State House News Service

The News Service is a privately-owned wire service that has provided in-depth coverage of Massachusetts state government for more than a century. We are recognized as the go-to news source for many professionals involved in government affairs. They rely on us for a steady flow of unbiased and precise reporting on nearly all facets of state government and the everyday happenings within the State House.

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Senators advance data privacy bills from joint committee

3 days ago | statehousenews.com | Michael Norton |Alison Kuznitz

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MAY 14, 2025......State senators outnumbered on a joint House-Senate committee pushed five data privacy bills this week into the Senate Ways and Means Committee, which is the last hurdle bills need to clear to reach the Senate floor.
Massachusetts economists tentatively project weak growth ahead

5 days ago | statehousenews.com | Michael Norton

MAY 12, 2025.....The Massachusetts economy is expected to grow at minimal rates in the second and third quarters of this year, according to local economists, who released data Monday showing the state economy contracted at a greater rate than the U.S. economy during the first quarter. Analysts at the economic journal MassBenchmarks reported that real gross state product decreased in Massachusetts at an annual rate of 1.1% during the first quarter.
On deadline day, Dems leave GIC funding bill unfinished

5 days ago | statehousenews.com | Michael Norton

The House on Monday advanced a $240 million bill to rescue the budget of the agency that administers health insurance for state employees and retirees. The News Service on April 17 reported that the Group Insurance Commission, which oversees health insurance for 460,000 public employees, retirees and their dependents, was on track to run out of money to pay claims on May 12, seven weeks before the end of the fiscal year.
Weekly Roundup: Will the surtax save the T?

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Colin Young

MAY 9, 2025.....Hopefully you've enjoyed the last few weeks of debate over spending down surplus surtax revenue, because it sure seems like Beacon Hill will be going through the same exercise next year too.
Legislature, Cannabis Commission watching each other

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Colin Young

MAY 8, 2025.....The speaker of the House suggested in March that his branch was eager to tackle legislation restructuring the embattled Cannabis Control Commission this spring, but two months later regulators are still watching for direction from the Cannabis Policy Committee and staying in close contact with lawmakers.
Workers highlight debt burden carried by state's "caring force"

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Sam Drysdale

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MAY 8, 2025......As a single mom of two, it wasn't easy for Ashlie Osborne to choose to take on over $100,000 of debt so she could go to work every day and feel like she's making a difference. Osborne is a clinical mental health counselor for people with a primary diagnosis of autism and serious mental illness. "I've always been someone who cared about people, and I think community work is where my heart was. I knew I always wanted to be a clinician.
Outside MBTA zone, transportation services seen as "lifelines"

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Michael Norton

MAY 8, 2025.....Beacon Hill is immersed in debate over how many more hundreds of millions of dollars state taxpayers should devote to the MBTA, but transit services outside of the T region are absorbed in their own operational changes and improvements, as they aim to serve constituencies with few other options.
State issues open call for new seal, flag and motto

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Colin Young

The state is soliciting proposals from artists, historians, designers, "culture bearers" and anyone else who has an idea for a new Massachusetts state seal, flag and motto. The Massachusetts Seal, Flag, and Motto Advisory Commission launched an open call for proposals Thursday, hoping to whittle the suggestions down to three finalists for each category before getting public input and then making final recommendations to Gov. Maura Healey by July 29.
Faithful and political elite praise the selection of first American pope

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Brian Howey

MAY 8, 2025.....American-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost made history Thursday. Prevost, who grew up in the south Chicago suburbs and steadily rose through the ranks of the Catholic Church on three continents, became the first American to be elected pontiff. He took the name Pope Leo XIV after the 133 College of Cardinals members elected him, on the second day of balloting at the Sistine Chapel, to succeed Pope Francis, who died the day after Easter.
Senate leaves housing law alone in $1.3 billion spending bill

1 week ago | statehousenews.com | Chris Lisinski

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MAY 8, 2025.....The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday avoided making any changes to the controversial MBTA Communities Act while advancing a $1.3 billion spending bill packed with one-time investments in education and transportation. The Senate voted 40-0 on a bill (S 2512) deploying surplus surtax revenues after a smattering of commentary about some pressure points and the adoption of dozens of earmarks following off-the-floor decision-making.