By Bob Katzen

Sen. Jamie Eldridge (D-Marlborough) and Rep. Natalie Blais (D-Sunderland) filed legislation that would enable the Bay State to develop minimum statewide water quality standards for private wells and expand a financial assistance program to remediate wells affected by PFAS (“forever chemicals”) and other harmful contaminants in drinking water supplies.

Supporters say that more than 500,000 Massachusetts residents, located heavily in rural areas but also in all 351 cities and towns, rely on private wells for their drinking water. They note that many people are consuming water that may be unsafe because the source is not regularly tested and treated like public water supplies and could have harmful contaminants such as PFAS, arsenic, radon, uranium and more.
“As the Legislature continues to address PFAS contamination in communities across the state this session, it’s crucial that the hundreds of thousands of households relying on private well water have access to clean and safe drinking water,” said Sen. Eldridge. “That’s why I’m proud to once again file legislation to empower the DEP to regulate private wells and establish a program to help homeowners test their wells for dangerous contaminants.
MASSACHUSETTS GUN LAWS RANKING – Everytown for Gun Safety’s 2025 State Gun Law Rankings were released last week, and they report that Massachusetts has the second strongest gun laws in the nation, just behind California.
According to the report, the rankings show a clear connection between stronger gun safety laws and lower rates of gun deaths. The report suggests that if every state in the country had the gun death rates of the nine states with the strongest gun safety laws, 299,000 lives could be saved in the next decade.
“Gun laws save lives and states that enact common-sense, bipartisan policies are clearly standing on the side of public safety,” said Nick Suplina, Senior Vice President for Law and Policy at Everytown for Gun Safety. “As 2025 gets underway, we’re doubling down in the states, defending the gains we’ve made and charting new paths ahead. We can turn the tide on our nation’s gun violence crisis, but only if all leaders step up to meet the moment.”
“Our lawmakers took lifesaving action last year to enact a major piece of gun safety legislation – and our communities have already benefited from this challenging work,” said Rachel Everley, a volunteer with the Massachusetts chapter of Moms Demand Action. “Today’s announcement is just further evidence of the value of our combined efforts. Now Massachusetts has the second strongest gun safety laws in the country, and we will continue forging ahead because we have seen what can be accomplished when we do.”