Happening Today
Police reform demands, U.S. Senate campaigns, and more
— Labor officials release state-level data on the unemployment rate — and total employment in Massachusetts during the month of June.
— U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, who faces a tough re-election challenge from U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy, embarks on a statewide bus tour to highlight how he ‘has delivered again and again for Massachusetts cities and towns,’ 10:30 a.m.
— Clergy and labor leaders gather in front of the State House for a press conference calling on the House to pass police reform legislation, 11 a.m.
— SEIU 32BJ Political Director Dalida Rocha, Brazilian Workers Center Executive Director Natalicia Tracy, and Pioneer Valley Workers Center member Claudia Rosales speak at a press conference to demand that police reform legislation includes granting driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants, 12 p.m.
— U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, who is challenging U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, holds a press conference with labor leaders after touring Mass Maritime Academy to discuss local jobs for offshore wind, 1:15 p.m.
For the most comprehensive listing of calendar items, check out State House News Service’s Daily Advances (pay wall – free trial subscriptions available), as well as MassterList’s Beacon Hill Town Square below.
Today’s Stories
Reminder to readers: SHNS Coronavirus Tracker available for free
A reminder to our readers as the coronavirus crisis unfolds: The paywalled State House News Service, which produces MASSterList, is making its full Coronavirus Tracker available to the community for free on a daily basis each morning via ML. SHNS Coronavirus Tracker.
The coronavirus numbers: 11 new deaths, 8,163 total deaths, 143 new cases
CBS Boston has the latest coronavirus numbers for Massachusetts.
Baker on Trump’s CDC data move: ‘A lot of us are very concerned about this’
Another example of the governor biting his tongue while getting his point across. From the AP’s Steve LeBlanc and Mark Pratt at the Lowell Sun: “Gov. Charlie Baker is criticizing a decision by the Trump administration to shift the collection of hospital data related to the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to a private technology firm. ‘It sets us up for a situation where it’s going to be very hard to understand what truth actually is …’ Baker said.”
WGBH’s Paul Singer and CommonWealth’s Bruce Mohl have more on the governor’s reaction to the brazen Trump administration attempt to shift, fudge, hide and muddy the coronavirus data in an election year – and that’s our non-biting-tongue description of the CDC move.
To ban evictions or not to ban evictions? That’s the question
With the state’s evictions and foreclosures moratorium due to expire next month, Gov. Charlie Baker yesterday said he hasn’t made up his mind whether to extend the ban for another 90 days. He made the comments as he announced another $20 million in funding for homelessness prevention and other community aid. MassLive’s Steph Solis and SHNS’s Chris Lisinski (pay wall) have more.
Btw, also from SHNS (pay wall): “Report: Local Solutions to Housing Problems Dying on Beacon Hill.”
There was indeed one revenue-raising measure in the Senate transportation bill
Much has been made of the fact that the Senate’s nearly $17 billion transportation borrowing bill – which passed yesterday (SHNS) – didn’t include any new state taxes. But it did have a provision giving municipalities the power to impose taxes for transportation – and some senators were upset that the measure was kept in the final Senate borrowing bill. SHNS’s Chris Lisinksi (pay wall) has the details.
Separately, CommonWealth magazine’s Shira Schoenberg reports that lawmakers yesterday finally sent a $1.1 billion supplemental budget bill to Gov. Charlie Baker, a bill with lots of local earmarks in it, most of them for pandemic-related items.
And don’t forget the billions more the state will have to borrow for jobless benefits
As lawmakers on Beacon Hill mull multibillion-dollar transportation bonding packages, the Globe’s Larry Edelman reports that the state has already borrowed $455 million from the feds to pay for surging unemployment claims in Massachusetts – and that fed loan is just the start. The state’s projected jobless-fund shortfall is $3 billion, minimum.
Woburn got the most PPP loans in Mass.? Woburn?
Nothing against Woburn. But it does seem odd that Woburn, or at least its ZIP code area, has landed the most federal PPP loans in Massachusetts. The BBJ’s Jessica Bartlett has the ZIP-code-by-ZIP-code data.
In the clear: Ethics Committee finds no violations in Trahan fundraising
It was, basically, her money. The House Ethics Committee has cleared U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan of wrongdoing in connection with more than $300,000 that surged into her campaign account during the closing days of the hard-fought 2018 campaign. Christian Wade at the Eagle-Tribune reports the committee cited Trahan’s prenuptial agreement with her husband in finding the funds were hers to loan to her campaign as she chose and “not excessive contributions from her husband.”
The Globe’s Andrea Estes and the Lowell’s Sun Robert Mills have more.
A year into her reign, Boston school superintendent is already facing open revolt
Is yet another out-of-towner BPS superintendent getting the Boston treatment? It appears so. The Globe’s Malcom Gay reports on what looks like a full-scale rebellion against Superintendent Brenda Cassellius over her plans to overhaul the city’s struggling high schools. At the forefront of the revolt: High school headmasters. Cassellius appears to be holding her ground – for now.
2021 mayoral race preview? Walsh and Wu trade barbs over civic funds
Speaking of Boston politics, we were wondering when Mayor Marty Walsh would respond to Councilor Michelle Wu’s open attack on the mayor in a Globe opinion-piece earlier this month. But it apparently took Wu’s follow-up comments yesterday for Walsh to basically say he’s sick and tired of criticism aimed at his Boston Resiliency Fund (and we presume his Racial Equity Fund too), though he didn’t name Wu by name. He only referred to a certain person eyeing his City Hall office.
WGBH’s Arjun Singh and Kaitlyn Locke and Universal Hub’s Adam Gaffin have more on the funds dust-up that sure looks like a sort of pre-mayoral-race scrimmage.
Meanwhile, Walsh denounces latest shooting amid surge in city violence
WCVB reports that Mayor Marty Walsh yesterday sent a simple message following a spate of city shootings, the latest involving a store clerk who suffered life-threatening injuries in a botched robbery: “The violence in our city needs to stop.”
Meanwhile, from NBC Boston: “Shootings in Boston Are Up 20% This Year, With Shooting Deaths Up 25%, Data Shows.” CommonWealth magazine’s Michael Jonas had a good piece last week on the irony of the surging violence happening at a time of widespread protests against police brutality.
Compare, contrast: Fundraising tells a story in Neal-Morse race for Congress
Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse closed the fundraising gap between him and U.S. Rep. Richard Neal in the last quarter, but Morse still faces a massive cash-on-hand deficit, Dusty Christensen at the Daily Hampshire Gazette reports. Neal heads into the final few weeks before the Sept. 1 Dem primary with $4.2 million in his warchest –much of it from PACs and lobby groups — while Morse has about $315,000.
Native Americans call for replacing state flag amid chaotic triple-protest rallies
The Herald’s Lisa Kashinsky reports that it got a little crowded and confusing yesterday outside the State House – with three separate demonstrations taking place by Native Americans, “Back the Blue” types and what appears to be anti-tax protesters.
MassLive’s Steph Solis reports on the Native American rally that called for replacing the state flag and seal and ending Native-American school mascots.
A handy-dandy list of potential non-white SJC nominees
The Globe’s Shirley Leung provides Gov. Charlie Baker with a short list of potential non-white nominees to the Supreme Judicial Court in anticipation of Justice Barbara Lenk’s impending retirement. It’s more than just a hint from Leung.
Wait ‘til next year: Correia trial pushed back yet again
We’re sure it will be worth the wait. The federal extortion trial of former Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia, already delayed twice, is being pushed back yet again and now likely won’t happen until next January, at the earliest, Jo C. Goode at the Herald-News reports. The judge overseeing the case says he’ll give first priority to trials involving incarcerated defendants, rather than those like Correia who are out on bail awaiting trial.
‘Let The Sun Shine In’
WGBH’s Dan Kennedy got a post-Muzzle Awards suggestion from a certain reader who thinks yet another local institution richly deserves recognition for muzzling free speech: The Massachusetts Legislature. And Kennedy agrees: It’s time to end Beacon Hill lawmakers’ exemption from the state’s public records law.
Not the finest hour for Lynn’s finest: A noise complaint, an arrest, a holding-cell beating
The Globe’s Thomas Grillo reports on a Lynn case that’s definitely stirred things up in the North Shore city. And part of the apparently ugly LPD incident was caught on video.
House passes penalties for female genital mutilation
SHNS’s Katie Lannan reports that the House yesterday passed legislation that would establish criminal and civil penalties for the practice of female genital mutilation. It’s an issue that has come before lawmakers in the past but appears to have more momentum this year.
SHNS (pay wall — free trial subscription available)
Remote control: Unum says it will clear all 400 workers out of Worcester office
They’re headed home. Disability insurer Unum says it will allow all 400 of its Worcester-based employees to work from home in the future, a move that could eventually empty out thousands of feet of office space inside a key development project in the city’s downtown, Steven Foskett Jr. at the Telegram reports.
This could be the start of a workplace trend, something many employees will welcome and most office landlords dread.
Sunday public affairs TV: Jeanne Shaheen, Russell Holmes and more
Keller at Large, WBZ-TV Channel 5, 8:30 a.m. This week’s guest: Richard Rothstein, author of “The Color of Law: The Forgotten History of how Our Government Segregated America,” who talks with host Jon Keller about, among other things, racial discrimination in housing in Greater Boston.
This Week in Business, NECN, 10a.m. Jim Rooney, Greater Boston Chamber CEO, discusses Phase 3 of the state’s reopening and the ICE international-students controversy; Queens Company CEO Jessicah Pierre on creating a networking group for women of color; and the BBJ’s Doug Banks reviews the top business stories of the week.
On The Record, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 11 a.m. This week’s guest: U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, who talks with host Ed Harding, followed by a roundtable political discussion with Boston Globe columnist Adrian Walker and political analyst Rob Gray.
CityLine, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 12 p.m. With host Karen Holmes Ward, this week’s topic: Living a New Normal, with state Rep. Russell Holmes and Police Sergeant Eddy Chrispin, president of the Massachusetts Association of Minority Law Enforcement Officers.
Getting to the Point on Elections in Massachusetts
Join the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for a conversation with Massachusetts State Senator Barry Finegold (D-Second Essex and Middlesex) and Massachusetts State Representative John Lawn (D-10th Middlesex), Chairs of the Committee on Election Laws, about the preservation and expansion of voting in the upcoming primary and general elections.
Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate
Legislators, civic leaders to discuss how Massachusetts can go 100% renewable
As the scheduled end of the legislative session draws closer and key clean energy bills still pending, state officials and community leaders will gather virtually to discuss the Legislature can put Massachusetts on track 100% renewable energy.
The ADA at 30: “Let the Shameful Wall of Exclusion Come Down”
The Edward M. Kennedy Institute will join the George and Barbara Bush Foundation to convene a virtual event with key activists, advocates, and policymakers who helped make the Americans with Disabilities Act a reality for a bipartisan celebration of that landmark civil rights legislation –– and, equally important, focus on the challenges that will shape the future of the disability movement.
Individual Homelessness in a COVID-19 World Part II: Local Public Perspectives on Addressing Homelessness
Join the Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance for a panel discussion about local responses to individual homelessness in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis and the need for housing solutions to address this public health crisis.
Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance
Smart ways small business can manage and spend money
Ramon Ray hosts Rhonda Abrams to help your small business navigate tough times and plan a money management strategy for the long term.
Verizon Small Business Webinar Series
Newton and Brookline in Support of Senator Ed Markey
Please Join Senator Ed Markey for a Virtual Event with Event Chairs Rep. Ruth Balser, Hannah Banks, Senator Cindy Creem, Martina Jackson and Rep. Kay Khan.
Virtual 2020 Race Ahead: Moving Forward Together
Join the Boston Business Journal for a virtual discussion on how we can affect real change in our community and move forward together.
Impact of COVID-19: What Area Colleges are Planning for the Fall
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a unique set of challenges for each of us. But one enormous challenge we’re all adjusting to is the complete shift in the way we interact with one another. The North Shore Chamber takes social-distancing very seriously and will be abiding by the Governor’s instructions for Massachusetts to remain safe while reopening at this Special Breakfast.
North Shore Chamber of Commerce
For Real Estate: Why Constant Contact is the Smarter Choice for Online Marketing
In this free, one-hour webinar, you’ll get an overview of the tools that Constant Contact offers.
Virtual Amplify Conference – Nuestro Impacto: Be Counted, Be Heard (Day 2)
Join us for our Virtual Amplify Conference – Nuestro Impacto: Be Counted, Be Heard hosted by Amplify Latinx, the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy and the Gastón Institute, in collaboration with our partner organizations.
Hard-Hit Industries: Rebuilding Restaurants, Retail, and Travel & Hospitality
Pioneer Institute invites you to our Virtual Policy Briefing, “Hardest Hit Industries,” on Wednesday, July 29th at 3:00 PM featuring Mary Connaughton, the Institute’s Director of Government Transparency and Director of Finance and Administration.
Greater Milford Democratic Congressional Debate
The first debate between the Democratic candidates vying to replace Congressman Kennedy, featuring questions from you, the voters and broadcast live on Milford TV! (To protect the health and safety of the candidates and organizers, the event will be held remotely.)
Democratic Town Committees of Bellingham, Hopedale, Hopkinton, Medway, Milford and Norfolk
Today’s Headlines
Metro
Lansdowne Street to turn into pedestrian ‘game day experience’ during Red Sox season – Boston Herald
Lynn Salvation Army has given out 1.5 million meals during pandemic – Lynn Item
Massachusetts
Northampton seeks applicants for 15-member police commission – Daily Hampshire Gazette
Worcester board warning restaurants about following outdoor rules – Telegram & Gazette
Suffolk County DA talks criminal justice reform to Falmouth Democrats – Cape Cod Times
Nation
Biden cuts deep into Trump’s 2020 cash advantage – Politico
Assault weapon ban group spurred by Parkland becomes political advocacy organization – Miami Herald
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