NORTH STAR in Sunderland offers classes, social opportunities, help designing study plans, and other opportunities for homeschooled teenagers. It started this year with 45 members and got 15 new teens […]
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 inState Government
State budget is a lot more than just a spending plan
FRAIDY REISS, who leads the New Jersey-based advocacy group Unchained At Last, has been fighting to end child marriage in Massachusetts for six years, lobbying lawmakers and testifying at hearings. […]
Posted inState Government
Senate’s $4B economic development bill provides faster tax relief
THE MASSACHUSETTS SENATE released a $4 billion economic development bill on Monday that includes some key spending differences from a House bill in areas like education, human services, and housing. […]
Posted inEducation
Black girls disciplined in school more often than Whites
IN THE LAST normal school year before the pandemic, Black girls in Massachusetts were disciplined in school at more than three times the rate of white girls. Often, Black girls […]
Posted inState Government
Final budget deal boosts revenue by $2.66 billion
LEGISLATIVE BUDGET writers vastly increased their estimate of how much tax revenue the state will get next year in order to fund the priorities of both the House and Senate […]
Posted inHousing
Report: Massachusetts needs another 108,000 homes
MASSACHUSETTS NEEDS another 108,000 housing units to meet the demand, according to a new national study, which ranks Massachusetts 11th among states in its housing underproduction. Up for Growth, a […]
Posted inState Government
Negotiators reach agreement ‘in principle’ on state budget
TWO WEEKS INTO the fiscal year, legislative budget writers have reached an agreement on the fiscal 2023 state budget. Ways and Means chairs Rep. Aaron Michlewitz and Sen. Michael Rodrigues […]
Posted inEducation
Rural schools struggle with finances, transportation
WHEN SCHOOL OFFICIALS in the Ashburnham Westminster Regional School District think about what language classes to offer, the discussion is not around what students are interested in or what would […]
Posted inState Government
Money for crime victim services in budget limbo
WHEN IT IS fully staffed, the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center employs 50 people who run its hotline for sexual assault victims, provide referrals, offer counseling, support survivors in the […]
Posted inPolitics, State Government
House proposes $1b in short and long-term tax relief
HOUSE LEADERS rolled out a $523.5 million package of permanent tax breaks on Monday that, when combined with $510 million in one-time payments to middle-income residents proposed last week, would […]
Posted inCourts, Politics, State Government
SJC upholds no-excuse voting by mail
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT will uphold the VOTES Act, the new law that allows Massachusetts residents to vote early by mail for any reason. The court on Monday announced that […]
Posted inCourts, Criminal Justice, State Government
Governor’s Council candidate would seek pro-choice, anti-racist judges
IF MARA DOLAN were interviewing a judicial nominee, she would want to know three things: whether the person supports abortion rights, whether they understand substance use disorders, and whether they […]
Posted inState Government
Legislature releasing $500 million tax break package
HOUSE AND SENATE LEADERS will roll out a $500 million package of tax breaks that will address many – though not all – of the tax cuts that Gov. Charlie Baker […]
Posted inEconomy
Legislature may send residents $250 checks
THE MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATURE intends to take up a bill that would send $250 checks to more than 2 million low and middle-income Massachusetts residents. As many residents struggle with inflation […]
Posted inEconomy
Budget surplus could reach $3.6 billion
MASSACHUSETTS CONTINUES TO be swimming in cash. After dire warnings early in the pandemic, COVID-19 has proven to be an economic boon to Massachusetts, primarily because of federal largesse. Congress’ […]
Posted inCourts
SJC hears arguments on whether to allow permanent voting by mail
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT is poised to decide whether to overturn the new law allowing Massachusetts residents to vote by mail for any reason. Gov. Charlie Baker on June 22 signed […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
She recorded her abuser, then she faced charges
THE WOMAN’S HUSBAND pushed her down on her bed and placed a pillow over her face. He threatened her and the couple’s young child, according to court findings granting the […]
Posted inCourts
Tran calls gun theft indictment politically motivated
AFTER CONGRESSIONAL candidate Dean Tran was indicted on charges that he stole a gun from an elderly constituent, Tran defiantly issued a statement slamming Attorney General Maura Healey for “partisan […]
Posted inGuns
Congressional candidate Dean Tran indicted for theft
REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL candidate and former Fitchburg state senator Dean Tran was indicted Friday on charges that he stole a firearm from an elderly constituent, then misled investigators about the incident. […]
Posted inState Government
Long to-do list for end of legislative session
IT’S JULY 1, and this month is shaping up to be an enormously busy one on Beacon Hill. There’s one month until the Legislature wraps up its business for the […]
Posted inEducation
Senate seeks greater public funding of childcare
MASSACHUSETTS SENATE LEADERS on Thursday unveiled a proposal to inject significant sums of public money into the state’s childcare system, which has traditionally been mostly privately funded. The Senate plan […]
Posted inEducation
Mary Skipper selected as new Boston school superintendent
HOURS AFTER SHE was selected as Boston’s next school superintendent, Mary Skipper pledged to focus on improving special education and English language instruction in the district. “That’s one out of […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Andrea Campbell wants to cap gun purchases, expand assault weapons ban
DEMOCRATIC ATTORNEY general candidate Andrea Campbell will release her first in-depth policy plan on Thursday – a gun violence prevention plan that includes a mix of enforcement of current laws […]
Posted inHealth Care
House passes abortion provider protections as advocates clamor for more
THE MASSACHUSETTS House on Wednesday passed a bill protecting Massachusetts abortion providers from adverse consequences by other states and requiring insurers to cover abortion care. Yet even with the Legislature’s […]