Financial education can be empowering

Mass. treasurer, Citizens Bank take message online

By Deborah Goldberg and Jerry Sargent Economy, Finance 0 Comments Apr 30, 2018

FOR FAMILIES TO BREAK DOWN economic and social barriers and achieve financial security and stability, we must help them access the skills and tools they need to succeed. Financial education is the pathway to make more informed decisions that significantly impact one’s economic future. By empowering people to empower themselves, we help to ensure greater economic stability(...)

Economy

Middle class ‘slowly clawing its way back’

But in Boston, housing costs may swamp any gains

By Michael Jonas Economy, housing inequality, Income inequality, Mayor Marty Walsh 0 Comments Apr 20, 2018

THE AMERICAN DREAM has long been predicated on a strong and growing middle class. That’s why there has been so much talk in recent years about the withering of that dream. Growing income inequality and stagnant wages among all but those at the top have made the goal of a stable middle-class life an elusive(...)

The Download/ Economy/ Housing

Middle class ‘slowly clawing its way back’

By CommonWealth Staff American Dream, Economy, Income inequality, Mayor Marty Walsh 0 Comments Apr 20, 2018

The American Dream has long been predicated on a strong and growing middle class. That’s why there has been so much talk in recent years about the withering of that dream. Growing income inequality and stagnant wages among all but those at the top have made the goal of a stable middle-class life an elusive(...)

Economy/ Marijuana/ Technology

Pot board high on Worcester

Cannabis commission to locate main office in central Mass.

By Jack Sullivan Cannabis Control Commission, Commuter rail, Economy, Legal marijuana, Tim Murray, Worcester, Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce 0 Comments Apr 3, 2018

THE STATE BOARD regulating the legal marijuana industry will set up permanent shop in Worcester as its headquarters with a satellite office in Boston. The five-member Cannabis Control Commission on Tuesday voted unanimously to seek a 13,000-square foot office space in the state’s second largest city and find a smaller, 5,000-square foot office in the(...)

Plugging In/ Economy/ Energy/ Opinion

Winter costs make region cold for business

New Englanders pay $1 billion more for energy than the rest of the country

By Jon B. Hurst business, Economy, Energy, small business 1 Comment Feb 16, 2018

TO SAY THAT this has been a tough winter is an understatement. Already, we’ve seen record cold snaps, soaring energy bills and story after story about how Massachusetts has burned 2 million barrels of oil to generate electricity because we didn’t have an adequate supply of energy. And it’s only February. Already, Massachusetts is one(...)

Modernizing Mobility/ Tracking Transportation/ Environment/ Transportation/ Opinion

A question of access: Shifting the transportation conversation

Equity, climate, and choice are keys to developing a workable plan for the future

By Alice Brown Boston 2030, Clean Energy, Economy, Energy, Environment, Infrastructure, Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Taxes and Budget Issues, Transportation 0 Comments Jan 20, 2018

TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY matters to everyone who commutes, travels, or runs errands on a daily basis, and these everyday trips create a sense that we are all experts on transportation. For creative problem solvers, every traffic jam, transit delay, confusing intersection, or missing bike lane connection provides an opportunity to brainstorm possible solutions. But what(...)

Drugs/ Economy/ Health/ Marijuana

Debit card payer pulls plug on pot dispensaries

Cash only after statement by federal prosecutor begins to chill legal market

By Jack Sullivan Economy, Health, Legal marijuana, Medical marijuana, US Attorney 0 Comments Jan 9, 2018

THE HARDLINE STANCE from the top federal prosecutor in the state about pot enforcement has caused a company that processes debit transactions for medical marijuana dispensaries to stop accepting the bank cards and forced the shops to revert to cash-only, adding a layer of hardship to patients. Westborough-based Merchant Services Consulting Group (MSCG), which processes(...)

Economy/ Education/ Housing/ Politics/ Transportation/ Winter 2018

Mayor of firsts

Yvonne Spicer says she’s undaunted by new challenges—a good trait for the first person to serve as mayor of Framingham.

By Jack Sullivan Affordable housing, Economic development, Economy, Education, Framingham, Municipal Government, Spicer, Transportation 0 Comments Jan 9, 2018

Photographs by Frank Curran YVONNE SPICER, like a lot of her fellow Framingham residents, freely admits that she voted against the charter question to make the state’s biggest town a mid-sized city. But once the measure passed by the thinnest of margins, the former teacher and vice president of the Museum of Science did what(...)

Economy/ Housing/ Winter 2018

Puerto Ricans struggle to rebuild lives in Mass.

Evacuees face language, culture, economic barriers

By Linda Enerson Affordable housing, Economy, health care costs, Housing, Income inequality, Puerto Rico 3 Comments Jan 9, 2018

ON A CRISP morning in November, Veronica Perez and Limarie Rivera, both self-evacuees from Puerto Rico, borrow a car from Rivera’s cousin and make their way to the New North Citizens’ Council in Springfield. New North is one of nearly two dozen welcome centers around the state designated as a first stop for people coming(...)

Criminal Justice/ Drugs/ Marijuana/ Politics

Confusion reigns in states with legal pot


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