SIXTH PLYMOUTH DISTRICT - Oct. 15, 2026 - Republican Rep. Ken Sweezey and Democrat Jessica Bradley Rushing agreed at a WATD forum Thursday that the state’s school funding formulas are broken, but split over Sweezey’s votes against the state budget, over charges on utility bills and over the MBTA Communities law in the race for the Sixth Plymouth District seat.
The Full Story
Bradley Rushing, who describes herself as an Army veteran and former Pembroke Select Board member, opened by saying the district has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in earmarks because Sweezey voted against the budget both years. Sweezey called that untrue, citing earmarks for Powder Point Bridge repairs and a Duxbury school feasibility study.
What I’m not gonna do is vote to approve the very system that is underfunding Chapter 70, allowing our roads to go into disrepair, completely underfunding unrestricted government aid.
— Sweezey (12:37)
Schools and Local Aid
Bradley Rushing said every town in the district had an override on the ballot this spring and about half passed. She called Proposition 2½ a safeguard for taxpayers but said Chapter 70, Chapter 90 and circuit-breaker funding must be reformulated and municipal health care costs addressed. She said circuit-breaker money arrives a year after schools spend it, and that the whole system needs to be revamped.
Sweezey said the state budget has grown to more than $63 billion since about 2006 or 2007 while unrestricted government aid rose less than 20%. He said he filed a bill to study how to get rid of Chapter 70’s 4.5% inflation cap, said MassHealth costs must come down and called spending on the migrant crisis reckless.
Asked why the formulas have not been fixed, Sweezey cited a lack of political will. Bradley Rushing said lawmakers keep applying Band-Aids.
Housing and the MBTA Communities Law
WATD reporter Tom Gorman asked about what he described as the Supreme Judicial Court’s rejection of Marshfield’s lawsuit against the law. Bradley Rushing said Halifax, which she said she believes is the only town in the district no longer in compliance, is ineligible for state grants as a result.
I think it is a good idea, in theory, and it’s something we should do, but it was communicated so poorly that a lot of towns felt like they had to push back.
— Bradley Rushing (18:09)
Sweezey called the law horrendous and said the state constitution protects local control. He said Halifax already has a right to its money and his job is to tell Beacon Hill it is wrong.
Energy and Utility Costs
Sweezey said public benefit charges make up about 15% to 20% of gas and electric bills and could be stripped away. He said an auditor’s report found the wealthiest residents were using Mass Save programs more while lower-income people paid a larger share into them, and called for turning the 2050 net-zero mandates into goals.
Bradley Rushing said she would support reviewing every charge on utility bills and getting rid of hidden ones, but said the state must move from fossil fuels to renewable energy and that she does not consider offshore wind a scam.
Data Centers and Battery Storage
Bradley Rushing said she opposes data centers and battery storage facilities in the district. Sweezey said he opposes data centers and large-scale commercial battery storage facilities as well. Earlier, answering the MBTA Communities question, he said by-right battery zones, like that law, override local control and should stop).
