It can’t be any fun to want to be a loyal backer of President Biden, only to look at the ground and realize you are standing on quicksand. Such has been the situation of Gov. Healey, who is watching the migrant crisis suck the oxygen out of her administration, and whose primary option is to complain. Then […]
Editions
Environmental review on Hanscom Field expansion for private jets in Massachusetts incoming
Environmentalists want to put a plan to expand capacity at Hanscom airport for private jets — which are among the most egregious polluters — on standby. A review process of environmental concerns is about to kick off this fall. Developers selected by Massport to build out the half-million-acre project that includes 27 hangars for private aircraft […]
Massachusetts Parole Board needs members who spent time in jail, say lawmakers
There are two vacancies on the state Parole Board and criminal justice reform advocates are telling Gov. Maura Healey to pick members who have spent time in jail themselves. “An essential lived experience that has too often been excluded from the Parole Board is one that can only be derived from a period of incarceration,” says […]
Hurricane Lee mostly misses Massachusetts but hits surge pricing in rideshare apps
Hurricane Lee may have spared Massachusetts for the most part, but Uber and Lyft drivers say the storm dealt them another kind of blow not visible on radar. Surge pricing was cut off in rideshare apps on Friday afternoon when Gov. Maura Healey declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm’s anticipated punch. State law forbids ride apps to charge […]
Cash-strapped MassGOP to charge presidential hopefuls to get on 2024 primary ballot
Facing a pile of mounting legal debt and a dearth of donors, state Republican Party leaders will — for the first time — charge presidential primary candidates a fee to get on the ballot in Massachusetts, sources tell MASSterList. The fee to make it onto the so-called Super Tuesday ballot would be $20,000 per candidate, but […]
New construction in Massachusetts still has natural gas hookups, despite movement to ban fossil fuels
As attention turns to electrifying the power grid in an effort to wean the state off natural gas dependence and meet mid-century emissions goals, developers say the time for natural gas has still not passed. Massachusetts is rolling out a major initiative to retrofit existing homes and buildings — the second-biggest polluters after fossil-fuel-guzzling planes, trains and […]
Officials want feds, not Bay Staters on hook for costs to house, feed thousands of incoming migrants
A top House lawmaker said his chamber is bracing for an eventual spending bill to cover the growing costs of delivering emergency shelter and services to an increasing number of legal immigrants and families in need of support. It’s a “multibillion-dollar question,” Milton Rep. William Driscoll told MASSterList, referring to how much taxpayers from Massachusetts […]
Massachusetts criminal justice system ‘failing’ young adults, bill would treat offenders 18 to 21 as juveniles
Society has deemed adults must mature to at least 21 before they can legally smoke, drink, gamble and buy guns but when it comes to the criminal justice system, adults “age in” at the ripe age of 18. A new Senate committee is exploring the impacts of keeping older teenagers and emerging adults in the juvenile justice […]
Massachusetts law doesn’t always recognize parental rights for same-sex, non-traditional mothers and fathers
Lawmakers have returned to action from their summer slumber with plenty on their plates. But if history is any indication, progress is likely to be slow for the thousands of other bills up for consideration this session — which formally ends next August. One bill that Truro Sen. Julian Cyr said should see action this […]
Cannabis reform aims to level playing field for Massachusetts businesses who don’t want to pay to play
Come November, the Cannabis Control Commission will roll out new regulations meant to lend the commission more control over local host agreements between cities and towns and marijuana businesses, cap impact fees communities can assess on businesses, allow for social consumption sites and remove barriers to entry for people with criminal records. Host community agreements and the […]