NStar Corp. agreed to pay a roughly $500 million premium for less than a third of Cape Wind’s power output over the next 15 years, a deal that will boost […]
Bruce Mohl
Bruce Mohl oversees the production of content and edits reports, along with carrying out his own reporting with a particular focus on transportation, energy, and climate issues.
He previously worked at the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper.
Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Globe raising price again
The Boston Globe is raising the newsstand price of its daily paper by 25 percent next week as it scrambles to prop up circulation revenue in the face of declining […]
Posted inEnvironment
Senate proposes bill on electricity
The Massachusetts Senate is planning to pass legislation this week that would require more frequent scrutiny of electric utility rates and eliminate no-bid contracts and “sweetheart deals” associated with long-term […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
The private talks with NStar
The deal paving the way for the $17.5 billion merger between NStar and Northeast Utilities was set in motion more than a year ago, when executives from the two companies […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
DCR not talking
Over the past couple months, Ed Lambert has been talking tough about the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s deadbeat renters, but now he’s not talking at all. The DCR commissioner […]
Posted inEconomy
Shire top recipient of state tax credits
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center handed out $21.2 million in tax credits to 28 companies, with high-flying Shire HGT of Lexington garnering the top award of $3 million, bringing its […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Life Sciences Center in salary crosshairs
CORRECTION: The salary information contained in this story for employees of the Life Sciences Center has changed. The two employees who were earning $185,000 a year have left, leaving the […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment
Cape Wind part of merger deal
NStar and Northeast Utilities have agreed to freeze their rates, rebate $21 million to Massachusetts customers, and buy more than a quarter of Cape Wind’s electricity output to secure the […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Lawyering up on Beacon Hill
Beacon Hill lawmakers are lawyering up as state and federal investigators probe hiring practices at the Massachusetts Probation Department. Campaign finance records indicate a number of lawmakers identified as frequent […]
Posted inEconomy
Group sets principles on $24b in tax breaks
A state commission today unanimously agreed on a set of basic principles that will guide its members as they evaluate and scale back the $24 billion in tax breaks the […]
Posted inThe Back Story, Uncategorized
Murray’s poll numbers
Lt. Gov. Tim Murray may not be political road kill after all, according to a new CommonWealth poll conducted by the MassINC Polling Group. Ever since his crash along Interstate […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment, Transportation
Murray says MBTA needs more revenue
Senate President Therese Murray said the MBTA needs additional revenue to address its projected $161 million budget shortfall, but she indicated she did not favor an increase in the state’s […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
Business group has Coakley’s ear
Attorney General Martha Coakley renewed her call this week for revisions to the state’s Green Communities Act, a position that has put her at odds with many in the environmental […]
Posted inEconomy
Mass. auto insurance rates fall 12.7%
The average auto insurance premium in Massachusetts fell 12.7 percent between 2007 and 2009, far outpacing the national decline of 1.4 pecent, according to a report issued by the National […]
Posted inPolitics
Patrick backs social innovation financing
The Patrick administration said today it is pushing ahead with plans to use so-called social innovation financing to tackle chronic homelessness and reduce recidivism among juveniles transitioning out of the […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics
Mass. Bar, judges push court funds
The state’s judges are lobbying Beacon Hill for more funding for the court system through an unusual collaboration with the Massachusetts Bar Association. The MBA, which represents attorneys who practice […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Caswell collects $425,000 severance
MassDevelopment agreed to make a $425,000 severance payment to Ben Caswell, a former employee who the Patrick administration once dubbed the “poster boy” for excessive salaries and perks at state […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
The puzzle at DCR
State Auditor Suzanne Bump says she is puzzled why it took so long for anyone in state government to notice the haphazard way the Department of Conservation and Recreation was […]
Posted inUncategorized
Take my wife…please
CommonWealth is a pretty serious publication, one that’s not known for its sense of humor. But recently we tried our hand at comedy, hosting a 15th anniversary celebration called “Serious […]
Posted inEconomy
William Earon’s behind-the-scenes role
william earon is one of those behind-the-scenes guys who makes the movie business run in Massachusetts. His company, Coastal Capital Advisors LLC, invests in some movie projects, loans money to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Exodus of employees slows courts, raises safety concerns
droves of employees are leaving the state’s court system, slowing down the delivery of justice and raising safety concerns inside courtrooms. To cope with budget cutbacks, court officials imposed a […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Camelot comeback?
There’s nothing like the Kennedy name to change the dynamics of a political contest in Massachusetts, especially at a time when the name is missing from congressional roll calls for […]
Posted inThe Back Story, Transportation
The T’s naming rights deal
The company hired to sell the naming rights for MBTA assets will pocket 12 percent of whatever revenue it brings in. The T’s contract with IMG Worldwide Inc., best known […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State House News Service
Lt. Gov. Murray was going 108 mph
Click here to see the collision reconstruction report. Video from Lt. Governor Murray’s January 3rd press conference. Via State House News Service New black box data from Lt. Gov. Timothy […]