FOR A STATE that that relies as much on immigration as Massachusetts does, we are falling farther behind the rest of the country when it comes to economically competitive policies […]
Undocumented students are the key to our future
Posted inOpinion
We want a 5% cap on rent increases
IN A HISTORIC win for Boston’s housing justice movement and working-class families, the Boston City Council recently voted 11-2, in favor of rent stabilization! Now the power is in the […]
Posted inOpinion
Five actions we can take to address bullying
My son was bullied in elementary school last year. For months. His school and our school district let him down. And we are still dealing with the fallout. Over the […]
Posted inPolitics, State Government
Mariano to DiZoglio: pound sand
IN A SHARPLY WORDED letter, Speaker Ron Mariano told state Auditor Diana DiZoglio her plan to audit the House of Representatives is “entirely without legal support or precedent” and that […]
Posted inThe Download
MBTA pension benefits tweaked to attract, retain workers
THE MBTA IS offering signing bonuses and other perks to fill the many job openings at the agency. Now the transit authority is tweaking its retirement benefits to better retain […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA pension benefits tweaked to attract, retain workers
THE MBTA IS offering signing bonuses and other perks to fill the many job openings at the agency. Now the transit authority is tweaking its retirement benefits to better retain […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
T says low-income fare ramp-up would be year
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE MBTA OFFICIALS estimated Thursday they would need at least a year and about $5 million to get a widespread low-income fare option off the ground, plus […]
Posted inTransportation
Survey indicates dramatic demographic shift among T riders
THE NUMBER of riders taking the MBTA declined significantly during COVID, but their demographic makeup also changed, shifting far more toward minorities and people with lower incomes. A new passenger […]
Posted inTransportation
Slow zones across 27% of MBTA subway system
INTERIM MBTA General Manager Jeffrey Gonneville on Thursday offered no timeline on when slow zones covering 27 percent of the subway system will be lifted, and said repair work will take […]
Posted inHealth Care
For Affordable Care Act at 13, reversals of fortune
TODAY MARKS THE Affordable Care Act’s 13th birthday since its signing by President Obama on March 23, 2020, a landmark moment that our current president famously noted at the time with […]
Posted inThe Download
Healey warns pharmacies to keep abortion meds stocked
WITH ACCESS TO a widely-used abortion medication on the line, Massachusetts is trying to walk and chew gum at the same time – warning local pharmacies that they must continue supplying […]
Posted inHealth Care
Healey warns pharmacies to keep abortion meds stocked
WITH ACCESS TO a widely-used abortion medication on the line, Massachusetts is trying to walk and chew gum at the same time – warning local pharmacies that they must continue supplying […]
Posted inEducation
METCO students, parents lobby for more funding
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS and parents roamed the halls of the State House this week to ask state lawmakers to support increased funding for the largest school […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t let utilities hijack offshore wind
RECENT DISPUTES between offshore wind operators and Massachusetts regulators highlight how our clean energy future is far from guaranteed. The two projects in dispute, Commonwealth Wind and SouthCoast Wind (formerly […]
Posted inThe Download
Union urges teachers and students to ‘opt out’ of MCAS
THE DEBATE OVER standardized testing has sometimes come to feel like a battle of biblical proportions, so perhaps Deb McCarthy’s word choice is no accident. “In the beginning, I was […]
Posted inEducation
Union urges teachers and students to ‘opt out’ of MCAS
THE DEBATE OVER standardized testing has sometimes come to feel like a battle of biblical proportions, so perhaps Deb McCarthy’s word choice is no accident. “In the beginning, I was […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
We need to learn from criminal justice mistakes
OUR IDEA of safety is person-based. Whenever something goes tragically wrong in criminal justice our reflex is to go “down and in” to find the malfunctioning human whose misconduct defeated […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
New England’s last coal-fired power plant loses key revenue source
AN AUCTION for commitments to deliver electricity to the New England power grid three years from now provides two interesting clues about the region’s energy future. First, New England’s last […]
Posted inHealth Care, State Government
Santiago vows to ‘rebuild trust’ in veterans’ services
JON SANTIAGO knows the pandemic left Massachusetts looking askance at its veterans’ services after scores of COVID deaths amid scandals over mismanagement at two long-term care facilities for veterans. Reforming […]
Posted inThe Download
Baron rises to the defense of objectivity in journalism
MARTY BARON, the former editor of the Washington Post and Boston Globe, came to Brandeis University last week and threw down the gauntlet to those who think objectivity in news […]
Posted inMedia
Baron rises to the defense of objectivity in journalism
MARTY BARON, the former editor of the Washington Post and Boston Globe, came to Brandeis University last week and threw down the gauntlet to those who think objectivity in news […]
Posted inOpinion
Why the C3 grants are so important for children
IF YOU HAVE young children, or know anyone who does, chances are you’ve noticed that the Commonwealth’s child care sector is in a major state of crisis. Classrooms are closing, waitlists […]
Posted inOpinion
Industrial land disappearing at an alarming pace
A STRONG INDUSTRIAL sector can help maintain the middle class, provide stable wages in a tumultuous economy, and seed technological innovations that attract workers and businesses to our region – […]
Posted inGovernment
Arroyo wants to ban sale of ‘nips’ in Boston
IT COULD BE the shot ban heard ‘round the state. Fed up with thousands of tiny booze bottles littering his district, and concerned about the public health impact of a product […]