CommonWealth Beacon

What Norway’s dominance at the Winter Olympics can teach us about youth sports American sports culture clings to the belief that early competition builds champions—that competition produces toughness, and that lowering the stakes makes kids soft. Norway offers the most compelling...

ICYMI: What Norway’s dominance at the Winter Olympics can teach us about youth sports #OPINION

Salem, Quincy receiving millions in tax credits for Gateway Cities despite no longer qualifying for the designation Massachusetts has awarded more than $10 million in tax credits to market-rate housing developers in Salem and Quincy based on their status as Gateway Cities even though the two communities no longer met...

GATEWAY CITIES: Salem, Quincy receiving millions in tax credits for Gateway Cities despite no longer qualifying for the designation

Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense? DID THE controversial MBTA Communities housing law force towns to shell out money to devise carefully crafted multifamily zoning plans, or were any

ICYMI: Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense?

Holding the line on Gateway Cities designation There should be no hasty changes to the pool of Gateway Cities . Any future consideration of adjustments should be based on good data, a coherent framework, and involve collaboration with Gateway City...

OPINION: There should be no hasty changes to the pool of Gateway Cities . Any future consideration of adjustments should be based on good data, a coherent framework, and involve collaboration with Gateway City leaders.

Salem, Quincy receiving millions in tax credits for Gateway Cities despite no longer qualifying for the designation Massachusetts has awarded more than $10 million in tax credits to market-rate housing developers in Salem and Quincy based on their status as Gateway Cities even though the two communities no longer met...

NEW: Salem, Quincy receiving millions in tax credits for Gateway Cities despite no longer qualifying for the designation

commonwealthbeacon.org/gateway-citi...

Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform Auditor Diana DiZoglio showed up ready to fight, and some lawmakers indulged her, at a hearing about a ballot question that would subject the Legislature and governor’s office to the public records...

ICYMI: Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform

Holding the line on Gateway Cities designation There should be no hasty changes to the pool of Gateway Cities . Any future consideration of adjustments should be based on good data, a coherent framework, and involve collaboration with Gateway City...

New in OPINION: Holding the line on Gateway Cities designation

commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/hold...

Our three-pronged strategy for supporting our immigrant neighbors Forces opposing justice and equity have always existed, and when they get louder and push harder against what we know is right, history shows we must not only hold our ground, but we must be prepared...

OPINION: Forces opposing justice and equity have always existed, and when they get louder and push harder against what we know is right, history shows we must not only hold our ground, but we must be prepared to do more.

Our three-pronged strategy for supporting our immigrant neighbors Forces opposing justice and equity have always existed, and when they get louder and push harder against what we know is right, history shows we must not only hold our ground, but we must be prepared...

New in OPINION: Our three-pronged strategy for supporting our immigrant neighbors

commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/our-...

For this week's Codcast, reporter Hallie Claflin spoke to Department of Early Education and Care Commissioner Amy Kershaw and Executive Director of Strategies for Children Amy O’Leary about what it will take to make Pre-K truly universal. Check it out:
buff.ly/vUBkare

Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring People and wildlife in the Housatonic River Valley have been living among PCBs since the 1930s, when GE began disposing of them improperly during the manufacture of electrical transformers.

ICYMI: Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring

What Norway’s dominance at the Winter Olympics can teach us about youth sports American sports culture clings to the belief that early competition builds champions—that competition produces toughness, and that lowering the stakes makes kids soft. Norway offers the most compelling...

OPINION: American sports culture clings to the belief that early competition builds champions—that competition produces toughness, and that lowering the stakes makes kids soft. Norway offers the most compelling counterexample imaginable.

What Norway’s dominance at the Winter Olympics can teach us about youth sports American sports culture clings to the belief that early competition builds champions—that competition produces toughness, and that lowering the stakes makes kids soft. Norway offers the most compelling...

New in OPINION: What Norway’s dominance at the Winter Olympics can teach us about youth sports

commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/what...

Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense? DID THE controversial MBTA Communities housing law force towns to shell out money to devise carefully crafted multifamily zoning plans, or were any

UNCATEGORIZED: Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense?

Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense? DID THE controversial MBTA Communities housing law force towns to shell out money to devise carefully crafted multifamily zoning plans, or were any

NEW: Were MBTA Communities costs unfair, or a self-imposed expense?

commonwealthbeacon.org/uncategorize...

Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform Auditor Diana DiZoglio showed up ready to fight, and some lawmakers indulged her, at a hearing about a ballot question that would subject the Legislature and governor’s office to the public records...

BALLOT QUESTIONS: Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform

DiZoglio’s right to hire a lawyer to push audit case should be clear-cut  It’s one thing for Campbell to take lawmakers’ position in the matter and for her office to represent them; it's another for her to take the extreme view that the auditor cannot hire her...

ICYMI: DiZoglio’s right to hire a lawyer to push audit case should be clear-cut #OPINION

Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform Auditor Diana DiZoglio showed up ready to fight, and some lawmakers indulged her, at a hearing about a ballot question that would subject the Legislature and governor’s office to the public records...

NEW: Lawmakers and DIZoglio clash again – this time over public records reform

commonwealthbeacon.org/ballot-quest...

‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs One resident of 5 Franklin Street, a boxy gray building with a flat top and a long wheelchair ramp, has lost his legs and his hands. Two were paralyzed in

ICYMI: ‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs

Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring People and wildlife in the Housatonic River Valley have been living among PCBs since the 1930s, when GE began disposing of them improperly during the manufacture of electrical transformers.

ENVIRONMENT: Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring

Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring People and wildlife in the Housatonic River Valley have been living among PCBs since the 1930s, when GE began disposing of them improperly during the manufacture of electrical transformers.

NEW: Housatonic Valley residents grapple with a PCB disposal site planned for construction this spring

commonwealthbeacon.org/environment/...

Massachusetts has an elder care crisis – and it’s about to get a lot worse A dangerous demographic cliff lies just ahead: There’s been a lot of chatter about the vast demographic bulge that we call “baby boomers” passing 65; but the real news is that the oldest baby boomers...

ICYMI: Massachusetts has an elder care crisis – and it’s about to get a lot worse #OPINION

DiZoglio’s right to hire a lawyer to push audit case should be clear-cut  It’s one thing for Campbell to take lawmakers’ position in the matter and for her office to represent them; it's another for her to take the extreme view that the auditor cannot hire her...

OPINION: It’s one thing for Campbell to take lawmakers’ position in the matter and for her office to represent them; it's another for her to take the extreme view that the auditor cannot hire her own attorney.

How 'universal' is universal pre-K? This week on The Codcast, we dive into Gov. Maura Healey's "Gateway to Pre-K" agenda. By the end of 2026, her administration declared that every family of a 4-year-old in the state’s 26 Gateway Cities...

On this week's Codcast: How ‘universal’ is universal pre-K?

Listen now.

DiZoglio’s right to hire a lawyer to push audit case should be clear-cut  It’s one thing for Campbell to take lawmakers’ position in the matter and for her office to represent them; it's another for her to take the extreme view that the auditor cannot hire her...

New in OPINION: DiZoglio’s right to hire a lawyer to push audit case should be clear-cut

commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/dizo...

How 'universal' is universal pre-K? This week on The Codcast, we dive into Gov. Maura Healey's "Gateway to Pre-K" agenda. By the end of 2026, her administration declared that every family of a 4-year-old in the state’s 26 Gateway Cities...

New on the Codcast: How ‘universal’ is universal pre-K?

commonwealthbeacon.org/the-codcast/...

‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs One resident of 5 Franklin Street, a boxy gray building with a flat top and a long wheelchair ramp, has lost his legs and his hands. Two were paralyzed in

HOUSING: ‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs

‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs One resident of 5 Franklin Street, a boxy gray building with a flat top and a long wheelchair ramp, has lost his legs and his hands. Two were paralyzed in

NEW: ‘You want to put me back on the street?’: Advocates brace for deep cuts to ‘Housing First’ programs

commonwealthbeacon.org/housing/you-...

House passes landmark energy bill with deep cuts to Mass Save, sending it to Senate The legislation reflects the larger tradeoffs around energy policy as Beacon Hill grapples with rising power demand, soaring costs, and quickly approaching climate commitments.

ICYMI: House passes landmark energy bill with deep cuts to Mass Save, sending it to Senate

Massachusetts has an elder care crisis – and it’s about to get a lot worse A dangerous demographic cliff lies just ahead: There’s been a lot of chatter about the vast demographic bulge that we call “baby boomers” passing 65; but the real news is that the oldest baby boomers...

New in OPINION: Massachusetts has an elder care crisis – and it’s about to get a lot worse

commonwealthbeacon.org/government/s...