Does increasing the supply of housing, even if it’s mainly higher-cost, market-priced units, temper the runup in costs that has so many residents straining to make ends meet? The idea follows the basic economic principle of supply and demand – when more of something is made available, its price falls. But there are plenty of “supply skeptics” who aren’t convinced that simply opening the housing production spigot will lower costs, and argue instead that it often just drives up prices by promoting gentrification.
Yes, building more housing does lower rents, study says
Posted inEnvironment
Mass. barrels toward critical period of ‘rapid decarbonization’
Massachusetts has a staggering to-do list in order to meet its 2050 commitment to hit net zero greenhouse emission.
Posted inHealth Care
Steward to close Stoughton hospital in April
Dallas-based Steward, which describes itself as the largest owner of community-based hospitals in Massachusetts and fourth-biggest private employer, plans to close its New England Sinai Acute Long-Term Care and Rehabilitation Hospital (NESH) by early April.
Posted inEnergy
DPU starts plotting path to ‘beyond gas future’
After three years of studies and analysis, the DPU issued an order that requires gas utilities to begin to rein in their businesses and moved toward a “beyond gas future.”
Posted inCriminal Justice
SJC weighs officer privacy against public records rights
The Supreme Judicial Court is wading into a drawn-out public records fight stemming from the Bristol County District Attorney’s refusal to release documents, recorded interviews, and the names of officers involved in the 2021 fatal shooting of 30-year-old Anthony Harden.
Posted inOpinion
High-stakes test big challenge for those with disabilities
As they transition into adulthood, my students face myriad challenges, and missing out on educational and employment opportunities because they don’t do well on standardized tests and therefore can’t graduate shouldn’t be among them.
Posted inPolitics
He’ll make a mark as Quincy’s Black, gay city council president – but don’t ask him about it
The first Black person and openly gay person to serve in elected office in Quincy, Ian Cain scoffs at the identity politics of the left, and appears to fit more comfortably in the mold of a Charlie Baker Republican.
Posted inOpinion
MCAS graduation requirement is not punitive, it’s a lifeline for highest-need students
Since its inception as part of the 1993 Education Reform Act, the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) has been a cornerstone of our commitment to educational equity and a driving force elevating Massachusetts from the middle of the pack to becoming a national leader in education outcomes.
Posted inPolitics
An unlikely love fest at Boston City Hall
Battles between Boston mayors and public safety unions historically can be compared to slugfests glimpsed through a backyard fence.
Posted inState Government
Mass. tax revenues take dive in November
Massachusetts tax revenues took a dive during November and are running 4.3 percent below forecasted levels through the first five months of the fiscal year, reinforcing concerns that state government needs to slow its pace of spending.
Posted inOpinion
UMass Dartmouth remains committed to South Coast economic development
WHEN THE STATE legislature withdrew its longstanding support for the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth lease of the Star Store building in New Bedford in August, necessitating the university’s departure from […]
Posted inMarijuana
Judge puts off Goldberg-O’Brien meeting
A state judge sided with Shannon O’Brien on Tuesday, ruling that the suspended chair of the Cannabis Control Commission shouldn’t be required to meet with Treasurer Deborah Goldberg until all of the investigations into O’Brien are completed and the investigators are available for questioning.
Posted inEnergy
NextEra tactics drive up costs for Mass. ratepayers
NextEra has a lot of chutzpah. The Florida-based company portrays itself as one of the largest clean energy companies in the country, but for the last several years it has […]
Posted inHousing
Newton councilors scale back housing plan in face of state deadline
NEWTON CITY COUNCILORS signed off on the wealthy Boston suburb’s first substantial zoning overhaul in more than 35 years, approving a plan on Monday night that aims to bring more […]
Posted inState Government
Fiscal storm clouds on the horizon in Mass.
Regarding tax collection, Sen. Michael Rodrigues said: “We find ourselves at a precarious crossroads. There are storm clouds gathering on the horizon.”
Posted inMarijuana
O’Brien attorney calls charges against her laughable
“You will see there are only five specific charges against her and if you look at what she’s charged with and look at what really happened, you’ll find that these are laughable,” Shannon O’Brien’s lawyer, Max Stern, told reporters.
Posted inState Government
Dems return to Beacon Hill in force, pass stalled spending bill
All the parliamentary maneuvering over the close-out spending bill didn’t change anything, but it captivated Beacon Hill for nearly a week in the middle of a holiday recess.
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts’s bold MCAS leap backwards
IN A BOLD move of, let’s call it, “inspiration,” the Massachusetts Teachers Association and some of our elected officials have decided that the MCAS — the very foundation of our […]
Posted inPolitics
Jane Swift’s life of public scrutiny and personal challenge
Swift’s years in elected office were marked by normal political scrutiny plus a fog of turn-of-the century skepticism that a young woman or a new mother could do the job. Now, with almost all of the state’s top constitutional offices held by women, the state and its media have been engaged in some self-reflection, considering the way different genders and their roles are scrutinized.
Posted inThe Codcast
Former Gov. Jane Swift on grief and changing times
CommonWealth Beacon’s Jennifer Smith is joined by former Gov. Jane Swift to discuss political changes since her time in office, her current policy work, and the process of public grieving.