STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE COMPETITION among colleges for students is intensifying, and state laws banning abortion are among the new considerations for students and families. A recent poll of students and families in nine Northeast states found that 76 percent of students do not want to attend school in a state where abortion is […]
Michael P. Norton // State House News Service
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Healey hangs empty picture frame by her desk
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE INSTEAD OF HANGING a portrait of an individual by her desk, Gov. Maura Healey is instead opting for a minimalist gold frame, a move proposed by students that the governor hopes will inspire young people to envision themselves inside the frame. Following a statewide student essay competition, Healey and Lt. Gov. […]
Posted inHealth Care
Health Policy Commission sticks with benchmark
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE WITH CONSUMERS experiencing higher health care outlays and some putting off care because of it, a state commission on Wednesday stuck with the annual state health care cost growth benchmark, which is a target rather than a binding cap on price or spending escalation. The Health Policy Commission voted to keep […]
Posted inTransportation
Campbell joins lawsuit opposing JetBlue purchase of Spirit
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell is jumping into the effort to halt JetBlue’s proposed acquisition of Spirit Airlines, calling it an “anticompetitive deal” and predicting it will reduce consumer choices. Campbell’s office on Tuesday afternoon said it was joining the US Justice Department and the attorneys general of New York and the […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA to pay for New Bedford pedestrian bridge
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE NEW BEDFORD OFFICIALS say the city will not be on the hook for any construction costs associated with a $21 million pedestrian bridge that will provide a link to a new downtown inter-city rail station. New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell’s office reported Tuesday that after more than a year of talks, […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Healey’s office approves Nantucket topless beach bylaw
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ATTORNEY GENERAL Maura Healey’s office has approved a bylaw that allows anyone to go topless on any public or private beach on Nantucket. Island voters approved the bylaw during a Town Meeting held in May. The citizen petition offered by Dorothy Stover, formally labeled “Gender Equality On Beaches” and proposed as […]
Posted inTransportation
REAL ID deadline pushed back to 2025
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE SAYING IT WANTED to alert the public, the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles late Monday announced that the US Department of Homeland Security has extended the REAL ID enforcement date from May 3, 2023 to May 7, 2025. The extension means that beginning on May 7, 2025, air travelers 18 years […]
Posted inTransportation
New airport terminal coming in New Bedford
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE SOUTH COAST leaders say state transportation officials have made a “commitment” for design and project funding for a new airport terminal and control tower at New Bedford Regional Airport. Mayor Jon Mitchell and Rep. William Straus, co-chair of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, hosted a visit to the airport in June with […]
Posted inPolitics
Healey: Millionaire tax money would go to transportation, education
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR Maura Healey on Sunday denied she’s abandoning some of her boldness to avoid making a campaign misstep and promised to help create a “whole climate corridor” in Massachusetts to help the world move away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy. During an interview on WCVB’s On The […]
Posted inState Government, State House News Service
Dems feel Baker knew of looming tax-break blockbuster
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE AS THEIR CAREFULLY crafted plans for tax relief and massive spending outlays began to slip away with last Thursday’s stunning news about a 1986 tax law, frustrated Democrats on Beacon Hill went into spin mode. First, late Friday afternoon, Rep. Christine Barber of Somerville took to the House floor to suggest […]