RACHAEL ROLLINS’S name won’t be on the ballot this year, but her approach to prosecution in Suffolk County may end up being front and center. Rollins – both by personality […]
Rollins reforms loom over Suffolk DA race
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts citizenship and the importance of state power
WHEN THE PANDEMIC BEGAN, and the federal government failed, we quickly learned how much it mattered that we all lived in Massachusetts. Two years of state-by-state comparisons in suffering, death, […]
Posted inEnvironment
Two soundings from Somerset
IT WAS FITTING that Rep. Patricia Haddad would take a bow at a gathering on Thursday in Somerset celebrating the purchase of 47 acres at Brayton Point by an Italian […]
Posted inTransportation
Baker not satisfied with immigrant license bill
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER wouldn’t say on Thursday whether he intends to veto an immigrant license bill if it reaches his desk, but he appeared to dispute a lead sponsor’s contention […]
Posted inUncategorized
A downpayment on Somerset’s offshore wind dream
THE DREAM of transforming Brayton Point in Somerset into a hub of the offshore wind industry took a major step forward on Thursday, as an Italian manufacturer of subsea cable […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Opinion
Compassionate response to 911 calls with social workers makes sense
IN OCTOBER OF 2016, Boston police officers shot and killed Terrence Coleman, a 31-year-old South End man who suffered from schizophrenia and paranoia, after Coleman’s mother called 911 to have […]
Posted inThe Download
Words matter, particularly with poll questions
Due to a reporting error, an earlier version of this story gave the incorrect date for the initial poll on the so-called millionaire tax. The two polls were a year […]
Posted inPolitics
Words matter, particularly with poll questions
Due to a reporting error, an earlier version of this story gave the incorrect date for the initial poll on the so-called millionaire tax. The two polls were a year […]
Posted inTransportation
Immigrant license bill clears House by veto-proof margin
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE HOUSE PASSED legislation Wednesday that opens a pathway for some undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses in Massachusetts, a move advocates say would make roads […]
Posted inEducation
The case for Massachusetts community colleges
AS WEALTH AND INCOME GAPS in Massachusetts widen, the role of its 15 community colleges becomes even more important. For many of the Commonwealth’s 136,000 community college students, attendance and […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Governor’s Council commutes sentences of two men convicted of murderÂ
THE GOVERNOR’S COUNCIL on Wednesday voted unanimously to commute the sentences of two men convicted of first-degree murder, Thomas Koonce and William Allen, sealing the deal on the first commutations […]
Posted inUncategorized
Brayton Point finally lands offshore wind supplier
BRAYTON POINT in Somerset is finally getting a piece of the offshore wind industry it has been courting for years, but the industrial prize is apparently not big enough to […]
Posted inThe Download
What if Boston just scrapped its school committee altogether?
TO SAY THE Boston school system is in flux would be like suggesting the city’s drivers occasionally seem a tad aggressive on the roads. The district is about to say […]
Posted inEducation
What if Boston just scrapped its school committee altogether?
TO SAY THE Boston school system is in flux would be like suggesting the city’s drivers occasionally seem a tad aggressive on the roads. The district is about to say […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
State eases indoor face-mask guidance
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT of Public Health on Tuesday relaxed its face-covering advisory, publishing an updated version that no longer recommends vaccinated individuals mask up in all […]
Posted inEnvironment
Natural gas infrastructure a climate change sticking point
AS MASSACHUSETTS SEEKS to transition away from fossil fuels and achieve net zero emissions by 2050, what to do with the state’s existing natural gas infrastructure is becoming a major […]
Posted inEnvironment
State said to be on track on 2020 climate goal
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION released a first-of-its-kind projection on Tuesday indicating the state is on track for now in meeting its climate change goals, but the governor’s top energy aide said […]
Posted inPolitics
Danielle Allen ends gubernatorial campaignÂ
DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE Danielle Allen announced Tuesday that she will end her campaign for governor. Â Allen, a Harvard professor, entered the race in June of 2021, but struggled to […]
Posted inUncategorized
Cost of welfare benefits skyrockets during pandemic
USE OF VARIOUS welfare assistance programs skyrocketed amid the pandemic, particularly as federal unemployment benefits dried up, according to new data provided by the Department of Transitional Assistance. The higher […]
Posted inThe Download
124 mental health clinics report 640 job vacancies
Last week, a survey by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation reported that Massachusetts residents are having trouble accessing mental health care when they need it. A new survey released […]
Posted inHealth Care
124 mental health clinics report 640 job vacancies
LAST WEEK, a survey by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation reported that Massachusetts residents are having trouble accessing mental health care when they need it. A new survey released […]
Posted inOpinion
Our shelter system in Mass. is falling short
FOR THE OVER 8,000 men and women who will experience homelessness in Massachusetts this year, another winter amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic could be life threatening. For the organizations and […]
Posted inTransportation
Senator demands answers on Mattapan trolleys
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A MILTON SENATOR wants legislators to wield their oversight authority and examine delays in upgrades to the MBTA’s Mattapan Line. Sen. Walt Timilty has asked the […]
Posted inUncategorized
State House, closed nearly 2 years, to reopen next week
THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE HOUSE, closed to the public since March 2020, is going to reopen next Tuesday. State House leaders said legislative business will see little change initially. Committee hearings […]