The Lead

Rent Control Is Dead on Beacon Hill — At Least for Now

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's decision this week to strike the rent control ballot question from November's ballot didn't just end a campaign — it effectively killed the last real leverage advocates had to force a legislative deal. And Beacon Hill insiders aren't sugarcoating it. State Senator Julian Cyr, the Senate chair of the Housing Committee, said plainly that the pressure to cut a deal has "diminished," while real estate industry officials were even more blunt: no ballot threat, no negotiations. Full stop.

Here's the thing about how reform happens on Beacon Hill: it almost always requires someone holding a gun to the Legislature's head. The ballot question was that gun. Without it, rent control supporters are back to lobbying a chamber where Democratic leadership has spent years quietly running out the clock on anything resembling tenants' rights. Cyr left a small door open — "if they come to us with a good idea, we're all ears" — but nobody reads that as an invitation.

What happens next? Rent control supporters rallied at the State House Wednesday, showing they're not ready to pack up. But their path to any legislative win is now steep. Expect advocates to start recalibrating — whether that means a new ballot campaign for 2028 or pushing for narrower, more palatable reforms that can survive conference committee. For renters already stretching every month, this is a genuinely bad week.

Full story at Boston Globe →

What Else You Should Know

🌬️ Vineyard Wind Celebration, With Asterisks

Gov. Maura Healey headed to New Bedford on Wednesday to mark the completion of Vineyard Wind 1 — the country's first commercial-scale offshore wind project — touting nearly 4,000 jobs and an estimated $1.4 billion in electricity savings for Massachusetts families. The milestone is real, but so are the complications: the development company is mired in financial disputes, and the project isn't yet operating at full capacity. Call it a victory lap with a few potholes.

CommonWealth Beacon →

⚡ Senate's Energy Bill Takes Aim at Gas Pipes — and House

Senate Democrats are readying a vote next week on an energy bill that would end the controversial Gas System Enhancement Program — the pipe-replacement program that's been quietly adding hundreds of dollars a year to your gas bill — while largely protecting the Mass Save efficiency program that the House wanted to gut. The two chambers are miles apart, and whatever emerges from a conference committee is anyone's guess. If you pay a utility bill in Massachusetts, this fight is worth watching closely.

CommonWealth Beacon →

⚖️ Boston Federal Judge Permanently Blocks Trump Voter Citizenship Mandate

U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper in Boston made permanent on Wednesday her earlier injunction blocking the Trump administration from requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote. Casper was direct: the Constitution "does not grant the President any specific powers over elections." The ruling also bars the administration from refusing to count mail ballots postmarked before Election Day, and from punishing states that refuse to comply. A significant win for the coalition of Democratic attorneys general who sued.

Boston.com →

🏙️ Boston Passes $4.9 Billion Budget — Barely

The Boston City Council signed off on Mayor Michelle Wu's amended $4.9 billion fiscal year budget on Wednesday, ending what had been a tense few months of negotiations over cuts to community programs. Wu reversed a $1.4 million transportation personnel cut that the council had pushed, instead shifting the reduction to contracted services — a move she says won't require layoffs but will require "adjusting service levels." Councilor John FitzGerald backed the change but complained publicly that the mayor's office gave him contradictory information along the way.

Boston Globe →

🏥 Healey's Secret Health Care Working Group Is at Halftime

We got a rare, accidental update this week on Gov. Healey's health care affordability working group — which has been meeting privately for months — when a member let slip during a public board meeting that the panel has hit its midpoint and expects to send a first round of recommendations to the governor "within the next few weeks." Healey promised back in January that she wanted action, not another blue-ribbon report. We'll see. Bay Staters paying record premiums will be watching.

CommonWealth Beacon →

🚨 More Allegations Pile Up Against Brockton Mayor

Another Brockton resident has gone on the record about what she called a "very inappropriate" encounter with Mayor Moises Rodrigues, describing a comment he allegedly made about her pregnancy when she met him last year. Rodrigues declined to comment. The allegations are accumulating — Rodrigues chairs the school committee in addition to serving as mayor — and pressure on city officials to respond more forcefully is growing.

GBH News →

Worth Your Attention

Senate Energy Bill Vote — Next Week: The Massachusetts Senate is expected to vote on its sweeping energy affordability package in the coming days; if you want to weigh in before it passes, now's the time to contact your senator. CommonWealth Beacon →

Orange Line Extension Proposal: Boston City Councilors Miniard Culpepper and Brian Worrell are making a public case for extending the Orange Line down Blue Hill Avenue — a long-discussed idea with real equity implications for Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan. Universal Hub →

Weekend Weather Heads-Up: Enjoy today's sunshine — Friday brings morning showers and a risk of afternoon thunderstorms before clearing out for a genuinely nice final weekend of June, with temperatures in the 80s. WCVB →

FY2027 Budget Tracker

Current stage: Conference committee reconciles

Governor's Budget (H2) — filed

House Budget (H5500) | 1744 amendments filed — house_floor

Senate Budget (H5501) | 1 amendments filed — conference

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