TOSSING COVID RULES aside and caution to the wind does not earn much punishment for businesses in Massachusetts.

In Boston, officials are still regularly chastising restaurants for violating COVID protocols — but had only suspended four and fined three as of a few weeks ago, following over 1,850 complaints. An indefinite license suspension for Causeway Boston by TD Garden ended up lasting 16 days. Three other suspensions lasted for a day each, for disregarding capacity requirements, staying open too late, and, in one instance, hosting a forbidden karaoke night.

On two of the warmer evenings this week, you could see a lot of diners not wearing masks without a meal or drink in front of them, especially in the North End and Back Bay, where people lingered outside waiting maskless for seating. Diners must still only remove face coverings when drinking or eating, according to guidelines.

While over 90 percent of restaurants statewide are reported to be in compliance with COVID guidelines, there are still complaints of maskless strippers, crowded  bars, and people drinking with no food service—some of the violations state inspectors have found during the pandemic. 

In what seems like a glaring mixed message, the Baker administration handed out $1.4 million in state pandemic-relief grants to 23 businesses that had been slapped with license suspensions by the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission. 

“I think coronavirus is a bunch of [expletive]. I thought we were past all of this,” Nick Akoury, owner of K C’s Pub and Grill in Weymouth, told investigators, according to the Globe. “No government is going to tell me how to run my business.” This was after state inspectors found staff not wearing masks, people seated at the bar despite that being banned, and customers ordering alcohol without food.

Despite his harsh words for government oversight, Akoury accepted a $70,000 grant from the state soon after.

The Mardi Gras strip club in Springfield was found to have maskless dancers during a raid last year, and later got a grant of $75,000.

This comes as thousands more businesses — most presumably observing COVID protocol rules — wait for aid to be dispensed from the $668 million total funding available for relief. State Sen. Eric Lesser of Longmeadow said businesses that can’t follow the rules need to go to the back of the line.

The state recently transitioned to the second step of Phase 3 of its reopening plan, with capacity limits removed for restaurants, but rules on social distancing, a maximum of six people at each table, and 90-minute limits on eating times remaining in place.

 It will be interesting to see if restaurants continue strict enforcement of COVID rules as spring approaches, especially as they pine for customers to fill their tables and ease their financial burdens.

SARAH BETANCOURT

FROM COMMONWEALTH

The Baker administration goes on the offensive against teacher unions for demanding their members be vaccinated in schools. “We’re just not going to play that game,” the governor said. The spat is the latest in an ongoing struggle between the governor and the unions.

Sen. Bruce Tarr of Gloucester uses a parliamentary maneuver to put off action on climate change legislation until next week. Tarr, noting the bill didn’t become public until late Wednesday night, said he was taking the action to promote transparency. But Democrats tried to paint him as someone putting politics (the bill rejects amendments favored by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker) above addressing climate change.

Massachusetts governments are likely to receive $8.1 billion from the just-approved federal stimulus package.

Opinion: David Cash of UMass Boston, Michael Goodman of UMass Dartmouth, and Jennifer Menard of Bristol Community College say Massachusetts is no longer the leader on offshore wind and we’re falling behind where it counts. … Jon Hurst of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts says the unemployment insurance relief legislation doesn’t go far enough.

FROM AROUND THE WEB

BEACON HILL

House Speaker Ron Mariano jumps into the debate between Gov. Charlie Baker and teachers’ unions, saying if Baker wants teachers to return to school in person, he should make sure they are vaccinated. (MassLive) Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa of Northampton files legislation to delay the return to in-person learning until after spring break and more teachers and school staff are vaccinated. (Daily Hampshire Gazette)

Boston Herald columnist Joe Battenfeld calls it a horrible move by Baker to pick a fight with teachers unions, and says it was “gutless and divisive” to have his “flunky” (that would be chief Baker advisor Tim Buckley) speak for him in dissing the unions. The Globe’s Jenee Osterfeldt has harsh words for Baker as well. 

The House passed a measure exempting businesses from state taxes on federal PPP grants, but the Senate is not likely to act by Monday’s tax filing deadline, meaning businesses will have to file for extensions to await final action on the change. (Boston Herald) 

The Senate approves a bill – a version of which already passed the House – to extend mail-in voting for municipal elections through June. (MassLive)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS  

Mirroring state trends, Worcester finds that its black and Hispanic residents have been the hardest hit by COVID-19. (Telegram & Gazette) Vaccination rates for Latinos are lagging badly relative to their share of the population. (Boston Globe)

Marty Walsh’s departure as Boston mayor seems imminent. But it’s been imminent for weeks now. (Boston Globe) 

HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

GBH publishes an explainer on how Massachusetts residents eligible for COVID-19 vaccination can book an appointment at their nearest mass vaccination site through a new, online pre-registration system launching today. 

Amid the nurses’ strike at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, the Telegram & Gazette compares the approaches to nursing taken by St. Vincent and UMass Memorial hospitals. 

In the last week, Massachusetts saw a 10 percent decrease in COVID cases, as more than 800,000 people are fully vaccinated against the virus. Only 14 cities and towns are still considered high-risk for COVID spread, and schools report 523 cases. (MassLive)

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

President Biden says he believes the nation will find a new sense of normalcy amid the coronavirus by July 4. (NPR) Biden wants all US adults to be eligible for vaccines by May 1. (Washington Post) 

Massachusetts is hardly alone in experiencing problems with its vaccine sign-up technology. (New York Times)

ELECTIONS

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr., won’t run for reelection this fall, meaning any potential case against former president Donald Trump over his business dealings will fall to Vance’s successor to handle. (New York Times) 

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Although many, including Gov. Charlie Baker, have expressed skepticism, Moderna and Pfizer say they are likely to reach their combined vaccine production goal of 200 million doses by the end of March. (NPR)

Voters in Rockland will determine how the town will spend the anticipated $500,000 it will receive from two recreational marijuana dispensaries. (Patriot Ledger)

Four cannabis operations on Cape Cod and Nantucket get the green light. (Cape Cod Times)

EDUCATION

Students at Salem State University are protesting impending furloughs for their professors. (Salem News)

ARTS/CULTURE

Jacob’s Pillow in Becket announces it will hold in-person performances this summer. (Berkshire Eagle)

New Bedford, which has a large Portuguese population, cancels its annual Day of Portugal celebrations in June due to the ongoing pandemic. (Standard-Times)

A four-part Netflix documentary about the 1990 Gardner Museum art heist will be released starting next month. It’s the work of Boston-area brothers Nick and Colin Barnicle, sons of one-time Globe columnist Mike Barnicle, who was forced out in 1998 over questions about the veracity of his work. (Boston Globe, Washington Post) 

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

Achieving the state’s climate goals means retrofitting lots and lots of homes, including the iconic triple-decker, which is easier said than done. (WBUR)

MEDIA

YouTube says it has taken down 30,000 videos containing false or misleading information about COVID-19 over the last six months. (Axios)