ONE OF THE main arguments in favor of legalizing recreational marijuana was that consumers would have access to tested, regulated products, and know exactly what they are buying. But a CommonWealth investigation reveals that the potency levels listed on websites and product labels at marijuana stores are regularly inflated, sometimes by as much as a […]
Shira Schoenberg
Shira Schoenberg is a reporter at CommonWealth magazine. Shira previously worked for more than seven years at the Springfield Republican/MassLive.com where she covered state politics and elections, covering topics as diverse as the launch of the legal marijuana industry, problems with the state's foster care system and the elections of U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Gov. Charlie Baker. Shira won the Massachusetts Bar Association's 2018 award for Excellence in Legal Journalism and has had several stories win awards from the New England Newspaper and Press Association. Shira covered the 2012 New Hampshire presidential primary for the Boston Globe. Before that, she worked for the Concord (N.H.) Monitor, where she wrote about state government, City Hall and Barack Obama's 2008 New Hampshire primary campaign. Shira holds a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.
Posted inEducation
Healey picks Patrick Tutwiler, former Lynn superintendent, for education secretaryÂ
GOV.-ELECT MAURA HEALEY on Friday announced the appointment of former Lynn school superintendent Patrick Tutwiler as her education secretary. Tutwiler is currently working as a senior program officer for the Barr Foundation, where he develops new models for high school education. Before that, he worked as deputy superintendent and then superintendent of Lynn Public Schools, […]
Posted inPolitics
Baker nominates Jubinville for clerk magistrate
IN ONE OF HIS LAST nominations as governor, Gov. Charlie Baker has nominated Governor’s Councilor Robert Jubinville to a lifetime appointment as clerk magistrate of Framingham District Court.  Jubinville’s nomination must still be approved by his colleagues on the Governor’s Council. It is not the first time Baker has chosen a sitting governor’s councilor for […]
Posted inEconomy
Low birth rates, slow immigration harms state workforce
ALMOST EVERY INDUSTRY, Â from hospitals to restaurants, is struggling to hire in Massachusetts. And while some of this may be due to COVID-related factors that will eventually diminish, a new report by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation says one major reason for the challenge is not going away any time soon: demographics. The new report puts […]
Posted inDrug Addiction
Opioid overdose deaths leveling off, but at high levelÂ
AFTER A SHARP SPIKE in opioid-related overdose deaths during the COVID pandemic, the numbers appear to be leveling off this year, but they still remain higher than before COVID hit, according to new data from the Department of Public Health. Gov. Charlie Baker, in a statement, noted that since taking office in 2015, he has […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Baker withdraws Amirault pardon recommendationsÂ
IN A STUNNING REVERSAL of a controversial policy recommendation, Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday withdrew his recommendation to pardon Gerald Amirault and Cheryl Amirault LeFave, who were convicted in a high-profile child sexual abuse case in the 1980s. “Following yesterday’s hearing, it is apparent that there are not sufficient votes from the Governor’s Council to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Governor’s Councilors skeptical of Amirault pardons
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER recommended pardoning Gerald Amirault and Cheryl Amirault Lefave, who were convicted in a high-profile child sexual abuse case. But members of the Governor’s Council on Tuesday suggested that their approval is far from a done deal.  Amirault and Lefave were convicted of sexually abusing children at Fells Acres Day Care Center in Malden in […]
Posted inState Government
Healey taps Matthew Gorzkowicz for state budget chiefÂ
GOV.-ELECT MAURA HEALEY made her first cabinet pick Tuesday, announcing that longtime government finance expert Matthew Gorzkowicz will serve as her secretary of administration and finance.  Gorzkowicz, a Democrat, was undersecretary of administration and finance under Gov. Deval Patrick, the last Democrat to hold the corner office. “This is going to be a dynamic and […]
Posted inMarijuana
Boston marijuana shop opens with construction workers unpaid
ON ITS WEBSITE, Newbury Street marijuana retailer Rooted In touts its commitment to social justice, equity, and the Boston area community. It boasts of profit sharing with employees and a commitment to building generational wealth for people of color.  “Our mission is to build a community-conscious cannabis business committed to engaging, serving, and benefiting members […]
Posted inHealth Care
Health care leaders identify problems, solutions for Healey
IT’S THAT TIME of year again, when advocates gearing up for a shift in state administrations are laying out their policy goals. The latest report, released Thursday, comes from interviews with a wide range of health care organizations, convened by the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation, a nonprofit attached to the insurer, and […]