New from CommonWealth Beacon HOUSING: Beacon Hill is weighing how much to fund a program that provides low-income tenants with legal counsel in eviction cases. Jennifer Smith has more. OPINION: […]
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The Download: Most low-income tenants have no lawyer in eviction cases. A state initiative is trying to change that.
New from CommonWealth Beacon BIDING TIME: After missing a 2021 target to join a federal program that offers insurance discounts on flood insurance in municipalities taking steps to reduce flood […]
The Download: $120 million sewer project marks Lynn’s latest effort to improve water quality, fix its long-polluted coastline
New from CommonWealth Beacon THE CODCAST: What does the latest executive order aimed at changing how people cast their votes mean for Massachusetts? Two lawsuits are currently working their way […]
The Download: Trump’s mail-in-ballot order puts Massachusetts voters in the crosshairs
New from CommonWealth Beacon POWER UP: Sen. Michael Barrett, a Democrat who co-chairs the energy committee, is eyeing major changes to proposals in the energy affordability package approved by the […]
The Download: Senate energy chair signals departure from House on $1B cut to Mass Save
New from CommonWealth Beacon OPINION: Massachusetts should allow cities and towns to ban competitive electric suppliers within their communities as proposed by the House, argue D.J. Beauregard, the mayor of […]
The Download: AG Campbell: Mass. gas companies need to overhaul their climate plans — or face penalties
New from CommonWealth Beacon UP IN SMOKE: The Supreme Judicial Court handed a pointed defeat to the tobacco company Philip Morris, rejecting its argument that a jury’s initial $1 billion […]
The Download: Anxious Cape leaders worried about funding for Bourne Bridge replacement
New from CommonWealth Beacon CODCAST: Should kids be allowed to use social media? That’s the question state policymakers are pondering, and it’s one of the many questions Boston College professor […]
The Download: The growing movement to keep kids off social media
New from CommonWealth Beacon SOCIAL MEDIA SHOWDOWN: Proponents of social media restriction bills on Beacon Hill put forward by the House and governor say these are commonsense steps to reduce […]
The Download: Massachusetts continues to flout a nearly decade-old regulation to track state vehicle emissions
New from CommonWealth Beacon HEAD START: Massachusetts has lost 1,300 Head Start slots over the last three years as the state grapples with the impacts for children and families amid […]
The Download: Head Start programs face funding squeeze
New from CommonWealth Beacon ENVIRO VOTE: The Senate passed its version of a $3.6 billion environmental bond bill on Wednesday – a package that would shore up vulnerable infrastructure and […]
The Download: Political Notebook: South Hadley voters reject controversial Proposition 2½ override
New from CommonWealth Beacon ROMNEYCARE: Twenty years after Massachusetts passed landmark health care reform legislation that gave the state the highest rate of insurance coverage in the country, the leading […]
The Download: Massachusetts celebrates health care milestone amid gathering storm clouds
New from CommonWealth Beacon GAS PRICES: Average gas prices in Massachusetts are nearly $4 per gallon – and are becoming a political issue in the governor’s race. Jordan Wolman explains. […]
The Download: The grassroots campaign that changed health care
New from CommonWealth Beacon MATERNITY: Merrimack Health’s Methuen campus will shutter its maternity unit in August, the 12th closure of maternity services in Massachusetts since 2010. Hallie Claflin looks at […]
The Download: Lawmakers offer mixed messages on income tax ballot question
New from CommonWealth Beacon ELECTRIC SHOCK: A Bellingham man spent months securing a loan to add solar panels and battery storage to his home only to be hit with a […]
The Download: Taking stock of Massachusetts health care reform at 20
New from CommonWealth Beacon SOLAR SHOWDOWN: The Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments in a case over the denial of a permit for a large solar power project by the rural […]
The Download: Worcester pilot program provides early childhood educators with rent-free space to start their businesses
New from CommonWealth Beacon LEGISLATIVE AUDIT: Following months of an increasingly bitter feud with Diana DiZoglio, Attorney General Andrea Campbell used a live radio interview to signal a new willingness […]
The Download: DiZoglio-Campbell feud hurtles toward Supreme Judicial Court
New from CommonWealth Beacon CODCAST: The Healey administration is steering into artificial intelligence, and there’s more at stake than just jobs or economic growth — all sorts of personal data […]
What it means that a state ‘AI assistant’ will handle your data
New from CommonWealth Beacon CONSERVATION BY BALLOT: One of the dozen potential ballot measures that could greet voters this November aims to create a dedicated fund to purchase land for […]
The Download: Massachusetts ranks low in spending for land conservation. This ballot initiative is trying to change that.
New from CommonWealth Beacon BRIC DELAY: A year after federal cuts to the BRIC program, an ambitious resilience project in Chelsea and Everett remains on hold. Hallie Claflin has the […]
The Download: ‘Not if, but when’: Flood prevention project in Everett and Chelsea remains frozen one year after federal program cuts
New from CommonWealth Beacon STAFF UNIONIZATION: Barring a sudden reversal by their ostensibly pro-labor bosses, the Massachusetts legislative staffers who have long fought to form a union will once again […]
The Download: House Democrats spike bill to let legislative staffers unionize
New from CommonWealth Beacon A BETTER LIFE: Hallie Claflin weaves together stories of success from Worcester’s A Better Life program, which provides families in state-subsidized public housing with case management […]
The Download: Worcester’s ‘A Better Life’ housing program helps break generational poverty by promoting self-sufficiency
New from CommonWealth Beacon THE CODCAST: After 28 years at the helm of Massachusetts Health Quality Partners, Barbra Rabson is stepping down. Data gathered by MHQP paints a picture of […]
The Download: Trying to measure primary care’s downward spiral
New from CommonWealth Beacon RETREAT: Local and state officials are looking more directly at the logistics of managed retreat – long a delicate subject for coastal residents. The state is […]
Mass. bottle return rates go down the drain, 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 investigates the cratering […]