Happening today:
The State House is closed to the public Tuesday due to winter weather.
9 a.m. | The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education meets remotely to vote on an application for a new charter school in Worcester: Worcester Cultural Academy Public School. They will also discuss amendments to educator license regulations and a new report on Boston Public Schools' data collection systems, transportation services, facilities, student assignment, and internal BPS complaints concerning student safety and bullying
9:15 a.m. | Mass. Gaming Commission holds public hearing to accept input on a set of five regulations dealing with the sports betting industry
10 a.m. | Department of Revenue holds a public hearing on regulations related to the Disability Employment Tax Credit. The credit for an employee with a disability may be equal to $5,000 in their first year of employment, and $2,000 in subsequent years.
10:30 a.m. | Mass. Lottery Commission meets, with Treasurer Deborah Goldberg chairing. The commission is also expected to provide a monthly update on sales and revenue and vote on a request to increase contract obligations by $1.5 million for scratch tickets, game designs and marketing | For access, contact 781-917-6057 or gpolin@masslottery.com.
11 a.m. | Mass. Gaming Commission meets and is expected to vote to finalize the temporary license for mobile betting company Digital Gaming Corporation USA and could vote to finalize five regulations that will get a public hearing earlier Tuesday.
7 p.m. Candidates in the special election for mayor of Salem attend a forum | Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts at Salem State University, 356 Lafayette St., Salem or watch on YouTube
For the first time in 17 years, Salem voters are ready to select a new mayor to lead their city by the sea.
And the competition is fierce. Five candidates are vying for the now-open seat: Steve Dibble, Neil Harrington, Stacia Kraft, Robert “Bob” McCarthy and Dominick Pangallo
Longtime leader Kim Driscoll resigned from her post as mayor at the beginning of the year when she stepped into her new role as lieutenant governor to serve alongside the first-term Gov. Maura Healey.
A preliminary contest will be held March 28 to thin the candidate field down to two focused challengers. The election is May 16.
But first constituents will hear from the candidates in a forum on Tuesday night.
Predicted snowfall that could drop as much as a foot in some places has prompted dozens of school districts across the state to cancel school on Tuesday won’t scare the city well known for its spooky history into canceling the mayoral forum.
The event is “still on,” a Salem State spokeswoman confirmed for MASSterList
The 7 p.m. forum at Salem State University is completely sold out with 300 registered attendees ahead of it will be aired on YouTube and Salem Access TV.
Speaking of the Healey-Driscoll administration, first-term priorities came into view in the unveiling its first major policy proposal on Monday in the form of a tax-relief package.
The nearly $1 billion tax code shake-up that Healey plans to file Wednesday alongside her state budget, targets savings for low- and middle-income Bay Staters and handouts for the business community as well.
The progressive wing of the freshman Democrat’s party was quick to slam the tax package they see as a giveaway to the state’s wealthiest residents, writes The Boston Globe.
Lawmakers in the House — where the bill will be vetted first — tell MASSterList they’re already busy creating proposals “to make the governor’s plan better.”
Cambridge Rep. Mike Connolly, for one, says he wants to see corporations pay their “fair share” in taxes and has pitched a bill to introduce a tiered approach to the corporate tax minimum.
He also wants to raise taxes on high-valued estates which he says would make the governor’s plan to slash taxes on estates under $3 million revenue neutral and “strike a much better balance between competitiveness and equity.”
Keller At Large
More government accountability is a good thing, but when it comes to state lawmakers — and legislative leaders in particular — the power check isn’t found in term limits, writes Jon Keller for MASSterList.
Keller reflects on the state Senate’s decision to nix term limits for its president. For a concept that’s been around since the ancient greeks, “in the pantheon of bad ideas, there should be a spot reserved for the idea of term limits for legislative leaders,” Keller says.
Packing a punch: Winter storm warning brings ‘plowable’ snow
A week of a wintery mix ranging from freezing rain to a dusting of snow, Massachusetts was set to get a solid snowstorm on Monday into Tuesday morning. MassLive rounds up totals with an interactive map.
The Boston Globe rounds up school closures here.
Special elections coming to Boston voters this May
The House on Monday scheduled two special elections for May after state representatives from two Boston districts agreed last week to leave for new jobs. Reps. Jon Santiago and Ed Coppinger filed resignation letters with the House clerk last week, effective Feb. 28, and the House agreed to hold special elections in the two districts on May 30.
T riders still feel unsafe years after deadly crash
Four years after and Emerson College professor was killed by a train while crossing the tracks at Beverly Depot, MBTA riders worry it could happen again. The tracks did not — and to this day do not — have barriers preventing people from walking to the other side as trains approach the station like other crossings only blocks away.
Suit filed over Chelsea Soldiers’ Home deaths by COVID
A class-action lawsuit was filed on Monday by the families of veterans who died of COVID-19 in the spring of 2020 while living at the Chelsea Soldiers Home. The federal suit against current and former state officials alleges their actions led to “premature and preventable deaths of at least 31 veterans” and failed to take “appropriate” corrective action.
Babson professor files discrimination suit over favoring of white men
Associate Professor Lakshmi Balachandra is suing Babson College, where she is tenured, claiming she lost career opportunities and faced economic losses, emotional distress and reputation harm as administrator’s failed to investigate her concerns that the college favors white, male faculty for promotions, privileges and awards.
Boston Mayor Wu wants to abolish the BPDA once and for all
Mayor Michelle Wu ran on a campaign that, in part, included the dismantling of a city agency some say have contributed housing pressures in what’s become one of the most expensive cities in the nation. But city councilors seem more inclined at “consolidation” than straight up abolotion.
Yo Peschi gets jail for guns, crimes promoted on YouTube channel
A federal judge today sentenced Earnest “Yo Pesci” Johnson to 7-and-one-half years in federal custody for his role in a violent pill-pushing drug ring on the North Shore — many of whose exploits he boasted of on his YouTube channel, which remains up, although the latest videos are by his supporters on World Star Boston.
Radical! Covid funds to pay for Ninja Turtles manhole covers in Northampton
Northampton has set aside $20,000 worth of ARPA funds to pay for an artist to make custom manhole covers paying tribute to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which has roots in the city, Will Katcher of MassLive reports, as the universe of projects being underwritten with federal Covid relief funds continues to expand.
Black empowerment council to advise Massachusetts governor
The newly formed Governor’s Advisory Council on Black Empowerment met for the first time on Monday and leaders say they plan a listening tour as they begin their work of advising Gov. Maura Healey on how to reduce racial inequities in the state. Ellen Fleming of WWLP has the details.
Warren asks Supreme Court to preserve consumer protection agency she helped create
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a lower court’s ruling that imperils funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency she helped create before ever seeking elected office. Business Insider’s Jason Lalljee and Ayelet Sheffey report Warren warned the court that dismantling the CFPB could have disastrous impacts on financial markets and the economy.
New Bedford offering $5,000 sign-on bonus to new police officers
The city of New Bedford is dangling a $5,000 sign-on bonus to newly hired cops who spend at least five years working in the city’s police department, the New Bedford Light’s Anastasia Lennon reports. The cash bonus is likely one of the largest incentives of its kind in the state and comes as the department is at least 45 officers short of its staffing targets.