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Middleboro Review 2

NEW CONTENT MOVED TO MIDDLEBORO REVIEW 2

Toyota

Since the Dilly, Dally, Delay & Stall Law Firms are adding their billable hours, the Toyota U.S.A. and Route 44 Toyota posts have been separated here:

Route 44 Toyota Sold Me A Lemon



Monday, September 14, 2015

MASSterList: Home insurance hike blowback | Globe: Investigate Worcester SWAT fiasco | Brockton casino opponents mobilize




 
Monday, September 14, 2015



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By George Donnelly (@geodonnelly) with Sara Brown
The action this week: Ride-sharing hearing, criminal records reform, 'Black Mass'
 
It's a quiet holiday schedule today on the political calendar, but the intensity quickly picks up Tuesday with a Financial Services Committee hearing on ride-sharing legislation. Expect this one to be well attended, with perhaps some theatrics mixed in, as both sides of this conflict are well organized and can marshal many workers. The Boston Herald previews the hearing here: http://bit.ly/1iIPTxh
* Also on Tuesday, City Councilors Bill Linehan and Frank Baker will push a plan to create a2 percent tax on alcohol to help fund addiction treatment. 
* On Wednesday, the Joint Committee on the Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on 93 bills. Among the most controversial will be ones to expunge the criminal records of juveniles.
* The buzz is growing for the release of "Black Mass" in movie theaters this week. Here's Ty Burr's review in the Globe (2.5 stars): http://bit.ly/1J7hD3D
* The Massachusetts Democratic Party Convention will be held in Springfield on Saturday. Among the speakers will be Howard Dean, who will be representing presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
 
Mad about rising home insurance rates?
Last winter, perhaps you paid someone to dangle off a ladder and hammer ice off your roof. Or three times what you usually pay to shovel and plow the 110 inches of snow. Now the icing on the cake for homeowners has been a 9 percent increase in home insurance rates, a spike that has riled enough people to become a political issue. The AG is checking the increases and the Legislature plans to weigh in. Deirdre Fernandes' story in the Globe today reports on the plan for "listening sessions" by the Division of Insurance, which earlier approved the rates but has decided to solicit more input. It will be an opportunity to vent, and no doubt a lesson in actuarial science. http://bit.ly/1NqTb3s
 
Labor rhetoric too much for Vennochi
Globe columnist Joan Vennochi isn't buying labor's angry rhetoric about the Pioneer Institute. At the Labor Day breakfast, labor organizers went out of their way to impugn the integrity of the think tank, which has stoked the ire of labor by providing research on the costs of not privatizing some transportation services. In her Sunday column, Vennochi points out that Pioneer is using data, and the labor bluster in response isn't very convincing.http://bit.ly/1FGKls6

Globe calls for independent investigation of Worcester SWAT team fiasco
When a Worcester police SWAT team busted into a home to arrest an alleged drug dealer, they held an innocent woman, who was naked, and her children at gunpoint before eventually learning the suspect no longer lived there (and had been arrested by the same Worcester Dept. police a few weeks earlier). A Globe editorial says an independent investigation -- rather than an internal one by the police -- to get to the bottom of the mess.
 
Local nonprofit institute challenges drug costs
A watchdog institute that challenges the pharma industry on drug pricing, the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, is expected to make more waves in the coming months, writes the Globe's Rob Weissman. ICER, as it's called, has 22 researchers and calculates what it calls a "value-based price benchmark" that assesses benefits and prices of the drug, challenging the price tags of new treatments. The pharma industry, in turn, is challenging the methodology. http://bit.ly/1F95gcr

People upset over slow pace of marijuana dispensary licenses given
Attendees at the New England Cannabis Convention said they have been frustrated with the slow rollout of medical marijuana. Voters voted in favor of it in 2012. "It's way too slow," said Jill Osborn, the family outreach director at Parents for Pot, to the Boston Herald. "There are patients in need, people dying, and people living a lesser quality of life because we did not implement this properly." The first dispensary opened this year in Salem. The first one in Boston is expected to open in 2016. http://bit.ly/1OPFNVo

Sanders surge continues
Bernie Sanders is leading in the polls against Hillary Clinton with wide margins in New Hampshire and Iowa. According to a YouGov/CBS polls, Sanders with 52 percent in New Hampshire. In Iowa, he leads with 43 percent. "Clinton had consistently led Sanders in Iowa, until a Quinnipiac poll Thursday showed the two to be even," Boston.com reported. Sanders took to Twitter to celebrate the news. http://bit.ly/1OPG22W

Lawmakers pushing for a new sexual assault bill
Lawmakers are pushing for a bill to develop a set of guidelines governing how colleges handle sexual assaults on campuses. The state's law would require college's victim support services to work closely with local law enforcement and let students know their rights better. "Many schools already have a lot of the services we're trying to mandate," said Sen. Michael Moore, a Democrat to the Telegram. While the many schools already do such things in case of a sexual assault, the bill is to make sure there are set guidelines for everyone. http://bit.ly/1UOLwSm

State needs billions of dollars to keep up with crumbling roads
While the financial problems of the MBTA have been well publicized, the state needs $1 billion a year for the next decade to keep up with its deteriorating roads. In the context of declining federal highway funding support, and a new electronic tolling system that is estimated at $100 million, the defeat of the gas tax indexing measure looks particularly inopportune, reports the Salem News. Gov. Charlie Baker said fixing the MBTA is one of his main priorities but said it will take some time. "I'd like to fix it all at once... but Rome wasn't built in a day," he said recently. http://bit.ly/1MmiOE0

Businesses backing transgender rights bill
A bill aimed to protect transgender people from discrimination in public places is gaining steam with businesses. The Massachusetts Hospital Association, the YWCA Boston, State Street and Ropes & Gray are among the many that are listed as backers of the bill according to The Boston Globe. "I can't pretend to understand the medical, societal, psychological issues that transgender people deal with, but we have laws on the books that enable discrimination and we should fix that," said James E. Rooney, president and chief executive of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce to the Globe. http://bit.ly/1J75V96

T worker sues over fee for file 
The MBTA is facing a lawsuit from a former worker over a $7.80 fee she was levied after asking for a copy of her own personnel files, the Herald reports. The attorney for Jeanie Williams of Dedham, who left the agency in November, indicated he will seek class-action status for the lawsuit, which he plans to file Monday in Suffolk Superior Court, saying the T is clearly violating state law on the issue. 
   
Opponents, supporters see opening in Brockton casino maneuverings 
Opponents of a proposed Brockton casino say they'll use a public comment period from the developers of the project to pressure the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to reject the bid, the Enterprise reports. Church leaders in the city say they hope to have as many as 1,000 emails pour into the MGC office before the comment period closes this Friday on Rush Street Gaming's request that the commission to go ahead with the review of its bid without waiting to see what happens with a potential tribal casino in nearby Taunton. 
   
Trial court to ignore probation essay exam 
Facing union grievances and discrimination complaints, the state's trial court says it will basically ignore the essay portion of an exam given to probation department employees seeking promotions, the Globe reports. The move means 12 acting assistant chief probation officers will no longer face demotion and pay cuts. 
 
Herald: Pike plan means privacy pitfalls 
 
How to reach me and MASSterList
Nothing makes me happier than comments, tips, suggestions. Also, opinion articles also will be considered. Please don't hesitate to weigh in on what we're missing and where we should look. Reach me atgdonnelly@massterlist.com or on Twitter @geodonnelly.

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