One in a series on newly elected mayors across Massachusetts. WHEN PEOPLE TALK about Lynn as an immigrant-rich city, they don’t have Jared Nicholson in mind. The city’s new 36-year-old […]
Lynn’s new mayor, Jared Nicholson, vows to oversee ‘inclusive growth’
Posted inOpinion
Why we’re still using gas, oil to produce electricity
IN DECEMBER, ISO New England issued its annual winter outlook and warned of the precarious state the region’s power system would be in if a prolonged, severe cold snap developed […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
Unemployment system shifting away from facial recognition tech
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE STATE’S UNEMPLOYMENT assistance agency will in the “coming weeks” stop utilizing facial recognition technology to verify the identities of benefit applicants after senior members of […]
Posted inOpinion
Why lifting mask mandates is so divisive
ON FRIDAY, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its mask guidance for the first time since July—including for schools, where the debate on whether to mandate them […]
Posted inPolitics
US has repeatedly failed to learn lessons from Russian aggression
REMARKING ON THE state of postwar Europe in the wake of the Allied victory in the Second World War, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin told a Yugoslav emissary that “whoever occupies […]
Posted inGambling
Lottery executive director leaving after 7 years
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR who has steered the Massachusetts Lottery through its most profitable years and pushed to modernize the agency is departing next month for a […]
Posted inEnvironment
Healey again rejects Brookline anti-fossil fuel bylaws
FOR THE SECOND TIME in less than two years, Attorney General Maura Healey on Friday rejected bylaws approved by the town of Brookline placing restrictions or prohibitions on buildings incorporating […]
Posted inThe Download
New Bedford Light calls out silence on health care exec story
When founders of the New Bedford Light announced plans a year ago to launch a new nonprofit news site to cover the South Coast, they pointed to the desperate need […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
New Bedford Light calls out silence on health care exec story
WHEN FOUNDERS OF the New Bedford Light announced plans a year ago to launch a new nonprofit news site to cover the South Coast, they pointed to the desperate need […]
Posted inEducation
New university aims to force a reckoning over campus speech
IN EARLY NOVEMBER, a group of current and former university presidents, professors, journalists, economists, and others announced the creation of the University of Austin (UATX) — a college formed to […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
State seeks OK to forgive UI overpayments
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION on Thursday asked US Labor Secretary Marty Walsh to intervene and grant Massachusetts permission to forgive wide swaths of overpaid unemployment benefits, warning […]
Posted inTransportation
Fare gates coming to North Station
AFTER FIVE YEARS of stops and starts, the MBTA is planning to install fare gates for commuter rail trains at North Station sometime this spring. Fare gates at the commuter […]
Posted inTransportation
March 21 opening set for Green Line to Union Sq
MBTA GENERAL Manager Steve Poftak said the Green Line extension to Union Square in Somerville will officially open for business on March 21, while the branch to Medford is being […]
Posted inEducation
Mayor Wu: Seize the moment for Boston schools
WE ARE IN a moment of great possibility for Boston Public Schools. There is a historic influx of funding available to help the district recover from the effects of the […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA board hears gloomy report on fare options
THE MBTA board of directors took no action Thursday on moving forward with any sort of alternative fare proposal after hearing a report from T staff that raised serious questions […]
Posted inThe Download
New challenges with I-90 Allston project
Last fall, the Baker administration achieved a major breakthrough on the $1.7 billion I-90 Allston project, embracing the idea of rebuilding the Turnpike, Soldiers Field Road, and commuter rail tracks […]
Posted inTransportation
New challenges with I-90 Allston project
LAST FALL, the Baker administration achieved a major breakthrough on the $1.7 billion I-90 Allston project, embracing the idea of rebuilding the Turnpike, Soldiers Field Road, and commuter rail tracks […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Meeting Mass. emission targets about to get bit tougher
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE STATE ENERGY and environmental officials responsible for making sure Massachusetts meets its greenhouse gas emissions reductions commitments already had their work cut out for them […]
Posted inOpinion
Ending mask mandate won’t bring us back to normal
“I FEEL LIKE my throat is closing,” said a 9-year-old boy, between raspy breaths and a barking cough. He was admitted to the hospital with COVID croup, a condition where […]
Posted inTransportation
What’s better for T: No fares or low-income fare?
BOSTON MAYOR Michelle Wu has captured the public’s attention with her push for fare-free buses and eventually a fare-free MBTA, but now an alternative approach to fares is emerging from […]
Posted inEconomy
We should use remaining ARPA funds to combat racial inequity
CONFRONTING INEQUITY BY race in housing, education, wealth and business investment is the smartest use of the state’s remaining $2.3 billion in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. It is […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
SJC says Springfield mayor’s powers on policing have limits
SPRINGFIELD MAY BE one of the Massachusetts cities with a “strong mayor” form of government, but the mayor’s extensive powers over city government are not unlimited powers. That was the […]
Posted inThe Download
SJC says Springfield mayor’s powers on policing have limits
Springfield may be one of the Massachusetts cities with a “strong mayor” form of government, but the mayor’s extensive powers over city government are not unlimited powers. That was the […]
Posted inPolitics
Auditor says expanded voting hours will cost $2m
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE STATE WILL OWE cities and towns more than $2 million to keep polling places open for additional mandated voting hours during the September 2022 state […]