On Friday, nomination papers for state offices became available, prompting an early salvo of pols’ intentions. For example, despite an investigation into his husband, Amherst Senator Stanley Rosenberg picked up nomination papers last week. However, that was not the only Senate news. Springfield Ward 1
Leadership in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate released their committee assignments for the session that began last month. With thousands of bills to consider, committees can begin parse now that they have leaders and membership. The Western Massachusetts delegation received some plum assignments.
UPDATED 1/23/17 11:53AM: To reflect a correction. Samantha Kelly, Lesser’s Legislative Director, does not also carry the title of Legislative Aide. As Eric Lesser starts a new term in the Massachusetts Senate, some fresh faces will serve him in district and in Boston. The Longmeadow
UPDATED 2/1/2017 3:15PM: For a correction. Senator Joseph Boncore, Democrat of Winthrop, is also a Millennial was overlooked in prior versions of this post. BOSTON—Both chambers of the Massachusetts Legislature were sworn in Wednesday with the usual ceremony (and free lunch). Governor Charlie Baker did
The wreckage of this month’s national election has had a number of effects across the country. Given the continued down ballot troubles of Democrats, one immediate consequence has been pushing forward a younger generation of figures in the party. In the Pioneer Valley, this has
Five years ago, cheers broke out in the Springfield City Council chamber after councilors unanimously approved the city’s foreclosure ordinance. Ravaged by the foreclosure crisis and subsequent recession, Springfield had taken a notably bold step toward curbing the deterioration of neighborhoods littered with vacant, bank-owned
The Massachusetts Senate unanimously adopted an amendment offered by Longmeadow Senator Eric Lesser Thursday that would order the Department of Transportation (MassDOT) to study regular rail service between Boston and Springfield. While the Senate’s approval was unsurprising, it inches the commonwealth toward better connecting its
Better late than never. On Thursday the Massachusetts Senate approved protections for transgender individuals’ right to access public accommodations. The House is set to approve a similar bill. While bathrooms have dominated this issue, the implications are far broader than the lavatory. If enacted into
LUDLOW—A column of light spilled out from the old Ludlow Mill that hugs the Chicopee River. Cars jammed the narrow road once lined with rail beds to service the sprawling former factory. Inside the patrons of the brewery named after a legendary local political figure,
SPRINGFIELD—The idea of reaching out to Millennials in particular has been percolating in the Senate since the session began last winter. Indeed issues like the gig economy and social media privacy have been on the chamber’s agenda in that time. But on February 12, as