My Platform

The change our communities need.

"I am not redundant to anything our towns have now or have ever had. I am as far from a career politician as you could find."

– Loring Barnes, State Rep Candidate for 8th Middlesex

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Gov. Charlie Baker: “I'm confident Loring Barnes will be an effective advocate for Hopkinton, Holliston, Millis, and Sherborn. She’ll cut through the Beacon Hill insiders to be a voice for parents, seniors, business owners, and taxpayers. Loring will hold the line on taxes and spending, while making sure her district gets the local aid and attention it needs to be a great place to live, work, and raise a family.”

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito: “As a woman who served in the legislature, I understand the need to bring a diversity of voices to the State House. That’s why we need to elect Loring Barnes as the next state representative from Hopkinton, Holliston, Millis, and Sherborn. She’ll bring her background as a mother, small business owner, and public servant to be an effective advocate for her district. We need Loring—and other strong women like her—to take on the Beacon Hill establishment and deliver results that work for ALL of us.”

Better for Transparency

Open Up Beacon Hill - State Open Meeting Laws should apply on Beacon Hill with equal stringency to what is required of town government. I have a record of “walking the talk,” by improving transparency, accountability, and information sharing.
Reality-Based Energy Policies – Gratuitous soundbites may grab headlines, but leaders legislate with facts over fiction. Pretending that conversion to an electric grid is as easy flipping a switch denies these realities: Massachusetts’ skyrocketing energy costs exacerbate financial pains of inflation. Utilities forewarning of blackouts during an expected harsh winter and simultaneously seeking approval for 60%+ rate hikes over last year shows a grave imbalance of policies, not natural resources. Mindful that fossil products are required for asphalt, wind turbines, batteries, building materials, technology, and multi-modal transportation that upon which global import and export channels depend, we need energy experts over political posturing to inform safe, realistically timed, and affordable energy legislation.

Better for Community

All of Us - I put people over politics. I will work hard for everyone.
Slow Increase of Taxes - Taxpayers want government to slow down on spending. Exorbitant State mandates on top of inflation are hurting families, businesses, and town services. Taxpayers want value. Let’s start by getting the legislature to return our $3B revenue surplus.
Take Care of our Seniors - It’s time to acknowledge the unmet needs of seniors, our fastest growing population. If we can have State funding programs for schools ($15.9B since 2004) and libraries ($420M since 1989), then we surely can replicate this model for building quality senior centers. I would file this legislation.
Grow School Funding Sources - Protecting educational excellence requires more sources of funding for our children so that schools can adequately address mental and behavioral health. Participation by agencies focused in these areas (DMH, MABHA, MAMH, etc.) should be established to supplement DESE Ch. 70 education budgets and expertise.

Better for Business

Make MA Easier to Do Business - Over 99% of MA employers are small businesses, yet our state is the most expensive in the US for operating a business. State government can address regulations and fees to become an economic growth and business retention partner. The National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) has endorsed my candidacy.
Cultivate Public–Private Partnerships - As legislators impose laws impacting fast growth innovation industries – renewable energy, biotechnology, clinical research, cybersecurity, among them – we need their experts informing policy, particularly for the push into a clean energy economy with conservation best practices. I have been recognized for public–private partnerships.
Fill Empty Jobs - We have a serious labor crisis. Sectors like retail, transportation, agriculture, and restaurants need legislators to work with them, or MA will continue to see economic and employment losses.
Open State Purchasing - State purchasing contracts have restricted enrollment periods (by years), potentially shutting out qualified vendors on a technicality of timing. This should be fixed by opening a true open vendor marketplace with real-time business enrollment, giving government purchasers more vendor choice and opening access to State revenue opportunities to more qualified vendors, particularly small and diversity/veteran– certified businesses.

People First!

I bring effective collaboration, new perspectives, and bipartisanship to creative problem solving. We need a trustful, accessible legislator who isn’t indebted to special interests. I am that person. I’m working for all of us, all the time.