SEN. BRENDAN CRIGHTON OF LYNN is so worried about the state’s shrinking local news coverage that he is pushing legislation to create a commission that would quantify the problem and […]
Lawmakers: News business needs state help
Posted inUncategorized
Severance agreement turns into consulting contract
JOHN CHAPMAN, the former undersecretary of consumer affairs and business regulation in the Baker administration, seems to live a charmed life. The Republican landed his job in 2015, shortly after […]
Posted inTransportation
Moderate Marty suddenly dials it up
TRYING TO PROTECT HIS left flank, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh jumped into the debate over the MBTA by calling for a local seat on the transit authority’s next oversight board […]
Posted inThe Download
Moderate Marty suddenly dials it up
Trying to protect his left flank, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh jumped into the debate over the MBTA by calling for a local seat on the transit authority’s next oversight board […]
Posted inPolitics
Abortion access bill draws big crowds to State House
IT’S BEEN HELD up as a bulwark against the conservative forces determined to overturn Roe V. Wade and decried as an opening to legalized “infanticide.” Supporters of the bill say […]
Posted inTransportation
T notes: State preps for 100,000 visitors to casino on Sunday
A correction has been added to this story. THE STATE’S HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATOR says he is preparing for 100,000 people to show up for this Sunday’s opening of the Encore Boston […]
Posted inTransportation
Derailment probe now focused on train itself
MBTA GENERAL MANAGER Steve Poftak said on Monday that the agency’s investigation of last week’s derailment on the Red Line is now focused on the train itself, having ruled out […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Campbell: Blue Hill Ave. conversation needed
Add Boston City Council President Andrea Campbell to the list of officials talking about creating a dedicated bus lane along busy Blue Hill Avenue. In a wide-ranging interview on the […]
Posted inTransportation
Campbell: Blue Hill Ave. conversation needed
ADD BOSTON CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT Andrea Campbell to the list of officials talking about creating a dedicated bus lane along busy Blue Hill Avenue. In a wide-ranging interview on the […]
Posted inThe Download
Campbell: Blue Hill Ave. conversation needed
Add Boston City Council President Andrea Campbell to the list of officials talking about creating a dedicated bus lane along busy Blue Hill Avenue. In a wide-ranging interview on the […]
Posted inEducation
Nearly $1 billion funding difference in education bills
SINCE JANUARY, when two proposals to update the state’s 26-year-old formula for funding Massachusetts schools were filed, one by Gov. Charlie Baker and another by a group of lawmakers led […]
Posted inEducation
Funding plus reform right equation for education legislation
NOTWITHSTANDING JOHN ADAMS’S almost sacred words enshrined in the Massachusetts Constitution, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was a Johnny come lately with respect to state aid to education, with its earliest […]
Posted inEducation
A Swift return
IT’S BEEN A long time since Jane Swift left the public stage, retreating home to Western Massachusetts after a rocky 21-month tenure as governor. Just how much time has passed? […]
Posted inOpinion
Climate, housing activists find common ground on tax
EARLIER THIS YEAR, Gov. Charlie Baker made waves when he announced a proposal to increase the real estate deeds excise tax by 50 percent to help fund critical municipal climate […]
Posted inOpinion
Dartmouth’s link to today’s college oversight bills
SMALL COLLEGES continue to teeter, some to fall. Their students have suffered. The Legislature has taken note: 60 members have filed “An Act Relative to Education Transparency,” which requires “Massachusetts […]
Posted inOpinion
Ex-UMass trustees: Senate provision misguided
IN 1988, in observance of the University of Massachusetts’ 125th anniversary, the board of trustees established a commission with a charge “to examine and make recommendations on the future role […]
Posted inOpinion
Biomass regulatory changes no big deal
WE AT THE MASSACHUSETTS Forest Alliance read with interest Mary Booth’s recent CommonWealth op-ed, “Get Ready for Another Biomass Battle.” She addresses proposed regulatory changes to the Renewable Portfolio Standard […]
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts has a white supremacy problem
WHEN A GROUP of men, during LGBT Pride Month, recently sought a permit to hold “Straight Pride” in Boston, it was nearly universally mocked. The idea garnered comments from across […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA GM apologizes, says ‘tangible benefits’ near
MBTA GENERAL MANAGER STEVE POFTAK stressed Friday that T officials are working as quickly and safely as possible to assess and fix the damage to the Red Line, and he […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Health Care
Ortiz case showcases Dominican justice system
THE MEDICAL CARE DAVID ORTIZ is receiving in Boston as he recovers from a gunshot wound is some of the best in the world, but the same superlatives cannot be […]
Posted inThe Download
Ortiz case showcases Dominican justice system
The medical care David Ortiz is receiving in Boston as he recovers from a gunshot wound is some of the best in the world, but the same superlatives cannot be […]
Posted inOpinion
Here’s what’s slowing down the Red Line now
WHEN THE RED LINE DERAILMENT occurred, at first it seemed like it was in a relatively good location. Ashmont trains could bypass the crash site, and passengers could transfer to […]
Posted inTransportation
Baker: Repairs to T must not shut out riders
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER says the MBTA faces real constraints on how quickly it can repair and upgrade the region’s transit system, but Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu says a historic […]
Posted inTransportation
Mass. ride-hailing trips rise 25% in 2018
RIDE -HAILING APPS such as Uber and Lyft continued their strong growth in Massachusetts during 2018, boosting the number of passenger trips by 25 percent and starting to move outside […]