Page 47 - Eric Lesser News Today

Legislature Agrees to $626 Mil Economic Development Bill Legislators struck a last minute deal to send cash to help rescue businesses battered by the pandemic Edgar B. Herwick III / WGBH News JAN. 6, 2021.....With many businesses on the brink after months of scraping by through the pandemic, the Legislature struck a late-night deal Wednesday to inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the economy in an effort to spur job growth and keep businesses afloat. The $626.5 million economic develop...

Due to COVID restrictions, Massachusetts legislators are sworn into office in distanced ceremony or virtually — a first for Beacon Hill Updated Jan 06, 2021; Posted Jan 06, 2021 Incoming Sen. Adam Gomez takes his oath of office Wednesday morning during a socially distanced swearing in ceremony outside of the Massachusetts State House. Facebook Share Adam Gomez’s family waived a Puerto Rican flag as the Springfield Democrat took his oath of office as an incoming state senator. His group wa...

A Massachusetts bill classifying biomass as renewable reignites a decade-old fight Photo courtesy of René Théberge When Tanisha Arena thinks of the proposed biomass facility in Springfield, Massachusetts, she remembers a recent fire in a nearby trash incinerator that blanketed her neighborhood in smoke. That smoke was the last thing her city needed, she said. It was October, in the middle of allergy season and a respiratory pandemic, in the asthma capital of the United States. When Arena r...

The House Speaker Ronald Mariano era is here, and there will be no gently paced transition period.Mariano, a 74-year-old Quincy Democrat and longtime deputy to now-departed Speaker Robert DeLeo, took the reins of the House on Wednesday with only six...

Will the state’s economic development bill get done in time? The Legislature has under two weeks to wrap up negotiations on legislation that could unlock nearly $500 million in bonding authority By Jon Chesto Globe Staff,Updated December 21, 2020, 7:00 a.m. Email to a Friend Its an unusual December at the State House, to say the least.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff It has quickly become the craziest of Decembers on Beacon Hill, and a long-awaited economic development bill could end up getting...

East-West Rail Study For years, elected officials and residents of western Massachusetts have longed for a high-speed passenger rail service that would provide a more efficient and easier way to travel between the two halves of the state. For the past two years the state’s DOT has spent $1 million studying three possible plans and, after several delays, a final report is due out by the end of this year. The proposals range in cost from $2.4 billion to $4.6 billion, depending in the amount ...

Parents unable to find work during COVID pandemic struggle to provide a magical Christmas this year Updated Dec 21, 2020; Posted Dec 21, 2020 Carlys masters degree hangs on the wall of her office. Although her hours have been cut in half, Carly sent her daughter to her parents home because she is too high risk after 17 heart surgeries. (Douglas Hook / MassLive) Facebook Share Three years ago, Carly Brownell’s teenage daughter was in critical condition and almost died. The now 19-year-old ha...

For Mass. lawmakers, east-west rail dangles within reach By Lauryn Allen, Boston University Statehouse Program © MA_Worcester_TG Timothy Murray, president and CEO of the Worcester Chamber of Commerce. As an 18-month feasibility study for an east-west rail line to connect Boston and Pittsfield comes to a close, state and federal lawmakers remain optimistic about securing funding for a project they say would bring transportation and economic development to Western Massachusetts...

An eviction crisis: Making the case for more help Housing activists gather in front of Gov. Charlie Bakers house, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020, in Swampscott, Mass. Renters are still being evicted during the coronavirus pandemic despite a federal order that is supposed to keep them in their homes. The nationwide eviction ban went into effect Sept. 4 and was supposed to replace many state and local bans that had expired. But tenant advocates said there are still people unaware of the directive imple...

MassDOT’s million-dollar East-West rail final report overdue; ‘There comes a point where you have to just get the work done’ Updated Dec 11, 2020; Posted Dec 11, 2020 The East-West Passenger Rail Study Advisory Committee held a meeting to discuss their progress at the Springfield Sheraton. This is one of the many charts that lined the room. (Don Treeger / The Republican) Facebook Share The final report for the long-awaited East-West rail link from Pittsfield to Boston was due to be rel...