Bristol County Register of Probate, Thomas Hoye, is a lifelong Bristol County resident and a longtime public servant. Tom is a devoted husband and loving father of three. His wife, Stephanie, is an Elementary School Principal. Together they have three children: Sophia, Tommy and Lilah. 

 

Before his appointment as Register of Probate Hoye proudly served 4 terms as the Mayor of Taunton from January 2012 - November 2019.  His last three terms he ran unopposed.

 

Tom Hoye received a Bachelor of Science Degree from Bridgewater State University in 1992, and a Master’s of Education from Fitchburg State University in 2006. 

 

After college he returned to Taunton where he worked in the Morton Hospital Sports Medicine Program.  He was the first hire of the program and was employed there for 18 years until beginning his tenure as Mayor. He also taught in the local school system for 12 years until his election. 

 

Tom Hoye is passionate about serving his constituents and fighting for families in Bristol County. As the Register of Probate in Bristol County he manages the Probate and Family Courts in Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford. As Register of Probate Tom Hoye will utilize his management experience and work as a community advocate to ensure Bristol County Family and Probate Courts are run efficiently, effectively, with compassion and respect for all those they serve.  In the short time he has been in the position he has already begun offering same day processing of new complaints for Divorce, Custody, Support, Parenting Time and to Establish Paternity. He has also worked with stakeholders to ensure that the New Bedford Registry is open every Monday thru Thursday, which has been a welcomed change.  

 

Tom Hoye is heavily involved in the Taunton community and extended region. He has coached softball, baseball, basketball and soccer, has served on the Board of Directors for the Boys & Girls Club and the Taunton Industrial Theatre. He is also the co-owner of Tom and Jimmy’s Ice Cream and Del’s Lemonade.

 

Prior to serving as the Mayor, Tom proudly served on the Taunton Municipal Council for 10 years. From a young age, his family helped him foster a love for public service that has carried over into his work today. 

 

As Mayor, Tom Hoye played an active role in working with the School Administration and School Committee to significantly lower dropout rates and increase graduation rates. Tom Hoye knows first hand that healthy school environments contribute to a successful learning experience, and worked closely with the Massachusetts School Building Authority to help give all of Taunton’s students the best learning atmospheres. 

 

As a small business owner, Tom understands others’ concerns, and as Mayor he was able to streamline the permitting process and implement best management practices as City Hall. The city now offers online permitting and specialized programs to make opening a business more navigable. As Mayor he worked with City unions to change the hours of operation at City Hall and save the city millions of dollars in health insurance savings. 

 

Under his leadership as Mayor, the city attracted many large economic partners, including Martignetti Liquors, the Boston Globe, Burke Oil, and Sullivan Tire. Hoye’s economic efforts boosted the city’s bond rating, making it more attractive to potential investors. He worked diligently to clean up blighted properties, and has made substantial infrastructure upgrades throughout the city. He was responsible for rebuild and reconstruction of historic City Hall, and the construction of the combined Hopewell and Mulcahey Schools. 

 

Improving public safety was a major priority, and the Hoye Administration worked aggressively to apply for many state, federal, and external funding opportunities. Under his tenure the city received two SAFER grants making it possible to hire additional firefighters and through sound budgeting practices was able to hire 15 new police patrolmen.

 

When the Opiate Crisis gripped the nation becoming a national epidemic, Mayor Hoye was one of the first elected officials to speak out publicly on the difficulty of this issue. Hoye has been recognized on the state and national levels for his efforts, forming the city’s hundred-member Opiate Task Force, leading the way to improved drug abuse prevention and education programs in Taunton city and giving families a voice in dealing with this issue. He was appointed to the Attorney General's Project HERE Advisory Committee and served on the Governor's Opiate Task Force. 

 

As Mayor, Tom Hoye worked extremely hard with Community Stakeholders, such as the Taunton Development Corporation, to make the Myles Standish Industrial Park the finest in New England. The park currently boasts over 8500 jobs. He has taken great pride in helping revitalize the Historic Downtown Taunton, which is now the home to several new restaurants and businesses. He initiated the Downtown Rent Rebate program which has aided local development. Now it is being modeled by other cities and towns as part of Governor Baker’s economic development package. 

 

Tom Hoye knows that a strong community is a united community, and made it a mission to create fun, family-friendly city events. He created the Miles with the Mayor 5K, implemented the Kids’ Track Series and secured a Mass in Motion Grant from the Department of Public Health. As Mayor he secured enough private funding to allow for the enormous expansion and revitalization of events like Family 4th Night and the December Lighting of the Green and Lights on Festival. The hundreds of thousands of dollars that these events’ committees raised helped to attract tens of thousands of visitors to the heart of the city, without adversely affecting the city’s valuable budget.

Education:
Fitchburg State University 2006 M.Ed
Bridgewater State University 1992 B.S.
Coyle Cassidy High School 1987

Professional Experience:
Register of Probate 2019 to Present
Mayor -City of Taunton; 2012 to 2019
Population: 57,000, Budget: 240,000,000, Employee’s 1800
Taunton Council 2002 to 2012
Educator: Taunton Public Schools 2000 to 2012
Morton Hospital and Medical Center: Rebound Sports Medicine 1993 to 2012
Tom and Jimmy’s Ice Cream: Owner 2009 to Present

Key Initiatives:

• Streamlined Permitting

• Implemented the first Evaluation Program for City Employees in the City’s history

• Modified City Hall Hours to improve Citizen Access

• Utilized $9.2 million in State and Federal infrastructure grants to redevelop 220 industrial acres in the Myles Standish Industrial Park.

• Introduced See Click Fix to improve efficiency in reporting road issues

• Worked with Law Department to take over noted blighted properties

• Initiated The End of Summer Festival, which draws up to 4000 people

• Implemented sound financial practices and re-evaluated spending practices.  The City's fiscal

• health not only improved, but also the bond rating

• Worked with TDC and Mass Development to create Phases 4 and 5 of the Myles Standish

• Industrial Park on the Former Paul Dever Campus

• In partnership with the YMCA, was awarded a Mass in Motion grant to promote healthy lifestyles and wellness, specifically to low-income families.

• Formed the Taunton Opiate Task Force to combat opiate addiction, in the City of Taunton, which today has over 100 members and is a model for other cities and towns.

• In 2014 graduation rates soared to almost 90%, and the dropout rate fell to 1.7% in Taunton Public Schools.  

• The Star Theatre was razed allowing for plan and design development for the future of our historic City Hall.

• The Pioneer Institute Public Policy Research and Center for Economic Opportunity released a report “Ten Years Later: Trends in Urban Redevelopment”, that concluded Taunton is a top performer in Massachusetts' Middle Cities across indicators of education, crime, population, unemployment, performance, and municipal fiscal health.

• Began construction on a new City Hall in 2018, to be completed by 2020

• Welcomed Construction on the New Mulcahey/Hopewell School, to be completed by August 2020

• Initiated Kids Summer Track Series

• Pioneered improvements of City Parks including; Weir Riverfront, Hopewell, Patriots Playground, Liberty and Union

• Introduced the Downtown Rent Rebate program, which brought 15 New Businesses to Downtown Taunton

• Hired 20 New Police Officers since taking office

• Sought and received 2 Safer Grants enabling City to Hire 13 new Firefighters

• Initiated Combined Dispatch and improved 911 procedures

• Successfully negotiated Health Care changes with City Unions to save the City 2.4 million in FY19 and 2.5 million in FY20

• #this is Taunton rebranding contest

• Initiated and completed a new City Master Plan

Member of the Taunton Municipal Council 2002 to 2012
Taunton Public Schools: Educator 2000 to 2012
Morton Hospital and Center: Rebound Sports Medicine Program 1993 to 2012
Co-Owner Tom and Jimmy’s Ice Cream and Del’s Lemonade 2009 to Present

Appointments and Volunteerism:

• Appointed by Attorney General Healy to Project Here Advisory Board

• Local Government Advisory Commission

• Stanley Street Treatment and Resources (SSTAR) Board of Directors

• Appointed by Governor Patrick to Governors Opiate Task Force

• Taunton Opiate Task Force

• MMA Opiate Task Force

• MMA Executive Board

• Board of Directors; Taunton Boys and Girls Club

• Board of Directors; Taunton Industrial Theatre

• Coach Taunton Girls Softball League

• Coach New England Shockwave Softball

• Coach Taunton Youth Soccer

• Coach Taunton Junior Basketball

• Coach Mass Dynamites Softball

Awards:

• 2018 The Bridgewater State University Dr. Adrian Rondileau award for Professional Achievement and Community Service.

• 2015 The Coyle Cassidy High School “Enter to Learn, Learn to Serve Award"

• 2017 The Coyle Cassidy Presidents Award for outstanding community service

• 2016 Taunton Area School to Career Community Service Award