THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT of Energy Resources will finalize by July 15 regulations doubling the size of the MA SMART solar photovoltaic program from 1,600 to 3,200 megawatts. On the surface […]
State’s SMART program isn’t so smart
Posted inEducation
Education funding shortfall could spur new lawsuitÂ
WHEN MASSACHUSETTS LAWMAKERS passed a landmark rewrite of the state’s school funding formula last year, it was done with a lawsuit hanging over their heads. Now, advocates are keeping a close eye on the […]
Posted inOpinion
Two scourges, intertwined
TREATING PATIENTS in Boston’s busiest emergency room has taught me a lot about the intersection of COVID-19 with race, class, and inequity. From ER visits to protests, black and Latinx […]
Posted inOpinion
In police licensing, the details matter
THE POLICE KILLINGS of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and other black people have brought renewed, international attention to racism in law enforcement. Thankfully, Massachusetts elected leaders have taken […]
Posted inHealth Care
Lawmakers push for Chelsea Soldiers’ Home probe
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE CITING THE DEATHS of 31 veterans there, Sens. Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley on Friday called for an independent investigation into the […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
Baker pushes $35m more for economic recovery package
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Friday proposed a $35 million increase and other changes in an economic recovery package he filed pre-COVID-19. The expanded proposal, which now has a price tag […]
Posted inOpinion
Baker should require licensed administrator at Holyoke
IT IS 10:37 P.M. From my living room, I can overhear half of a conversation between two nursing home administrators talking about a potentially reportable situation at a local skilled […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Police brutality highlights clout of public-sector unions
OUTRAGE OVER THE brutal killing of George Floyd has rightly heightened public scrutiny of police union resistance to desperately needed reforms. Less understandable is the assumption that the police are an […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
Tensions rising between House and Senate
A correction and a clarification have been added to this story. JUST AS THE LEGISLATUREÂ heads into crunch time on Beacon Hill, tensions appear to be rising between the House and […]
Posted inThe Download
Tensions rising between House and Senate
Just as the Legislature heads into crunch time on Beacon Hill, tensions appear to be rising between the House and Senate over how bills should emerge from a key committee. […]
Posted inTransportation
Lawmakers back extension of existing MBTA control board
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE HOUSE AND SENATE leaders reached an agreement Thursday to keep the MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board in place for another year and to scrap a […]
Posted inOpinion
Ranked choice voting can promote equality
“I am convinced that if we are to get on to the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values” Rev. […]
Posted inUncategorized
Baker stops short on key reform measure
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER promised to follow through on all of the recommendations contained in a report documenting a series of management and medical mistakes at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, but […]
Posted inArts and Culture
The fascist roots of Columbus Day
AS STATUES OF Christopher Columbus are toppled (or beheaded), from St. Paul to Richmond to Boston, Americans are beginning to question the motive for raising certain historical actors to mythical […]
Posted inEducation
State: Students low risk for COVID-19
IN CRAFTING A BACK-TO-SCHOOL PLAN for the fall, the Baker administration is relying on nascent medical research suggesting children under 20 are less likely to both contract COVID-19 and transmit […]
Posted inHealth Care
COVID-19 crackdown coming for N. End restaurants
FOLLOWING NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS about expanded outdoor dining in Boston’s North End not complying with COVID-19 guidelines, the city’s Licensing Board has decided to crack down with random inspections of new “al […]
Posted inThe Download
COVID-19 crackdown coming for N. End restaurants
Following numerous complaints about expanded outdoor dining in Boston’s North End not complying with COVID-19 guidelines, the city’s Licensing Board has decided to crack down with random inspections of new […]
Posted inOpinion
Living wage needed for human service workers
THROUGHOUT THE CORONAVIRUS pandemic, we have heralded the selfless heroism of our health care workforce and first responders. The doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, EMTs, firefighters, and police continue to […]
Posted inNews Analysis
Parents divided over the coming school year
PARENTS ACROSS MASSACHUSETTS are sharply divided along racial lines on how they want the next school year to unfold and whether schools have the ability to operate safely, according to […]
Posted inPolitics
Boston councilors approve budget after charged debate
AFTER MORE THAN two hours of debate, Boston city councilors approved a $3.61 billion budget for 2021, averting a showdown with Mayor Marty Walsh that some councilors deemed […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Boston City Council bans use of facial recognition tech
THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL voted unanimously on Wednesday to prohibit the police department and other city agencies from using facial recognition technology or information derived from face surveillance systems. The […]
Posted inHealth Care
Walsh is fall guy, but it goes way beyond him
IN HIS 174-PAGE REPORT on the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, Mark Pearlstein and his team paint a portrait of a long-term care facility for veterans that was managed poorly, overseen improperly, […]
Posted inHealth Care
What went wrong at Holyoke Soldiers’ Home
THE WORST DECISION made by the staff at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home was to combine some 40 residents of two locked dementia care units – some with COVID-19 and most not – into […]
Posted inUncategorized
Fireworks rattle cities, draw wild theories
THERE’S SO MUCHÂ about life over the last few months that was impossible to predict, even after the pandemic began to reshape nearly every facet of our daily existence. For residents […]