THE MASS BRIEF

Tuesday, September 29, 2026

Good morning, Massachusetts. Coffee's on. Let's get into it.

The Lead

Lindsay Clancy is back in court, and the retrial question is wide open.

Lindsay Clancy appeared in Plymouth Superior Court on Tuesday for the first time since a mistrial was declared Sept. 4 in the killing of her three children in Duxbury. It was a busy hearing that resolved very little. Her lawyer, Kevin Reddington, renewed a motion asking Judge William Sullivan to find her not guilty before any retrial, arguing prosecutors never conclusively proved she committed the killings. Prosecutor Shanan Buckingham called that "laughable," pointing out that the defense stipulated at trial to physical evidence establishing her culpability. Sullivan took the motion under advisement.

The real action comes Nov. 2, when Sullivan will hear a batch of additional defense motions, including a request to dismiss the murder charges and a request for a "limited inquiry" into the lone juror who reportedly held out for conviction. He told both sides to come ready to talk about a possible retrial date. Prosecutors, meanwhile, want a gag order on Reddington, citing the "carnival atmosphere" of the first trial. That, too, is under advisement.

The key unknown is what Plymouth District Attorney Tim Cruz will do. Outside court, he told WBZ his office has not decided whether to retry the case but is proceeding as though a second trial is coming, and will wait to see how the pending motions play out. Retrial, reduced charges, or a plea are all still on the table, and Nov. 2 is when the picture should start to sharpen.

Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

Healey holds a comfortable lead, with Trump looming over everything. A new CommonWealth Beacon/MassINC poll has Gov. Maura Healey at 54 percent to Republican Mike Minogue's 32 among likely voters. Minogue has put more than $15 million of his own money into the race, yet 16 percent of voters still haven't heard of him, and he's underwater among independents. Affordability remains the governor's soft spot. CommonWealth Beacon →

Voters look ready to keep legal weed and the 2024 gun law. The same poll shows 61 percent opposing Question 8, which would end recreational marijuana sales, and 70 percent backing Question 9, which would keep the state's sweeping firearms law. The other seven ballot questions are much closer to coin flips. CommonWealth Beacon →

Deaton takes another shot at a Senate seat. Republican John Deaton, who lost to Elizabeth Warren by 20 points two years ago, is challenging Sen. Ed Markey, and even his supporters are skeptical. He's lent his campaign $1 million and is pitching himself as independent of Trump, and of both parties. He admits the path is "uphill, and narrow." Boston Globe →

Advocates say Healey's closeout budget doesn't fix the SNAP call-center mess. The governor's supplemental budget includes $26.6 million to keep 78 new Department of Transitional Assistance hires and add 10 more. The Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, which sued Sept. 21, says that's not enough. Its complaint alleges the DTA phone line disconnected 74 to 81 percent of calls in early 2026, and SNAP caseloads have dropped 18 percent since August 2024. Boston Globe →

A new Sagamore Bridge moves closer to reality. MassDOT has issued a request for proposals for a design-build team for the new bridge, with a preliminary cost above $1.6 billion. Whoever wins must sign a project labor agreement with the region's building trades. Bids are due May 2027, with construction expected to begin in winter 2027. Boston Globe →

Healey visits a New Bedford firehouse she wants to save. Fire Station 9, built in 1934, was slated to close as part of the city's response to a $32 million deficit. The supplemental budget would send New Bedford $1.3 million that Mayor Jon Mitchell has pledged to use to keep it open. "Public safety is job one in government," Healey said. CommonWealth Beacon →

Lawrence may be headed for a mayoral recall. A month after a federal pandemic-fraud indictment, Mayor Brian DePeña now faces a 15-count state indictment for allegedly secretly recording two City Hall employees and posting the footage online. Two city councilors expect a recall effort, though neither is ready to back one. GBH News →

Worth Your Attention

• Oct. 1: Dangerousness hearing for Roxbury shooting suspect Jermaine Blackman, who allegedly fired a ghost gun at a stopped driver. Boston Globe →
• Oct. 5: Jury selection begins in federal court for the trial of former Stoughton detective Matthew Farwell, accused of killing Sandra Birchmore. It's expected to run about 20 days, without live-streaming cameras. Boston.com →
• Nov. 9: Hanover special town meeting, where voters will weigh doubled first-offense water fines ($100) and a pension prepayment of up to $2 million. South Shore News →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Diego Leonardo — House, 16th Essex — Filed: 9/28/2026
• Emily Doran (Democratic) — City Councilor, Somerville — Filed: 9/28/2026
• Raymond Boutin (Democratic) — City Councilor, Lowell — Filed: 9/28/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

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The MBTA's commuter rail contract is about to become the most expensive line item in the agency's history, and Monday is decision day — sort of. Final bids from Keolis and two rival operators are due today for a new nine-year deal to run the system, and whoever wins will be signing up for costs that experts say could blow past $10 billion over the life of the contract.

Here's the number that should make every rider and taxpayer sit up: the T's current deal with Keolis was supposed to cost $4.2 billion over 12 years. Instead, it's cost about $5.2 billion through last June — nearly $1 billion over budget — and that doesn't even include the final fiscal year's tab, which isn't locked in yet. Brian Kane, who runs the T's advisory board, has floated the $10 billion figure for the next contract, and if that holds, it would represent a staggering escalation for a system that riders already complain doesn't run often enough or reliably enough.

Why does this matter beyond the spreadsheet? Because every dollar that goes to running trains is a dollar that isn't going to fixing the Red Line, extending service, or keeping fares affordable. The T says it's done an independent cost estimate to use as a baseline for bids, but the real test comes at the end of the year when the agency picks a winner — Keolis or one of its two competitors — and Massachusetts finds out just how much more expensive it will be to keep the trains running through 2036. Watch for that announcement, and watch for pushback from riders and legislators once the number becomes public.

Full story at Boston Globe →

Nor'easter finally loosens its grip. The slow-moving coastal storm that battered Massachusetts all weekend is winding down Monday, but a Flood Watch remains in effect through Tuesday and another band of heavy rain was expected to move through Monday morning. Nearly 70,000 customers lost power at the storm's peak, with the South Shore taking a beating — Scituate, Cohasset, and Hull all saw gusts over 50 mph, a seawall and home foundation were damaged in Humarock, and a toppled utility pole in Quincy landed on a parked car. WBZ / CBS Boston →

Two ballot questions, two very different fights over how you vote. Question 3 would scrap party primaries in favor of a single "all-party primary," with supporters arguing it boosts competition and opponents warning it does the opposite. Question 4 would let Massachusetts voters register on Election Day itself rather than 10 days ahead — Secretary of State Bill Galvin is a backer, the state GOP is opposed, and if it passes it wouldn't kick in until 2028. Start reading up now; November is closer than it feels. WBUR → and Boston.com →

Lakeville police fatally shoot man during a "well-being check." Gregory Buckley, 31, was shot and killed Saturday after officers responding to a family's request to check on him found him allegedly pointing a gun at them in his Heritage Hill home. Four officers were taken to the hospital for evaluation and released; State Police are investigating, and the incident was captured on body cameras. It's the kind of case that will likely renew questions about how police respond to mental health crises. Boston Globe →

Bristol County police chiefs are fed up with Ash Street Jail turning away arrestees. Sheriff Paul Heroux tightened medical and mental-health screening at the jail, and refusals have jumped from 32 in 2022 to 135 last year — forcing local departments to burn hours at hospitals or pull officers off patrol to guard detainees themselves. Swansea's police chief called the situation "completely appalling" in a letter to Heroux, and it's becoming a real flashpoint over who's supposed to bear the cost of the county's public safety obligations. New Bedford Light →

Healey dangles $1 million to get phones out of classrooms. With no statewide cellphone ban in place, Governor Maura Healey is offering grants to help districts buy phone pouches, train staff, and write policies — applications are due October 21. It's a modest sum relative to the scope of the problem, but it signals where state education policy is heading even without legislative action. Boston.com →

Marshfield's new town administrator says the whole town has been skipping procurement law. Five weeks into the job, Ted Langill told the Select Board that departments across Marshfield haven't been following procurement rules — calling it a liability — as the board adopted a 12-month list of expectations for his position. A new procurement policy is being drafted now, with enforcement expected by November. South Shore News →

Tuesday, September 29: A critical status hearing in the Lindsay Clancy case at Plymouth Superior Court could determine whether Timothy Cruz's office retries the Duxbury mother after her murder trial ended in a hung jury earlier this month. WCVB plans to stream it live. WCVB →

October 1: New SNAP benefit amounts and eligibility rules take effect nationwide, affecting an estimated 37 million recipients — worth checking if you or someone you know relies on the program. WWLP →

October 21: Deadline for Massachusetts schools and districts to apply for Healey's new $1 million phone-free schools grant program. Boston.com →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Diego Leonardo — House, 16th Essex — Filed: 9/28/2026
• Emily Doran (Democratic) — City Councilor, Somerville — Filed: 9/28/2026
• Raymond Boutin (Democratic) — City Councilor, Lowell — Filed: 9/28/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

The Mass Brief • Powered by South Shore News

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Massachusetts politics, development, and daily life — straight to your inbox.

Powered by South Shore News

A slow-moving nor'easter is hammering the coast, and the South Shore is taking it hardest.

This storm has been parked over New England since Friday, and it is not in a hurry to leave. As of Sunday morning, roughly 13,000 Massachusetts customers remained without power, down from a peak of over 15,000, with outages concentrated in Cohasset, Marshfield, Hanover, Duxbury, Quincy, Rockland, Norwell, East Bridgewater, Halifax, Pembroke, Plymouth, Kingston, and Brockton. Wind gusts hit 60 mph in Hull and 58 mph in Plymouth. A utility pole came down on Milton Street in Quincy, crushing a parked car. In Humarock, pounding waves are threatening a seawall and an adjacent home, while a neighboring house lost part of its roof to the wind.

The bigger concern now is water, not wind. A coastal flood warning runs through 8 p.m. Sunday across eastern Plymouth and Norfolk counties, and astronomically high tides — combined with a relentless northeast wind — mean Sunday's midday high tide and Monday's overnight high tide both carry real flooding risk. StormTeam 5's Sean Kelly says the worst of the wind has passed, but rain lingers into Monday as "impact weather" before things finally clear Tuesday afternoon. If you're on the water in Scituate, Hull, Marshfield, or anywhere along Duxbury and Humarock, this is not a "check the tide chart once" storm — check it again before you leave the house Monday morning.

Full story at WATD →

Two fatal shootings, one violent Saturday. A man was shot and killed just after 1 p.m. Saturday at a building along the Fairmount commuter rail tracks in Hyde Park — the site is reportedly a marijuana grow facility, and police are looking for two men seen running along the tracks. Separately, a man and two Lakeville police officers were hospitalized after an "officer-involved shooting" Saturday afternoon; police won't say whether officers fired on the man, who they'd been told was armed and possibly in crisis. Two very different, very serious incidents — both under investigation. Boston Globe → | Boston Globe →

Medfield's police chief is out — for now. Chief Michelle Guerette was placed on paid administrative leave Wednesday while an outside investigator looks into alleged policy violations town officials won't detail. Guerette, hired in 2019, was previously at the center of a 2022 investigation into officers sleeping on the job. The department says operations continue as normal under existing command. Boston.com →

Both governor's race candidates want to suspend the gas tax. That's a mistake, argues one columnist. With affordability dominating the campaign, Republican nominee Mike Minogue has proposed suspending the gas tax whenever fuel tops $4 a gallon (with an eye toward killing it entirely), and Governor Maura Healey has countered with a two-month suspension of her own. A CommonWealth Beacon opinion piece calls it an election-year stunt that would blow a $120 million-plus hole in road and bridge funding for a few cents a gallon in savings. Worth watching whether either proposal survives contact with the Legislature. CommonWealth Beacon →

Plymouth County's pension bill just got a lot bigger, with almost no warning. The Plymouth County Retirement Board quietly reset its funding assumptions, and towns like Norwell and Duxbury are learning their annual pension assessments are jumping 9.75% a year, with full funding now pushed back to 2032. Norwell reportedly found out via a town-manager listserv, not from the county itself. This lands right as towns are already gutting services — Marshfield's failed override has already cost the school district 75 positions — making this a story to watch closely all fall. South Shore News →

East Bridgewater's data center ban wasn't tough enough, so the town is starting over. The Planning Board opened a hearing on its own proposed ban, then unanimously shelved it after residents argued it was riddled with loopholes and might not survive Attorney General review anyway. The board is now asking the Select Board for a 12-month moratorium instead, buying time to write something sturdier. South Shore News →

Duxbury tells shorefront owners: no permanent structures in the seawall easement, sorry. The Select Board adopted a policy requiring decking, fences, and other temporary items to be cleared from the seawall easement outside a seasonal window, over objections from owners who called the rules costly and arbitrary. The board's response, essentially: without the license at all, nothing would be allowed there, ever. South Shore News →

• Ballot Question 3 would scrap party primaries for state elections in favor of a single all-party primary — WBZ's Jon Keller hosted an extended debate between supporters and opponents this weekend as the fall campaign heats up. WBZ / CBS Boston →
• Beacon Hill's biggest bills remain stuck. Legislative leaders are split on how urgently to move major outstanding legislation, with some deals possibly landing before Election Day and others not until the session ends in January — worth tracking as the fall session grinds on. MassLive →
• The storm isn't over. Rain lingers as "impact weather" through Monday before clearing Tuesday afternoon — if you're in a flood-prone area, keep an eye on Monday's overnight high tide. WCVB →

Track all bills →

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

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THE MASS BRIEF

Saturday, September 26, 2026

The Lead

Two mayors, two courtrooms, one very bad week for municipal leadership in Massachusetts.

Brockton Mayor Moises Rodrigues pleaded not guilty Friday in Hingham District Court to a single count of assault and battery, stemming from an allegation that he inappropriately touched a then-17-year-old girl on the shoulder and waist during a May parade while she marched with the Brockton High School band. Rodrigues came out swinging afterward, calling the case "the flimsiest of cases" and "nonsense," and suggesting — without much elaboration — that racial and political animus are driving the prosecution. His attorney, Mark Lawton, went further, calling the whole thing "a shakedown" tied to a $150,000 demand letter sent to the city in August. The alleged victim's attorney, Alex Grant, pushed back hard on that framing: "All she really wanted from the beginning is to be left alone."

Meanwhile, up in Lawrence, Mayor Brian DePeña's legal troubles just multiplied. Already under federal indictment for pandemic loan fraud and money laundering, DePeña was hit Thursday with a 15-count state indictment — 14 counts of illegally distributing wiretapped communications and one count of witness intimidation. Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell's office alleges DePeña secretly installed audio-recording security cameras in his City Hall office, captured a private conversation between two employees last March, then shared it with 14 people and later tried to intimidate a witness. This is on top of the federal fraud case already hanging over him.

Neither case is really "about" the other, but together they raise the same uncomfortable question for voters in two of the state's largest Gateway Cities: what happens to a city's business when its chief executive is fighting criminal charges instead of running the place? Brockton and Lawrence both have real, unglamorous municipal problems — schools, budgets, housing — that don't pause for arraignments. Watch for city council dynamics in both places to shift as these cases drag on, and don't be surprised if calls for resignation get louder if either mayor is indicted on additional charges.

Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

Nor'easter socks the South Shore and Cape this weekend. Saturday evening into overnight brings the worst of it — gusts up to 60 mph on the Cape and south coast, 2 to 5 inches of rain on the Islands, and a real chance of downed trees and power outages since leaves are still on. The Hingham-Hull ferry is cancelled for the whole weekend, and the T is warning that buses, subway, and commuter rail could all see disruptions. WCVB →

Heating oil just hit a record $6.15 a gallon statewide — up more than 70% from last year. AAA's Mark Schieldrop says New England, where a huge share of U.S. households still burn heating oil, is "in a bad place" heading into winter, and prices aren't expected to come down soon. If you're on a fixed income or tight budget, now's the time to look into fuel assistance programs before the cold really sets in. Boston.com →

A nine-day Green Line shutdown starts today. MBTA General Manager Phil Eng says the signal upgrades — running between North Station and the ends of the B, C, D, and E lines — are "essential" before the new Type 10 train cars can roll out in 2027. Shuttle buses will cover the gap; expect at least 20 extra minutes on your commute. CommonWealth Beacon →

New Bedford hits pause on Flock cameras. The City Council voted 8-3 Thursday for a temporary ordinance barring the license-plate reader technology as its contract nears a November 12 expiration, giving the council time to write permanent rules. Mayor Jon Mitchell isn't thrilled but says he'll work with councilors on a policy that balances privacy and public safety. New Bedford Light →

Springfield asks for help after a rough stretch. Mayor Domenic Sarno is seeking state and federal aid to cover costs from an August storm and a cyberattack that hit Springfield Public Schools — a reminder that municipal budgets are getting squeezed from all directions these days, weather and hackers included. WWLP →

A conservative think tank wants Healey to scrap her project labor agreement order. A new cost study is pushing Governor Maura Healey to rescind her executive order encouraging project labor agreements on state construction, arguing it drives up costs. Healey's office isn't budging yet, but expect this fight over public construction costs to keep simmering. WWLP →

Worth Your Attention

• Voter registration deadline is October 24 for the November 3 general election — the biggest ballot in decades, with the most ballot questions since 1994. Early voting runs October 17-30. Boston.com →
• Alexander Tine, the Middlesex corrections officer charged with assaulting an inmate and faking a report, is arraigned September 30 in Middlesex Superior Court. Boston Globe →
• A Central Mass. high school building committee faces a packed October, culminating in a preferred design submission to the MSBA by October 22 — a key checkpoint for any town watching its school building costs. MassLive →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

The Mass Brief • Powered by South Shore News

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Massachusetts politics, development, and daily life — straight to your inbox.

Powered by South Shore News

Immigration enforcement on the South Coast has gone from a rumor to a full-blown crisis in about 72 hours. Since Monday, ICE has detained at least 40 people in and around New Bedford, with more arrests reported in Fall River, Dartmouth, and Taunton — the largest coordinated sweep in the region since the infamous 2007 Michael Bianco raid. Agents have been spotted at Market Basket, Cumberland Farms, the Dartmouth Mall, and outside churches and schools. In Fall River, Mayor Paul Coogan says two students may have been swept up, and he's drawing a hard line: "I have no problem with dangerous cartel members, drug dealers, violent criminals being taken out of the city," he said Thursday, "but that's about where I'm going to draw the line."

What makes this moment different from prior enforcement waves isn't just the scale — it's the randomness. Community organizers like Adrian Ventura, who's run New Bedford's Centro Comunitario de Trabajadores since the Bianco raid, say agents are picking up construction workers, fish-processing employees, and parents on school pickup, many with no criminal record at all. One family described watching three brothers get pinned in a Market Basket parking lot, an officer twisting one man's arm behind his back, over what amounted to a weekly grocery run. Local clergy are reporting parishioners disappearing between Sunday Mass and Wednesday.

The political fallout is just starting. Expect city councils, state lawmakers, and the AG's office to face growing pressure to respond — legally, if not operationally, since immigration enforcement is federal turf. Watch for whether Governor Maura Healey's administration weighs in more forcefully, and whether New Bedford, Fall River, and Dartmouth city halls coordinate a joint response. This story isn't over; it's just getting organized. Full story at WBUR →

Lawrence's mayor now faces a second indictment this summer. Brian DePeña — already under federal indictment for allegedly pocketing $1.6 million in fraudulent pandemic loans — was indicted by a state grand jury Thursday on 14 counts of distributing wiretapped communications and one count of witness intimidation, tied to secret cameras he allegedly installed in his City Hall office. He remains mayor. Boston Globe →

Free T rides are coming for car-less seniors. Starting Oct. 13, Massachusetts residents 75 and older who don't hold a driver's license can register for fare-free access to buses, subways, ferries, and commuter rail. The MBTA estimates 72,000 people statewide could qualify — a pilot inspired by GM Phil Eng's trip to Seoul. WBUR →

The battle for the MBTA's commuter rail contract is heating up. Keolis, the French operator that's run the system for 12 years, faces a serious challenge from Alternate Concepts Inc., led by former T GM Jim O'Leary, as bids for the multibillion-dollar, nine-year contract come due next week. Boston Globe →

Private money is flowing unevenly through Boston Public Schools. Boston Latin School sits on a nearly $95 million endowment, while schools serving mostly Black and Latino students see far less outside fundraising. A city councilor is now pushing for more transparency on where philanthropic dollars actually go. WBUR →

A Leominster cop is facing OUI charges after a wild crash. Michael Dingman, 33, allegedly hit 85 mph on a 50 mph stretch of road in Lancaster before his SUV flipped and slid the length of a football field, upside down, with a passenger inside. He's due to be arraigned Friday and is reportedly entering treatment the same day. Boston Globe →

Affordability is the defining issue of the 2026 governor's race. Housing costs, energy prices, and tax burdens are dominating every candidate's pitch, with a UMass poll finding 39% of voters name cost of living as the top issue they want addressed. Expect this to only intensify as the field sharpens. CommonWealth Beacon →

This weekend: A nor'easter arrives Friday night into Sunday, with the heaviest rain, wind, and flooding risk concentrated along the coast and Southeastern Mass. — worth watching if you're near the shore. WBZ / CBS Boston →

Refund deadline: If you're holding tickets to Ed Sheeran's Gillette Stadium shows this weekend (now canceled due to the storm), refund requests must go through Ticketmaster following AG Andrea Campbell's intervention. WBZ / CBS Boston →

Before the SJC: The state's highest court will soon weigh how much discretion police chiefs have to deny gun licenses under Massachusetts' "suitability" standard — a case with implications for gun laws statewide. CommonWealth Beacon →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

Get The Mass Brief every morning

Massachusetts politics, development, and daily life — straight to your inbox.

Powered by South Shore News

Good morning. Grab a jacket — there's a nor'easter with your name on it — and let's get into it.

The Lead

ICE has detained at least 31 people in and around New Bedford since Monday, and the fear rippling through southeastern Massachusetts right now is the story of the week, whether or not it dominates the political conversation in Boston.

Immigration attorneys describe a scene that looks less like targeted enforcement and more like a dragnet: a father picked up while his 8-year-old waited for him at school pickup, a parent with a one-month-old at home, workers heading into New Bedford's fish processing plants. Attorney Ondine Sniffin says agents don't appear to have specific names or targets — they're pulling over work vans and questioning people based on appearance. The surge started in New Bedford and Dartmouth Monday, moved to Fall River by Tuesday, and shows no sign of slowing. Attorney Todd Pomerleau, who's been tracking these patterns for a year, says the "level of cruelty and callous behavior" has escalated sharply.

This isn't happening in a vacuum. It comes as Democratic lawmakers in Washington are separately demanding answers about the fatal ICE shooting of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, two months ago — a case where Senator Richard Blumenthal says federal investigators have shown zero urgency. Together, these stories point to a pattern: aggressive, loosely targeted enforcement paired with minimal transparency or accountability when things go wrong. Watch for local officials in New Bedford, Fall River, and Dartmouth to face pressure to respond, and expect immigration advocacy groups to push for state-level protections in the coming weeks. Kids are already missing school. That's the human cost showing up in real time.

Full story at Boston.com →

What Else You Should Know

Methuen's disgraced ex-chief could lose his $184K pension today. The Methuen Retirement Board votes this morning on whether to strip former Police Chief Joseph Solomon of his pension after he pleaded guilty last week to 17 public corruption charges, including rigging hiring to favor unqualified, hand-picked officers. Mayor D.J. Beauregard says a vote to terminate could save the city $3.7 million over 20 years — and he's vowing to claw back the more than $1 million Solomon has already collected since 2021. Boston Globe →

Healey files $2.24 billion budget bill to brace for federal health care cuts. Governor Maura Healey wants to create a new Health Care Stabilization Fund to backstop MassHealth and the Health Safety Net as residents lose coverage under the federal "One Big Beautiful Bill Act." The plan would divert surplus capital gains revenue that otherwise flows to the rainy day fund — a sign of just how much fiscal pressure is coming from Washington. Boston Globe →

The tenant right-to-purchase bill is close, but not there yet. The Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act, which would let renters organize to match an outside buyer's offer when their building goes up for sale, is sitting with a six-member conference committee reconciling House and Senate versions. State Senator Lydia Edwards says it's urgently needed as Massachusetts loses "naturally occurring affordable housing" to gentrification faster than it can build new units. Boston.com →

Amazon wants to fly delivery drones over MetroWest. The company is eyeing its Westborough distribution center as a launch site for 80-pound, 74-mph delivery drones covering a 7.5-mile radius into Shrewsbury, Northborough, Grafton, Worcester, Sutton, and Southborough — the first program of its kind in New England. Amazon still needs Westborough's planning board to sign off, and residents are already raising noise, privacy, and safety concerns. WBUR →

Boston's council president wants your worst landlord stories. City Council President Liz Breadon has launched a "Worst Landlords in Boston" survey to name and shame bad actors, part of a broader push to make property owners more accountable. Breadon, who represents Allston-Brighton where 80% of residents rent, previously helped raise the maximum fine for code violations from $300 to $2,000. WBUR →

The next big Quabbin fight is brewing. The MWRA wants approval to pull an additional 20 million gallons a day from the Quabbin Reservoir — by far the largest such request since the agency was formed in 1984 — to serve new communities east of the reservoir. It's reigniting tension with the rural, cash-strapped towns around the Quabbin that already feel shortchanged by the deal that keeps their watershed land undeveloped. CommonWealth Beacon →

Worth Your Attention

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Recall Mayor Brian Depena Political Action Committee — N/A, N/A — Filed: 9/24/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/23/2026

OCPF →

One More Thing

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The Mass Brief • Powered by South Shore News

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Massachusetts politics, development, and daily life — straight to your inbox.

Powered by South Shore News

Good morning. Gas is over $4.40 a gallon, ICE is sweeping through the South Coast, and the governor just did a political U-turn that has her own legislative leaders raising eyebrows. Let's get into it.

ICE's New Bedford surge is the biggest story in the state right now — and nobody in charge can (or will) explain it.

For a second straight day, federal immigration agents fanned out across New Bedford, Dartmouth, and Fall River, detaining at least two dozen people — many of them, according to advocates, grabbed during ordinary morning routines: driving to work, dropping off groceries, just existing. At least four of Monday's arrests were fish house workers, a detail that lands hard in a city where the seafood industry runs on immigrant labor. One video shows agents tackling and tasing a man near Acushnet Avenue. Another account describes a mother watching agents pull her husband from the driver's seat while their 3- and 9-year-old daughters sat in the back.

What makes this especially combustible is the total information blackout. Mayor Jon Mitchell — a former federal prosecutor, not exactly a bomb-thrower — says ICE never even notified New Bedford police the operation was happening, which he argues puts his own officers at risk if things go sideways on the street. Governor Maura Healey is publicly demanding answers: who was arrested, why, and where are they now. DHS's response so far has been to skip the specifics and send reporters a "worst of the worst" list of five unrelated arrests elsewhere in the state — a deflection, not an answer. Meanwhile, community organizers like Adrian Ventura are telling people to just stay home.

Watch for this to escalate rather than fade. Local advocates are documenting everything, City Hall in New Bedford is furious, and Beacon Hill has every incentive to keep amplifying it heading into a competitive governor's race. The open question is whether increased scrutiny changes ICE's tactics at all, or whether New Bedford is simply the latest test case for how far federal enforcement can go with zero local coordination. Full story at Boston Globe →

Healey's gas tax flip. Facing $4.40-a-gallon gas and a Republican challenger running ads on the issue, Governor Healey — who opposed a gas tax holiday back when she was attorney general — now wants to suspend the state's 24-cent gas tax for two months, at a $120 million cost covered by millionaires tax surplus. House Speaker Ron Mariano already called a suspension "fiscally irresponsible," so this is headed for a Beacon Hill fight, not a done deal. WBUR →

Worcester says no to fining homelessness. The City Council rejected City Manager Eric Batista's proposal to fine unhoused people $25 for sleeping in tents, on sidewalks, or in cars in public lots. Dozens of residents testified against it, arguing it would criminalize poverty and bury people already struggling in debt they can't pay. GBH News →

A 6-foot chunk of Boston bridge is now in the Charles River. A hit-and-run driver sideswiped another car on the River Street Bridge near Soldiers Field Road Tuesday, sending it careening into the bridge wall and knocking a piece into the water below. No injuries, but MassDOT crews had to rig a temporary steel barrier, and the bridge now needs a full inspection. WBZ/CBS Boston →

Boston police used surveillance tech without telling anyone. City Councilor Ben Weber is pushing to close a loophole that let BPD quietly deploy AI-powered license plate readers from Axon and Motorola — plus social media monitoring tools — without the council approval a 2022 ordinance supposedly requires. The department's defense: they were just "switching vendors." Boston Globe →

Providence's school system is a mess, and it matters here too. Since Rhode Island handed control of Providence schools back to the city in July, the district has cycled through a stunning mayoral primary upset, an invalidated teachers union election, three top administrators resigning in five weeks, and now an effort to oust the School Board president. Plenty of South Coast Massachusetts families send kids across the line or watch the ripple effects closely. Boston Globe →

SJC orders new trial in 2014 J'ouvert killing. The state's highest court unanimously ruled that Keith Williams's 2017 murder conviction in the shooting death of youth mentor Dawnn Jaffier was tainted by flawed gunshot residue evidence — testimony a judge should never have let jurors hear. Prosecutors will have to decide whether to retry a case built on weaker evidence than they originally presented. Boston Globe →

• Boston City Council takes up Councilor Weber's surveillance oversight amendment at Wednesday's meeting. Boston Globe →

• Ballot Question 7 on single-family zoning and lot sizes is one of nine measures Massachusetts voters will decide November 3 — worth reading up on now before the ads start flooding your feed. Boston.com →

• The National Urban Rat Summit kicks off today in downtown Boston, a two-day gathering on rodenticides and rat mitigation — genuinely, if you love municipal weirdness, this is your event. WBUR →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

OCPF →

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THE MASS BRIEF

Tuesday, September 22, 2026

Healey and Minogue actually agree on something: suspend the gas tax. They just disagree on how much.

Governor Maura Healey proposed suspending the state's 24-cent-per-gallon gas tax for two months on Tuesday, as prices at the pump hit $4.40 a gallon — the highest for this time of year on record, according to AAA. She's pitching it as relief from a crisis she squarely blames on President Trump and the war with Iran, which has kept oil prices above $100 a barrel. The plan would be funded using surplus revenue from the state's millionaires' surtax, and needs sign-off from the Legislature.

Here's the political wrinkle: her Republican challenger, Mike Minogue, got there first. He called for a gas tax "holiday" whenever prices top $4 a gallon days before Healey's announcement, and he wants to make it permanent — not just two months. Standing outside the State House Tuesday, Minogue needled Healey for stealing his idea but only half-committing to it: "After the election, it will be back to business as normal." It's also a notable reversal for Healey, who as attorney general in 2022 opposed a similar Republican-led gas tax holiday, arguing the state needed "real solutions," not gimmicks.

What happens next is the real story. The gas tax brings in roughly $600 million a year for road and bridge repair — money that doesn't just reappear. Legislative Democrats who've resisted this idea before now have to decide whether to hand Healey a win heading into her reelection fight, or let Minogue keep hammering her as all talk. Watch Beacon Hill leadership's response in the coming days; that's where this actually lives or dies. Full story at Boston Globe →

The MBTA is off federal probation. Four years after a man was dragged to his death on the Red Line, the Federal Transit Administration has formally ended its safety oversight of the T, handing supervision back to the state's Department of Public Utilities. Healey is touting eliminated slow zones and new safety tech as proof the system has turned a corner — though anyone who rode the Orange Line last week might have their own opinion. Boston.com →

A state audit says the unemployment agency was failing people even before things got worse. Auditor Diana DiZoglio's review found the Department of Unemployment Assistance mismanaged its call centers and was slow to pay claims between 2022 and 2024 — years before a botched 2025 system upgrade made Massachusetts the slowest state in the country at paying jobless benefits. Lawmakers say they're flooded with constituent complaints, but a proposed special commission to investigate appears stalled. CommonWealth Beacon →

Roughly 7,300 immigrants lose full MassHealth coverage October 1. The change stems from the federal "One Big Beautiful Bill" signed last year, and will shift many enrollees to more limited coverage or the Health Safety Net, according to Health Law Advocates. Advocates are urging affected residents to check their coverage now, before the switch takes effect. GBH News →

A New Bedford ICE operation swept up at least eight people, most working in fish houses. Reporters for the New Bedford Light witnessed an arrest near the waterfront and spotted agents staging out of the Dartmouth Mall parking lot. Community organizers held a meeting to connect affected families with legal resources. New Bedford Light →

Massachusetts residents love living here and can't afford it — both at once. New MassINC polling found 63% of residents rate the state as one of the best places to live, but only 19% think it's affordable. People close to finishing their education are nearly twice as likely to consider leaving in the next five years — a red flag for a state that depends on its university pipeline to fuel its economy. CommonWealth Beacon →

Hingham High's entire ventilation system is dying, and the fix is years away. All 13 rooftop units, five HVAC units, and every exhaust fan are near total failure, the district's facilities director told the School Committee — with a full replacement project still at least three years out. Boilers are being patched in the meantime, but rooftop units already failed once last winter. South Shore Times / South Shore News →

Wednesday: The Boston Licensing Board holds a hearing on the sale of the beloved West Roxbury "packie" Blanchard's, which could get a new owner and a new name — Kappy's. Universal Hub →

Thursday: Cummington hosts a public hearing on its Hazard Mitigation Plan — a chance for Hampshire County residents to weigh in on flood and storm preparedness. WWLP →

Ongoing: Hanover's Select Board is weighing whether to shelve a long-planned North Hanover fire substation in favor of a $5 million headquarters expansion, with a debt vote expected at May's town meeting. South Shore News →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Marcus Coward (Democratic) — City Councilor, New Bedford — Filed: 9/21/2026

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

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Oct. 7: East Bridgewater's rescheduled Special Town Meeting will take up the license-plate-reader bylaw as filed by petitioners, unchanged. South Shore News →

Nov. 2: Deadline to submit picks for the Globe's Rhode Island general election contest — for those of you who like bragging rights alongside your Ocean State political knowledge. Boston Globe →

This weekend: A coastal storm — possibly a nor'easter — could bring 50 mph wind gusts, coastal flooding, and beach erosion to Massachusetts, arriving Friday and lingering into the weekend. Worth watching if you've got outdoor plans. WCVB →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026

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THE MASS BRIEF

Sunday, September 20, 2026

Good morning. Grab something warm — it's a raw one out there today, and it only gets more autumnal from here. Let's get into it.

THE LEAD

A UMass Dartmouth freshman is dead and his football program is reeling after a night out in Providence ended in violence early Saturday morning. Marvins Antoine, 18, an incoming running back, was stabbed multiple times in the chest outside a Wendy's on the border of a Providence nightclub district, hours after his team lost a home game to Framingham State. His teammate, 19-year-old defensive back Kensley Macean, was also stabbed and is expected to survive. The accused killer isn't a stranger — it's another UMass Dartmouth student, 19-year-old Chukuwnonoso Uzoma-eze, who police say is not on the football team and who was taken into custody by campus police before being handed to Massachusetts State Police for extradition to Rhode Island.

The details that are emerging are the kind that make a story like this land hard: a fight that started inside a club called the Mezzo Lounge and spilled across the street into a fast-food parking lot, teammates trying to protect each other, a freshman who'd barely started his college football career. Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez says murder is currently the only charge filed, and investigators are still working out exactly what triggered the confrontation. Uzoma-eze is expected to be extradited to Rhode Island as early as this week.

What happens next matters beyond the criminal case. UMass Dartmouth will have to answer for how it supports a shaken team and student body, Providence will face fresh questions about nightlife safety near its club scene, and a grieving family will want answers about why a night out turned fatal. Watch for a statement from UMass Dartmouth's administration and whether the football program pauses its season — Framingham State's win now feels like a footnote to something much darker.

Full story at Boston Globe →

WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW

Former Methuen police chief gets 30 days for corruption scheme. Joseph Solomon pleaded guilty to 17 charges — including perjury and fraud — for hiring unqualified part-time officers and then quietly promoting them to full-time roles while covering up their lack of credentials. He'll serve just 30 days in the House of Corrections but forfeits his city pension, gun license, and PI license — a deal Methuen's mayor called simultaneously an "outrage" and a win that will save the city millions. WBZ / CBS Boston →

Thousands rally on Boston Common to save legal weed. The 37th annual Freedom Rally turned explicitly political this year, with organizers pushing a "Vote No on 8" message ahead of a November ballot question that would repeal Massachusetts' decade-old cannabis legalization law. If it passes, Massachusetts would be the first state in the country to reverse course on legal marijuana — a fact that's got advocates genuinely spooked. Boston Globe →

Scituate picks "Satuit" for its new elementary school — barely. In a 3-2 vote, the School Committee chose the indigenous name tied to the town's historic brook and harbor over a competing push to honor suffragist author Inez Haynes Irwin, who would have been the district's first school named for an accomplished woman. The new consolidated building opens in September 2027. South Shore News →

Massachusetts lands $40 million to fight veteran homelessness. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is sending grants to 16 community organizations across the state to help veterans who are homeless or at risk of losing housing in fiscal year 2027. It's a meaningful infusion for local nonprofits already stretched thin. WWLP Western MA →

A motorcyclist is dead after a Friday crash on I-190 in Lancaster. The 50-year-old Holden man died after a collision involving two cars near mile marker 17.6; the highway was closed for hours while State Police investigated. Two other drivers were hurt, one seriously. WCVB →

An ax-wielding man allegedly attacked a driver near the Wareham rest stop. State Police from multiple barracks responded to Route 195 East Saturday morning after 911 calls reported the assault; the suspect was taken into custody nearby at Swifts Beach. Details are still developing. Boston Globe →

WORTH YOUR ATTENTION

Track all bills →

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

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ONE MORE THING

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THE MASS BRIEF

Saturday, September 19, 2026

Good morning. Grab your coffee — a state Supreme Court ruling, a corrupt police chief's jail sentence, and yet another cop accused of misusing surveillance tech to stalk an ex. Let's get into it.

The Lead

The Supreme Judicial Court just closed the door — again — on towns trying to wriggle out of the MBTA Communities Act, and this time it might actually stick. In a unanimous, 22-page ruling Friday, the state's highest court rejected Marshfield's argument that the 2021 housing law amounts to an illegal "unfunded mandate," finding the town couldn't show the zoning requirement cost it anything beyond routine paperwork. Justice Serge Georges Jr. didn't mince words: the law is a "valid general law," full stop.

This matters because Marshfield was the best shot opponents had left. The SJC already upheld the law's enforceability back in early 2025, and nearly every other legal challenge has since collapsed. What's left now is politics, not courtrooms — and MBTA Communities is shaping up to be a real flashpoint in this fall's governor's race. Governor Maura Healey has made compliance a signature issue, using carrots (grant funding) and sticks (threats to cut state aid) to push holdout towns toward zoning for multifamily housing near transit. Her Republican opponent will almost certainly try to turn suburban resentment over "Beacon Hill telling us how to zone our town" into a rallying cry between now and November.

For the 177 communities covered by the law, the practical reality is this: rezone for apartments and duplexes near transit, or keep fighting a battle the courts have made clear you're going to lose. Marshfield's Select Board hasn't said what's next, but with courts unanimous and consistent, "keep suing" is looking like an expensive way to delay the inevitable. Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

Methuen's disgraced ex-chief heads to jail. Joseph Solomon, once one of the highest-paid cops in the country, pleaded guilty Friday to 17 corruption charges — perjury, forgery, fraud — for stacking the department with unqualified officers he favored, including a former city councilor who skipped the police academy. He'll serve 30 days of a 2.5-year sentence and loses his pension, gun license, and PI license. Methuen's mayor says the pension forfeiture alone will save the city millions. Boston Globe →

The feds are done babysitting the T. After the scathing 2022 safety report that found the MBTA understaffed and poorly maintained, the Federal Transit Administration has formally handed oversight back to the state's Department of Public Utilities. Healey is calling it proof of the T's "turnaround" under GM Phil Eng — the DPU added 13 full-time safety staff since 2022 and beefed up its training and inspection processes. CommonWealth Beacon →

Another cop, another Flock scandal. A retired Braintree detective, Mark Sherrick, is facing a criminal harassment charge for allegedly using police license-plate readers, a department phone, and even a GPS tracker to stalk his ex-girlfriend after their 2024 breakup. He retired last year once the town's third-party investigation caught the misuse. Arraignment is set for Sept. 29. Boston.com →

Plymouth officer and husband indicted on child rape charges. A grand jury indicted suspended Plymouth police officer Samantha Pelrine and her husband Daniel Forand on multiple counts of aggravated child rape, stemming from allegations they abused a boy in their care for years starting when he was 14. Both have denied the allegations and remain out on bail pending arraignment in Superior Court. Plymouth Independent →

TOPA is closer than it's ever been. The Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act — which would let renters organize to match an outside buyer's offer when their building goes up for sale — is tucked into both the House and Senate versions of the economic development bond bill. A six-member conference committee is now hammering out a final version to send to Healey's desk. Housing advocates call it essential to stopping the loss of affordable units, even as new construction lags behind demand. CommonWealth Beacon →

Salem's AI data center fight gets a win for the city. Salem's Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously upheld the revocation of a permit for a proposed "data center" — which developers insisted was actually a "low-latency inference point" for AI processing. The ruling comes as Mayor Dominick Pangallo pushes an outright ban on data centers in the city, echoing Healey's recent executive order restricting them statewide. Boston.com →

Worth Your Attention

Sept. 29: Retired Braintree detective Mark Sherrick is arraigned in Dedham District Court on the criminal harassment charge tied to his alleged Flock misuse. Boston Globe →

Ongoing: The conference committee negotiating the final economic development bond bill — including the fate of the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act — could wrap up its work any time; worth watching Beacon Hill closely this fall. CommonWealth Beacon →

This week: Roxbury City Councilor Miniard Culpepper is in Washington meeting with Senator Elizabeth Warren's and Representative Ayanna Pressley's offices to push for an Orange Line extension down Blue Hill Avenue. Universal Hub →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

One More Thing

That's it for today. See you tomorrow morning.

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THE MASS BRIEF

Friday, September 18, 2026

Good morning. Grab your coffee — it's a busy one, from a manhunt resolution to a $2 billion wind power gamble to a school committee grappling with mini-mopeds disguised as bicycles.

The Lead

The gubernatorial race is heating up, and the fight over Donald Trump's shadow is becoming its defining storyline. On Wednesday, Governor Maura Healey fielded a caller on GBH's "Boston Public Radio" who was frustrated about her Eversource bill — and used the moment to pin blame on Trump for energy costs, even as the caller pushed back that infrastructure fees, not the president, were driving her bill up. It's a small radio exchange, but it tells you exactly how Healey plans to run this fall: nationalize the race, tie Republican challenger Mike Minogue to MAGA politics, and make Trump the ballot question even though he's not on the ballot.

The strategy makes sense on paper — Minogue is a major Trump donor who hosted a fundraiser for JD Vance in 2024, and Massachusetts hasn't exactly warmed to the president. But it also glosses over real kitchen-table anger about utility bills, an issue that cuts across party lines and won't be solved by talking about Washington. Meanwhile, the money race complicates the "outsider vs. establishment" framing: Minogue, a former medical device CEO making his first run for office, has actually out-raised Healey by nearly $7.8 million, pulling in $11.58 million to her $3.78 million. Healey still holds more cash on hand, but the fundraising gap is a signal Republicans see a real opening here, especially with affordability as the top issue on voters' minds.

Watch for two things next: how Healey handles the two debates she's already locked in for October, and whether Minogue can turn his financial edge into actual movement in the polls before then.

Full story at Boston.com →

What Else You Should Know

Cambridge is already tweaking its housing overhaul. After eliminating single-family zoning last year and allowing four-story buildings by right citywide, Cambridge officials say the reform is working — more multi-family housing is getting built. But the City Council is now advancing changes to increase setback requirements, after developers said the original minimums didn't leave enough room for stormwater systems, electrical equipment, and tree protections. WBUR →

A federal judge in Massachusetts just restored some sanity to teacher training funding — sort of. U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley ruled the Trump administration's 2025 decision to cut $600 million in teacher-training grants was "arbitrary and capricious" and violated federal law, since the Education Department skipped required notice-and-comment steps. The catch: the money isn't automatically coming back — that fight moves to a different court. WBUR →

Boston might become the next city to ban data centers. City Councilor Miniard Culpepper wants to prohibit new data centers — including AI, crypto, and cloud computing facilities — anywhere in Boston, citing density and infrastructure strain. It follows Governor Healey's executive order giving municipalities final say on these projects, and joins Holyoke, Lowell, Westfield, and others already moving to restrict them. WBUR →

Massachusetts is betting big on Maine wind — once the political weather clears. Eversource and Central Maine Power got the green light from ISO-New England for a $2.2 billion transmission upgrade designed to carry wind power from northern Maine down to Massachusetts. The catch: it's explicitly built around the assumption that offshore and onshore wind development picks back up once a "windmill-fearing president" — their words, not ours — is out of the White House. Construction target: 2029. Universal Hub →

Weymouth hit pause on its phone-tracking app for high schoolers. After a Sunday-night email blindsided families, Weymouth school officials apologized for rolling out "the Commons" — an app that restricts student phones to calls, texts, and medical apports during school hours — without adequately explaining it first. The plan is now shelved indefinitely with zero consequences for students who skip installing it, after the district learned a state grant it was counting on got denied. South Shore News →

A Worcester councilor's crash is turning into a bigger political headache. Kathleen Toomey, an 11-term city councilor-at-large, temporarily stepped down as chair of the Public Safety Committee after bodycam footage showed her asking officers to call the police chief following a Sept. 2 crash into a parked car. Worcester police have opened an internal probe into whether she got preferential treatment. Boston.com →

Worth Your Attention

• Boston City Council is set to consider extending condo-conversion tenant protections to triple-deckers and two-family homes — a potentially big deal for renters in smaller buildings across the city. Universal Hub →
• Methuen's School Committee is weighing a ban on e-bikes and scooters on school grounds after a spike in accidents — a decision that could ripple into a citywide policy discussion. WBZ/CBS Boston →
• Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy has filed for a hearing on Mission Hill traffic safety after a second crash near the site of transportation planner Louisa Gag's fatal July bike crash — worth watching if you care about how the city responds to guerrilla bike-lane markings appearing overnight. WBUR →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

PACs

• Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Political Action Committee — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/17/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

One More Thing

The Mass Brief publishes every morning. See you tomorrow.

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THE MASS BRIEF

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Good morning. Let's get into it.

The Lead

Governor Maura Healey is out on the campaign trail this fall touting Question 6 — the November ballot measure that would dedicate a slice of state sales tax revenue to conservation — as a win-win for Massachusetts. There's just one problem: her own budget office isn't so sure. In the voter information booklets the state mailed out last week, Healey's administration warned that the measure could have a "significant impact" on state and local finances, potentially siphoning tens of millions of dollars away from the general budget every year, with implementation costs that aren't even fully known yet.

This isn't a small contradiction. It's happening while Beacon Hill is already white-knuckling its way through financial uncertainty tied to the Trump administration's efforts to claw back billions in federal funding from Massachusetts. When your own fiscal watchdogs are raising red flags about a policy you're actively campaigning for, that's the kind of split that opponents — and probably a few nervous legislators — will be pointing to between now and Election Day.

Question 6 is one of the lower-profile ballot questions this cycle, but it's a useful window into a bigger tension: how do you fund popular, feel-good priorities like land conservation when the state's fiscal picture is this shaky? Expect this fight to get louder as more voters actually open their ballot booklets and start asking the same question Healey's budget office already did. Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

Brockton's mayor is headed to court. Moises Rodrigues has been charged with misdemeanor assault and battery after a 17-year-old Brockton High School marching band student accused him of putting his arm around her waist and whispering "play this again" and "do this again for me" during a May parade. He's due for arraignment Sept. 28 in Hingham District Court; a Massachusetts State Police investigation cited 13 witnesses. WBUR →

Fall River's waterfront becomes ground zero in the affordable housing fight. The city is on track to let developers build up to 1,500 new housing units on a 20-acre waterfront site — all market rate. In a city where the median household income is $57,000 (compared to $104,000 statewide) and nearly half of renters are cost-burdened, advocates are furious there's no income-restricted housing baked in, while economic development experts argue market-rate supply still helps everyone. CommonWealth Beacon →

Wu pitches housing (and a good party) as Boston's economic engine. Mayor Michelle Wu told the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce that building more housing — plus capitalizing on the goodwill from World Cup, Tall Ships, and the country's 250th anniversary — is the path forward for a city facing "economic headwinds." She also announced a new chief of economic development. WBUR →

Salem says no to a data center — for now. The city's Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously to uphold the revocation of a permit for a data center at Shetland Park, just as Mayor Dominick Pangallo pushes a citywide ban on data center construction that hasn't passed the council yet. New York-based Prime Group Holding, which owns the property, isn't done fighting. GBH News →

Immigration attorneys say Boston's court is failing due process. Roughly 50 attorneys and advocates rallied outside Boston's immigration court Wednesday, criticizing "mega-master" hearings and judges appearing by video from hundreds of miles away. Nina Froes, one of many immigration judges fired by the Trump administration this year, said the court is failing on all three basic due process fronts. GBH News →

Money race update: Minogue's outraising Healey, but she's still got more cash than you'd think matters. Republican Mike Minogue, a political newcomer and former Abiomed CEO, has raised nearly $7.8 million more than Healey so far — $11.58 million to her $3.78 million. But Healey holds a slight edge in cash on hand, with $6.86 million banked versus his $5.82 million. Boston.com →

Worth Your Attention

• Matthew Farwell's murder trial — the former Massachusetts police officer accused of killing Sandra Birchmore — has a pretrial hearing today in federal court in Boston, with evidence and witness disputes still unresolved. WCVB →
• Methuen's School Committee is weighing a potential ban on e-bikes for students without a driver's license, following a spike in accidents — a proposal that could eventually head to the city council. WBZ / CBS Boston →
• Brockton Mayor Rodrigues's arraignment is set for Sept. 28 in Hingham District Court — worth watching as the case moves from allegation to formal proceeding. Boston.com →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

The Mass Brief publishes every morning. See you tomorrow.

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THE MASS BRIEF

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Good morning. Coffee's hot, the news is heavy, and Brockton's mayor has a court date. Let's get into it.

The Lead

Brockton Mayor Moises Rodrigues is facing a criminal assault and battery charge after State Police say he touched a 17-year-old girl against her will during a city parade in May — and the case has been building toward this moment since it exploded into public view at Brockton High School's graduation in June, when the girl's mother stormed the stage screaming, "You know what you did to my daughter."

Here's what makes this more than a local scandal: the timeline. The alleged incident happened at the Huntington Parade on May 22, when Rodrigues put his arm around the teen, a trombone player marching with the Brockton High band. Nothing became public until the mother's confrontation at graduation weeks later. At an August 7 clerk magistrate's hearing, Rodrigues testified under oath that he had no memory of the interaction at all — "I didn't even know the person," he said — while a State Police captain testified the case was built on video, photos, and witness interviews, and that investigators concluded the touching was not consensual. Prosecutors moved forward with the charge shortly after.

Rodrigues is scheduled for arraignment in Hingham District Court later this month. For a mayor already navigating the normal pressures of running Massachusetts's seventh-largest city — budget season, schools, development — this is now the story that will define his fall, regardless of the outcome. Watch for whether city councilors or state officials call for him to step back from public duties before arraignment, and whether more witnesses come forward given how public the parade setting was. Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

The RIDE backs down. After a year of complaints from elderly and disabled riders who said new restrictions on carts and luggage upended their independence, the MBTA reversed course Wednesday, again allowing RIDE users to keep belongings in vehicle trunks and bring foldable carts up to 23x22x41 inches. The T also plans to add luggage racks to vans. Advocates call it a win, but note it shouldn't have taken a year of "difficult" trips to get here. Boston Globe →

Springfield's cyber attack is worse than first feared. The FBI told Massachusetts's second-largest school district that a Labor Day cyberattack may have exposed staff Social Security numbers and student data. The breach forced a four-day school closure; the district is now rushing to set up free credit monitoring for personnel while the full scope remains under investigation. WBUR →

Healey pushes postpartum care after the Clancy mistrial. Governor Maura Healey wants $2 million to expand the state's Welcome Family home-visit program for new parents and $250,000 more for maternal mental health screening, framing it as a direct response to the national attention drawn by the Lindsay Clancy case. The program currently reaches just 3,000 of the state's roughly 68,000 annual births. WBUR →

Boston moves to block data centers. City Councilor Miniard Culpepper filed an order that would ban data center construction citywide unless developers clear a community review and zoning variance — building on Healey's recent executive order requiring local sign-off before state permits are issued. It goes to committee at Wednesday's council meeting. Boston.com →

Michael Proctor takes the Fifth — again. The disgraced former state trooper fired over misconduct in the Karen Read case invoked his Fifth Amendment right this week rather than testify in an unrelated pending murder case he'd investigated, reversing an earlier indication he would speak. His credibility problems keep following him into courtrooms. Boston Globe →

MBTA's slowest buses are getting slower. A new TransitMatters report finds average speeds on the T's ten slowest bus routes dipped to 6.42 mph, with the SL4 and the #1 bus (serving Roxbury, Fenway, and the South End) again ranked worst. The routes disproportionately serve Black and Latino riders, the group notes, pushing for restored bus lanes and automated enforcement against blockers. CommonWealth Beacon →

Worth Your Attention

• Rodrigues arraignment, expected later this month in Hingham District Court — watch for city response beforehand. Boston Globe →
• Boston City Council meets today to send the data-center zoning ban to committee. Boston.com →
• A competency hearing is set for today in Brockton for Bradley Rein, the driver charged in the deadly 2022 Hingham Apple Store crash, after his defense raised memory concerns. WCVB →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

One More Thing

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THE MASS BRIEF

Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Good morning. Nurses are threatening to walk out at another major Boston hospital, a Boston city councilor wants to ban data centers outright, and everyone from the governor to the AI titans themselves is suddenly worried the robots might move too fast. Let's get into it.

The Lead

Boston Medical Center nurses are one step from the picket line — and this fight is bigger than one hospital.

Nearly 90% of the roughly 2,000 nurses at Boston Medical Center voted last week to authorize a three-day strike, the latest and biggest sign that Boston's healthcare labor movement isn't cooling off after this summer's hospital strike. The union, 1199SEIU, says six-plus months of bargaining haven't produced a contract that addresses chronic understaffing, wages that haven't kept pace with the cost of living, and a revolving door where BMC nurses leave for better pay elsewhere — sometimes at hospitals that then bring in traveling nurses at a premium to fill the gaps BMC created.

Why this matters beyond BMC's walls: this is the city's largest safety-net hospital, serving a patient population with fewer options if care gets disrupted. A strike would also land at a moment when Massachusetts hospitals broadly are under financial strain, meaning management's "we don't have the money" defense and labor's "then find it" response are set to collide again, just as they did over the summer. No strike notice has been filed yet — that requires 10 days' warning — and the two sides are scheduled to sit down again on September 25. That date is the real thing to watch: if talks stall there, expect a strike notice within days.

Full story at WBUR →

What Else You Should Know

Healey wants Washington to rein in AI — while her own state wrestles with the fallout. Governor Maura Healey called for federal guardrails on AI development Monday, even as her administration tries to balance enthusiasm for the AI economy against surging electricity costs tied to data centers. Her new executive order requires big data centers to meet environmental standards and sign community benefits agreements — but critics say it doesn't go far enough to protect the grid or environmental justice communities already paying more for power. CommonWealth Beacon →

A Boston councilor wants to just ban data centers, period. Roxbury's Miniard Culpepper is introducing a citywide zoning change Wednesday that would prohibit new data center construction entirely, calling them "water-sucking, hydrocarbon-belching" threats to the city. It follows Councilor Ed Flynn's earlier push to study the issue — a sign City Hall is taking the backlash seriously even as Mayor Michelle Wu's administration courts tech investment elsewhere. Universal Hub →

Wu offers developers a deal to get stalled housing moving. The mayor proposed $31.5 million in long-term tax breaks for four large housing projects — three in Allston/Brighton, one in Charlestown — that already have city approval but are stuck due to financing costs. The 1,400 apartments would include at least 180 affordable units, and developers only get the break if they actually break ground within a year. Universal Hub →

A Burlington police lieutenant faces domestic assault and witness intimidation charges. Lieutenant Peter Abaskharoun allegedly headbutted his wife during an argument early Sunday, causing her to bleed heavily, according to a police report; he says he was trying to get her away from him. He's on paid leave pending an internal affairs investigation and is due back in court November 9. Boston Globe →

Worcester police are investigating themselves over a city councilor's crash. Councilor Kate Toomey struck a parked car near midnight on September 2 and wasn't given a sobriety test despite what some oversight advocates say were signs of impairment, according to body camera footage. Toomey chairs the council's public safety committee and has consistently opposed increased police oversight — which is exactly why residents are asking questions. GBH News →

A federal judge slapped down ICE for withholding a detainee's blood pressure medication. Judge Julia Kobick ordered the immediate release of Sidimar Chaves Alves, a Brazilian national who ICE acknowledged should have gotten a bond hearing by September 4 — and who went a week without his medication while detained. When ICE asked for another week to schedule the hearing it had already blown past, Kobick said no. Universal Hub →

Worth Your Attention

• Boston City Council meets Wednesday, where Councilor Culpepper's data center zoning ban gets its first formal airing. Universal Hub →

• BMC and 1199SEIU return to the bargaining table September 25 — the session that will likely determine whether a strike notice follows. WBUR →

• Trump's public charge immigration rule is set to take effect Friday, unless the 21-state lawsuit Attorney General Andrea Campbell joined Monday succeeds in blocking it first. Boston Globe →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Big Spending This Week

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Nuclear Safety at LastTreeLaws.com — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/15/2026
• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

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Boston Medical Center nurses just voted, nearly unanimously, to authorize a strike. Nearly 90% of the roughly 2,000 nurses represented by 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East backed the move Friday, and while no strike notice has been filed yet, this is the clearest signal so far that BMC's safety-net mission and its labor relations are on a collision course.

This isn't happening in a vacuum. It comes just months after a strike at another Boston hospital rattled the region's healthcare labor landscape, and the complaints here will sound familiar: wages that haven't kept pace with the cost of living, chronic understaffing, and a reliance on expensive traveling nurses instead of investing in the people who've actually built careers at BMC. ER nurse Kerry LaBarbera's line — that over 70% of BMC's nurses have been there six years or less — is the real story. That's not a workforce, that's a revolving door, and it's patients who feel it when units are short-staffed.

The two sides are back at the table September 25, and a strike requires 10 days' notice before it can happen — meaning if talks collapse, we're looking at a walkout no earlier than early October. BMC serves a disproportionately low-income and uninsured population, so a strike here would hit differently than one at a hospital with more cushion. Watch what happens at that next bargaining session closely. Full story at WBUR →

A rough weekend for Cape Cod law enforcement. An off-duty Sandwich police officer, Matthew Cotter, allegedly crashed his BMW drunk Friday night and reportedly told a witness "I'm a cop" instead of calling for help — his arraignment was postponed to Oct. 15 after his attorney said he's now in treatment. Less than 24 hours later, a Barnstable officer directing traffic after a ZZ Top show at the Cape Cod Melody Tent was struck by an alleged drunk driver while standing in a lit crosswalk in a reflective jacket. Boston Globe →

Jury selection starts next month in the Sandra Birchmore case. Former Stoughton police detective Matthew Farwell is accused of killing Birchmore, a young pregnant woman he met through a police department youth program, and causing the death of her unborn son. The case involves allegations of grooming, child sexual exploitation, and a staged suicide scene — and raises hard questions about how the original investigation into her death was handled. Boston Globe →

Nine ballot questions are headed to Massachusetts voters in November — tying a record last set in 1994. But here's the catch: even if voters approve a proposed law, the Legislature and governor retain full power to amend or repeal it afterward, just like any other statute. Worth remembering as campaigns on cannabis, tax caps, and public defender unionization ramp up. New Bedford Light →

The statewide school cellphone ban is still stuck on Beacon Hill. Attorney General Andrea Campbell introduced a "bell-to-bell" restriction bill back in January 2025, and at least 30 states — including Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire — have already moved on similar bans. Massachusetts districts are left setting their own policies as this school year gets underway. Boston.com →

Halifax is holding the line on a single tax rate for FY27, rejecting a split rate that would've shifted more burden onto the town's small commercial base. The average single-family home assessment jumped 6.87% to about $658,000, pushing the typical tax bill up roughly $150-$160 to $7,655. South Shore News →

Whitman's Select Board narrowly backed an overhaul of its regional school agreement with Hanson — the first major update since 1992. The 3-2 vote includes new two-thirds voting thresholds for big decisions like hiring a superintendent, and folds busing costs directly into the operating budget to end the annual Town Meeting standoffs over transportation funding. South Shore News →

Sept. 25: BMC management and 1199SEIU return to the bargaining table — the outcome here likely determines whether a strike notice gets filed. WBUR →

Oct. 15: Rescheduled arraignment for Sandwich Officer Matthew Cotter in Barnstable District Court. WCVB →

Next month: Jury selection begins in the Matthew Farwell/Sandra Birchmore murder trial. Boston Globe →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

Ballot Question Committees

• Committee to Restrict Data Centers — N/A, No office — Filed: 9/14/2026

OCPF →

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Boston Medical Center is barreling toward its second nurses' strike of the summer season, and this time it's not a one-day walkout. Nearly 90% of the roughly 2,000 nurses represented by 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East voted this week to authorize a three-day strike — a serious escalation after more than six months of stalled bargaining with hospital management.

The core complaint should sound familiar to anyone who's paid attention to healthcare labor fights across the state this year: nurses say BMC's proposals don't do enough to fix chronic understaffing, and that the hospital would rather pay premium rates to traveling nurses from out of state than invest in the people who've built careers there. ER nurse Kerry LaBarbera put it bluntly — over 70% of BMC's nurses have been there six years or less, a churn rate that tells you everything about why morale (and staffing) is cracking. BMC is a safety-net hospital, meaning it serves a disproportionate share of low-income and uninsured patients in Boston. A three-day strike there hits differently than one at a hospital with more cushion to absorb it.

Nothing's imminent yet — nurses are legally required to give 10 days' notice before walking out, and that notice hasn't been filed. The next bargaining session is September 25th, which now looks like the last real off-ramp before this becomes a full-blown crisis. Watch that date closely. Full story at Dorchester Reporter →

A Sandwich cop's off-duty crash becomes a bigger story than a fender-bender. Officer Matthew Cotter, 44, allegedly drove his BMW through a Forestdale resident's flower bed and into a parked car Friday night, and colleagues who responded suspected he was impaired — enough to call in State Police rather than handle it themselves. Cotter's due in Barnstable District Court Monday facing OUI and related charges, and a relative reportedly assaulted an independent videographer filming the scene, which police are now also investigating. Boston Globe →

The MBTA's hair-pulling scandal just got messier. Gabrielle Mondestin, the T's former chief communications officer, alleges general manager Phil Eng's now-infamous hair-pull wasn't an isolated incident but part of a pattern stretching back years — including doubts about her authority and pushback on her medical accommodations. Her discrimination complaint was dismissed by the state as part of a nearly $500,000 settlement that required her to drop it; she resigns from the T on Friday. Boston Globe →

Springfield's MGM casino romance has officially cooled. Years after the city welcomed MGM Springfield as an economic savior, Springfield sued the company this year for failing to live up to its host agreement. South End merchants near the casino describe mixed results at best — some foot traffic, but nowhere near the transformation that was promised. MassLive →

Hanson's Camp Kiwanee has a vandalism problem — and a $12,000 fix. The Select Board finalized a 32-article warrant for an October 5 Special Town Meeting, with the most urgent item funding security cameras after a wave of break-ins, trail damage from e-bikes, and trespassing at the beloved town-owned camp. The board also extended Friday closures at Town Hall through early January and locked in Dan Walsh as permanent Building Commissioner. South Shore News →

Cohasset schools found money without borrowing it. Savings from an under-budget roof replacement at Joseph Osgood Elementary, plus a smart vehicle swap, mean the town can fund up to a $2 million MSBA feasibility study at Town Meeting without new debt. The School Committee also brought on Patricia Boyer as interim finance director and is launching an in-house before/after-school child care program. South Shore News →

Back-to-school laptop shopping costs more this year, and it's not just inflation. A global memory chip shortage — driven largely by AI data centers gobbling up DRAM supply — is pushing prices up across phones, laptops, and tablets. Apple already hiked MacBook and iPad prices by $100 to $900 this year, and consultants expect AI-related memory costs to quadruple by year's end. Boston Globe →

September 25: BMC nurses and hospital management return to the bargaining table — the last scheduled session before a strike notice could be filed. Dorchester Reporter →

Monday: Sandwich Officer Matthew Cotter is scheduled for arraignment in Barnstable District Court on OUI and related charges. Boston Globe →

October 5: Hanson holds its Special Town Meeting to vote on the 32-article warrant, including Camp Kiwanee security funding. South Shore News →

Track all bills →

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

OCPF →

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Will Brownsberger just survived the closest race in recent Massachusetts memory — and it says a lot about the widening gap between Beacon Hill's leadership and the city's more progressive wing.

State Senator Will Brownsberger, the third-ranking Democrat in the Senate, held off challenger Daniel Lander by a mere 35 votes after a district-wide recount this week — 12,293 to 12,258. That's a margin thinner than a rounding error, in a race that became a proxy fight over Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's political reach. Wu endorsed Lander, a first-time candidate, in an unusually direct effort to reshape the Senate delegation representing Allston, Brighton, Belmont, and slices of Cambridge and Watertown. It didn't work — barely.

What makes this result so telling is where the votes came from. Lander crushed it in Boston, taking Allston and Brighton by wide margins. But Brownsberger's decades of roots in Belmont delivered him more than double Lander's vote total there — 4,012 to 1,812 — and that's ultimately what saved him. It's a reminder that legislative seniority, name recognition, and suburban turnout can still outmuscle a well-funded, mayor-backed insurgency, even in a district that looks increasingly progressive on paper.

For Wu, this is a bruising, if survivable, result heading into her own reelection fight — a sign that her coattails don't yet extend past city limits. For Brownsberger, it's a warning shot: win by 35 votes and you don't get to call it a mandate. Expect both camps to treat this race as a template — or a cautionary tale — for legislative primaries in 2028. Full story at Boston.com →

Waltham man indicted after deadly gas station brawl. Timothy Scalisi, 31, was arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court on manslaughter charges after allegedly slamming 23-year-old Nicholas Dagostino to the ground during a parking-lot dispute in May. Dagostino died two days later at Lahey Burlington. Scalisi is out on $10,000 bail with a no-contact order and must surrender his passport; he's due back in court November 10. Boston Globe →

Flock cameras keep getting the trash-bag treatment. Waltham became the latest Massachusetts community to cover its automated license plate readers after Mayor Jeannette McCarthy ordered them blacked out — city councilors say they were installed without their approval, funded quietly through drug asset forfeiture money. City Council President Robert Logan didn't mince words: "These Flock cameras are about as popular as measles." Meanwhile, New Bedford's City Council is set to vote September 24 on an ordinance that would bar renewing its Flock contract altogether and force public disclosure of camera locations going forward. WBZ/CBS Boston → | New Bedford Light →

A federal judge says he can no longer trust ICE's word in court. In a striking ruling, a Boston federal judge ordered an immigrant's immediate release after concluding that ICE's arrest reports — and much of what the agency tells the court generally — can no longer be presumed truthful. The judge wrote that ICE, "at best... takes cursory steps to ensure that its statements are truthful, and, at worst, has a culture of outright lying." That's about as blunt a rebuke as federal courts get. Universal Hub →

Road rage with a gun turns into a multi-department chase through Jamaica Plain. A driver allegedly pulled a firearm during a dispute near Hellenic College in Brookline, then fled down Perkins Street past Jamaica Pond before being boxed in on the Jamaicaway by Brookline, Boston, and Transit Police. No injuries reported, but it's a scary scene for a neighborhood full of joggers and dog-walkers on a Friday evening. Universal Hub →

Massachusetts trooper's bar-fight case hits pause for a veterans' diversion bid. Christopher Regan, the state trooper charged with punching a colleague at a Quincy bar in June, had his arraignment pushed to October 9 while his attorney seeks entry into the BRAVE Act's pretrial diversion program for veterans. Regan remains suspended with pay; the request itself is sealed, citing sensitive medical and military information. Boston Globe →

Ed Markey's general election opponent has quite a backstory. Republican challenger John Deaton — a lawyer-turned-crypto-advocate who wrote a memoir about escaping childhood poverty in Detroit — trails Senator Ed Markey by roughly 20 points in recent polling. Long shot or not, Deaton's personal story makes him one of the more unusual GOP recruits Massachusetts has seen in a while. Boston.com →

September 24: New Bedford's City Council votes on the Flock camera restriction ordinance — a decision that could set precedent for how other Massachusetts cities handle surveillance tech going forward. New Bedford Light →

October 9: Rescheduled arraignment for State Trooper Christopher Regan in Quincy District Court, pending the outcome of his veterans' diversion request. Boston Globe →

Ongoing: South Shore News continues its nine-part series breaking down each November ballot question — this week's installment untangles the confusing world of public defense funding behind Question 2. South Shore News →

Track all bills →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

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Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

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Today we pause for the 25th anniversary of 9/11, but Beacon Hill and the campaign trail didn't take the day off. Here's what you need to know.

Brownsberger survives by 35 votes — and the Wu-Beacon Hill proxy war is over, for now.

After a week of nail-biting and a district-wide recount across Boston, Cambridge, Watertown, and Belmont, state Senator William Brownsberger has officially held onto his seat, beating challenger Daniel Lander by a margin so thin — 35 votes out of more than 24,000 cast — that it's basically a coin flip decided by turnout in Brownsberger's hometown of Belmont. Lander, a 35-year-old former Wu City Hall aide backed by both Mayor Michelle Wu and Senator Elizabeth Warren, actually won Boston, Cambridge, and Watertown outright. He just couldn't overcome Brownsberger's advantage in the district's suburban corner.

Why this matters beyond the numbers: this was the closest thing Beacon Hill has seen to a real ideological street fight in years. Brownsberger, the Senate's third-ranking Democrat and a two-decade incumbent, hadn't faced a serious challenge in a decade — and he helped kill Wu's push for a tax reclassification deal back in 2024, which made this race personal as much as political. Lander ran on the argument that Senate leadership moves too slowly on things like the real estate transfer fee, and even in defeat, he's declaring a moral victory, saying the race "woke up the State Senate." He's not wrong that it rattled some nerves: an incumbent this senior nearly lost to a first-time candidate with no institutional backing beyond the mayor's political operation.

What happens next: Brownsberger returns to Beacon Hill with no Republican opponent but an unenrolled candidate still on the November ballot, and with a message ringing in his ears that his colleagues in leadership can't ignore. Expect Senate President Karen Spilka's team to feel pressure to show more movement on housing and affordability bills before the next election cycle — because next time, a 35-vote margin might not go their way. Full story at Boston Globe →

Minogue's "AAOK" blueprint leans heavily on powers he doesn't have. Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Minogue rolled out his general-election pitch Thursday in Amesbury, promising to audit the Legislature, cancel the state's net-zero climate mandate, and trigger a gas tax holiday — all things that either require legislative approval or fall outside a governor's authority entirely. It's a values statement more than a workable plan, but it tells you where he wants the fight to be: taxes, spending, and "waste." GBH News →

Galvin refers Shiva Ayyadurai to the AG over alleged signature fraud. Secretary of State William Galvin says clerks in seven Massachusetts towns — including Woburn, where the clerk says her own forged signature appeared on Ayyadurai's ballot petitions — flagged signatures that looked "written by the same hand." Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office now has the case, and it's the latest headache for the perennial Senate candidate's independent bid. Boston Globe →

Newton judge gets a rare public reprimand in the ICE evasion case. The Supreme Judicial Court formally reprimanded Judge Shelley Joseph on Thursday, nearly eight years after she allegedly helped a defendant dodge waiting immigration agents at Newton District Court. The court found no evidence she knew of any escape plan, but ruled she created an "appearance of impropriety" by turning off courtroom recording — closing out one of the more politically charged sagas of Trump's first term. Boston Globe →

Blue Hill Avenue redesign, take three, lands with a thud. Boston and the MBTA unveiled yet another version of the long-fought Blue Hill Avenue overhaul — fewer bike lanes, more parking, but still a center-running bus lane serving 40,000 daily riders. A packed community meeting Thursday night made clear opponents aren't done fighting; about three dozen protesters marched down the avenue before the meeting even started. Boston Globe →

Brigham nurses' contract fight drags on, with Healey now leaning on management. Two months after the largest nurses strike in state history, Mass General Brigham and the Massachusetts Nurses Association remain at an impasse — and another strike is on the table. Governor Maura Healey told WBUR she's pushed MGB directly to get back to the bargaining table "for the sake of patients." WBUR →

Barnstable's correctional officers say no confidence in their sheriff. The union representing Barnstable County correctional officers took a unanimous no-confidence vote against Sheriff Donna Buckley, citing unsafe conditions and a "hostile work environment" under a new superintendent — plus a 35% spending increase they say raises fiscal red flags. Buckley says the extra spending went toward improving pay for the same officers now criticizing her. GBH News →

Today, statewide: Massachusetts marks the 25th anniversary of 9/11 with a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m., a State House reading of victims' names, and Governor Healey presenting a heroism award to TJ Swenson, the former Marine who helped stop the Memorial Drive shooter in May. Boston Globe →

Ongoing: House and Senate negotiators are hammering out a compromise on ballot question reform, with a commission deadline of late 2027 to recommend changes to the initiative petition process — worth watching given nine questions are already headed to November's ballot. WBUR →

This month: Three more community meetings on the Blue Hill Avenue redesign are planned before officials try to finalize a plan — if you have opinions on bus lanes, this is your window. Boston Globe →

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Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

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Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Dale Leone (Democratic) — City Councilor, Haverhill — Filed: 9/10/2026

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Rhode Island had itself a night. Governor Dan McKee, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, and Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien all lost their primaries Wednesday — an unprecedented trifecta of incumbent-toppling that political historians say has never happened in one Rhode Island election cycle, let alone a single primary night. Helena Foulkes, a former CVS executive, demolished McKee 62-38 in a rematch of their razor-thin 2022 race, sweeping every city and town in the state. In Providence, 27-year-old Democratic Socialist State Rep. David Morales — outspent nearly six-to-one — became the first challenger in city history to beat a sitting mayor, running on rent stabilization and a promise to blunt ICE enforcement.

Why should Massachusetts readers care about a Rhode Island primary? Because the story here isn't really about Rhode Island — it's about the mood of the entire region's Democratic electorate. McKee got buried under the weight of the Washington Bridge fiasco (a $427 million bill and counting for a bridge that was supposed to cost $368 million and be done already), and Smiley got outflanked by a candidate who made housing costs and policing the entire campaign. Sound familiar? Boston's own Mayor Michelle Wu is watching two of her own progressive Senate picks either lose or head to a recount, and she's framing those results — not unreasonably — as evidence of the same anti-incumbent, tired-of-the-status-quo energy that just leveled Rhode Island's political establishment. If you're an incumbent anywhere in New England heading into 2026 with an affordability problem and a credibility gap, Wednesday night should worry you.

What happens next: Foulkes becomes the heavy favorite in a reliably blue state against either Aaron Guckian or Elaine Pelino (still uncalled) on the Republican side, and independent Ken Block's path just got a lot narrower. Morales takes over a City Hall he's promised to overhaul within 100 days, starting with reviving the rent stabilization ordinance Smiley vetoed. Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos, notably, survived her own competitive primary — the only incumbent in a top statewide post to do so. Full story at Boston Globe →

Brownsberger recount underway, and it's a nail-biter. State Sen. William Brownsberger, the third-most powerful Democrat in the Senate, is locked in a recount against challenger Daniel Lander, who's backed by Mayor Wu. The margin has swung from a three-vote Lander lead to a roughly two-dozen-vote Brownsberger lead as Watertown, Boston, Belmont, and Cambridge sort through ballots — with recounts wrapping up Thursday. Eleven of his Senate colleagues showed up in a show of solidarity. CommonWealth Beacon →

Wu says legislative losses prove voters want change — even when her candidates lost. Speaking on Boston Public Radio, the mayor argued that two progressive challengers she backed — one who lost outright, one still in recount limbo — sent a message to entrenched incumbents regardless of the final tally. "Longtime incumbents with big war chests... can't just cruise to reelection," she said. GBH News →

Kratom quietly disappears from Massachusetts shelves. Since Gov. Maura Healey's administration classified kratom as a Schedule I drug on Aug. 28, inspectors across the state — including in Worcester, where officials estimate half of retailers didn't even know about the ban — report smooth, mostly confrontation-free compliance as smoke shops and convenience stores clear their stock. WBUR →

Flock cameras keep generating scandal, and cities keep them anyway. A New Bedford officer allegedly used license-plate readers to track an ex-girlfriend. Two Lynn officers are on leave after an audit flagged "concerning" search patterns. A Revere officer used the system 18 times to track a former partner and was briefly suspended — but Revere's chief says the cameras are staying put. WCVB →

Massachusetts cannabis industry hits $10 billion in sales — right as voters may kill it. A decade after legalization, adult-use marijuana sales here have crossed $10 billion, generating over $1.5 billion a year. But the milestone lands awkwardly: a November ballot question could repeal non-medical marijuana legalization entirely. WBUR →

Ballot question money is pouring in — just not as fast as 2022. Campaigns around this fall's nine ballot questions have raised more than $18 million so far, pitting business groups against unions and the marijuana industry against out-of-state opponents. Still, that's only about three-quarters of what a similar point in the 2022 cycle raised — even with more than double the questions on the ballot. CommonWealth Beacon →

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