About Terry Murray

In her role as President, she has continued her mission as senator to support the rights of children and veterans, promote affordable housing, invigorate the Commonwealth’s traditional fishing and agricultural industries, and advance new technologies in the life sciences as well as reforms in health care, energy, transportation, pensions and ethics.

Therese Murray was elected Senator of the Plymouth and Barnstable District in 1992 and in March 2007 became the first woman Senate President in the history of Massachusetts.

Her signature piece of legislation is the health care cost control bill signed into law in August 2008. Under this law, health care providers and insurers are held to new standards of transparency to identify cost-drivers while also modernizing the health care delivery system with the adoption of standardized electronic medical records, physician order entry systems and uniform billing.

In just the first six months of 2009, President Murray worked with the House and the Administration to pass an unprecedented and comprehensive string of reforms, including landmark legislation that will restructure our transportation system, sweeping changes in the state pension system that shut down the worst abuses, and a major overhaul of our ethics, lobbying and campaign finance laws – all while delivering an on-time and balanced budget during the worst recession in generations.

President Murray also co-authored and passed major legislation in 2009 to restructure our transportation system by dissolving the Turnpike Authority and consolidating multiple agencies into an efficient, independent authority; and she oversaw passage of a string of sweeping reforms to the state pension system, and state ethics, lobbying and campaign finance laws.

Continuing the reform agenda in 2010, President Murray passed a Safe Driving bill that bans texting and requires improved testing for drivers. She also passed a Better Schools package that includes anti-bullying legislation, a bill requiring healthy food options in schools, and a new Education Reform bill aimed at closing the achievement gap and improving opportunities for all students. The President has also filed Economic Development legislation that will streamline the state’s model for helping businesses grow and creating jobs in Massachusetts.

In addition to being President of the Senate and Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, Therese Murray has served as the Senate Chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Human Services and Elder Affairs from 1993-1999, and Senate Chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Insurance from 2000-2003.

Senator Murray’s other notable legislative accomplishments include Welfare Reform in 1995; a DSS overhaul in 1997; child care services reform in 1998; Mental Health Parity legislation in 2000; the Catastrophic Illness in Children Relief Fund in 2001; Smart Growth affordable housing in 2004; Chapter 70 reform and the landmark Health Care Reform Act of 2006; and Oceans Management, Energy Reform and Children’s Mental Health legislation in 2008.

Therese Murray is currently serving her tenth term as State Senator of the Plymouth and Barnstable District, which includes the towns of Sandwich, Plympton, Plymouth, Pembroke, Kingston, Falmouth, Bourne, and parts of Barnstable.

Professional Background

Before being elected, Senate President Murray held a variety of positions both professionally and as a community activist. Her past professional experience includes:

• Mitigation Manager for the Massachusetts Highway Department
• Community Relations Coordinator for American Cable Systems
• Community Relations Consultant for Times Mirror Communications
• Founder & Treasurer of South Shore Cablevision, Inc.
• Director of the Municipal Women's Project, Inc.
• Consultant and strategist for local and national campaigns