Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack is being likened by two of her predecessors to former governor Frank Sargent for her decision to replace the elevated section of the Massachusetts Turnpike between […]
The Codcast: Salvucci, Aloisi liken Pollack to Sargent
Posted inOpinion
AG falling behind in fighting wage theft
LEFT UNCHECKED and under-enforced, the illegal practice of stealing workers’ wages has become a business-as-usual activity in every corner of the Commonwealth. Without sufficient resources to investigate violations and bring […]
Posted inOpinion
A blueprint for building affordable dorms
HAVING RECENTLY PARTNERED with the University of Massachusetts Boston to plan, develop, and build the first residence hall in the history of the campus, I understand the concerns around the […]
Posted inOpinion
A Kafkaesque health care assessment
EVEN FRANZ KAFKA would be taken aback by the state’s convoluted and self-defeating health care assessment on human service providers. Imagine the following: A non-profit organization provides critical services to […]
Posted inOpinion
The college bubble is starting to burst
This op-ed has been updated with a revision to the initial reference to Hampshire College. THE FOURTH SHOE has dropped. Hampshire College just joined Wheelock, Mt. Ida, and Newbury College […]
Posted inOpinion
40,000 Mass. seniors badly need health care help
MASSACHUSETTS IS AT the vanguard of nearly every measure of health care excellence, from medical research to patient care. But the Commonwealth has turned its back on an important demographic […]
Posted inEducation
House bill quietly filed on education funding
WHILE BIG EDUCATION funding bills filed by Gov. Charlie Baker and a key state senator have garnered lots of attention, a third school financing bill was quietly filed in the […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA preparing to take up fare hikes
THE MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board plans to discuss fare proposals at its meeting on Monday afternoon, beginning what can be a contentious process depending on the scale of […]
Posted inOpinion
Our Know Nothing heritage on immigration
THE HISTORY OF IMMIGRATION to the United States is also the history of the response to immigration. Since the founding of the republic, intermittent surges of foreign-born newcomers have consistently […]
Posted inPolitics
Mass. lawmakers, businesses step up for furloughed federal workers
WHILE WASHINGTON and the Trump administration continue their disastrous handling of the federal government’s partial shutdown, legislators, municipalities, and businesses across the Commonwealth are searching for short-term solutions to the […]
Posted inThe Download
Mass. lawmakers, businesses step up for furloughed federal workers
While Washington and the Trump administration continue their disastrous handling of the federal government’s partial shutdown, legislators, municipalities, and businesses across the Commonwealth are searching for short-term solutions to the […]
Posted inUncategorized
RMV finds workaround for immigrant commercial drivers
WILLIAM REYES started to panic several months ago when his fellow commercial truck drivers began to call, describing going to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles to get their licenses […]
Posted inOpinion
Boston officials should stop slandering their own schools
LAST MONTH SAW the tragic spectacle of top Boston school officials saying two high schools should be closed because of falling enrollment and so-called “academic challenges.” But students, parents, and […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA tries to get more CharlieCards in circulation
THE MBTA, acknowledging that access to CharlieCards is too limited, announced on Thursday that the cards are now available at Chelsea City Hall. CharlieCards are reusable plastic cards that provide […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA’s parking lot operator sues transit agency
THE PRIVATE COMPANY hired to operate the MBTA’s 101 parking facilities is suing the transit agency for failing to comply with the terms of the contract, which requires the payment […]
Posted inThe Download
Baker’s new tax tone
It was one of the most dissected lines from Gov. Charlie Baker’s recent inaugural address, coming at the end of a victory lap about the recent budget surplus. “And we […]
Posted inEducation
Baker calls for more school funds — and accountability
THE STATE’S SCHOOL reform efforts, beginning with the landmark 1993 Education Reform Act, have always involved a combination of spending increases and new accountability measures aimed at helping drive school […]
Posted inEducation
Baker unveils school funding plan
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Wednesday rolled out a seven-year plan to boost school funding by more than $1 billion dollars, including what his education secretary described […]
Posted inTransportation
Cambridge Street could be in for lots of changes
CAMBRIDGE STREET in Boston is starting to look a lot like a public policy war zone. As it runs from Bowdoin Street down toward the Longfellow Bridge, Cambridge Street passes […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics
Baker backs rate-setting for high-cost drugs
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION is seeking legislative authority for MassHealth to negotiate prices directly with the manufacturers of high-cost drugs that have little or no competition and, if that effort fails […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Episode 135: Dreyfus highlights Blue Cross experiments
Andrew Dreyfus, the CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, is excited about a series of initiatives the state’s largest health insurer is pursuing to improve care while simultaneously […]
Posted inEnvironment
Baker takes new tack on taxes
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER, normally a skeptic when it comes to tax hikes, sprinkled new taxes and new tax revenue throughout the annual budget proposal he filed on Wednesday. A proposed increase […]
Posted inEducation
Globe series exposes dismal reality about Boston schools
WE DIDN’T NEED a multi-part, multimedia series of reports to know the Boston Public Schools fail to deliver a first-rate education to many students. Achievement scores and college completion rates […]
Posted inThe Download
Globe series exposes dismal reality about Boston schools
We didn’t need a multi-part, multimedia series of reports to know the Boston Public Schools fail to deliver a first-rate education to many students. Achievement scores and college completion rates […]