Peterson Still Fighting Violent Criminals

Beacon Hill is a quiet place in August, but that’s where Rep. George Peterson, R-Grafton, was during a recent week, attending an informal House session where legislation can only be passed by unanimous consent.

Republicans hold only 32 of the 160 House seats, and at least one member of the GOP needs to attend the twice-weekly sessions to ensure nothing is passed that the party would object to.

When regular business resumes in September, Peterson said he will continue to push for the passage of Melissa’s Law, which would deny parole to three-time offenders of violent crime.

Peterson said there has been “not a lot” of progress in getting a bill closer to becoming law since to discuss the case of registered sex offender and town resident Brian Addeo, who was captured in Maine after cutting off his GPS monitoring bracelet.

“There’s no question that we need to tighten up the laws of pedophiles,” he said.

Another topic Peterson plans to focus on this fall is redistricting, as Massachusetts will be losing a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives as a result of 2010 census data.

He said he will be asking selectmen in Grafton and the other towns he represents to write a letter to the redistricting commission. He hopes they will ask the commission to make the new districts compact and concise.

“For us, is makes more sense to be part of a Worcester County-based district than a Springfield-based district,” he said, adding that one district must be eliminated before nomination papers for the 2012 election are made available in February.

“It’s going to be a very interesting year,” he said.

On economic issues, Peterson said Grafton’s finances are in “pretty good shape” compared to other towns thanks to a robust rainy day fund and a low amount of home foreclosures.

Whether Grafton is in a strong enough position to finance the expansion of the library, Peterson said, may depend on whether voters are willing in the future to vote for a debt exclusion, as they did for the new high school project.

“I spoke in favor on the town meeting floor for the high school. I think it’s critical that we have the building and it solves our space need for the next 20-25 years,” he said.

The library may be another issue, he said. “The library is going to be a question. There will be some questions that need to be answered on town meeting floor.”