A clarification was added to this story after its original publication. TWO OF THE THREE COMPANIES vying to build offshore wind farms off the coast of Massachusetts say it would make sense for the state to select two companies to split an 800-megawatt procurement. The third company said an 800 megawatt procurement is the way […]
The Back Story
Posted inThe Back Story
More shots fired in pipeline wars
A group of natural gas pipeline opponents released a report on Thursday suggesting the operator of New England’s power grid used “unreasonable assumptions” when it concluded that rolling brownouts were possible in 2024 without additional gas supplies. The new report, prepared by Synapse Energy Economics for the Conservation Law Foundation and a handful of other […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Capuano, Pressley tout assets with soft touch
It usually goes without saying that candidates look to play to their strengths and highlight what makes them stand apart from rivals in a race. But sometimes those strengths have to be showcased more in the form of a delicate dance than by hitting voters over the head with them. That’s what seems to be […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Ride-hailing apps rule at Logan
RIDE-HAILING APPS such as Uber and Lyft are now the leading way passengers get to and from Logan International Airport, an indication of how rapidly their popularity is growing. According to statistics compiled by the Massachusetts Port Authority, the ride-hailing apps have gone from handling 11 percent of pickups and dropoffs in 2016 to 21.4 […]
Posted inGambling
Steve Wynn’s residual influence
Steve Wynn is gone from the company that bears his name, but is his influence really gone? It’s a question the members of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission are starting to grapple with as they decide whether the alleged sexual misconduct that cost Wynn his job will also cost the company its Massachusetts casino license. Wynn […]
Posted inThe Back Story
The Herald’s phantom editorial page
BY ALL OUTWARD appearances, the Boston Herald continues to chug along under its new ownership, with its hard-working reporters churning out solid stories amidst the demoralizing departure of co-workers from the newsroom’s already depleted ranks. The paper’s editorial page, too, hasn’t skipped a beat, offering up a daily dose of sharp opinion despite the exit […]
Posted inGambling
Mohegan, Wynn casinos rumble in the background
AS THE MASSACHUSETTS GAMING COMMISSION tries to decide whether Wynn Resorts remains suitable to retain its casino license, the two antagonists in the original battle for the license are sparring with each other again. Mohegan Sun, which lost out to Wynn Resorts in 2015, is suing the Gaming Commission in court trying to overturn the […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Spilka followed Rosenberg playbook
Sen. Karen Spilka of Ashland appears to have followed the playbook of the former Senate president, Stan Rosenberg, in pulling together the votes she needed to become the chamber’s next president. At a meeting with reporters outside the Senate president’s office on Thursday, Spilka offered little in the way of a personal vision for what […]
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CT Lottery taps MA film tax credit
LEAF THROUGH THE LIST of recipients of Massachusetts film tax credits and one name comes up year after year: the Connecticut Lottery. One might think the lottery, created by the state of Connecticut, would want to do business as much as possible with companies in Connecticut. In a way, that’s the whole point of the […]
Posted inPolitics
Connecting the lobbying dots
THE LEGISLATURE DIDN’T DO a whole lot last year, but the state’s top lobbying firms kept rolling along. ML Strategies, the lobbying arm of the Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo law firm, and O’Neill and Associates retained their top-of-the-heap status, although fees at both firms were off slightly from 2016. ML Strategies came […]