FOR THE LAST four years, Linda Noel has planted and cultivated hemp, but the Franklin farmer has never been able to sell it because of strict regulations governing how her crop can be used. Now that’s […]
Rule change paves way for smokable hemp
Posted inEconomy
Report urges action on addressing inequities post-COVID
DESPITE A NATIONWIDE reckoning on race, Massachusetts society post-COVID could see even worsening inequities in society based on class and race, if policymakers do not make a conscious effort to […]
Posted inThe Download
Who’s keeping whom in check on Beacon Hill?
Massachusetts, the old adage goes, elects Republican governors to keep the free-spending Democrats on Beacon Hill in check. But lately it seems like the roles are reversed. Every chance Gov. […]
Posted inUncategorized
Who’s keeping whom in check on Beacon Hill?
MASSACHUSETTS, the old adage goes, elects Republican governors to keep the free-spending Democrats on Beacon Hill in check. But lately it seems like the roles are reversed. Every chance Gov. […]
Posted inGambling
With thoroughbreds missing, money piling up in race horse fund
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A RECENT AUDIT of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission found no deficiencies, but Auditor Suzanne Bump said the agency could do a better job of collaborating with […]
Posted inEconomy
Auditor Suzanne Bump chronicles dire state of infrastructure in Western Mass
WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS have long bemoaned their standing in “a tale of two Commonwealths.” The urban, eastern part of the state, they say, sucks up most of the attention – […]
Posted inOpinion
Why are hospital ICUs so full now?
This is another in a series of conversations between Dr. Jarone Lee, a frontline critical care and emergency physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, […]
Posted inTransportation
Spilka scores victory on I-90 Allston project
SENATE PRESIDENT Karen Spilka took a tour several weeks ago of the aging transportation infrastructure the state is looking to replace in the Allston area. She walked underneath the badly […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Two takes on Boston’s Municipal Harbor Plan
Acting Boston Mayor Kim Janey and the City Council are united in wanting a redo of the city’s Municipal Harbor Plan, but getting all of the stakeholders on the same […]
Posted inThe Download
Two takes on Boston’s Municipal Harbor Plan
Acting Mayor Kim Janey and the Boston City Council are united in wanting a redo of the city’s Municipal Harbor Plan, but getting all of the stakeholders on the same […]
Posted inEnvironment
Two takes on Boston’s Municipal Harbor Plan
ACTING MAYOR Kim Janey and the Boston City Council are united in wanting a redo of the city’s Municipal Harbor Plan, but getting all of the stakeholders on the same […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t replace electric trolley buses in N. Cambridge
THE MBTA’S BUS electrification plans, which set a misplaced priority on replacing existing zero-emissions electric trolleybuses in North Cambridge, fail to respond to the urgent need to begin reducing emissions […]
Posted inOpinion
Plotting the future of the region’s power grid
DRIVE AROUND MASSACHUSETTS and you’d be hard pressed not to see a home with solar panels. Wind turbines are spinning over the Berkshires and coastal communities, with more planned for […]
Posted inTransportation
Why we need fare-free public transportation
Earlier last month, I spent two full weeks on public transit across Massachusetts. My mornings started the way they always do; racing to the Blue Line to get my son Mac to […]
Posted inOpinion
Vaccines are a community responsibility
IT HAS BEEN over a month since our two unions announced support for vaccine mandates for 30,000 members across Massachusetts. Since then, we have seen a host of other employers […]
Posted inEducation
Lawmakers pressed to approve school building money
NORTHEAST METRO TECH, a vocational high school in Wakefield, is in dire need of replacement, according to Superintendent David DiBarri. The school has sought money from the Massachusetts School Building […]
Posted inPolitics
Ayanna Pressley endorses Michelle Wu in Boston mayor’s race
US REP. AYANNA PRESSLEY endorsed City Councilor Michelle Wu in the Boston mayor’s race, giving her campaign a high-profile progressive boost with just over a month to go before the […]
Posted inHealth Care
Few giving up their jobs over vaccine mandates
VACCINATION MANDATES are sweeping across the country, both in the public and private sectors. They have produced a great deal of anxiety in public conversation, and polls in recent months […]
Posted inEducation
Delays hinder state’s pooled testing program for schools
WHEN THE AMHERST-PELHAM regional school district instituted a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, the school committee gave staff an alternative: they could get tested regularly instead. But the district was counting on […]
Posted inThe Download
SJC sides with sheriffs in COVID testing case
When the Supreme Judicial Court justices heard a case about whether sheriffs needed to do more COVID testing in jails, they sounded skeptical, questioning why more screening was necessary when […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
SJC sides with sheriffs in COVID testing case
WHEN THE SUPREME Judicial Court justices heard a case about whether sheriffs needed to do more COVID testing in jails, they sounded skeptical, questioning why more screening was necessary when […]
Posted inUncategorized
No more Band-Aids on broken public health system
WE KNOW MASSACHUSETTS has a broken local public health system because our organizations represent the thousands of health directors, board of health members, public health nurses, and other staff and […]
Posted inEducation
Time for state action on troubled Boston Public Schools
FORMER STATE SENATE President Tom Birmingham often describes the centerpiece of the landmark 1993 Education Reform Act he co-authored as a massive infusion of state dollars into public schools in […]
Posted inGuns
Citing bills, Smith & Wesson moving HQ
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE FIREARM MANUFACTURER Smith & Wesson announced Thursday that it will move its headquarters and “significant elements of its operations” from Springfield to Maryville, Tenn., citing a […]