Massachusetts Senate

Senate goes light on short-term rental regs

Economy/ Housing

Senate goes light on short-term rental regs

Lodging industry pans bill as a gift to Airbnb and other home-sharing apps

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THE MASSACHUSETTS SENATE has passed its bill for short-term-rentals, a stripped-down version of the House measure that simplifies the tax on hosts and eliminates any tiered structure so that people offering a single room in their home are treated the same as the investor with scores of units for rent. The Senate bill, passed on(...)

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Chaos in the Senate?

Media/ News Analysis/ Politics

Chaos in the Senate?

Hard to see

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THE AWKWARD TRANSITION from Senate President Harriette Chandler to Senate president-elect Karen Spilka makes for great copy, but it doesn’t seem to be having a huge impact on the chamber’s legislative output. Senators are still processing legislation. (Criminal justice reform emerged from a conference committee a little over a week ago.) Votes are being taken.(...)

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The Download/ Politics

Chaos in the Senate?

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The awkward transition from Senate President Harriette Chandler to Senate president-elect Karen Spilka makes for great copy, but it doesn’t seem to be having a huge impact on the chamber’s legislative output. Senators are still processing legislation. (Criminal justice reform emerged from a conference committee a little over a week ago.) Votes are being taken.(...)

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Spilka followed Rosenberg playbook

Politics/ The Back Story

Spilka followed Rosenberg playbook

Chandler indicates she is in no hurry to leave president’s post

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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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Special elections ready-made for insiders

Politics/ The Back Story

Special elections ready-made for insiders

Boston state Senate race follows well-worn pattern

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THE CANDIDATES ARE off and running in the short sprint to the April 3 special election primary to fill the state Senate seat vacated in late January by Linda Forry. The race is sure to generate some excitement for political junkies, but it could also be seen as grounds for some unease and misgivings about(...)

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Chandler no longer “acting”

Media/ Politics

Chandler no longer “acting”

Senate Dems look to put Rosenberg in the rear view mirror

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SENATE DEMOCRATS AGREED to remove the “acting” title from Senate President Harriette Chandler for the remainder of the year before holding an election for a new president, deciding the storm clouds hovering over Sen. Stan Rosenberg were overwhelming the chamber’s business and precluding any comeback by the former president at least this year and maybe(...)

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Chandler elected acting Senate president

Politics

Chandler elected acting Senate president

Investigation ordered into allegations of sexual misconduct, Senate interference by Rosenberg husband

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STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE SENATE INITIATED an Ethics Committee investigation on Monday night into its now former president Sen. Stanley Rosenberg in a dramatic day of upheaval that saw Worcester Democrat Harriette Chandler installed as the new acting Senate president pending the outcome of an investigation into sexual harassment and Senate interference by Rosenberg’s(...)

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Rosenberg denies Senate meddling by Hefner

Politics

Rosenberg denies Senate meddling by Hefner

Beacon Hill leader mum on sexual assault charges, says husband seeking treatment for ‘alcohol dependence’

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SENATE PRESIDENT STAN ROSENBERG said he was “devastated” by the charges of sexual harassment and assault against his husband, who plans to seek inpatient treatment for “alcohol dependence.” Rosenberg faced reporters outside his State House office on Friday afternoon a day after Boston Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham reported that four men allege Rosenberg’s husband, Bryon(...)

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Senate budget pinned on shaky revenue projections

Economy/ Politics

Senate budget pinned on shaky revenue projections

Weak collections so far spread concern, trigger search for new taxes

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STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE SENATE WAYS AND MEANS Committee members on Tuesday unanimously approved a $40.3 billion spending plan for fiscal 2018 that they said recognizes the state does not have as much revenue as it needs to pay for desired programs and service. With approximately $400 million in new revenues proposed, the budget tries(...)

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