New from CommonWealth Beacon BALLOT BATTLES: Dueling housing ballot measures, one proposing strict rent control and one looking to ease restrictive zoning, collided with frustrated lawmakers over two days of […]
CommonWealth Beacon staff
Posted inThe Codcast
The Bay State angle into the US Senate housing bill
This week on the Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith talks with Matt Noyes, director of state and federal advocacy for the Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA). They dig into the Bay State implications of the sprawling bipartisan “meatball” of a housing bill that recently passed the US Senate, and take a look at how efforts at home might interact with federal policy.
Posted inUncategorized
Bay State weighs big data center expansions and four more stories
The Saturday Send Welcome back to the Saturday Send, a weekly digest of stories from CommonWealth Beacon that you may have missed. This week, reporter Jordan Wolman covers how expanding […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Political Notebook: Eager to be counted — on largely symbolic vote
New from CommonWealth Beacon ELECTRICITY: A provision in the House-approved energy affordability bill would crack down on competitive electric suppliers, third-party companies that regulators have long alleged mislead consumers with […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Immigration enforcement and declines in public school enrollment
New from CommonWealth Beacon IMMIGRATION IMPACTS: Schools across Massachusetts are grappling with shrinking enrollment that they say is likely connected to President Donald Trump’s ramped up immigration enforcement push. Hallie […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Immigration enforcement and declines in public school enrollment
This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporters Jennifer Smith and Hallie Claflin discuss Claflin‘s latest piece on how immigration enforcement step ups are impacting school enrollment. They zero in on the state’s Gateway Cities, which are home to a disproportionate share of Massachusetts‘s immigrant population and are sounding the alarm over the psychological and fiscal effects of federal enforcement actions on their school communities.
Posted inThe Saturday Send
Utility bills drive Beacon Hill climate politics and four more stories
The Saturday Send Welcome back to the Saturday Send, a weekly digest of stories from CommonWealth Beacon that you may have missed. This week, Chris Lisinski does a deep dive […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Mass. Senate asks top state court to examine constitutionality of legislative reform ballot questions
New from CommonWealth Beacon AFFORDABILITY: Five years ago, fighting climate change had so much momentum that even half of the Legislature’s Republicans voted in favor of ambitious decarbonization requirements. But […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Ratepayer revolt: Has the affordability debate soured Mass. on climate commitments?
New from CommonWealth Beacon CHARTER SCHOOLS: The state’s highest court ruled that charter schools must comply with the state’s public records law, rejecting Mystic Valley Regional Charter School’s argument that […]
Posted inThe Download
‘Frustration’ remains among lawmakers despite shrinking unemployment delays
New from CommonWealth Beacon NEW CODCAST: This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon senior reporter Jordan Wolman hosts a discussion about how rising utility bills became the chief political headache […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Salem, Quincy receiving millions in tax credits for Gateway Cities despite no longer qualifying for the designation
New from CommonWealth Beacon MBTA COMMUNITIES: Did the controversial MBTA Communities housing law impermissibly force towns to shell out money to devise carefully crafted multifamily zoning plans, or were any […]
Posted inThe Download
Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense?
New from CommonWealth Beacon Records: Lawmakers kicked off their review of the massive ballot-question field with trepidation about subjecting themselves to the public records law — plus another round of […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Lawmakers and DiZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform
New from CommonWealth Beacon CLEANUP: Communities in western Massachusetts are split on the prospects of a landfill planned to hold sediment contaminated with low levels of polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, […]
Posted inThe Download
Housatonic Valley residents grapple with PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring
New from CommonWealth Beacon New Codcast: This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Hallie Claflin sits down with Department of Early Education and Care commissioner Amy Kershaw and Strategies […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: How ‘universal’ is universal pre-K?
New from CommonWealth Beacon OPINION: What totally predictable crisis will start in just five years? The doubling of the need for elder care. A dangerous demographic cliff lies just ahead, […]
Posted inThe Codcast
How ‘universal’ is universal pre-K?
This week on The Codcast, we dive into Gov. Maura Healey’s “Gateway to Pre-K” agenda. By the end of 2026, her administration declared that every family of a 4-year-old in the state’s 26 Gateway Cities would have the opportunity – at low or no cost – to enroll their child in a preschool program that prepares them for kindergarten. But local providers say they won’t get there.
Posted inThe Download
The Download: ‘Couldn’t come at a better time’: Six Gateway Cities to get economic boost in downtown districts
New from CommonWealth Beacon MASS SAVE: House Democrats have passed a major energy bill that aims to cut rising utility costs that have inflamed an affordability crisis in the state […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Often at odds, Mariano and Spilka united by ballot question frustration
New from CommonWealth Beacon LITERACY: Massachusetts is inching toward a major overhaul of literacy instruction that would require districts to use state-approved curricula including phonics, vocabulary, and comprehension, but some […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: ‘Administrative fat’ or ‘amnesia’: How much should we spend on the MBTA?
New from CommonWealth Beacon POLITICS: CommonWealth Beacon relaunches its Political Notebook feature with a trio of eye-catching items from Beacon Hill and beyond, including the next collision course between Boston […]
Posted inThe Codcast
‘Administrative fat’ or ‘amnesia’: How much should we spend on the MBTA?
This week on The Codcast, we dive into a long-running debate: is the significant growth in state funding for the T an acknowledgment that good public transit requires big public investment, or is it a reflection of out-of-control spending? CommonWealth Beacon senior reporter Chris Lisinski moderates a discussion with former Transportation Secretary Jim Aloisi and Pioneer Institute senior fellow Charlie Chieppo.
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Political Notebook: Wu and Rooney on collision course, again
New from CommonWealth Beacon IMMIGRATION: It’s been more than three weeks since both Gov. Maura Healey and the Black and Latino Legislative Caucus each unveiled major legislation to blunt the […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: It’s anyone’s guess when Beacon Hill will agree on an immigration response
New from CommonWealth Beacon CHILD CARE: Gov. Maura Healey pledged that every family of a 4-year-old in a Gateway City would be able to enroll their child in preschool at […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Healey has called for universal pre-K in every Gateway City by the year’s end. Providers say they won’t get there.
New from CommonWealth Beacon CROSS-BORDER CRITIQUES: From taxes to ICE detention, Govs. Maura Healey and Kelly Ayotte are trading cross-border barbs and turning each other into convenient political foils in […]
Posted inThe Download
The Download: Big tech is watching
New from CommonWealth Beacon RED FLAGS: The latest climate report card reveals that the state’s climate mandates are in serious trouble, as Massachusetts remains noticeably off track of its electric […]