Representative Mary Duffy Messier
Deputy Majority Leader
First Vice Chair, House Labor Committee
First Vice Chair, State Government and Elections
Member, House Innovation, Internet and Technology Committee
Member, House Oversight Committee
Mary
Duffy Messier (D), a lifelong resident of Pawtucket, was first elected to the
House in December 2009. She represents District 62 in Pawtucket. Representative
Messier was named a Deputy Majority Leader in January 2021. She is the first
vice chair of both the House Labor Committee and the House State Government and
Elections Committee, and she is a member of the House Innovation, Internet and
Technology Committee and the House Oversight Committee.
During
the most recent legislative session, she co-sponsored a new law that requires Medicare
supplement policies in the state to be offered to all patients who are
eligible for Medicare by reason of disability, including end-stage renal
disease (ESRD), regardless of age. She also co-sponsored the repealing of a law
that allows employers to
pay workers with disabilities below the minimum wage.
In
2017, she introduced an education-quality law that requires accreditation
by a Regional Accrediting Agency recognized by the United States Department of
Education for distance learning institutions to transact business or grant
degrees in Rhode Island.
In
2016, Representative Messier sponsored legislation that requires a public hearing
for all insurers or health maintenance organizations who propose rate increases
for health or dental insurance coverage in the individual market. The law
created a uniform rate review procedure for proposed rate changes.
In
2014, enacted legislation she cosponsored provides courses of study regarding
child abduction, sexual exploitation and abuse for young. She has also been a
strong proponent of several laws which work to protect and support the rights
of veterans, including a bill to establish veteran-friendly educational
programs in order to allow service personnel returning from a combat tour to
achieve educational attainment in an accelerated manner.
Her
legislation obtained tax-exempt status to assist both the Pawtucket Youth
Soccer Association and the Boys & Girls Club of Pawtucket. She also
sponsored a bill creating an annual Ben Mondor Day, honoring the late Pawtucket
Red Sox owner and the team.
Representative
Messier serves Ward 3 on the Pawtucket City Committee. She also serves on the
board for the Boys & Girls Club of Pawtucket. She has been involved with the
Pawtucket St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee for more than three decades, and
served as a past Grand Marshal of the parade. She is a board member of the
Jeanne Jugan Residence-Little Sisters of the Poor in Pawtucket.
A
retired elementary school teacher in Cumberland, Representative Messier holds a
master’s degree in education from Rhode Island College. She earned her Bachelor
of Arts degree at Roger Williams University and is a graduate of Tolman High
School in Pawtucket.
Born
on June 27, 1952, the representative has two sons, Ryan and Seth, and one
grandchild, Kiley Messier.