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The Download: Our top five Beacon Hill stories of 2025
by CommonWealth Beacon staff, CommonWealth Beacon December 26, 2025
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A rally attendee holds up a sign in support of using state dollars to fund SNAP benefits outside the State House on October 28, 2025. (Chris Lisinski/CommonWealth Beacon)
No single word better encapsulated the sentiment on Beacon Hill in 2025 than “uncertainty.”
From the near-daily hand-wringing about the Trump administration’s latest actions to the prospect of voters seizing massive policymaking power in 2026 through a raft of ballot questions, state leaders spent much of the year sighing deeply and staring up at the ceiling.
Sure, there was some action, like banning renter-paid broker fees. But with most lawmaking decisions expected in the second year of the two-year term, and statewide officeholders up for reelection in 2026, this year featured far more sowing than reaping.
Here’s a look at the top five storylines that dominated the politics and policy landscape in 2025.
HOUSING: Believe it or not, it’s been less than a year since the state’s highest court upheld the MBTA Communities Act as enforceable and ordered the state to redo regulations for the measure. Jennifer Smith recaps the ensuing fights over the zoning-reform law and the other housing-related storylines that dominated Massachusetts in 2025.
CLIMATE: The past year saw plenty of consternation about the state’s response to the climate crisis, from a short-lived bid to soften decarbonization requirements to unanswered questions about the future of offshore wind amid sustained opposition from the Trump administration. Jordan Wolman details 2025’s top climate stories.
GATEWAY CITIES: Catch up on all of CommonWealth Beacon’s2025 coverage of Massachusetts’s 26 Gateway Cities with this rundown from Hallie Claflin, who took on this sprawling beat earlier this year to deliver incisive reporting about the challenges and opportunities facing these former industrial hubs that now serve as regional economic anchors from Holyoke to Chelsea.
INSURANCE: Gov. Maura Healey said her administration is exploring options to support Bay Staters who drop insurance through the Health Connector marketplace due to skyrocketing premiums. Alison Kuznitz has the details for State House News Service.
