Pandemic EBT available for student families, May Dumpster Days cancelled, virtual MBTA meeting, & more | April 23, 2020

Tune in at 3pm every weekday on our Government Channel or Facebook page for an update from city officials. Past updates can be found by clicking here. At 2pm & 8pm we are also airing Gov. Baker’s press conferences.

See other COVID-19 related posts by clicking here.
See our running list of announcements for Lynn by visiting bit.ly/LynnCOVID19

Big thanks to Lynn resident Emily Jodoin for bringing this program for families with children in MA public schools to our attention.

P-EBT, or Pandemic EBT, is a federal program. The Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA), in collaboration with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), received approval to operate this program in response to the COVID-19 related school closures.

All students in Massachusetts (Preschool-12 grade) who are enrolled or eligible for free breakfast and lunches, or attend a school that offers free universal breakfast and lunch will receive the benefit of P-EBT at the end of April or start of May.

This benefit will not impact the immigrant status of your family or children.

If your home qualifies to receive SNAP benefits, Project Bread recommends and insists that you register as soon as possible to issue your P-EBT benefits. If you have questions or need assistance, please contact Project Bread’s FoodSource Hotline at (800) 645-8333 (TTY 800-377-1292).

If you want to learn more information about P-EBT you can click here.
Información disponible en español haciendo clic aquí.

Yesterday we received an update from the Lynn Dept. of Public Works:

Due to COVID-19 the upcoming COVANTA Days (formerly “Dumpster Days”) scheduled for May 9th and 16th have been cancelled for the safety of all parties. The Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day set for May 16th has also been cancelled.

No word yet on if future Covanta Days will be cancelled or not.
We will post any updates we receive.

From Mayor McGee’s office: The Lynn Public Health Department has confirmed that as of today, the number of confirmed positive COVID-19 cases has risen to 1,315, 137 have recovered, and 30 Lynn residents have died.

We will continue to provide regular updates on COVID-19 through the City website (www.lynnma.gov), social media, and the Smart 911 emergency notification system (sign up at www.smart911.com).

April 27 Virtual MBTA FMCB Meeting: Public Comment To Be Taken in Real Time and Live by Using GoToWebinar

Public comments may be submitted by mail, email, or voice message in advance.

BOSTON – In an effort to provide effective opportunities for public comment and engagement while protecting the health and safety of the public and staff, the MBTA has announced that the April 27 MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board (FMCB) Meeting will be held virtually with public comments able to be taken in real time and live using GoToWebinar during the public comment period. Public comments may also continue to be submitted in advance of the meeting by mail, email, or telephone voice message.

The FMCB meeting on April 27 will begin at noon and be livestreamed with the agenda available online.

Real Time and Live Commenting:

To provide a comment through GoToWebinar during the public comment portion of the April 27 FMCB meeting, members of the public must sign up through the link here at least one hour before the start of the meeting. Attendees of the GoToWebinar will be called by the Board Chair to provide comments in the order they have signed up. Attendees must be able to run GoToWebinar on a computer or phone and should test that the program and audio work properly. It is highly recommended to use a phone for audio instead of a computer microphone and speakers. Attendees of the GoToWebinar will be un-muted by the Organizer when called for public comment.

At the end of the public comment period, Attendees of the GoToWebinar who have offered comments may observe the FMCB meeting using the livestream video available at mbta.com as the livestream video offers full view of the meeting whereas the GoToWebinar does not. Members of the public who would like to watch the meeting but are not interested in providing comments should also use the livestream video available at mbta.com.

In Writing:

To submit in writing by email, comments may be submitted at any time topubliccomment@dot.state.ma.us.

To submit in writing by mail, comments may be mailed to:

Fiscal and Management Control Board
C/O Owen Kane
10 Park Plaza – Suite 3510
Boston, MA 02116

For written comments received by mail or email at least one hour before the start of the FMCB meeting, the commenter’s name and affiliation (if stated) along with the subject line of the message will be shared in the meeting and on the livestream. Mailed and emailed comments will be compiled and distributed to all Board Members in advance of the meeting.

Voice Message:

Voice message comments may be submitted by calling 857-368-1655 and leaving a message at least one hour before the FMCB meeting on April 27. Please note that 857-368-1655 is different from the previous number used for the April 13 Joint FMCB and MassDOT Board meeting. Voice messages will be played aloud during the public comment portion of the Board meeting and captured in the livestream video. Voice messages are limited to two minutes per commenter, or up to four minutes for comments submitted on behalf of an organization or elected official at the discretion of the Board Chair.

Accommodations:

To request a reasonable accommodation and/or language services, please contactOKane@mbta.com or 857-368-8767.

Español (Spanish): Para solicitar ayuda y/o servicios lingüísticos, por favor comuníquese conOKane@mbta.com o al 857-368-8767.

Français (French): Pour demander un accommodement raisonnable et / ou des services linguistiques, veuillez contacter OKane@mbta.com ou 857-368-8767.

Kreyòl Ayisyen (Haitian Creole): Pou mande yon akomodasyon rezonab ak/oswa sèvis lang tanpri kontakte OKane@mbta.com oswa 857-368-8767.

Feedback on Engagement:

The MBTA continues to explore how to best enable public comment and engagement during this period. All feedback regarding meetings and the public comment process is welcome with the public encouraged to submit these comments to Owen Kane at OKane@mbta.com or 857-368-8767.

For more information, please visit mbta.com or connect with the T on Twitter @MBTA, Facebook /TheMBTA, or Instagram @theMBTA.