For the first time this millennium, someone other than Susan Tucker will serve as Andover's state senator. An effective local voice in the Legislature, Tucker balanced the need to support jobs and reasonable taxes with providing state services for those in need. She has served her constituents well and will be difficult to replace.
The Andover Democrat announced Friday she will not seek re-election. Tucker, 65, will continue to serve until the end of her term in January 2011. "I love this job and I did struggle with my decision. It's such a challenge - intellectually and because every day brings a brand new challenge with a new issue," she said. Ultimately, she decided it was time for something different, something a bit less intense, she said.
During her time in office, Tucker focused on social issues such as improving foster care, allowing seniors to stay in their homes and ending homelessness. [A list of some of her awards is available online at www.andovertownsman.com.] But Tucker also has voted against her party leadership in opposing the 25 percent increase in the sales tax passed last year. She has disdain for what she would call "rip-offs" - whether those came from predatory gambling, inefficient state agencies or higher auto insurance premiums caused by criminals' fraud. One of her biggest disappointments, she said, is that she hasn't seen more quality management and customer service brought to government. She had some success there, at the Registry of Motor Vehicles and in Health and Human Services.
Tucker played a pivotal role in the fight against auto insurance fraud. She wrote and pressed for passage of laws that made auto insurance fraud a felony and made it a crime to solicit phony accident victims with the intent of defrauding an insurance company. These laws gave investigators and prosecutors the tools they needed to crack the auto fraud rings that plagued Lawrence. Such scams in Lawrence drove up insurance rates in Andover and around the state, as all drivers were charged higher premiums. As a result of Tucker's efforts, there has been a dramatic reduction in fraud and lower premiums for drivers across Massachusetts.
Tucker has also been a strong opponent of casinos in Massachusetts, a voice of reason against those who see expanded gambling as a source of easy money for the state. She knows such enterprises cause other, expensive societal problems, and money spent on gambling is sucked away from more productive businesses in the state.
She intends to focus on several issues in her remaining 10 months, including creating jobs and homes, in part by helping plans to turn old mills into homes in Lawrence. She plans to push to integrate financial literacy into every school math curriculum. She will push to advance the Interstate 93 interchange project, the town yard move and giving Andover town government more flexibility over employee health plans and their costs.
Her work is not yet done, but when it is, we hope her successor looks to her example and picks up the torch in these areas.
Letter from Sen. Sue Tucker
I am profoundly grateful to you for allowing me to serve as your State Senator for many years. It is a wonderful privilege to be of service to the communities and the people who put their trust in me. I especially thank my family, friends, and supporters who have given so much time and energy to my campaigns and shaping my public policies.
Whether you agreed or disagreed with my positions and votes on the hundreds of complicated issues that came before the State Senate this decade, I always listened carefully to both sides and then "called it like I saw it," regardless of party affiliation or special interests. Whether it was my vote against raising the sales tax or my vote for ethics reform, I always had the best interests of my district first and foremost.
Working as a team with so many of you in the district led to some terrific accomplishments, such as dramatically reducing the cost of auto insurance for all good drivers by kicking fraud out of the system, passing comprehensive legislation to reduce the foreclosure crisis, and preserving the Tewksbury State Hospital open space for generations to come.
Most of you know that I have been a tireless advocate for senior citizens to have the choice of remaining in their homes; for better schools; and for using quality management tools to make government more efficient and customer-friendly. Above all, I hate rip-offs whether public or private, and that is the reason I am working to keep predatory gambling out of the Commonwealth.
Together with my family, I decided that it is time for me to trade the long hours and rigors of public life for new opportunities, especially getting to know our new granddaughter.
Please remember that I will continue to work hard as your Senator until January, 2011. My priorities include local aid for the towns I represent; creating jobs, especially for the trades by converting the wonderful old mills into housing; and passing my Financial Literacy bill. Please visit my web site, www.suetucker.org for more information.
I am always available at 617-722-1612 or susan.tucker@state.ma.us. With warmest wishes and gratitude, Sen. Sue Tucker
