SECRETARY OF THE COMMONWEALTH Bill Galvin on Monday predicted low turnout in what he described as a low-intensity election this Tuesday, with voters more motivated by the ballot questions than […]
Shira Schoenberg
Shira Schoenberg is a reporter at CommonWealth magazine. Shira previously worked for more than seven years at the Springfield Republican/MassLive.com where she covered state politics and elections, covering topics as diverse as the launch of the legal marijuana industry, problems with the state's foster care system and the elections of U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Gov. Charlie Baker. Shira won the Massachusetts Bar Association's 2018 award for Excellence in Legal Journalism and has had several stories win awards from the New England Newspaper and Press Association. Shira covered the 2012 New Hampshire presidential primary for the Boston Globe. Before that, she worked for the Concord (N.H.) Monitor, where she wrote about state government, City Hall and Barack Obama's 2008 New Hampshire primary campaign. Shira holds a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.
Posted inPolitics
Healey says tax relief a priority on ‘day one’
WHEN LEGISLATIVE LEADERS this week pushed discussions of tax breaks from this year into next, one reason they gave was so the discussion “will be informed by the views of […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State Government
Lawmakers strip tax breaks out of $3.7b spending agreement
THE MASSACHUSETTS HOUSE and Senate reached an agreement on an economic development bill on Wednesday, which makes $3.79 billion in investments but strips out tax breaks that lawmakers had previously […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker signs bill curbing step therapy
A PATIENT who is stable on a medication then switches insurance plans can no longer be kicked off that medication by their insurer, under a new law Gov. Charlie Baker […]
Posted inRace/Racism
Why are Black teens more likely to be arrested?
THE POLICE are four times more likely to physically arrest a Black teen than a White teen for a juvenile offense. But why is that? Do Black teens commit more […]
Posted inMarijuana, State Government
Could Massachusetts become a cannabis research hub?
WITH WORLD CLASS medical facilities and universities, and a highly educated workforce, Massachusetts is a national leader in medicine, life sciences, and biotech. Could the state leverage those assets to […]
Posted inHousing
Suburbs stymie new housing growth
A new report by the Boston Foundation confirmed what Boston area residents already know: There’s not enough housing in Greater Boston, and the housing is too expensive. Luc Schuster, executive […]
Posted inHealth Care
Report says there are 19,000 unfilled hospital positions in Mass.
THERE ARE AN estimated 19,000 unfilled positions in Massachusetts acute care hospitals, according to a new report by a trade association representing the hospitals. For more than a year, […]
Posted inEducation
On target: ed reform money reaching poorer districts
THE LOW-INCOME, HEAVILY IMMIGRANT city of Chelsea is getting over $2,600 per pupil more in state education aid than it did two years ago. That translates to nearly $19 million […]
Posted inMarijuana
An opportunity to make cannabis industry more equitable
FOR YEARS, budding marijuana entrepreneurs – particularly those of color – have complained that the legal industry is dominated by Big Pot. Now is the time for those advocates to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
LGBTQ prison abolition group split by racism accusations
THE ADVOCACY GROUP Black and Pink Massachusetts was formed to fight on behalf of some of the most marginalized and powerless people in society – gay, lesbian, and transgender people […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State Government
Baker issues four more pardons
AS HE PREPARES to leave office, Gov. Charlie Baker is rolling out the pardon pen. On Wednesday, Baker pardoned four people for decades-old offenses, two weeks after he issued four […]
Posted inHealth Care
Step therapy bill moving in informal sessions
FOR NEARLY EIGHT years, patient advocate groups have been battling insurers to limit the use of step therapy, a policy requiring patients to try one treatment before accessing a different […]
Posted inMarijuana
Trulieve defends response to worker’s death
FACING PUBLIC SCRUTINY of its worker safety practices after cannabis worker Lorna McMurrey’s death, multi-state cannabis company Trulieve on Thursday released a lengthy statement defending its practices and explaining for […]
Posted inMarijuana
Cannabis regulators confirm agency was told quickly of worker’s death
THE STAFF AT the state Cannabis Control Commission was notified of cannabis cultivation worker Lorna McMurrey’s death within days of when it occurred, agency officials said Friday night, despite earlier […]
Posted inMarijuana, State Government
Cannabis commissioners learned ‘through the media’ about Holyoke death
IT TOOK EIGHT MONTHS after Lorna McMurrey died after working a shift at a Holyoke cannabis cultivation facility for the circumstances of her death to be publicly reported. Comments made […]
Posted inMarijuana, State Government
Marijuana regulators grapple with chair’s former company ownership
AFTER A LENGTHY discussion, marijuana regulators on Thursday declined to approve a license for a marijuana company that the new chair of the Cannabis Control Commission, Shannon O’Brien, was previously […]
Posted inState Government
Auditor identifies $1.2 billion in unfunded mandates
THE STATE HAS a $1.2 billion shortfall in aid promised to cities, towns, and school districts, Auditor Suzanne Bump concluded in a report released Thursday. The report looked at several major […]
Posted inHealth Care
Early data finds telehealth is largely cost neutral
ONE Of THE BIGGEST shifts in health care during the COVID-19 pandemic was the sudden launch of telehealth. Before COVID, doctors and hospitals rarely offered video visits and very few […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Baker pardons four men for decades-old offenses
AS HE CLOSES in on the end of his final term, Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday issued the first pardons of his nearly 8 years in office, wiping away criminal […]
Posted inGambling
Gaming Commission struggling with when to launch sports betting
ONE ADVANTAGE Massachusetts has in being late to legalize sports betting – 36th according to the American Gaming Commission – is it can learn from other states on how to […]
Posted inEconomy
Massachusetts gets $145 million to expand broadband
MASSACHUSETTS HAS BEEN awarded $145 million in federal money to expand broadband internet access, the White House announced Thursday. Jacob Leibenluft, US Treasury Chief Recovery Officer, said in a conference […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Advocates say Baker trying to gut prison mental health law
THE MASSACHUSETTS prison system has long faced criticism for its inability to provide adequate mental health treatment to incarcerated people. A mental health bill that Gov. Charlie Baker signed into […]
Posted inMarijuana
Worker dies at Holyoke cannabis cultivation facility
LORNA MCMURREY, a 27-year-old West Springfield woman, died in January after a shift working at a Holyoke cannabis cultivation facility. The company, Trulieve, was fined $35,200 by the Occupational Safety […]