Brian Joyce
Brian A. Joyce (b. September 5, 1963) was a Democratic member of the Massachusetts State Senate, representing the Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth district from 1999 to 2017. He was the assistant majority leader.
On February 23, 2016, Joyce announced that he would not seek re-election that year. The announcement came just under a week after his law office was raided by federal agents following reports by The Boston Globe claiming he benefited from his position as a senator.[1]
Joyce served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1996 to 1998. He was a candidate for United States House of Representatives, 9th District in 2001; chair of the Milton Democratic Town Committee; and a member of Milton Town Meeting and the Milton Board of Park Commissioners.
Joyce died September 27, 2018.[2]
Biography
Joyce earned his bachelor's degree in management from Boston College in 1984. He obtained a J.D from Suffolk University Law School in 1990. His professional experience includes working as an attorney for Boston Mutual Life Insurance from 1992 to 1996.[3]
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Joyce served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Bills in the Third Reading, Chair |
| • Redistricting, Vice Chair |
| • Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy Joint |
| • Health Care Financing Joint |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Joyce served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, Chair |
| • Ways and Means |
| • Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Joint |
| • Elder Affairs Joint |
| • Financial Services Joint, Vice chair |
| • Health Care Financing Joint, Vice chair |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Joyce served on these committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, Chair |
| • Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Joint |
| • Elder Affairs Joint |
| • Financial Services Joint, Vice chair |
| • Health Care Financing Joint, Vice chair |
| • Transportation Joint |
| • Ways and Means |
| • Ways and Means |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Joyce served on these committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Federal Stimulus Oversight Joint |
| • Financial Services Joint |
| • Housing Joint |
| • Public Safety and Homeland Security Joint |
| • Public Service Joint |
| • State Administration and Regulatory Oversight Joint |
| • Ways and Means |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2014
Elections for the Massachusetts State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election was held on September 9, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3, 2014. Incumbent Brian Joyce was unopposed in the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election.[4]
2012
Joyce won re-election in the 2012 election for Massachusetts State Senate Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth District. Joyce was unopposed in the September 6 Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[5][6]
2010
Joyce won re-election to the Norfolk, Bristol, and Plymouth District seat in 2010. He had no primary opposition. Robert Burr, Jr. and Richard Livingston ran for the seat on the Republican ticket. The general election took place on November 2, 2010.
| Massachusetts State Senate - Norfolk, Bristol, and Plymouth District | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
 Brian Joyce (D)
|
38,314 | |||
| Robert Burr (R) | 22,575 | |||
| All Others | 34 | |||
| Blanks | 3,184 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Joyce won re-election in the Senate election for the Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth district.[7] In this election he raised $216,872; of that total $212,438- (98.2%) was from in state contributions and $3,839 (1.8%) was from out of state contributions.[8]
| Massachusetts State Senate - Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth district | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Brian Joyce (D)
|
60,473 | |||
| All Others | 702 | |||
| Blanks | 21,983 | |||
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Massachusetts scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2017
In 2017, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 4 through November 15. The legislature held an informal session from November 16 to January 2.
- Legislators are scored on bills of interest to an organization that pledges "to make government more transparent, make fiscally responsible choices, and to hold the line on taxes."
- Legislators are scored on their sponsorship of legislation related to animal issues.
- Legislators are scored by the organization on votes that "can show the distinction between a progressive legislator, and everyone else."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 6 through July 31.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 7, 2015, through January 5, 2016.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 14 through August 1.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 2 to December 31.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 4 through July 31.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 5 through November 16.
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Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Brian Joyce was born in Winchester, Massachusetts and raised in Milton, Massachusetts. He and his wife, Mary, have five children.
Noteworthy events
Federal raid
On February 17, 2016, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service raided Joyce's law office in Canton, removing several boxes in the process. Prior to the raid, The Boston Globe reported allegations that Joyce used his position to benefit himself and his practice. The most prominent of these allegations involved an arrangement between Joyce and Richmond-based Woodlawn Cleaners, which was said to have provided free dry cleaning to Joyce from 1997 to the sale of the business in 2008. Joyce said the arrangement was made as payment for legal services. Then-owner Jerry Richman said it began years prior to Joyce's work for him.[9]
In January 2016, Joyce settled an investigation by the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance by agreeing to pay the state $4,617. He was accused of using $3,367 of campaign funds on his son's high school graduation party in 2014. Under the settlement, Joyce was not compelled to admit wrongdoing; the settlement money, which included an additional $1,250, was to be directed toward the Massachusetts Hospital School and other charities.[10]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Brian + Joyce + Massachusetts + Senate
See also
- Massachusetts State Senate
- Senate Committees
- Joint Committees
- Massachusetts state legislative districts
- Massachusetts State Legislature
External links
- Joyce's website
- Profile from Open States
- Project Vote Smart policies
- Project Vote Smart senator biography
- Campaign Contributions: 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998
- Joyce's Facebook
- Joyce's Twitter
- State Surge profile - legislative and voting track record
Footnotes
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "State Senator Brian Joyce says he won’t seek reelection," February 24, 2016
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "Former state senator Brian Joyce found dead at his home," September 27, 2018
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Brian Joyce's Biography," accessed February 24, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "2014 State Primary Candidates," accessed September 9, 2014
- ↑ 2012 State Primary Candidate List, "Massachusetts Secretary of State," accessed June 26, 2012
- ↑ 2012 Massachusetts Secretary of State, Official 2012 Primary Results
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "Return of Votes For Massachusetts State Election - November 4, 2008," accessed March 18, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "2008 campaign contributions," accessed December 29, 2014
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "FBI, IRS raid Canton law office of state Senator Brian Joyce," February 17, 2016
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "Sen. Joyce to pay nearly $5,000 to resolve campaign finance issues," January 20, 2016
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Massachusetts State Senate Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth 1998–2017 |
Succeeded by Walter Timilty (D) |
