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Michael J. Barrett

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Michael Barrett
Senator Barrett testifies at a committee hearing.
Member of the Massachusetts Senate from the 3rd Middlesex District
Incumbent
Assumed office
2013
Preceded bySusan Fargo
Member of the Massachusetts Senate from the Middlesex and Suffolk District
In office
1987–1995
Preceded byGeorge Bachrach
Succeeded byWarren Tolman
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 21st Middlesex District
In office
1979–1985
Preceded byNils Nordberg [1]
Succeeded byGeoffery C. Beckwith [2]
Personal details
Born (1948-06-27) June 27, 1948 (age 76)
Agana, Guam
Political partyDemocratic
ResidenceLexington, Massachusetts
Alma materHarvard College
Northeastern University School of Law
OccupationAttorney
Politician

Michael John Barrett (born June 27, 1948, in Agana, Guam [3]) is the state senator for the 3rd Middlesex District of Massachusetts. Barrett served in the State Senate once before, in 1987–1994, representing another district (Cambridge, Belmont, Watertown and the Allston-Brighton neighborhood of Boston), before moving to his present home in suburban Lexington 17 years ago. Even earlier, in 1979–1985, he served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from Reading, North Reading and a portion of Wilmington.[4]

Early life

Barrett is a 1970 graduate of Harvard College and 1977 graduate of the Northeastern University School of Law, after which he clerked for a federal judge in Washington, DC[5]

State Representative

Barrett was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1978.[6] He ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives in 1984, losing the Democratic primary in the Massachusetts's 7th congressional district to Ed Markey.[7]

State Senate

In 1990, during his first stint as state senator, Barrett wrote an Atlantic Monthly cover story in which he advocated a longer school day and year for American students.[8] A year later, he was named one of nine commissioners on the National Education Commission on Time and Learning, created by the U.S. Congress to examine the issues raised in the Atlantic article.[9]

In 1992 Barrett drafted and saw through to enactment domestic violence legislation for Massachusetts that was precedent-setting in the United States, in that it required judges to consult a comprehensive computerized registry of offenders before they ruled on requests for restraining orders.[10] He was also successful as lead sponsor of major environmental legislation regulating uses of toxic materials in manufacturing within the state.[11]

Private sector

In 1994 Barrett ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Massachusetts. Departing the state senate the following year, he was named CEO and general counsel of the Visiting Nurse Associations of New England, a large home health care provider network. Several years later, he embarked on a consulting career focused on the emergence of the Internet and the development of online services involved in health care.[12]

Return to Senate

In December 2011, after a 16-year absence from politics, Barrett announced his candidacy for state senate in the 3rd Middlesex District.[13][14] In September 2012 he won the Democratic nomination after an intensely contested five-candidate race.[15] He beat the Republican candidate in November and was elected.[16] The 3rd Middlesex District covers nine communities: Bedford, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Lexington (precincts 3, 8 and 9), Lincoln, Sudbury (precincts 1, 4 and 5), Waltham and Weston.

In January 2013 Barrett was named Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities.[17] In 2015 Barrett was named chair of the Senate Post-Audit and Oversight Committee, a unique body charged with overseeing implementation of all state programs run by the governor and his appointees. In 2017 he was appointed Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities & Energy. The committee's jurisdiction covers everything from cell phones to alternative energy to public utility reform to carbon pricing.[18]

Personal life

Barrett lives in Lexington with his wife. They have twin daughters.

References

  1. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 1977. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 1986. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 1987. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 1987. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ http://www.barrettforstatesenate.org/about-mike
  6. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 1987. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=501530
  8. ^ "The Case for More School Days". The Atlantic Monthly.
  9. ^ http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/PrisonersOfTime/Members.html
  10. ^ http://www.barrettforstatesenate.org/mikes-record
  11. ^ http://lexington.patch.com/articles/letter-barret-would-be-environmental-champion
  12. ^ http://www.barrettforstatesenate.org/about-mike/
  13. ^ "Lexington Resident Mike Barrett Announces Run for State Senate". The Lexington Minuteman.
  14. ^ "Mike Barrett to challenge Susan Fargo for state Senate seat". The Boston Globe.
  15. ^ "Barrett bests Kearns Goodwin in state Senate primary". The Boston Globe.
  16. ^ "Barrett looks forward to 'hard work' as 3rd Middlesex senator". The Lexington Minuteman.
  17. ^ http://malegislature.gov/People/Profile/MJB0
  18. ^ Gentile, Al. "Senator Mike Barrett appointed to Committee of Telecom, Utilities, Energy". Lexington Minuteman. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
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