‘It’s like Russian roulette’: A Bellingham man’s plan to add solar and battery storage to his home meets a nearly $12K utility price tag
The process to connect residential solar projects to the grid sticks some with dramatic costs as Massachusetts regulators eye a fix
In Massachusetts, as in most states, utilities charge the customer that triggers the need for a grid upgrade the full cost, even if it benefits multiple homes. That turns the system for connecting residential solar projects into a game of chance.
The state’s 2006 health care law was the model for the Affordable Care Act. What is its legacy?
HEALTH CARE AT 20
20TH ANNIVERSARY
The state’s landmark health care reform law at 20
In April 2006, Gov. Mitt Romney signed landmark legislation that aimed to make Massachusetts the first state in the country with universal or near-universal health care coverage for all residents. “An Act Providing Access to Affordable, Quality, Accountable Health Care,” often known as Romneycare or by the shorthand Chapter 58 (its designation in that year’s laws), was a pathbreaking effort to address the persistent coverage gap in US health care.
THE CODCAST
What it means that a state ‘AI assistant’ will handle your data
This week on The Codcast, we dig into the new partnership between Massachusetts and OpenAI to roll out an AI assistant to help with daily governmental tasks. CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Technology Secretary Jason Snyder, who says his goals include “democratizing innovation” and helping streamline bureaucratic systems like the DMV. Snyder discusses the contract with OpenAI, concerns around data privacy and bias in AI systems, and explains why the state is leaning so hard into AI adoption.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Commonwealth in depth
‘They’re making a huge bet’: Rent control referendum splits progressives
A sweeping proposal to bring back caps on rent has generated hand-wringing, infighting, and one of the cycle’s most fascinating political debates
BY THE NUMBERS
Phoning it in – Mass. residents still lean toward in-person care as telehealth booms
New polling shows Bay Staters primarily continue to receive their health care the old-fashioned way
From the Archives
Rooting for the home team
Minor-league baseball is making fans across the Commonwealth
