EVERY LAWMAKER on a boat trip last week to see Vineyard Wind 1 is supporting the development of offshore wind, but actually seeing the nation’s first commercial-scale wind farm taking […]
State Government
Posted inEducation
For Campbell, case against Malden charter school is also good politics
IT MAY NOT BE at the level of Nixon-goes-to-China, when an inveterate cold warrior became the unlikely US president to establish diplomatic relations with a long-time communist foe. But Attorney […]
Posted inHousing
Cambridge rep moves to put rent control on state ballot
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE EXACTLY 30 YEARS after Massachusetts voters narrowly prohibited rent control across the state, a long-running debate about whether to reverse or uphold the ban might once […]
Posted inTransportation
T unions look to do much better under Healey
THE RELATIONSHIP between the MBTA and its largest union appears to be undergoing a sea change under Gov. Maura Healey. Under the administration of former governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, […]
Posted inEconomy
Universal free school meals should be permanent in Massachusetts
AS GOV. MAURA HEALEY reviews the budget sent to her by the state Legislature, families and schools across Massachusetts anxiously await news of the fate of funding of school meals […]
Posted inOpinion, State Government, Technology
A blueprint for a statewide cybersecurity ecosystem
THE THREAT OF a cyberattack sits perched just beyond our doorstep, targeting our privacy, economic prosperity, and national security. Motivated to act quickly, congressional and state leaders are pushing the […]
Posted inTransportation
What’s the timeline for return to a normal-functioning MBTA? No one will say.
AMID CONSTANT TALK of the crisis-ridden MBTA, where slow zones have reduced the speed of trains at some points to a crawl, and passengers can endure interminable “headway” waits of […]
Posted inState Government
House, Senate sniping at each other again
IF YOU THOUGHT the long-delayed budget agreement between the House and Senate meant their feuding was over, think again. On Friday, the same day the budget compromise first emerged, the […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Budget filed, headed for a vote
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE LEGISLATIVE NEGOTIATORS filed a compromise $56.2 billion annual state budget Sunday night, packing major education, transportation, and health care policy measures and spending into an overdue […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Still no budget, but it’s coming
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE TOP HOUSE AND SENATE Democrats negotiating the fiscal 2024 state budget, which is now four weeks overdue, announced Friday afternoon they had “reached an agreement in […]
Posted inState Government, Transportation
In-car displays are the next distracted driving target
WHILE LAWMAKERS in Massachusetts and across the country worked to pass distracted driving laws limiting how much a person can mess around on a phone while operating a car, built-in […]
Posted inState Government, Technology
New state board charged with making digital spaces accessible
FOR MOST PEOPLE in Massachusetts, the biggest hassle about using digital technology is often a slow internet connection, a buggy device, or being in an inconvenient location to whip out […]
Posted inState Government
DiZoglio seeks AG’s help in audit fight with Legislature
STATE AUDITOR Diana DiZoglio is pressing ahead with her bid to conduct a “performance audit” of the Legislature, urging Attorney General Andrea Campbell to lend a hand by litigating the […]
Posted inOpinion
Online lottery is wrong way to go
THERE IS A debate about school funding on Beacon Hill that is getting very little public attention. The annual midsummer rite of the Massachusetts budget negotiation is upon us, as […]
Posted inTransportation
T gives contractor more time to solve slow zone mystery
SOLVING THE MYSTERY behind the slow zone takeover of the MBTA subway system is taking longer than originally expected. The MBTA hired Carlson Transport Consulting of Woburn on March 13 […]
Posted inNews Analysis, State Government
Sending a message on Beacon Hill
WHEN THE HOUSE AND SENATE chairs of a joint legislative committee began holding hearings separately rather than together in mid-June, House Speaker Ron Mariano dismissed the notion that the dispute […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Healey urges public to donate to fund for farmers
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE SKEPTICAL ABOUT the timeline for federal aid, the Healey administration on Thursday backed an effort to raise private donations to help farmers who sustained major damage […]
Posted inEnergy, State Government
Retail electricity firms take new tack in fight against Healey, Campbell, and Wu
GOV. MAURA HEALEY, Attorney General Andrea Campbell, and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu are all on record as saying electricity retailers are the modern-day equivalent of snake oil salesmen who should […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Senate tax bill’s financial hit bigger than suggested
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE COMPETING House and Senate tax relief proposals might not be quite as far apart, at least in terms of total financial impact, as the public […]
Posted inState Government, Technology
Does artificial intelligence belong in therapy?
FOR MANY, the nearest therapist these days isn’t someone sitting across from them in a room but a friendly face on the other side of a Zoom, or even a […]
Posted inHousing, State Government, State House News Service
House backs market-rate housing program
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE HOUSE came around on the idea of expanding a tax credit program designed to encourage much-needed housing production, just not in the legislative vehicle that […]
Posted inEnergy, State Government
House provision would allow renegotiation of hydro contracts
A SPENDING BILL coming up for action in the Massachusetts House contains a provision that would allow the terms of a massive 2019 contract for hydropower from Quebec to be […]
Posted inGambling
Campbell cautions against headlong rush to online lottery
ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell has been reluctant to dive head-first into the debate over whether to move state lottery games online, steering clear of unconditional support or opposition to such a […]
Posted inGuns
Another House-Senate squabble, this time over gun legislation
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE WITH THE UNFINISHED fiscal 2024 budget, a road and bridge funding bill, and even their internal rules still tied up in slow-moving backroom negotiations, House and […]