A Government that Works for You

Open Government 
When I first ran, I vowed to bring City services into the 21st century, committed to televising and expanding access to all City meetings and using modern communication tools to share both formal and informal City business. We worked to make the City budget more detailed and transparent, created a Welcoming Committee to support new residents and businesses, and began using a data-driven approach to our city services and policies. I am incredibly proud to say that we met or surpassed all of these goals, and there is so much more we can do.

City Charter

Our city charter, the document that defines the organization, powers, functions, and procedure of our city government, has not been reviewed since 1986 and no longer reflects the needs of a 21st century, diverse major metropolitan region.

It is critical that we also have a City Charter that establishes policies for a modern government that will support our long-term plans and the overall forward movement of our city. It is time for the City to undertake this important process of designing a system of local government that works for everyone, not just a few. That is why, in 2020, I submitted a Home Rule Petition to the City Council to create a local Charter Review Commission to review and, ultimately, update Medford’s Charter. 

As of July 2021, that Home Rule Petition is under consideration by the State’s Joint Committee on Election Laws, where I proudly testified in June 2021 in full support. I will continue to advocate for this important and necessary update to bring the City of Medford into the 21st century.