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By CHRIS LISINSKI

Lawmakers from both parties signaled Tuesday they share a government watchdog’s concerns about upheaval at the Cannabis Control Commission, but Democrats who wield decision-making power stopped short of indicating what kind of response they might...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

The fight over the fate of a sweeping new gun law expanded to another front late last week with a second lawsuit challenging the measure’s constitutionality.Gino Recchia and the Bellingham gun shop he owns, Mass Armament, filed a complaint in federal...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Opponents of a major new gun law say they have collected a bit less than half of the signatures they need by early next month to suspend the measure until voters would potentially get a chance to decide its fate in 2026.A group of gun owners and...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Legislative leaders have few specifics ironed out for a potential return to formal business after they failed to find agreement last week on a major jobs bill and several other popular proposals.With Beacon Hill now fully ensconced in summer vacation...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Supporters of medical aid in dying pressed Wednesday for a late-session vote on the proposal, pointing to growing numbers of legislative backers and movement at the committee level as a sign that “anything is possible.”With one week remaining...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

The national group pursuing a ballot question that would increase what Massachusetts employers must pay tipped workers faces a new 11th-hour obstacle that could imperil its fate.A restaurant industry trade group higher-up filed an objection with state...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — A pair of potential ballot questions reshaping the work landscape for app-based drivers will be permitted to advance, the state’s highest court ruled Thursday, clearing the way for voters to make decisions with national implications.The...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — This week’s dismal weather forecast might actually have a silver lining for some restaurateurs.After nearly four years with a streamlined system in place to permit outdoor dining and permission to sell takeout alcoholic drinks, both practices...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Gov. Maura Healey’s push to overhaul local procurement procedures, rethink post-employment benefits and make permanent some pandemic-era policies won over many city and town leaders, but points of friction in her bill could create some tricky...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey’s proposal to give cities and towns new tax-hike authority would provide “game-changers” at the local level, especially for less-populated areas, local mayors say.A bill Healey filed last month would offer municipalities the...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Massachusetts businesses kicked off the new year with a sunny disposition.Business confidence among employers surveyed by Associated Industries of Massachusetts rose in January to an 11-month high. The business trade group attributed the boost to...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Senate Democrats rolled out a wide-ranging gun reform bill Thursday, targeting a vote in one week on a police-endorsed measure that is likely to generate considerable opposition among firearm owners.After months of closed-door talks between...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — The second annual state budget bill from Gov. Maura Healey proposes $58.15 billion in total spending, suggesting comparably modest growth over prior years, and a bevy of cost-control maneuvers in an attempt to navigate an increasingly...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Gov. Maura Healey joined eight counterparts from other states in a new plea for federal immigration action, including funding to support states that have spent billions of dollars placing new migrant arrivals into emergency shelters.Nine governors,...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — The Healey administration’s plan to supercharge housing production with billions of dollars of investment won some degree of praise from almost every corner of the state this week, but influential voices are at odds over some of the more...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Beleaguered public transit, K-12 education, and the growing climate and clean energy technology sector would all get major boosts in state funding under Gov. Maura Healey’s vision for the year ahead.In a State of the Commonwealth speech...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey will press forward in her annual state budget with major investments into early education and child care despite her administration’s own forecast of limited revenue growth.Healey announced Tuesday that she will propose...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — The climate crisis is fueling a steady growth in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather, and Massachusetts cities and towns face an increasingly common conundrum trying to respond to those crises.Many of the disasters that have hit...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Massachusetts will fail to hit a major emissions reduction requirement in 2030 unless Beacon Hill passes significant legislation to accelerate progress, leaders of a top advocacy group warned this week.As plans begin to take shape for the...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Voters will not be asked next year whether Massachusetts should revive local-option rent control after organizers working on a 2024 ballot question suspended their campaign late Friday.After facing pushback from other housing justice and progressive...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Massachusetts continued to record more births than deaths from July 2021 to July 2022 even though the state’s total population shrunk in that span, suggesting that residents decamping to other locales is the primary driver of a trend that has ramped...