AFTER YEARS of cautionary warnings about the risk of winter-time electricity shortages and possible brownouts, the operator of the New England power grid is putting that message on hold for […]
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 inHealth Care
Medicaid redetermination process off to fast start
A TOP STATE OFFICIAL says 9,000 residents have transferred from MassHealth to the Massachusetts Health Connector since April as part of the post-COVID Medicaid redetermination process. “That’s a little bit […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Big decisions looming on offshore wind
EVERY COUPLE OF DAYS a picture surfaces out of New Bedford showing ships bringing in the giant parts needed to assemble Vineyard Wind, the nation’s first commercial-scale wind farm. The […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Calling it a ‘no-brainer,’ Healey recommends 7 for pardons
GOV. MARUA HEALEY proposed seven people for pardons on Thursday and indicated she is just getting started. The move by Healey attracted attention because most governors put off acts of […]
Posted inEconomy
Spilka outlines a different vision of competitiveness
SENATE PRESIDENT Karen Spilka delivered a speech to a leading business group on Thursday staking out a different stance on competitiveness than Gov. Maura Healey, the House, and the state’s […]
Posted inPolitics
Rules feud leads to 2 takes on committee hearing
A correction has been added to this story. THE JOINT IN the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy has gone missing. On Wednesday morning, for example, House members of […]
Posted inState Government, Transportation
2 lawmakers urge Healey to focus now on next commuter rail contract
TWO KEY state lawmakers are urging Gov. Maura Healey to set in motion now the process for selecting the next operator of the state’s commuter rail system even though the contract […]
Posted inEnergy
R.I. official: Offshore wind regulators facing ‘Hobson’s choice’
A TOP REGULATOR in Rhode Island is raising concerns about the way offshore wind developers are seeking to renegotiate the financial terms of their projects, saying policymakers are facing “a […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Mass. offshore wind developers could forfeit more than $100m
THE TWO wind farms seeking to terminate their Massachusetts power purchase agreements may have to forfeit tens of millions of dollars, according to the House’s energy leader. Rep. Jeffrey Roy of […]
Posted inEconomy, Energy
Eversource’s view appears to depend on where it sits
NEW YORK wind farm developers earlier this week said they needed more money from ratepayers to get their projects off the ground, which had to be a tad embarrassing for […]
Posted inTransportation
Blue Line to be free during Sumner Tunnel closure
This story has been updated. WITH THE SUMNER Tunnel scheduled to close for most of July and August, state transportation officials are trying to reduce car travel in the area […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA ridership hits highest level since pandemic began
RIDERSHIP ON THE MBTA in March reached its highest level since the pandemic began, with the slow-zone-plagued subway system the laggard among the various modes of travel. Total ridership reached […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
NY offshore wind developers also seek price relief
MAJOR OFFSHORE wind developers in New York say their projects may no longer be financially viable unless regulators amend their power purchase agreements to include adjustments for inflation and interconnection […]
Posted inEnergy
SouthCoast Wind report suggests pricey future for offshore wind
A REPORT COMMISSIONED by SouthCoast Wind indicates the cost of building and operating US offshore wind farms has risen by more than 20 percent since 2019, suggesting the Massachusetts procurement […]
Posted inEnergy, State Government
The dark underbelly of retail electricity competition
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS ago, Beacon Hill lawmakers dramatically changed the way electricity is bought and sold in Massachusetts. The old way was devoid of competition, with utilities producing and distributing electricity under […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
SouthCoast Wind pulling out of its wind farm deal
A clarification has been added to this story. SOUTHCOAST WIND said on Monday that it is moving to terminate its existing offshore wind contracts with Massachusetts and hoping to rebid […]
Posted inUncategorized
Iselin of Blue Cross raises red flag on rising health care costs
SARAH ISELIN, the president and CEO of the state’s largest health insurer, says the rising cost of health care may be another reason why Massachusetts is in danger of losing […]
Posted inTransportation
With GLX a wrap, Dalton eyes Hudson River tunnel
JOHN DALTON, the man who steered the very challenging Green Line extension to the finish line in Boston, is taking his talents to New York City and one of the biggest […]
Posted inTransportation
T officials urge riders to be patient
THE GENERAL MANAGER of the MBTA and two members of the agency’s board of directors indicated on Thursday that positive change is coming at the transit authority but it won’t […]
Posted inTransportation
Eng sees FTA letter as no big deal
ON MAY 19, the Federal Transit Administration emailed a letter to top officials at the MBTA telling them a plan the agency developed for addressing the safety of workers performing […]
Posted inEnergy
A new way to connect offshore wind power to the grid
THE OWNER OF the Canal Station power plants in Sandwich is telling state regulators it may have an easier way for offshore wind farms to feed their electricity into the […]
Posted inEnergy
Eversource exiting offshore wind business
EVERSOURCE, New England’s largest utility, said on Thursday that it plans to exit the offshore wind business and write down the value of its holdings by $220 million to $280 […]
Posted inEnergy
Vineyard Wind components arrive in New Bedford
THE NATION’S fledgling offshore wind industry took a very visible step forward on Thursday as a ship from Portugal delivered components for the first US industrial-scale wind farm to the […]
Posted inEnergy, Government
Quebec, like Mass., facing electricity challenges of its own
THE RUMBLINGS from Quebec sound ominous, but officials at Hydro-Quebec say the provincial utility’s power supply contract with Massachusetts is rock solid. The contract was signed more than four years […]