The Download: Boston’s taxing war of words
Boston’s taxing war of words
To head off a spike in residential taxes, the Wu administration wants to raise the tax rate on commercial property. But the city already taxes commercial owners at a much higher rate than residential taxpayers – the highest level allowed by law – so it needs approval from the Legislature to raise that rate further.
SJC appears open to letting tipped-worker question go to ballot
MULLING A CHALLENGE to a tipped-wage initiative proposed for the November ballot, justices of the Supreme Judicial Court on Wednesday seemed skeptical of arguments that they should keep the measure […]
Housing challenge brings with it an energy challenge
Left unaddressed, the cost and availability of energy are poised to become deciding factors on when, where, and how fast new housing developments are built.
New tone for Healey transportation funding task force
The task force met on Wednesday and several members, who asked not to be identified, indicated afterward that the group is no longer going to work on developing a transportation funding plan. Instead, they said, the group intends to focus on developing a “tool kit” that could be used by policymakers to develop a transportation funding plan.
The promise — and problems — of the US construction industry
More than 80 percent of construction work was union labor after World War II, but that dropped in single generation to 20 percent. Mark Erlich takes stock of what it would take to bring that number back up — and with it make construction work again a solid path to the middle class.
Big electricity shift coming: Are we ready?
Demand for power from the grid is expected to grow by more than 17 percent over the next 10 years, as electrification of vehicles and home heating drives up consumption, more than offsetting growth in energy efficiency and solar installations.
Lawmakers hear testimony on bill banning political deepfakes
Finegold’s bill would also allow candidates targeted by a deceptive or fraudulent deepfake to seek civil legal action against people who create or post it, with damages of up to $10,000 per incident.
EPA should reject machine gun range on Cape
The National Guard’s proposal, which the public has not had the opportunity to review or comment on, fails to eliminate or meaningfully reduce the core threats to the water supply that were identified in the EPA’s review.
Senate budget plan makes community college free, eliminates RTA fares
Sen. Michael Rodrigues of Westport, the chair of the Senate’s budget-writing Ways and Means Committee, said the budget plan also provides $10 million to launch bus routes connecting regional transit authorities.
SJC ponders environmental justice, East Boston substation
A clarification has been added to this story. A PROPOSED ELECTRICITY substation in East Boston has become a test case for how much energy infrastructure an environmental justice community should […]
Use the Steward crisis to improve health care equity
The crisis at Steward Health Care, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, can also be an opportunity to make good on the promise of equity in health care for all patients in Massachusetts.
Wu gets high marks from voters in think tank’s survey
The survey, conducted for the group by national pollster John Della Volpe, asked about Wu’s job performance, among other topics. Fifty-seven percent of registered voters believe she is doing a good job, while 35 percent rate her negatively.
SJC probes ‘relatedness’ for app-based driver ballot petitions
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT on Monday began to tackle an assortment of potential 2024 ballot measures that would establish the status and rights of app-based drivers. Initiative petitions put forth […]
A Message from Editor Bruce Mohl
Dear readers: There has been a lot of change here over the last 15 years and I am writing today with news of more. When I arrived, CommonWealth was a four-times-a-year wonky print […]
Steward bankruptcy filing presents pros and cons for Mass.
At a State House press conference with aides and local health care union and industry officials, Gov. Maura Healey sought to reassure patients, workers, and community officials that the eight Steward hospitals in Massachusetts would continue to operate normally even as the Dallas-based hospital chain goes through the bankruptcy process in Texas.
Response to Gaza campus protests demonstrates lack of preparation
With commencements approaching at campuses riven by pro-Palestinian protests, security expert Juliette Kayyem says we’re seeing a “lack of preparedness” on the part of universities for something “already known on the calendar.”
Safety and free speech at campus protests
This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Juliette Kayyem, a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and former Assistant Secretary in the Department of Homeland Security, to discuss the ongoing student protests around Israel and Gaza. They touch on the character of the protests, different university responses, what an effective response to protest looks like, and how to balance free speech and safety concerns.
Steward stays open as it seeks bankruptcy protection
The company, which operates eight hospitals in Massachusetts and has been sinking under a pile of debt to vendors and its de facto landlord, said it does not expect any interruption to day-to-day operations.
Not easy turning artists into a political force on Beacon Hill
Paradoxically, the reason that artists need state support so desperately is the same reason they are often missing in political mobilizing: they are strapped for time and money.
Getting to yes on siting energy projects
Our studies suggest that the key is carefully structured negotiations that lead to enforceable agreement. At the project level, this is accomplished through enforceable community benefit agreements, or CBAs.