Beacon Hill witnessed something rare this past week. A Democratic state senator from Quincy publicly rebuked Senate President Karen Spilka’s reelection to the chamber’s top leadership post. Sen. John Keenan opted to vote “present” during Spilka’s reascension to the Senate President’s Office because of what he said were the branch’s poor marks on transparency. He … Read more
State Auditor Diana DiZoglio plans to again ask the Massachusetts Legislature Friday to participate in an audit of “high-risk areas” after she faced repeated rejections from top legislative leaders who claimed an audit law did not formally take effect until this month. In an interview with the Herald, DiZoglio said she is preparing to send … Read more
Four business stakeholders who withdrew their opposition to Boston’s plan to hike commercial tax rates are rethinking their compromise with the mayor, given the latest city data that show homeowners won’t be hit with a dramatic tax increase. Originally Published: December 5, 2024 at 4:40 PM EST Read original article here Denial of responsibility! Pioneer … Read more
A Bourne Republican’s effort to quickly overturn a local election through the Massachusetts court system was largely shot down by a Boston judge, who said there was no evidence of fraud and voiding the contest would harm thousands of voters, according to court documents. Kari MacRae filed a lawsuit and emergency motion in Suffolk County … Read more
A summit between Senate President Karen Spilka, Mayor Michelle Wu, Boston senators, and the business community to discuss a controversial tax proposal from the mayor apparently ended without “consensus,” according to one local lawmaker present at the meeting. After months of inaction by the Senate on a plan that would shift more of the city’s … Read more
A Boston city councilor is pressing the mayor to provide details on what steps the city will take to blunt the impact of a projected double-digit residential tax increase next year, amid revelations that her bid to raise commercial tax rates is all but dead on Beacon Hill. Originally Published: August 8, 2024 at 7:40 … Read more
State Sen. Nick Collins is joining the chorus of voices calling for a new approach to combat Boston’s revived open-air drug market at Mass and Cass, saying that the mayor’s decision to put housing before treatment is what doomed her plan. Originally Published: July 30, 2024 at 5:11 a.m. Read original article here Denial of … Read more
A massive borrowing bill focused on spurring affordable housing development in Massachusetts and addressing soaring costs for prospective homeowners and renters attempts to “course correct” state housing policy, a top Democrat said as senators began debating the bill Thursday morning. Senators argued a $5.1 billion proposal released earlier this week and were expected to pass … Read more
Politics isn’t cheap in Massachusetts. For the cost of a state Senate campaign these days, a person could probably buy or put a solid down payment on a house. Not in Boston, of course. Don’t kid yourself. Maybe in Texas if anywhere. Subscribe to continue reading this article. Already subscribed? To login in, click here. … Read more
Top Democrats in the Senate are expected to propose a $250 million investment into a transportation fund as part of their fiscal year 2025 budget that will in turn let the state borrow $1.1 billion over the next five years, a source with knowledge of the plan said. Subscribe to continue reading this article. Read … Read more
