In the 2010 special US Senate election, enthusiasm from the nascent Tea Party movement helped propel Scott Brown past Martha Coakley. In the 2013 special election, the Tea Party is […]
Gomez: No tea for me, thanks.
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Obama stumps for Markey
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICECritiqued by his Republican opponent as a symbol of the dysfunctional Washington D.C. establishment, Congressman Ed Markey enjoyed the backing of the nation’s top Democrat Wednesday as […]
Posted inEconomy
Firms highlight shortage of grads with tech skills
Representatives from the nation’s leading technology companies urged Massachusetts lawmakers on Wednesday to address a “talent crisis” among the state’s college graduates in the field of computing. Officials from Google, […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
Patrick draws line in the sand on local aid funds
Gov. Deval Patrick may be a lame duck, but he has plenty of political fight left in him this budget season. The annual spectacle of dysfunction over local aid funding […]
Posted inOpinion, Uncategorized
MassDOT takes on the last mile
In a classic episode of Sex and the City, “the girls” plan a trip to the suburbs to visit a friend who’s made the move to Connecticut. They rent a […]
Posted inEconomy
The push for an $11 minimum wage
Hundreds of union workers and advocacy groups packed the State House’s Gardner Auditorium on Tuesday to push for a steep hike in the state’s minimum wage, arguing that a boost […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
No sign of traction for Gomez
Comparisons to Scott Brown have been swirling around Gabriel Gomez ever since the Cohasset businessman and former Navy SEAL stormed past a pair of longtime Bay State Republican fixtures, and […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Markey vs. Gomez vs. Zzzzzzzzz
There is an election for US Senate in Massachusetts two weeks from tomorrow — and the Boston Herald is going to beat readers over the head with that news from […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
New transmission lines aren’t region’s only option
KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON is not as simple as flicking a switch. New England has a massive, complex, multi-billion dollar grid system to support the region’s electricity needs and […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
The 50 worst charities
Every year Attorney General Martha Coakley issues a report on charities that hire professional fundraisers and every year a smattering of stories are done about how most of the money […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download
Whitey wants a blackout
No matter where you stand on the issue, you have to admit it is a brilliant and calculating ploy by James “Whitey” Bulger, who’s been known to dabble in payback, […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
Shoring up solar
Massachusetts officials are preparing to take a number of steps to shore up one of the state’s key solar power subsidies, including spending millions of dollars to buy up the […]
Posted inState House News Service, Transportation
T ridership falls less than expected
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE MBTA RIDERSHIP HAS DECLINED over the past 10 months, with ridership dropping more steeply so far in 2013, according to authority data.From last July, when fare […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics
Ex-MassHealth COO gets $25,000 fine
THE FORMER CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER of MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program, agreed on Wednesday to pay a $25,000 civil penalty to the State Ethics Commission to settle charges that […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State House News Service, The Download
Drive ‘n text? Staties comin after u
Federal, state, and local public safety officials have long warned about the dangers of distracted driving. Former US transportation secretary Ray LaHood turned the issue into a quasi-personal crusade, and […]
Posted inEconomy, Education, Opinion
Lawmakers should maximize investment in young children
By July 1, Massachusetts will most likely have a state budget for fiscal year 2014. A six-member conference committee is currently meeting to negotiate differences between the House and Senate […]
Posted inUncategorized
Mass. ranks second in clean tech index
MASSACHUSETTS RANKED SECOND behind California in a clean tech leadership index released on Tuesday by Clean Edge, a research and advisory firm based in San Francisco. Boston ranked 10th in […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Gomez’s party problem
The more Gabriel Gomez tries to put some daylight between himself and the national GOP, the tighter Gomez’s party clings to him. These guys absolutely cannot take a hint and […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics, The Download
Lyme disease wars
Warm weather is finally here and so begins the season for summer barbeques, long days on the beach, warm evening strolls — and Lyme disease. When it comes to the […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Download
Fish fight parallels
For years, scientists have been warning that a day of reckoning is coming for the planet because of climate change. Massachusetts politicians have largely heeded those warnings, calling for tough […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Coakley suit seeks halt to fishing reductions
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICECALLING DEEP REDUCTIONS in allowable fish catch limits a “death penalty” to the Massachusetts fishing industry, Attorney General Martha Coakley on Thursday filed a lawsuit in federal […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
She sees dead people
Few state audits in recent memory have triggered the kind of attention now being paid to state Auditor Suzanne Bump’s report on the welfare system’s apparent issuing of payments to […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
Bowles vs. O’Connell
Two of Gov. Deval Patrick’s former cabinet secretaries are squabbling over Cape Wind, the proposed offshore wind farm that has been a high priority of the governor since he took […]
Posted inEconomy, Health Care, Opinion, Politics
Polanowicz responds to Bump
The following letter was sent by Health and Human Services Secretary John Polanowicz to State Auditor Suzanne Bump taking issue with findings in the recently released report on welfare abuse. […]