MUCH OF THE public debate over the Fair Share Amendment, Question 1 on the November ballot, has focused on the impact it would have on those who will pay more […]
State Government
Posted inPolitics
Galvin predicts low turnout in low-intensity election
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 […]
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 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 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 inOpinion
This election is turning point for Massachusetts, women
THE MASSACHUSETTS CONSTITUTION is the world’s oldest governing document that remains in effect today. In writing it, John Adams must have had in mind his wife Abigail’s letter, asking him to “remember the […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
$3b in tax cap checks to start going out Tuesday
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE FIRST CHECKS and direct deposits from a nearly $3 billion pot of excess tax revenue will head back to taxpayers starting on Tuesday when the […]
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 inNews Analysis
For Diehl, a curious dance on abortion
TO VOTERS WHO may be turned off by Geoff Diehl’s pro-life stand on abortion, his pitch to consider voting for him for governor anyway comes packaged in an usual argument […]
Posted inHealth, State Government, State House News Service
Baker backtracks a bit on vaccine mandate
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION has offered jobs back to “a small number” of former state employees who had been among a narrow minority of executive branch workers […]
Posted inPolitics
Healey’s snub of Rausch hot issue in Senate race
MAURA HEALEY’S decision not to endorse Sen. Becca Rausch in her bid for reelection is fast becoming one of the more intriguing storylines of the election season. The attorney general, […]
Posted inState Government
House, Senate leaders report little progress on economic development legislation
THE LEADERS of the House and Senate met for the first time in three months with Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday to discuss a handful of issues left over from […]
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 inState Government, State House News Service
Handful of progressives push change in tax cap
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A GROUP OF PROGRESSIVE Democrats will push to set a $6,500 limit on the maximum tax credit high-income earners in Massachusetts can receive under a tax […]
Posted inPolitics
Healey, Diehl debate has heavy focus on Trump, Biden
DEMOCRAT MAURA HEALEY and Republican Geoff Diehl held their first gubernatorial debate Wednesday night, with both candidates linking the other to the policies and beliefs of their party’s leader. Healey, the […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Rating agencies praise state, but also issue warning
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE BIG THREE credit rating agencies had largely good things to say about Massachusetts this month, but one firm warned that the strong economic fundamentals and […]
Posted inState Government
Report calls big chunk of tax cap funds ‘illusory’
THE STATE is preparing to pay out $1.4 billion in “illusory” funds under the tax cap law, giving wealthy taxpayers a huge windfall, according to a report from the left-leaning […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t be an outlier, reform the estate tax
SOMETIMES TAX policy is hard and sometimes it is not. Voting to modernize the Massachusetts estate tax as part of the Legislature’s economic development bill is an easy decision – […]
Posted inHealth Care
Home care providers looking for permanent rate boost
Boston University Statehouse Program HOME HEALTH AIDES and other support personnel are the often unsung key to older people being able to remain in their homes as they age. But […]
Posted inPolitics, State Government
Business versus business in millionaire’s tax fight?
THE BATTLE LINES in the debate over passing the so-called millionaire’s tax have generally pitted organized labor, which supports the tax hike, against organized business groups, which oppose it. But […]
Posted inPolitics, State Government
Polito praises Driscoll’s experience – but won’t endorse
WHEN THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION created a Seaport Economic Council in 2015, chaired by Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, one of its first appointed members was Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll. In 2019, […]
Posted inHealth, State Government
Lessons learned from failed birth control law
DRAWING LESSONS from a Massachusetts birth control law that failed to work as planned, a reproductive rights group released a toolkit on Monday offering a series of recommendations to lawmakers […]