STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GABRIEL GOMEZ officially launched his campaign for the US Senate on Thursday, describing himself as a “new kind of Republican” interested in breaking the partisan divide in Washington and reining in government spending. “The simple fact is that if we are going to preserve the American dream for future generations, we […]
Matt Murphy
Posted inEconomy, Opinion, Politics, State House News Service
Patrick applies budget pressure on lawmakers
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOV. DEVAL PATRICK’S PLAN to raise $1.9 billion in taxes to finance investments in education and transportation got a two-pronged push Wednesday, as University of Massachusetts President Robert Caret made a conditional pledge to freeze tuition and fees and Patrick released information detailing planned spending increases in each of the state’s […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Murray faces probe on campaign finances
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE REGULATORS FOUND evidence that Lt. Gov. Tim Murray and his campaign committee did not comply with campaign finance laws and referred the matter last September to Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office. In a Sept. 19 letter, Office of Campaign and Political Finance Director Michael Sullivan informed Coakley that his office […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
LG Murray says he won’t run for governor
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE LT. GOV. TIMOTHY MURRAY, after spending the last 15 years in local and statewide public office, will not run for governor in 2014, citing the time commitment that would be required to juggle his current job, a full-time campaign, and his responsibilities to his family. “As I contemplate the commitment required […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics, State House News Service
Gun control pushed by Obama, state officials
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOV. DEVAL PATRICK AND REP. DAVID LINSKY of Natick are pushing gun control measures in Massachusetts, while President Obama unveiled a $500 million package of reforms, calling on Congress to pass universal background checks and ban military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. The president also issued 23 separate executive orders, including […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State House News Service
Lawmakers, gun control advocates mull strategy
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE. After hosting a private meeting that drew half the Legislature and invited gun control advocates, Natick Democrat Rep. David Linsky said today he intends to file a comprehensive bill within the next two weeks that will address the type of guns and ammunition that can be sold legally in Massachusetts and […]
Posted inState House News Service, Transportation
Electronic tolls pushed by Patrick
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOV. DEVAL PATRICK PLANS to recommend switching to an electronic tolling system in Massachusetts, embracing new technology that would cost about $100 million and result in more than 320 toll collectors losing their jobs. On the heels of a Boston Herald report Monday morning, Patrick and Transportation Secretary Richard […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State House News Service
Patrick wants to cut local aid by 1 percent
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE AS PART OF A PLAN to address an estimated $540 million mid-year budget gap, Gov. Deval Patrick on Tuesday slashed spending by $225 million and asked the Legislature to allow him to unilaterally reduce unrestricted local aid to cities and towns by 1 percent. Unrestricted local aid pays for local services, […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Burgess posting was a ‘screw up,’ Patrick says
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE HOURS AFTER the Boston Globe reported that the state highway safety director has a long record of accidents and driving infractions, the Patrick administration indicated that Sheila Burgess should not have been hired for that job in 2007 and will be reassigned when she returns to work. The Globe reported Sunday […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
LG Murray says what everyone knows
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE LT. GOV TIMOTHY MURRAY wants to be the state’s next governor. That much he made clear on Thursday. His plans to make that happen, however, are still a work in progress. As expected, Murray did not announce his intention to run for the top job in two years. But in a […]