IT TOOK EIGHT MONTHS after Lorna McMurrey died after working a shift at a Holyoke cannabis cultivation facility for the circumstances of her death to be publicly reported. Comments made by state cannabis regulators Thursday suggest that, astonishingly, they might have been just as in the dark as the public. The company involved, however, says […]
Government
Posted inMarijuana, State Government
Marijuana regulators grapple with chair’s former company ownership
AFTER A LENGTHY discussion, marijuana regulators on Thursday declined to approve a license for a marijuana company that the new chair of the Cannabis Control Commission, Shannon O’Brien, was previously an owner of. Instead, citing confusion about whether the change of ownership was properly done, the commission returned the application to staff for further investigation. […]
Posted inState Government
Auditor identifies $1.2 billion in unfunded mandates
THE STATE HAS a $1.2 billion shortfall in aid promised to cities, towns, and school districts, Auditor Suzanne Bump concluded in a report released Thursday. The report looked at several major categories of state aid and identified $711.4 million in unfunded mandates related to school aid; $448.3 million related to school transportation; and $103.3 million in […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Handful of progressives push change in tax cap
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A GROUP OF PROGRESSIVE Democrats will push to set a $6,500 limit on the maximum tax credit high-income earners in Massachusetts can receive under a tax cap law known as Chapter 62F, taking aim at the policy less than a month before the Baker administration expects to begin shipping out nearly […]
Posted inPolitics
Healey, Diehl debate has heavy focus on Trump, Biden
DEMOCRAT MAURA HEALEY and Republican Geoff Diehl held their first gubernatorial debate Wednesday night, with both candidates linking the other to the policies and beliefs of their party’s leader. Healey, the state’s attorney general and the clear frontrunner in the race according to polls, repeatedly hammered Diehl for his close ties to former president Donald Trump, […]
Posted inGambling
Sports betting needs sound guardrails against problem gambling
THE PATS’ FOOTBALL season isn’t the only thing that kicked off recently in Bay State sports. Gov. Baker signed sports betting into law in August, launching a series of regulatory discussions over the coming months. To date, 42 companies, from big sports books to local entities, have filed notices of intent for operating licenses. As […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Rating agencies praise state, but also issue warning
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE BIG THREE credit rating agencies had largely good things to say about Massachusetts this month, but one firm warned that the strong economic fundamentals and growing state reserves have a counterweight in the state’s vulnerability to coastal storms and flooding. The state is preparing for a $1 billion bond sale […]
Posted inState Government
Report calls big chunk of tax cap funds ‘illusory’
THE STATE is preparing to pay out $1.4 billion in “illusory” funds under the tax cap law, giving wealthy taxpayers a huge windfall, according to a report from the left-leaning Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center. Officials at the center say they are not accusing state officials of doing anything wrong or making a math error. […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t be an outlier, reform the estate tax
SOMETIMES TAX policy is hard and sometimes it is not. Voting to modernize the Massachusetts estate tax as part of the Legislature’s economic development bill is an easy decision – it costs little and protects the middle class, while preventing a flight of wealthy taxpayers from the Commonwealth. Regarding the estate tax, Massachusetts is not […]
Posted inHealth Care
Home care providers looking for permanent rate boost
Boston University Statehouse Program HOME HEALTH AIDES and other support personnel are the often unsung key to older people being able to remain in their homes as they age. But with employees at some fast-food outlets and retail chains able to earn more than home health workers, lots of positions for the vital services go […]