Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse, who just over two weeks announced a stunning reversal of his strong anti-casino stand and said he would consider gambling proposals for his city, reversed course […]
Morse changes mind on casinos — again
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Hitting the paywall
Information may want to be free, but journalists want to get paid. The trickle of newspapers and magazines that have erected some type of paywall is likely to grow next […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Hung jury leads to Cahill mistrial
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICEAFTER ACQUITTING HIS co-defendant, a 12-person jury was unable over the past week to reach a unanimous verdict on former Treasurer Tim Cahill’s public corruption charges, leading […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Amazon tax nice for state, little help for stores
Gov. Deval Patrick has finally sealed the deal with Amazon.com. After months of negotiations, Patrick announced today that the online retailing giant will begin collecting the state sales tax from […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Shoot-out in the GOP lifeboat
The battle now underway for the top slot in the Massachusetts Republican Party calls to mind Henry Kissinger’s often cited commentary on the pitched battles in the ivory towers of […]
Posted inState House News Service, Transportation
Electronic tolls pushed by Patrick
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICEGOV. DEVAL PATRICK PLANS to recommend switching to an electronic tolling system in Massachusetts, embracing new technology that would cost about $100 million and result in […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State House News Service, The Download
Child sex abuse case renews focus on offender law
A Level 1 sex offender from Wakefield was indicted for raping and abusing at least 13 children at an unlicensed day care service run by his wife. The boys and […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Mass. lagging in keeping people off their butts
When Massachusetts voters approved a 25-cent tax on cigarettes to fund anti-smoking programs 20 years ago, the state became a leader in efforts to reduce tobacco use among all its […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Maybe Patrick wants to make more money
NO ONE SEEMS to believe him, but Gov. Deval Patrick was quite emphatic about his near-term future at the Democratic National Convention in September. “I’m gonna finish my term [as […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
Elizabeth Warren banks on a plum assignment
The financial industry spent millions trying to defeat Elizabeth Warren, but throwing money at Scott Brown didn’t work out so well. In a classic case of instant karma getting Wall […]
Posted inEducation
Catholic schools remain off limits
THE HEAD OF THE BOSTON ARCHDIOCESE SCHOOLS is eager to work with public and charter school operators to improve education for all Boston students, but says the church’s recent […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Patrick keeps ’em guessing
Gov. Deval Patrick keeps saying that he wants to finish out his term as governor, and then return to the private sector. He keeps insisting that he doesn’t have his […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State House News Service
Patrick wants to cut local aid by 1 percent
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE AS PART OF A PLAN to address an estimated $540 million mid-year budget gap, Gov. Deval Patrick on Tuesday slashed spending by $225 million and asked […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Tax giveaways for all!
You don’t need to make your way through the more than 5,000 words of yesterday’s first installment of a New York Times series to get the gist of it. “The […]
Posted inPolitics
State nets bigger payday putting parking out to bid
THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND RECREATION put the management of a state-owned Boston parking lot out to bid for the first time in more than 20 years and […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download
Married sex offender challenges Ayer bylaw
John King and his wife Ashley are suing the town of Ayer, challenging the enforcement and constitutionality of a town bylaw that bars sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet […]
Posted inPolitics
A forgetful Cahill defends lottery ads
TIM CAHILL HAD A GOOD DAY in court on Thursday. The former state Treasurer looked at ease taking the stand to deny charges that he used state Lottery funds […]
Posted inEducation, The Download
Charter school lessons
The big national news in charter school research this week is in New Jersey, where a report has found that students in the state’s 86 charter schools significantly outperform their […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
The high cost of going green
NSTAR CUSTOMERS EAGER to support the development of green power are paying a steep price to do so right now. Since 2008, NStar, which distributes electricity across eastern Massachusetts, has […]
Posted inEducation, The Download
Patrick dreams on in-state tuition
Gov. Deval Patrick’s controversial decision to allow undocumented immigrants holding work permits to pay in-state tuition rates at public colleges and universities raised the hackles of Republicans and some Democrats […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics
Since ’03, Dookhan output unusually high
FROM THE DAY SHE WAS HIRED in 2003, Annie Dookhan, the mystery chemist at the center of the unfolding state drug lab scandal, performed far more tests than any […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
The Menino watch
If the long knives were coming out at Boston City Hall two weeks ago, when Boston Mayor Tom Menino was merely stuck in the hospital with a bad back, they’ve […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion, Transportation
Reform before revenue was the wrong answer
[Read the first part of this series, on the case for funding transportation, here, and the third part, on five transportation funding solutions, here.] THERE IS A VIEW among […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion, Transportation
Five transportation funding solutions
[Read the first part of this series, on the case for funding transportation, here, and the second part, on why “reform before revenue” was the wrong answer, here.] THE SOLUTIONS […]