Healthcare workers continue to suffer assaults and other incidents of workplace violence. The Massachusetts Nurses Association, the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association, the Massachusetts Division of 1199SEIU, the Massachusetts Emergency Nursing Association and the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians have come together to support meaningful, measurable and enforceable legislation addressing workplace violence in our healthcare facilities. Pass H.4767.
Anyone who’s still in a bar past 2 a.m. or sipping a sidewalk beer in Downtown Crossing could make a convincing case that the World Cup got Massachusetts to loosen up a little, at least temporarily.
We may next find out whether Beacon Hill is ready to loosen its grip on the liquor-licensing process.
The state Senate is taking another stab at something Senate President Karen Spilka once said she’s never understood: why it’s up to the Legislature how many liquor licenses a city or town can issue.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” Spilka told MASSterList Thursday.
Municipalities need to ask lawmakers for permission to give out more alcohol licenses once they’ve hit a certain quota, a dynamic that can create delays for would-be business owners.
It's a system that dates back to the repeal of Prohibition, Sen. Jake Oliveira said last year. An economic development bill teed up for a vote next week in the Senate would change it, letting local officials decide on their own how many licenses they want available for bars and restaurants.
“Cities or towns know their residents. They know what would be helpful. They have plans to develop their main streets,” Spilka said. “I think it should be up to them. It doesn’t have an impact that anybody has ever raised to me, positive or negative, on any other city or town, so I think something like that should be up to the municipality to control.”
The Senate added a similar measure to last year’s budget, but didn’t get the House to go along. There’s no indication the House’s line of thinking has changed — a House bill proposing local control of liquor licenses was shunted earlier this session into a dead-end study order. But Spilka describes the Senate as persistent, willing to pass a policy several times as they try to get their counterparts across the hall on board.
There’s a universe where a liquor-licensing shakeup could also be pitched as a legislative efficiency reform. At a 2025 hearing, a representative from the Massachusetts Municipal Association said the Legislature created more than 265 new liquor licenses in a five-year span, by passing more than 80 different home-rule petitions.
That's a lot of lawmaking energy that could conceivably be redirected.
Massachusetts agreed to later last calls and outdoor drinking zones for this summer’s major events. What’s your bet: Was that a one-off, or a sign of more liquor law changes to come? Tell me at [email protected].
Scammers are getting smarter—and Bay Staters are paying the price. Criminals are using cryptocurrency ATMs to commit fraud, stealing people's retirement savings and costing Bay Staters millions of dollars a year. It’s time to crack down. Pass the SCAM Act to protect Bay Staters' hard-earned money. Learn more at aarp.org/ma.
HAPPENING TODAY
10:30 | Gov. Maura Healey celebrates the dedication of a bridge as the Bob Cousy Pass with Cousy, interim Transportation Secretary and MBTA general manager Phil Eng, and local officials | Bob Cousy Court at Hart Center Arena, Luth Athletic Complex at Holy Cross, 1 College Street, Worcester
10:30 | Asian American Association of Boston holds an Asian American Day press conference | Great Hall
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Healthcare workers continue to suffer assaults and other incidents of workplace violence. The Massachusetts Nurses Association, the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association, the Massachusetts Division of 1199SEIU, the Massachusetts Emergency Nursing Association and the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians have come together to support meaningful, measurable and enforceable legislation addressing workplace violence in our healthcare facilities. Pass H.4767.
FROM BEACON HILL
(S)TICKET SEASON: Gov. Healey announced plans to file legislation, supported by the singer Noah Kahan, that would cap ticket resale prices for concerts and sporting events. It wouldn’t change prices for original ticket sales. | State House News Service
IN THE ZONE: After a 2024 state law that legalized accessory dwelling units in single-family districts, the Senate is pursuing another major zoning change its leaders hope will drive construction of smaller, more affordable homes. The Senate's economic development bill would allow duplexes to be built on all residential lots. | CommonWealth Beacon
WORKPLACE ASSAULTS: Nurses and other hospital workers have lobbied for years for stronger protections against assaults on the job. Both branches of the Legislature have now passed versions of the workplace violence bill and will next need to come up with a compromise | WBUR
NEWS NEXT DOOR
IN MEMORY: Hundreds of people gathered at a vigil for cyclist Louisa Gag, a city of Boston worker killed in a crash last week. Mayor Michelle Wu, who's come under fire for her approach to bike lines and street infrastructure, said the city must accelerate street safety projects. | Boston Globe
PRIMARY POLITICS: MassGOP-endorsed gubernatorial candidate Mike Minogue says he won't debate primary opponent Brian Shortsleeve. Minogue says Democrats want the two Republicans to fight among themselves, but he's focused on a general-election against Gov. Healey. | GBH News
WINDING UP IN COURT: Massachusetts AG Andrea Campbell is one of eight Democratic attorneys general planning to sue the U.S. Department of Interior over the cancellation of offshore wind projects off the coast of New York and Maine. | New Bedford Light
EXTRA, EXTRA: North Shore Governor’s Council candidate Diann Slavit Baylis is an immigration lawyer by trade, but you can also catch her witnessing a sea hag attack as an extra in the Apple TV show “Widow’s Bay.” | Marblehead Current
EASTHAMPTON ON ICE: The Easthampton City Council passed a resolution calling for prosecutors in Massachusetts to investigate and charge federal ICE agents if they break state laws. Northampton and Amherst have also taken similar votes. | NEPM
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