FOR COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, there has always been a strained relationship with our tax system, thanks to rules that keep the gap between black/brown and white wealth disproportionally wide. The […]
Tax credits: the biggest stimulus no one is talking about
Posted inUncategorized
Running state government’s diversity numbers
A correction has been added to this story. THE LATEST NUMBERS on diversity in state government indicate a positive trend overall with some areas performing better than others. Government agencies […]
Posted inEducation
Everett plan to vaccinate teachers goes awry
TEACHERS HAVE BEEN decrying their low status in the vaccine pecking order for weeks, but Everett decided to do something about it. The local School Committee voted on January 19 […]
Posted inPolitics
Some advice for Boston mayoral campaigns
AN OPEN BOSTON mayoral campaign is often called a once-in-a-generation event. In fact, we had such a race only eight years ago, when Tom Menino retired after a record-setting 20 […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
House, Senate announce leadership appointments
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE HOUSE AND SENATE Democrats ratified their committee assignments for the two-year session Friday, approving the leadership and committee structure that includes new posts meant to boost […]
Posted inOpinion
Will DOC’s insistence on jury trial hold up?
IN ADDITION to consuming most of the attention of the legislative and executive branches of government, the COVID-19 pandemic is also keeping the judicial branch busy. Twelve times in the […]
Posted inOpinion
Mr. Speaker, appoint a commission to study House
What follows is written as an open letter to House Speaker Ron Mariano. Based on news coverage of your decision to postpone the rules debate to July, it appears that […]
Posted inHealth Care, State House News Service
State vaccine website gets upgrade
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE STATE’S COVID-19 vaccine website now lists available appointments for some locations, part of a new platform the Baker administration launched Friday to smooth the sometimes-challenging […]
Posted inUncategorized
Curative at center of vaccine snafus in Danvers, Springfield
OVER 20 LEGISLATORS are questioning Gov. Charlie Baker over the usage of Curative Inc, to manage three mass vaccination sites, citing the company’s short existence and recent snags. “This corporation […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Mariano names Cronin as his No. 2
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE HOUSE SPEAKER Ron Mariano named his senior leadership team Thursday, assembling a group that includes four women and one member of color to help shape the […]
Posted inHealth Care
Companion ads stir concerns, pushback
“ADULTS 75 yrs and older — Need a ride to your vaccine?” read the headline of the Craigslist ad. The ad was one of many popping up on websites a […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Will developers block clean energy standards?
LATE IN THE last session, the Massachusetts Legislature passed a landmark climate bill targeting zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and mandating several mechanisms to achieve the goal. Gov. Baker vetoed […]
Posted inEnvironment
Baker moves on quickly from Ismay
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER quickly moved on Wednesday after the resignation of his top climate change advisor, declining to even thank him for his service. At a press conference at the […]
Posted inThe Download
Constitutional challenge to vote-by-mail likely
Secretary of the Commonwealth Bill Galvin and voting rights advocates want to allow Massachusetts residents to vote by mail for any reason. But is that constitutional? The Massachusetts Constitution explicitly […]
Posted inPolitics
Constitutional challenge to vote-by-mail likely
SECRETARY OF THE COMMONWEALTH Bill Galvin and voting rights advocates want to allow Massachusetts residents to vote by mail for any reason. But is that constitutional? The Massachusetts Constitution explicitly […]
Posted inEnvironment
State environmental official resigns over climate comments
THE STATE’S UNDERSECRETARY of environmental affairs for climate change, who has come under fire for comments made to an environmental panel last month, resigned his post Wednesday night. David Ismay, […]
Posted inPolitics
Six legislative districts shift majority minority
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A NEW ANALYSIS shows that the populations of at least five state House of Representatives districts and one Senate district have moved from mostly white to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
DOC accused of ‘deliberate indifference’ to prisoners
ATTORNEYS FOR for 11 prisoners accused the Massachusetts Department of Correction on Wednesday of deliberate indifference to a provision in the state budget requiring the release of inmates during the […]
Posted inUncategorized
Virus notes: Crowding at the top of Phase 2
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION is continuing to move people higher in the vaccine line, forcing those down below to wait longer and longer. First it was people between 65 and 74, […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker again denounces Ismay comments
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Wednesday again denounced comments made last month by his undersecretary for climate change and brushed aside a suggestion that his aide may have been stating the […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker offers vaccines to ‘companions’ of those over 75
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Wednesday said anyone bringing someone 75 and over to one of the state’s mass vaccination sites can also get inoculated even if it’s not their appointed […]
Posted inEnvironment
Did state enviro official say anything that outlandish?
STATE ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS undersecretary David Ismay has made outrageously reckless claims, and is in serious hot water. At least if you read the Boston Herald. The paper has been pummeling […]
Posted inThe Download
Did state enviro official say anything that outlandish?
STATE ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS undersecretary David Ismay has made outrageously reckless claims, and is in serious hot water. At least if you read the Boston Herald. The paper has been pummeling […]
Posted inOpinion
Put an end to cuts at the MBTA
LAST FALL, when the MBTA announced it was planning deep cuts to bus, train, ferry ,and commuter rail service, the opposition was swift and virtually unanimous. Riders, workers, elected officials, and employers raised the alarm that […]