CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story incorrectly attributed the estimate of a habitual offender’s extra time in prison under the House and Senate bills […]
Report details impact of sentencing bills
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Patrick credits stimulus for 90,000 Mass. jobs
Gov. Deval Patrick defended President Barack Obama’s handling of the economy this morning, blaming a “sclerosis” in Congress for impeding the president’s ability to make the type of investments that […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Tim-ber
This is the way the Legislature wanted it. If Tim Cahill had launched a quixotic gubernatorial run in 2006, and in the middle of this quixotic run, had he unleashed […]
Posted inPolitics
Cahill lawsuit leads to indictment
Attorney General Martha Coakley learned about the alleged political connection to a 2010 Lottery ad blitz the same way everyone else in Massachusetts did – she read about it in […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics, The Download, Transportation
Polling for dollars
It’s hardly a groundswell of support, but based on the expectation of paltry support for an infusion of state money to bail out the beleaguered MBTA, a new Boston Globe […]
Posted inEnvironment
NStar pays big premium for Cape Wind power
NStar Corp. agreed to pay a roughly $500 million premium for less than a third of Cape Wind’s power output over the next 15 years, a deal that will boost […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, The Download
The underbelly of land use politics
You don’t have to be a Saint to oppose development, according to a federal court ruling earlier this week. In fact, the judge says, you can be “sneaky” and “underhanded” […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Globe raising price again
The Boston Globe is raising the newsstand price of its daily paper by 25 percent next week as it scrambles to prop up circulation revenue in the face of declining […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Up, down, up
Earlier this month, Massachusetts Democrats were in panic mode after a handful of polls indicated US Sen. Scott Brown had overtaken and pulled away from Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren. But […]
Posted inEconomy
Patrick aide calls for tax break reviews
Gov. Deval Patrick’s budget chief on Tuesday proposed that certain tax credits sunset after five years without legislative reauthorization, offering a blueprint for the state to systematically review its $26 […]
Posted inPolitics, Transportation
T backs subway fare hike of 17%
Bay State commuters who rely on the MBTA will be slapped with an average 23 percent fare hike under a budget proposal that state transportation officials unveiled today. “The proposal […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
Brimfield casino site not worth the stakes
Can’t get there from here. MGM Resorts International finally threw in its hand and decided to walk away from a $600 million project to build a hilltop gambling mecca in […]
Posted inEconomy
Employers, economists push for paid sick leave
Employers, workers, and economists rallied and lobbied at the State House in support of legislation that would offer sick leave to the estimated 1 million Massachusetts employees who don’t have […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Two cheers for Obamacare
Yesterday, Rick Santorum stood on the steps of the Supreme Court and said November’s presidential election will hinge on health care. John Kerry agreed. He told the Herald he’s daring […]
Posted inEconomy, The Back Story
Essex official wants to sue over mortgage mess
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’)); John O’Brien is a […]
Posted inEnvironment
Senate proposes bill on electricity
The Massachusetts Senate is planning to pass legislation this week that would require more frequent scrutiny of electric utility rates and eliminate no-bid contracts and “sweetheart deals” associated with long-term […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Opening Day (at the Supreme Court)
The baseball season doesn’t start until next week, but Washington hosts a different opening day, as three days of oral arguments begin before the US Supreme Court in the challenge […]
Posted inPolitics
Murray now tangled in Probation web
Senate President Therese Murray, whose name had been mentioned but who has been largely on the periphery of the Probation Department scandal, is now fully enmeshed after a federal indictment made […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
All the news that’s fit to post
How are you reading this? On your smartphone? Your tablet? If so, you are part of the exploding audience that gets its news from traditional sources but through changing delivery […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
The dangerous (and dumb) Scott Brown
Scott Brown is a dangerous man: dangerous to the world view of Massachusetts Democrats. The way things are supposed to work around here is we have a Democratic Party primary […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Civic booster shot
When it comes to civic engagement, Massachusetts teens could hit the ground running and automatically be registered to vote on their 18th birthday under legislation approved yesterday by a Beacon […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State House News Service, The Download
Tax breaks add up to big money
“Too complicated, too big.” Those were the words the Tax Expenditure Commission used to describe the tangle of tax breaks that amount to over $26 billion, or more in foregone […]
Posted inState House News Service, The Download, Uncategorized
“C” on integrity report nothing to write home about
When everyone around you is getting Ds and Fs, a C can feel pretty good. Beacon Hill insiders probably breathed a sigh of relief at the Bay State’s fair-to-middling ranking […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State House News Service, The Download
Boston-Cambridge Google wars
“It’s too bad.” That’s how the president of the Boston City Council greeted last night’s news that Google had won approvals to expand its Cambridge headquarters. Google ran into a […]