Tell the State Senate: Don’t make Massachusetts families pay for data centers

Tell the State Senate:
Don’t make Massachusetts families pay for data centers

Our energy bills keep climbing, and we can’t back down on our commitment to climate justice. And this Wednesday, July 1st, the Massachusetts Senate has a key vote.

The Senate’s energy bill will shape what families in Roxbury and across the Commonwealth pay for years to come. We’re demanding the Senate protect residents from data center costs, cut wasteful gas spending, strengthen Mass Save, fund clean energy, and slash the carbon baked into state construction.

The vote is days away. The best way to make an impact is to CALL your senator’s office.

  1. First, look up your State Senator and their phone number.
  2. Call them using the script below.
  3. Scroll down and send them an email as well using our tool.

The template and talking points below serve as guidelines for your conversations with legislators, but you are encouraged to speak from your own voice and experience. The “sweet spot” for legislators is when constituents activate both their minds and their hearts. Strengthen your conversations by highlighting personal connections to the issues.

“Hello, my name is [Your Name] from [Your City/Town] .

I’m calling to urge Senator [Legislator’s Name] to support the ACE priority amendments to the Senate Energy Bill being voted on Wednesday, July 1st. The Senate has a chance to pass a bill that truly protects Massachusetts families and moves us toward a clean, affordable energy future.

The amendments ACE is supporting are #62 on Data Centers, #26 Halting Gas Expansion, #37 Prohibition on Charging Ratepayers for Advertising, #25 Addressing biomass, #1 Limiting Utility Profits, and #78 Labor Peace for Thermal Networks.

I am particularly concerned about the risk from data centers. We need the Senate to include strong language to protect residents. The growth of massive data centers can drive up our electricity rates and strain our water and energy resources, and contribute to air and noise pollution, burdens that should not fall on local communities and families.

Additionally, I urge the Senator to support amendments to strengthen Mass Save, and to phase out the costly Gas System Enhancement Plan (GSEP) , which only expands expensive fossil fuel infrastructure we don’t need.

Massachusetts families need relief from high energy costs, and we need policies that build a clean, affordable future for everyone.

Will the Senator support these priorities?

Thank you for your time and commitment to serving our communities.”

  1. Be Clear and Concise: State your name, location, and your “ask” early in the call.
  2. Focus on Impact: Personalize it. If data center development is an issue in your area, mention that. Otherwise, focus on the general concerns of rate hikes and resource strain.
  3. Be Polite: Legislative staff deal with many calls. A respectful, clear, and concise message will be remembered.
  4. Leave a Voicemail if Necessary: The provided script works well for both speaking with a staffer or leaving a voicemail message.

RGGI funds for climate justice: 90% for the Frontlines

90% FOR THE
FRONTLINES

RGGI raises billions for climate action.
   → Frontline communities should decide where it goes.

Sign the petition ⤵︎

WHAT IS A FRONTLINE COMMUNITY?

We are the Black, Brown, immigrant, and low-income people who have spent decades living next to power plants, industrial sites, and highways. We breathe the dirtiest air, suffer the worst heat, and bury our loved ones earliest. In Boston, Black kids go to the hospital for asthma 10 times more than white kids.

We’ve already paid the price for pollution.

WHAT IS RGGI?

The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative makes power plants pay for their pollution. States get this money back to fund climate solutions.

That means billions of dollars for climate justice, paid by the same polluters who have poisoned frontline communities for decades.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

On May 19, 2026, ACE released a new report: Assessing Power Sector Impacts on Environmental Justice Communities.

READ THE PDF


→ Learn more from Synapse Energy Economics
→ Read the press release

JOIN THE COALITION

Join the organizations throughout the northeast who have signed onto our letter to the ten RGGI-state governors.

Organization sign-on

Speak up for safe streets at Boston City Council’s budget hearing on May 4th

On Monday May 4, Boston City Council will hold a hearing focused on the upcoming fiscal year budget for the Streets Cabinet — the Boston Transportation Department and Public Works Department (July 2026-June 2027).

This is a critical opportunity to speak up for safer streets for everyone in the City of Boston.

You can do this in two ways;

  1. Send an email to City Council ASAP (see instructions below)
  2. Attend the meeting in person at City Hall or online at 10am on Monday, May 4th (use this link to join live)

Sample Email to City Council

Address your email to your own City Councilor.
Not sure who your City Councilor is? Enter your address here to search, or check this map.

CC all the at-large councilors, and the Ways & Means Committee ccc.wm@boston.gov for it to be entered into the record. (See list below.)

To: YOUR District Councilor
cc: ruthzee.louijeune@boston.gov, julia.mejia@boston.gov, erin.murphy@boston.gov, henry.santana@boston.gov, ccc.wm@boston.gov, info@livablestreets.info, info@ace-ej.org

Subject: I support a Streets Cabinet budget that prioritizes safety and livability in Boston

[[Share your name, where you live/work/play in Boston and how you get around.]]

I am reaching out today to ask that you ensure the below priorities are included in the City of Boston budget this fiscal year:

Accountability and Transparency: Please ask BTD to release the already completed Go Boston 2030 Revisioned documents and have a timeline for releasing an updated Vision Zero Action Plan. These guiding documents are critical in determining how and where to prioritize the City’s limited resources.

Meaningful on-the-ground progress. Please require that the City complete 7.5 miles of protected bike lanes; add cast-in-place concrete barriers on ALL corridors or at any intersection where flexposts have been removed; install 500 new speed humps in addition to replacing any removed during resurfacing; constructing safety improvements at 8 intersections; and update 50 traffic signals to meet the new 2023 traffic signal guidelines.

Planning with Impact: Please require BTD to create a plan for quick build bus priority implementation in collaboration with the MBTA’s Better Buses program for installation in FY28 and to restart planning and design processes for Columbia Road, Hyde Park Avenue, Roxbury Resilient Transportation Corridors, Commonwealth Avenue Phase 3, 3B, and 4, Boylston St. / Fenway, Downtown Crossing, Connect downtown public garden crossings, Roslindale Square, collaborating with advocates and other
stakeholders.

[[Add any project or priority that is personally meaningful to you.]]

Each of these requests is feasible within the constraints of the existing budget and with the existing staff, and is informed by the City’s most recent transportation planning and policy documents.

Please ensure that these priorities are committed to and incorporated into the FY27 budget before voting yes.

Thank you for your partnership and leadership.

Best,
[[Your name and address]]

At-Large Councilors:
ruthzee.louijeune@boston.gov, julia.mejia@boston.gov, erin.murphy@boston.gov,
henry.santana@boston.gov
District Councilors (map):
D1 gabriela.coletta@boston.gov
D2 ed.flynn@boston.gov
D3 john.fitzgerald@boston.gov
D4 brian.worrell@boston.gov
D5 enrique.pepen@boston.gov
D6 benjamin.weber@boston.gov
D7 miniard.culpepper@boston.gov
D8 sharon.durkan@boston.gov
D9 liz.breadon@boston.gov

Policy Agenda 2025-26

Add your name: support ACE’s 2025 agenda for environmental justice

Environmental justice is under attack from the federal government, which is sure to deepen the suffering of marginalized communities at the front lines of pollution, climate chaos, and more. We’re doubling down to make sure Massachusetts protects our communities and our rights to demand justice.

➡️ Take a look at our 2025-26 agenda — and add your name as a co-sponsor today!

Note: This is the one-page version. Click here to see the full policy agenda, with details about each bill and our policies + principles.