One of the main backers of the 2022 ballot question says a split between education and transportation shouldn’t be locked in.
The dividing line on millionaires tax money
Posted inOpinion
3 critical transportation issues we must confront in 2025
At the state level, 2025 presents a generational opportunity to reverse the failed policies of the past that have left us with the unacceptable status quo of chronic traffic congestion, substandard sustainable access to key regional destinations, degraded air quality, and poor land use.
Posted inState Government
DiZoglio not satisfied with Senate Democrats’ audit response
The Senate Subcommittee tasked with handling Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s quest to probe the Legislature agreed Monday to meet with her office but outlined a string of issues.
Posted inThe Codcast
SJC lays down the law on MBTA Communities
Commonwealth Beacon’s Jennifer Smith chats with Greg Reibman, president of the Charles River Regional Chamber, and Luc Schuster, executive director of Boston Indicators at the Boston Foundation. They discuss how the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s ruling on the MBTA Communities Act impacts the state’s power to mandate zoning reform in cities and towns.
Listen to past Codcasts on this topic: ‘Milton’s dilemma in the face of housing reform’ (10/13/24) , ‘AG Andrea Campbell talks local power and gambling boom’ (4/14/24) , ‘MBTA Communities panel splits over state vs. local control’ (4/7/24)
Posted inHousing
An MBTA Communities reality check
Days after the SJC ruled on the MBTA Communities Act, proponents consider the way the housing law was pitched and debated. Greg Reibman, president of the Charles River Regional Chamber, and Luc Schuster, executive director of Boston Indicators at the Boston Foundation.
Posted inEducation
Canales stepping down as president of Barr Foundation
JIM CANALES, who has overseen a more than doubling of annual giving at the Barr Foundation while presiding over its emergence as a major civic player in Greater Boston, plans […]
Posted inOpinion
Healey must go big in tackling health care costs
As representatives of employers and consumers, we don’t see eye to eye on every health care issue, but we are joining together to urge the governor to follow through on her promise to meaningfully address the unsustainable trajectory of health care costs in the state.
Posted inEnergy
Replacing fossil fuel-fired ‘peaker plants’ can help Massachusetts meet climate goals, according to new report
New report says that replacing fossil fuel-fired “peaker plants” can help Massachusetts meet climate goals. Advocates say that these power plants are the “worst offenders with the dirtiest per unit of energy produced.”
Posted inPolitics
Political Notebook: An ad campaign’s cutting room floor
History, as the aphorism goes, is written by the winners. So are the tourism ads celebrating the victories 250 years later.
Posted inHousing
State, municipalities prepare for next steps on MBTA Communities law
As the state prepares new regulations in response to the Supreme Judicial Court ruling on resistance to the MBTA Communities housing law, the attorney general says she expects municipalities to start complying.
Posted inState Government
Keenan’s stand for transparency
State Sen. John Keenan is hardly a rabble-rousing bomb thrower, a point that underscores how uncontroversial one might think it is to call for legislators to be given time to read bills before they come to the floor and for their votes on legislation to be recorded for their constituents and others to see.
Posted inHousing
SJC says attorney general can enforce MBTA Communities Act, but state must rework regs
The state housing office must re-issue its MBTA Communities law guidelines, after the Supreme Judicial Court held that the attorney general can enforce the sweeping housing law as long as the guidelines are promulgated correctly.
Posted inTransportation
Healey huddles with her transportation task force ahead of report’s release
The governor met with her transportation funding task force as its members convened their final session and prepared to submit a final draft of a report expected to be released in the coming days.
Posted inState Government
Mass. leaders start to lay out a 2025 legislative wish list
In a 2025 kick-off episode of The Codcast, Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo, Brad Campbell, president of the Conservation Law Foundation, and Jessica Collins, executive director of the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, untangled the crush of late-term legislation and started laying out their wish lists for the year ahead.
Posted inOpinion
Transportation funding task force nears finish line
The governor’s task force on transportation funding is scheduled to hold its final meeting with both Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll in attendance.
Posted inOpinion
Ending transportation for private school students is wrong move
What’s happening in Newton is part of a much bigger battle being waged that touches upon the delicate balance between supporting public education and supporting families for whom religious education is a core priority.
Posted inThe Codcast
Massachusetts roundtable: a look at 2025 legislative priorities
Commonwealth Beacon’s Jennifer Smith sits down with Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo, Brad Campbell, president of the Conservation Law Foundation, and Jessica Collins, executive director of the Public Health Institute of Western MA to discuss key statehouse priorities. They reflect on past achievements and look ahead to future efforts in education, climate, transportation, and housing.