back home and they pass it along to a few people in their family and then we’re off.”

To deal with some of the problems reported at restaurants, Baker said Friday that his office had updated guidance for restaurants to make clear that they cannot act as de facto bars, which are slated to remain closed until there is a medical breakthrough to treat or cure COVID-19.

“One of the things that’s come up a number of times is that pretzels and potato chips meets the food service requirement. It clearly doesn’t,” he said. “What we tried to do with the amendment of the order is make absolutely clear you need to be serving food that’s prepared on-site and the people who are in your venue need to order and eat food if they’re going to order a drink.”

The administration also revealed plans Friday for a multi-agency COVID Enforcement and Intervention Team. Led by the Executive Office and Public Safety and Security and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the team will also include officials from the state’s COVID-19 Command Center, the Massachusetts State Police, Department of Labor Standards, Division of Professional Licensure, Department of Public Health, Division of Local Services, Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security.

“This team will coordinate an increased enforcement effort across the state to ensure businesses and residents are aware of and are following the COVID-19 orders. By authorizing state and local police to enforce these orders, we can not only increase the number of people who will be out there and able to enforce these measures, but also ensure that there are penalties for those who refuse to make the adjustments that so many other people in Massachusetts have made and continue to make,” Baker said. “Secondly, the COVID-19 Command Center will identify higher-risk communities that we can work with collaboratively to help them deal with their outbreaks. This will be different in every town, but it will include things like helping a town access additional federal relief funds if circumstances warrant it. It will also likely include significant assistance to ramp up enforcement with respect to businesses, face coverings and gathering orders.”

Baker said the higher-risk communities will be identified using public health data, but will not be named until next week. He said he would have more to say on Tuesday.

“We still have some homework to do in terms of reaching out to and engaging the communities that, based on the public health data, are going to fall into this higher-risk category and we want to make sure we have a chance to talk to them and to start beginning the process of integrating our efforts with theirs before we name names,” he said.

The New Bedford City Council has held four formal meetings to finalize the City of New Bedford budget for 2021 – two councilors have been completely absent from all four meetings with another attending only half of them.

New Bedford Guide requested the budget attendance logs with Assistant City Council Clerk Susan Henriques. The attendance records revealed that At-large City Councilor Debora Coelho and Ward 3 City Councilor Hugh Dunn have not attended any of the four meetings and At-large City Councilor Brian Gomes has attended two of them. In Feb of 2020, Councilor Debora Coelho announced that after 14-years on the city council she would retire at the end of this current term that started in January and lasts two years.

Seven of the eleven city councilors have attended all four budget meetings; Ian Abreu, Naomi Carney, Linda Morad, William Markey, Derek Baptiste, Scott Lima, and Joe Lopes. Councilor Giesta missed one meeting due to a family emergency.

Councilor Dunn explained his absence: “I have reviewed the budget book extensively and prefer to go directly to department heads when there are questions. I feel it is important to clarify that these are discretionary briefings, no votes take place at the meetings, and they are recorded and available to be viewed after the fact if necessary. My absence has no impact on my ability to effectively represent my constituents as we navigate the budget process.”

Councilors Coelho and Gomes were emailed and given a full day to provide a comment but didn’t respond at the time of this article being published.

Finalizing the City budget is one of the critical roles of the City Council. Mayor Mitchell presented his 2021 City Budget before the New Bedford City Council on Wednesday, July 15, via virtual meeting due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The budget total is $365 million, but the City Council can make cuts to it or leave it alone. Councilors meet with department heads to discuss their portion of the budgets and then make cuts based on these discussions. The size of the budget will also play a major role in property tax increases or fee hikes. Additionally, Mayor Mitchell has proposed closing the downtown police station and decommissioning Engine 8 – decisions the City Council will have to approve.

There are six total budget meetings this year with the final two meetings among department heads scheduled for 10 and 12 August. The final budget meeting and vote is on Aug 24.

Here are the attendance logs for the first four New Bedford City Council budget meetings:

Monday, July 27, 2020

PRESENT:

• ABREU
• BAPTISTE
• CARNEY
• GIESTA
• LIMA
• LOPES
• MARKEY
• MORAD

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

PRESENT:

• ABREU
• BAPTISTE
• CARNEY
• GOMES
• LIMA
• LOPES
• MARKEY
• MORAD

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

PRESENT:

• ABREU
• BAPTISTE
• CARNEY
• GIESTA
• GOMES
• LIMA
• LOPES
• MARKEY
• MORAD

Thursday, August 6, 2020

PRESENT:

• ABREU
• BAPTISTE
• CARNEY
• GIESTA
• LIMA
• LOPES
• MARKEY
• MORAD

The New Bedford Election Commission has announced that Early Voting for the 2020 state primary election will be held at the New Bedford Main Library, 613 Pleasant Street, from Saturday August, 22 through Friday, August 28.

Any voter who wishes to cast their ballot in person prior to Election Day, September 1, may do so at the Main Library during the following hours:

• Saturday, August 22: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Sunday, August 23: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Monday, August 24: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Tuesday, August 25: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, August 26: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Thursday, August 27: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Friday, August 28: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Voters may cast their votes for: Senator in Congress; Representative in Congress; Senator in General Court; Representatives in General Court for the Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh and Thirteenth Bristol Districts; County Treasurer; County Commissioner; Governor’s Councillor; and Register of Probate.

As usual, on Election Day, Tuesday, September 1, polls will be open in the City of New Bedford from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Additional safety requirements including the use of masks/face coverings and the observance of social distancing will be in place due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Any New Bedford resident who is uncertain about their voting status, designated polling location, or who has changed their address since the last election, or any other question should contact the Election Commission office at 508-979-1420.