Spilka's legislative accomplishments include efforts in a broad range of areas including economic development, jobs creation, education, juvenile justice and services for the elderly and disabled communities.
When she was a child, her father suffered from mental illness and her sister had Down Syndrome.[5]
Early career
Spilka was first elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in the fall of 2001, where she served three years before her election to the Massachusetts State Senate in January 2005. In the Senate she has served as the Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities, the Chair of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies and the Majority Whip. Prior to becoming a legislator, Spilka worked in private practice as an arbitrator and mediator, specializing in labor and employment law and community and court mediation. In addition, she has been a facilitator and fact finder in disputes in the public and private sectors, as well as a social worker and trainer of adult mediation and school-based peer mediation programs, collaborative-based collective bargaining and conflict resolution strategies.
Prior to becoming Senate President, she served as Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, overseeing the creation of the annual state budget.[6]
Regional transportation
Along with Dennis Giombetti, a selectboard member from Framingham, Spilka spearheaded the creation of the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority to provide residents of the region greater access to public transportation.[7]
Criminal justice reform
Spilka acted as leader on An Act relative to criminal justice reform[8] which was signed into law in 2018.[9] Following Massachusetts' 2016 legalization of non-medical Marijuana, this law eliminated certain mandatory minimum sentences for low level, non-violent[10] drug offences and allowed records for convictions for offenses that are no longer crimes, such as marijuana possession, to be expunged.[9] This bill also altered how bail is set in order to ensure that individuals are not jailed solely because they are unable to pay, raised the minimum age of criminal responsibility in Massachusetts from seven to 12 years old (the international standard[10]), decriminalized several minor offenses for juveniles, and required more humane conditions for inmates in solitary confinement.[9]
In 2018, Spilka joined Senators Patricia Jehlen and Julian Cyr to create bill S.2562 - an act relative to gender identity on Massachusetts identification.[8] The bill would have established a non-binary gender identity option for state licenses, allowing applicants to choose "X" instead of male or female. The bill passed the Senate,[8] but was made irrelevant before it could become law as the Massachusetts Registry of Motorized Vehicles voluntarily moved to allow Massachusetts residents to select a nonbinary gender marker.[13]
Life sciences
Spilka has been a noted supporter of biotechnology. Prior to becoming Senate President, she chaired the Biotech Legislative Caucus[14] and has been recognized for her dedicated work to advance the biotechnology industry in Massachusetts. According to the Biotechnology Industry Organization, her efforts to include life sciences and the medical technology industry in the state's economic development initiatives have worked to "foster a pro-business and pro-biotechnology environment in Massachusetts".[14] Spilka is also a founder and former Chair of the Tech Hub Caucus.[15]
Spilka was a candidate in the 2013 special election to succeed U.S. Representative Ed Markey of Massachusetts's 5th congressional district, who resigned in June 2013 to take a seat in the U.S. Senate. The primary election was held on October 15, 2013, and Katherine Clark won the Democratic nomination.[16]
Massachusetts Senate President (2018-present)
On July 26, 2018, Spilka was unanimously[17] elected by the members of the Massachusetts Senate to serve as the President of the Senate, making her the third woman to hold this office. Following a tumultuous period in the Massachusetts Senate, Spilka was regarded by her colleagues as a source of stability and a more collaborative leader than previous Senate Presidents.[6]
Education funding
Upon becoming Senate President, Spilka's "first priority" was the passage of the Student Opportunity Act.[4] Totaling $1.5 billion,[18] this law included the largest increase in education funding in Massachusetts’ history.[4] Signed into law in 2019, the Student Opportunity Act adjusted the formula used by the state to calculate the cost of educating students by updating costs related to health care, special education, English language learning, and programs for low-income students.[19] The act also encourages schools districts to use additional funds on programs to support students’ "social-emotional and physical health,"[20] in line with Spilka's longstanding support for social-emotional learning.[21]
After having been delayed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Student Opportunity Act will be phased in starting in 2022.[22]
Racial justice and police reform
Karen Spilka announces new police reform legislation in July 2020.
In the wake of the murder of George Floyd, Spilka announced the creation of a racial justice advisory group led by Massachusetts Senators Sonia Chang-Diaz and William Brownsberger to draft legislation in response to police brutality,[23][24] which was subsequently passed and signed into law by Governor Charlie Baker.[25] This sweeping police reform law, An Act relative to justice, equity and accountability in law enforcement in the Commonwealth,[26] is notable for pioneering multiple novel approaches to police reform.[27] The law created a first-in-the-nation civilian-led commission to standardize the certification and decertification of police officers, with the power to conduct independent investigations into police misconduct,[26] and also created the first state-wide restriction on law enforcement's use of facial recognition technology in the United States.[27] The bill furthermore banned the use of chokeholds and created a duty to intervene for police officers when witnessing another officer using force inappropriately.[26] The law was hailed as 'robust' by commentators, including the ACLU's Director of Racial Justice, who noted that it created "probably the strongest" police oversight commission in the country.[28]
In recognition of these and other actions to advance equity and racial justice in Massachusetts, Spilka was awarded the Chaney Goodman Schwerner Advocacy Award by the New England Area Conference of the NAACP in 2020.[29]
Union opposition
In 2022, Spilka released a statement saying that the Massachusetts Senate did not "see a path forward" for efforts by Senate staffers to unionize. Staffers have been seeking recognition after announcing their intention to unionize earlier that year and denounced the response as anti-union.[30]
