Second of two parts, first part is here. IN THE FIRST ARTICLE in this series, I wrote about the importance of addressing MBTA governance. A 2015 report from two highly […]
New T board needs to include municipalities
Posted inPolitics
Baker throws cold water on pay hikes
LAWMAKERS WILL FINALLY take up the recommendations for salary hikes for elected officials laid out in a 2014 report but the plan could be dead on arrival as Gov. Charlie […]
Posted inEnvironment
Eversource seeks big distribution rate hike
EVERSOURCE ON TUESDAY SOUGHT regulatory approval for a hefty increase in its distribution rates, a move that has the potential to sharply increase monthly utility bills in its service areas […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics, The Download
Baker pushes health cost controls
Gov. Charlie Baker launched the beginning of what promises to be a very interesting debate about how to rein in the cost of health care in Massachusetts, releasing an internal […]
Posted inHealth Care, State House News Service
Baker pushes health cost controls
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE COMPANIES THAT DO NOT OFFER their employees health insurance would pay a $2,000 annual assessment per full-time worker to the state under a plan Gov. Charlie […]
Posted inOpinion, Transportation
MBTA governance needs radical makeover
First in a two-part series; second part is here. THE MBTA’S FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT CONTROL BOARD is properly in the process of developing a strategic plan that will help guide […]
Posted inOpinion
Alcohol provides template for pot regulation
STATE OFFICIALS NEED TO BEGIN the difficult process of implementing systemic, comprehensive regulatory oversight of retail marijuana sales. Fortunately, the existing regulatory system for the sale of alcohol provides an […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Three cheers for natural gas
NATURAL GAS HAS BEEN a resounding environmental success story for Massachusetts that has delivered every benefit environmentalists predicted it would back in the 1990s. Continued access to reliable supplies of […]
Posted inTransportation
T starts laying off workers
THE MBTA IS LAYING OFF workers to help close an $80 million operating deficit. T officials said the layoffs are part of a larger effort to streamline operations by eliminating […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Episode 31: Retailing’s clicks vs. bricks
Sears and Macy’s, two iconic names in retailing, recently announced they plan to close hundreds of stores resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs around the country. Both have […]
Posted inState House News Service, The Download
The Codcast: Retailing’s clicks vs. bricks
The Internet has changed all aspects of life, mostly for the good but not without a good amount of disruption. Take shopping. As people stroll virtual malls from the comfort […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Jackson shakes up the map
THAT BOSTON CONVERSATION about race is about to get super interesting, but perhaps not in the way Mayor Marty Walsh intended. Walsh, who announced the conversations late last year, will […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker letter to House on ACA
The Honorable Kevin McCarthy Majority Leader United States House of Representatives H-107, U.S. Capitol Building Washington D.C., 20515 Leader McCarthy, Thank you for the opportunity to provide initial input […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Baker’s record on records
Over the past two years, Gov. Charlie Baker has responded to 33 requests for public records by either withholding the information in its entirety or releasing it in redacted form. […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Tito is in
After keeping politicos guessing for months, and then recently saying he’d make a decision by the spring, Tito Jackson is diving into the race for mayor of Boston this afternoon, […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Baker to tax short-term rentals
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE Gov. Charlie Baker intends to include in his budget due later this month a proposal that would tax short-term rentals offered through online portals like Airbnb […]
Posted inPolitics
Now Beacon Hill may mess with time
BEACON HILL REGULATES just about everything – cars, pot, schools, taxes, death – and now lawmakers are looking at making their influence known in one more of life’s essentials: time. […]
Posted inHealth Care
Mass. health care costs moderating
THE MASSACHUSETTS HEALTH POLICY COMMISSION reported on Wednesday that health care is becoming more affordable, but not for everyone. As recently as 2009, Massachusetts spent more per person on health […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Salem is taking on climate change
THE MORE THINGS change, the more they stay the same. For centuries now the economic health of the city of Salem has been tied to the ocean. In the immediate […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
Ewwww!
The gasp you hear over the lurid allegations about President-elect Donald Trump is not the collective electorate. That’s more of a shudder. No, the group inhale is from members of the […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Center: FY18 budget gap $615.7m
The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center estimates the state’s funding gap for the coming fiscal year will be $615.7 million and recommends two policy changes to introduce greater transparency into […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Governor’s fix-it man exits
This Conversation interview with Gov. Charlie Baker’s chief of staff, Steve Kadish, is from CommonWealth’s Winter 2017 issue. Kadish announced this week that he is leaving his post after two […]
Posted inEconomy
Home wreckers
Photographs by Mark Morelli FOR MOST HOMEOWNERS, their house is their past, present, and future, the hard shell around their nest egg. That shell requires regular attention and occasional investment, […]
Posted inEconomy
Mom-and-pop economic development Â
Photographs by Meghan Moore JOSE ROSARIO CAN barely walk a step without pointing to some of the changes he’s made since becoming the owner of Universal Auto Repair in Lawrence. […]