“We’re witnessing a political broadside, not sensible policymaking,” Wellesley College economics professor Peter Levine wrote of the huge hike in the endowment tax.
Harvard, MIT face steep endowment tax under Trump bill
Posted inState Government
Mass. lawmakers weigh a statewide age-based nicotine ban
17 communities across Massachusetts have already banned nicotine sales for individuals born after a certain year. Now lawmakers are considering whether to adopt the policy statewide.
Posted inOpinion
Right-wing group’s attacks undermining freedom of inquiry in education
The scope of the far right’s project to abolish our freedoms to inquire and learn is breathtaking.
Posted inEnvironment
‘The ultimate underdog’: Chelsea named 2025 All-America city for sustainability projects
The city of Chelsea was named a 2025 “All-America” city by the National Civic League. The low-income, majority Hispanic city has faced a disproportionate share of environmental hazards and was recognized for three of its community-led environmental projects.
Posted inThe Codcast
Reconsidering school receivership
CommonWealth Beacon executive editor Michael Jonas joins reporter Jennifer Smith to trace the last decade in state takeovers of local school districts. The results, as Jonas has reported, are a far cry from a silver bullet to fix struggling schools.
Posted inOpinion
Beyond the West Wing: The David Gergen most people never knew
David mentored a generation of young leaders, not because it burnished his resume, but because he genuinely believed in public service and in passing the torch.
Posted inEnvironment
Drought management not included in Healey’s $3 billion environmental bond bill
After a period of unprecedented drought and wildfires in Massachusetts last fall and winter, the urgency around addressing drought seems to have dissipated.
Posted inOpinion
With birthright case, class actions emerging as important tool against reckless Trump actions
The question now is how broadly the class action process could be used to address other issues where the government has taken illegal action against large groups of Americans across state lines.
Posted inMarijuana
Cannabis social equity training program back on after a year-long pause
The Cannabis Control Commission’s training program for those most impacted by the war on drugs is set to resume September 8 after a year-long delay the agency attributes to budget constraints.
Posted inHealth Care
HHS chief Walsh stepping down, Mahaniah named successor
After a more than two-year tenure in which she charted the state’s path through the tumultuous Steward Health Care collapse, Health and Human Services Secretary Kate Walsh will step down.
Posted inOpinion
With convention center naming, Menino gets his due
Menino’s steadfast commitment to the convention center stands as an unparalleled success in the history of the city. With its naming in his honor, the lifelong Hyde Park resident, who for years was vexed by smoother-talking critics with prestigious pedigrees, will have his place in history cemented.
Posted inEnergy
Grid operator forecasting 11% increase in electricity consumption by 2034
The operator of the New England power grid released a study saying a 10-year downturn in consumption of electricity from the region’s generating plants is coming to an end and giving way to the need for more electricity production over the next decade.
Posted inEnergy
In enforcing new climate law, a dispute over the ‘obligation to serve’ natural gas customers
Massachusetts’ 2024 climate law aims to hasten the clean energy transition to meet the state’s climate goals, but a dispute over whether natural gas utility companies have an “obligation to serve” natural gas could stall the transition off of fossil-fuel infrastructure.
Posted inOpinion
Students need to learn the ‘durable skills’ crucial to the world they’re growing into
Too often, students from under-resourced communities are told to dream big but aren’t given the tools to make those dreams real.
Posted inHousing
Marblehead voters overturn multifamily housing zoning
Tuesday’s outcome places Marblehead among the 38 communities that have not yet achieved compliance with state law, risking loss of eligibility for competitive state grant programs potentially worth over $10 million.
Posted inHousing
A stormy season for short-term rentals on Nantucket
The wealthy enclave of Nantucket is, like its neighbors on the Cape, trying to chart a path forward as a community torn between the rental economy and a housing crunch.