Homepage Featured

State Delivers $1.5 Million Grant to North Andover’s 6K to Advance UniMelt System

By |

North Andover’s 6K is the recipient of a $1.5 million grant that will help the company recycle scrap materials and transform them into premium metal powder used in 3D printing. The grant, officially awarded during a ceremony Thursday at 6K’s new battery material production plant, comes from the Massachusetts Manufacturing Innovation Initiative. On hand were Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. There was also an unveiling of plans for a new 33,000-square-foot battery center of excellence pre-production plant in North Andover. It will be one of the largest battery material production facilities in the United States.

Beacon Hill News

Sens. DiZoglio and Finegold Take Opposite Stances on Suspending Gas Tax; Measure is Rejected

By |

Local senators took opposite positions Thursday on whether to suspend the state gasoline tax as prices rise in the midst of the Ukraine War. As momentum grows around the country for the suspension of state gas taxes, the state Senate on Thursday rejected a Republican-led push to pause gas tax collections through Labor Day even as Gov. Charlie Baker signaled he was warming to the idea. Sen. Diana DiZoglio voted against the measure while Sen. Barry Finegold supported it. Finegold, along with Sens. Paul Feeney, Anne Gobi, Mark Montigny, Michael Moore, Marc Pacheco, Walter Timilty and John Velis—all Democrats—joined Republicans Bruce Tarr, Republican Sen. Ryan Fattman and Sen. Patrick O’Connor in support of the suspension.

Haverhill

Biden Taps Former State Rep. Juana Matias as HUD New England Regional Administrator

By |

Former Lawrence state Rep. Juana Matias, who grew up in Haverhill, was chosen Thursday by President Joe Biden to serve as the New England regional administrator of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Matias represented Lawrence in the Massachusetts House for the 2017-2018 session. She has been leading MassINC as its COO since January 2019, after she gave up her seat in the Massachusetts House to run for Congress. Matias won her home city of Lawrence by a wide margin but finished fourth in a 10-way Democratic primary. She said she was the first Latina to run for Congress in Massachusetts.

Education

Rep. Campbell, Author of Civics Legislation, Addresses Mass. Civic Learning Week Today

By |

State Rep. Linda Dean Campbell joins state Sen. Jason Lewis during an online discussion this afternoon with students, teachers and administrators to highlight the impact of the state’s civics education law passed in 2018. The talk, which takes place from 4:15-5, is part of the Massachusetts Civic Learning Coalition’s Massachusetts Civic Learning Week 2022. This year centers on the theme of “Building Communities through Civics” and feature more than 30 virtual workshops, panels and events. “The excitement and commitment to civics education continues to explode here in the Commonwealth and is a powerful antidote to the deep divisions that permeate current political discourse,” said Campbell. “Local school districts continue to dedicate more time and resources to preparing students to be informed participants in our democracy, and the legislature and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education continue to fund and vigorously promote civics education in our schools through multiple grade levels.

Crime

Man With Camera Thwarts Mass. Legislature’s Secrecy Law, Exposing Attempted Murder Charges

By |

If it wasn’t for a Haverhill neighbor’s home video last Friday, the public never would have known about a person being run down by a truck, two people being stabbed and assault with intent to murder charges being filed. Nothing appeared on Haverhill Police arrest or incident logs because of State House-ordered secrecy relating to certain criminal acts. In fact, hundreds of police calls are blacked out each week with the public never knowing the true level of community violence because of Beacon Hill’s 2014 changes to criminal laws. In Friday’s case, court papers finally revealed 40-year-old Freddie A. Cordero Jr., of 1454 Broadway, was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon—a 2006 Ford Explorer, assault and battery, assault with intent to murder and reckless driving when he allegedly tried to run down his cousin, 43-year-old old David Lopez, at the Broadway address. Lopez, of 78 Lafayette Square, was likewise charged with two counts of assault to murder, two counts of assault and battery, driving while under the influence, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon—a knife—and driving an uninsured and unregistered vehicle.

Beacon Hill News

DiZoglio Calls for Investigation Into How 2,100 Drivers Received Licenses Without Road Tests

By |

Sen. Diana DiZoglio, hoping to become the next state auditor, wants to know how 2,100 drivers apparently received licenses without taking road tests. The Methuen Democrat wrote a letter to Senate President Karen Spilka on Sunday, blasting an “all-around calamity” at the Registry of Motor Vehicles and urged the chamber’s leadership to open a legislative investigation. Legislative leaders remained quiet Tuesday. “We are hearing from many Massachusetts residents who took their road tests and are now being lumped in with persons who were granted licenses without taking them,” DiZoglio wrote in her letter to Spilka. “Worse, when these residents try calling the RMV or even report to the RMV in person, they are provided no answers as to why.

Election Central

DiZoglio Pledges Scrutiny of Pay, Diversity and Police Anti-Bias Rollout if Elected Auditor

By |

Sen. Diana DiZoglio, a candidate for state auditor, last week outlined her plans to report on pay equity, diversity and inclusion in agency contracting; equity in the cannabis industry; and the implementation of anti-bias training for police. Accompanied by Sens. Adam Gomez, Lydia Edwards and Julian Cyr for an online press conference, the Methuen Democrat rolled out what she called her “social justice and equity audit plan,” saying, if elected, she would “be an auditor who opens state government to everyone and shifts the balance of power back to the working people.”

“Massachusetts government is great at making progressive promises, but too often it fails to actually live up to those ideals,” she said. Regarding cannabis and the original promise of fairness, DiZoglio noted “only 8% of businesses are owned by social equity participants and the industry remains dominated by former medical marijuana companies, which were not subject to any equity goals.” As auditor, she said, she will report on the Cannabis Control Commission and other state agencies to make sure they are actively encouraging diversity and equity. DiZoglio also said she would monitor licenses to ensure investors who partner with social equity applicants actually live up to their promises.

Beacon Hill News

Rep. Dean Campbell Withholds Full Support for Weakened Veterans’ Homes Reform Bill

By |

Although she was the original lead sponsor of a bill to reform oversight and governance at state veterans’ homes, Rep. Linda Dean Campbell did not lend her full support to a weakened version that emerged from the House last Thursday. The bill that cleared the House with a 156-1 vote seeks several major changes at the Holyoke and Chelsea Soldiers’ Homes after a deadly COVID-19 outbreak swept through Holyoke nearly two years ago, leading to the deaths of dozens of veterans and spawning multiple independent investigations. Rep. Linda Dean Campbell voted “present” on the bill that was reshaped since she and Sen. Mike Rush filed it last fall. “This is a very different bill than the one that was filed by Sen. Rush and I resulting from the input we received during the special investigation,” Dean Campbell, a Methuen Democrat, said. Its reforms include a new requirement that the top official at each facility hold a license as a nursing home administrator, the launch of a new statewide veteran advocate office and creation of ombudsman roles to oversee operations in Holyoke and Chelsea.