TAKE ACTION: ASK YOUR STATE SENATOR TO CO-SPONSOR MASS WINS ACT PRIORITIES

Advocacy: State
Written By Kelsey Rode

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Advocates at Creative Sector Day 2026. Photography by Steph Craig Studios.

 

We need advocates to contact their state senators TODAY and urge them to co-sponsor Amendments #29, #20, #109, #354, and #367 before the Senate takes up S.3178 on July 22nd and 23rd.

 

Take 10 minutes to call your state senator’s office and send them an email explaining why you support these amendments. You can use these templates to help you craft your message:

 

  • Use this form to look up your district, state senator, and their office phone number.

    Here is a template script you can use when you call:


    “Hello, my name is [Name] and I’m a constituent of Senator [Name of state senator]’s in the [District].


    I am calling today to share my support for the following amendments to the Mass Wins Act, S.3178:

    • #29 "Preserving the Creative Economy" filed by Sen. Miranda to protect and expand access to creative workspaces in Massachusetts.

    • #20 "To make music affordable by reining in predatory ticket scalping" filed by Sen. Fernandes to establish new consumer protection requirements for the sale and resale of live event tickets.

    • #109 "Tourism and visitation Economic growth, new revenue and jobs" filed by Sen. Mark so that 1.5% of the state’s room occupancy excise from the last fiscal year will be credited to the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund.

    • #354 "Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program administered by the Mass Cultural Council.

    • #367 "Seasonal Communities Housing Fund" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a state fund to support seasonal communities housing, directly supporting seasonal arts communities.


    [INCLUDE TWO TO THREE EXAMPLES  ABOUT WHY THESE POLICIES AND INVESTMENTS ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU]


    Arts and culture are a major economic driver in Massachusetts. 


    Strengthening the creative economy is essential for achieving our state’s economic development goals and vibrancy. Please co-sponsor amendments #29, #20, #109, #354, and #367 to S.3178. 


    Thank you!

    Some Tips:


    The more personal you make your call the better. Sharing details about the impact arts and cultural experiences have had to your community is great.


    State senators’ staff will be getting a lot of calls today and tomorrow about this bill. If they don’t take long to speak with you, that’s okay. They will be tallying every call they receive about this bill and amendments.

  • Use this form to look up your state senator and their email.


    You can use this template to get started with writing your email to your state senator. Please personalize your message to include more information about why these amendments are important to you and your community!


    TEMPLATE:


    Subject Line: Please co-sponsor S.3178 creative sector priority amendments


    Dear [SEN. NAME] and staff,


    As a constituent, I respectfully urge you to co-sponsor the following amendments to S.3178 to support a stronger creative economy:

    • #29 "Preserving the Creative Economy" filed by Sen. Miranda to protect and expand access to creative workspaces in Massachusetts.

    • #20 "To make music affordable by reining in predatory ticket scalping" filed by Sen. Fernandes to establish new consumer protection requirements for the sale and resale of live event tickets.

    • #109 "Tourism and visitation Economic growth, new revenue and jobs" filed by Sen. Mark so that 1.5% of the state’s room occupancy excise from the last fiscal year will be credited to the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund.

    • #354 "Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program administered by the Mass Cultural Council.

    • #367 "Seasonal Communities Housing Fund" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a state fund to support seasonal communities housing, directly supporting seasonal arts communities.

    Arts and culture are a major economic driver in Massachusetts, contributing $29.7 billion annually, supporting 135,000 jobs, and generating over 4% of the state’s economy. 


    The policies and investments are important to me because [INCLUDE TWO TO THREE SENTENCES ABOUT WHY THESE POLICIES AND INVESTMENTS ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU]


    Strengthening the creative economy is not only necessary for maintaining the Commonwealth’s vibrancy, it is also essential for achieving the rest of our state’s economic development priorities. The creative economy is crucial for stimulating local economies, generating tourism, and instilling pride in community.  


    I once again urge you to co-sponsor amendments #29, #20, #109, #354, and #367 to S.3178 and to advocate for them with your colleagues in the Senate. Please prioritize supporting creative workers and the creative economy this session. 


    Sincerely,


    [NAME]

    [ADDRESS - THIS IS HOW THEY IDENTIFY YOU AS CONSTITUENTS]

    [EMAIL]


 

Calling and sending a personal email is more impactful than sending a form email, but any outreach is better than no outreach. If you only have time for a quick action, you can send a form message to your state senator here:

 


HELP US GET THE WORD OUT

 

Senators filed 595 amendments to S.3178. We need your help winning attention over these amendments by getting the word out to your collaborators, audiences, and board members that there’s an opportunity to move these policy priorities TODAY.


Help us get the word out by sharing our posts about this call to action, sending someone the link to this page, or forwarding advocacy emails from the MASSCreative Action Network.

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS ADVOCACY EFFORT & THE MASS WINS ACT

 

The Senate is voting on their version of the Mass Wins Act this Wednesday and Thursday (July 22nd and 23rd). The Mass Wins Act is this session’s economic development bond bill.

 
READ MORE ABOUT THE MASS WINS ACT
 

Sen. Liz Miranda filed Amendment #29 “Preserving the Creative Economy” to get the Creative Space Act included in the Mass Wins Act.


The Creative Space Act is one of the MASSCreative Action Network’s priority bills this session and would establish “creative space” and “presentation space” definitions that towns and cities can use to protect and expand creative workspaces in Massachusetts. It will also give towns and cities the option to create municipal trust funds to acquire, purchase, maintain, and hold onto creative maker spaces.

 
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CREATIVE SPACE ACT
 

The MASSCreative Action Network is also supporting the following amendments:

  • #20 "To make music affordable by reining in predatory ticket scalping" filed by Sen. Fernandes to establish new consumer protection requirements for the sale and resale of live event tickets.

  • #109 "Tourism and visitation Economic growth, new revenue and jobs" filed by Sen. Mark so that 1.5% of the state’s room occupancy excise from the last fiscal year will be credited to the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund.

  • #354 "Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a Public Arts & Entertainment Microgrant Program administered by the Mass Cultural Council.

  • #367 "Seasonal Communities Housing Fund" filed by Sen. Cyr to create a state fund to support seasonal communities housing, directly supporting seasonal arts communities.

 
 
Resources
A Guide To Hearing And Giving Testimony

An important part of the governing process is public hearings. These occur on all levels of government (Federal, State, and Local). Understanding the hearing process and how you can participate will make you a more effective advocate for a more equitable and inclusive creative sector.

INSIDE THE STATE BUDGETING PROCESS

Maintaining and increasing public investment in the creative community requires constant and broad grassroots activism throughout the annual budget process.

NonProfit Organizations & Advocacy

There is a lot of misinformation on what a nonprofit can and cannot do when it comes to advocating for its interests and the needs of the communities they serve. Check out our Nonprofits and Advocacy Resource on how your organization effectively and confidently advocate for a more equitable and inclusive creative sector of all residents in the Commonwealth.

6/19/20 - POLICY & ACTION UPDATE WEBINAR

In this webinar, we took time to honor Juneteenth and Pride Month, and talked about the status of arts education funding and voting protections.

6/12/20 - POLICY & ACTION UPDATE WEBINAR

In this webinar, we discussed mapping our roles in a social change ecosystem, talked about proposed legislation to address COVID-19 voting options, the 2020 Census, and reviewed federal and state supports for the creative sector.

6/5/20 - policy & action update webinars

In this webinar, we had a community conversation about mapping our social change roles during times of crisis.

Kelsey Rode
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WHAT’S THE MASS WINS ACT? AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?