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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy Monday!
EDUCATION FUNDING LETTERS TO LAND ON BAKER'S DESK —Members of an education advocacy group plan to deliver over 1,000 letters to Gov. Charlie Baker today calling for a greater investment in school funding. Stand for Children Massachusetts aims to advance a conversation some education officials and lawmakers hope to take up when the next legislative session begins in January.
The education group says updating the funding formula for the state's public schools, especially in under-served communities, would help end discrepancies in student performance between the state's wealthiest and poorest school districts. When Baker signed this year's budget, he pointed out Chapter 70 spending has gone up by $500 million since 2015. But advocates, and quite a few letter-writers, are calling on the state to do more.
School funding has been top of mind in Massachusetts since 2015, when the Foundation Budget Review Commission found the existing Chapter 70 formula, which dictates how the state funds school districts, dramatically underfunds public schools. Massachusetts "shortchanges" public schools by $1 billion a year, according to a July report from the Boston Globe. S ome worry an increasingly suburban voting population could make it harder for the legislature to prioritize urban school districts, which often bear the brunt of the school funding problem.
After a legislative effort to change education funding crumbled earlier this year, officials and advocates have their eye on the coming session. Last month, Secretary of Education James Peyser said education funding reform "probably will be done this session," according to a State House News Service report. And Western Massachusetts state Reps. Tricia Farley-Bouvier and John Barrett told WAMC they are eyeing an education funding overhaul when things get into full swing after the new year.
CLARK HITS STATE DEPT. ON REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS — Rep. Katherine Clark is introducing a new bill today that would require the State Department to include reproductive rights in its annual human rights report.
The legislation is a check on President Donald Trump's White House and the State Department, which struck reproductive rights from its report "without warning or justification" last year, according to Clark's office. The department had included reproductive rights information in the report, which looks into human rights in each country that receives U.S. foreign aid, since 2011.
"Documenting and reporting human rights violations is a major part of eradicating their existence," Clark said in a statement. "This bill would ensure that our State Department maintains its vital role as an international watchdog and protector of women's rights no matter the ideology of our White House."
The bill's debut coincides with International Human Rights Day , which is celebrated every Dec. 10. Clark will introduce it with Reps. Nita Lowey, Eliot Engel, Barbara Lee and Lois Frankel. The Massachusetts Democrat has some newfound muscle in the House — Clark was elected to the number six leadership spot at the end of November.
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TODAY - Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Robert DeLeo huddle with Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr and House Minority Leader Bradley Jones for a leadership meeting. Congresswoman-elect Ayanna Pressley holds a hearing on violence and trauma as her last act as chair of the Boston City Council Committee on Health Women, Families and Communities.
Rep. Niki Tsongas moderates an opioid forum attended by Congresswoman-elect Lori Trahan, state Rep. Andy Vargas, state Rep. Leonard Mirra, Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera, Methuen Mayor Jim Jajuga and Haverhill Mayor Jim Fiorentini. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh reads to first-graders at the James F. Condon school. Newly-elected state lawmakers Nika Elugardo, Tram Nguyen and Liz Miranda appear on WGBH's "Greater Boston."
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Maura Healey, Brigham and Women's protest proposed immigration rule," by Alexi Cohan, Boston Herald: "A proposed immigration rule claiming to promote self-sufficiency and protect taxpayers will have detrimental effects on the community, critics say. The regulation would limit immigration visas by expanding the definition of 'public charge,' a label used to identify documented, non-citizen immigrants who are dependent on public benefits. If an immigrant is labeled under public charge, it becomes more difficult for them to get a green card. Published in September by the Department of Homeland Security, the public charge rule would expand to include almost all public benefits like SNAP, Medicaid, Medicare and public housing. Maura Healey, who said she is prepared to sue should the regulation pass, has already consulted with other attorneys general who have concerns."
- "Local cable stations face deep cuts under FCC rule," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: " A proposed federal rule expected to take effect next month could drastically cut funding for community cable television stations, possibly forcing some of them off the air. Local access stations get a percentage of their revenue from cable companies, which are required by law to give up to 5 percent of their gross income to support public access."
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| THE OPINION PAGES |
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- "A to-do list for Legislature's short session," Boston Globe: "'Tis the season for a dose of optimism on Beacon Hill. Because as the days grow short and the list of unfinished business grows more obvious, at least a few items are back on the legislative radar screen. Sure, this was a shortened lawmaking season, with formal sessions, in this, an election year, ending on July 31. Some 'big stuff' — health care reforms, especially those aimed at helping community hospitals and changes to the education funding formula — were left undone and remain contentious and, therefore, won't see the light of day during this lame duck session. ... But there are a handful of bills that almost made it as the clock ran out on formal sessions — they shouldn't have to wait for the typically excruciating slow start in the new January session."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Simmons president among the nation's highest paid," by Deirdre Fernandes, Boston Globe: " Simmons University may be dwarfed by Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Northeastern when it comes to size and name recognition. But it has most Boston-area higher education institutions beat on at least one measure: its president's compensation package. Simmons president Helen Drinan ranked among the highest paid private college presidents nationwide, according to an annual survey released Sunday by the Chronicle of Higher Education."
- "Forming a more perfect Union Square," by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: " Just about every week since July, a group of neighborhood activists and a team of real estate developers have sat down to bargain over the future of Union Square. The square — a jumble of hipster bars and ethnic restaurants, auto shops and corner stores — is on the verge of a $1.5 billion makeover. When it's done, the neighborhood will be more modern, dotted with taller buildings creating new space for offices, stores, and apartments."
- "Emergency rooms once offered little for drug users. That's starting to change," by Felice J. Freyer, Boston Globe: "What Martin did in the ensuing years would help move Mass. General to the vanguard of a new approach to addiction: Instead of sending addicted people on their way, the hospital can start treatment right in the emergency department. And now a new state law is requiring all hospitals to do the same, a mandate that calls on hospitals to meet the challenge of a crisis claiming four or five lives each day in Massachusetts."
- "What We Know (So Far) About The Historic Overhaul Of Boston Public Schools," by Max Larkin, WBUR: "As it faces daunting challenges that have built up over decades, Boston Public Schools is embarking on a major transformation. Over the course of the next decade, the $1 billion 'BuildBPS' plan will remake the district's physical footprint inside and out. The plan, long a priority for Mayor Marty Walsh, will also change the way students move from school to school and from home to the classroom."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Harvard student accused of rape far from campus sues university for investigating it," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "Does a university have the responsibility — or even the right — to investigate a claim that one of its students raped someone hundreds of miles away? The question is central to a case filed in federal court by a Harvard University student who argues the school is overstepping its authority by investigating him for a rape allegation lodged by a nonstudent in a city where police declined to prosecute."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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— "Elizabeth Warren forges a 2020 machine," by Natasha Korecki, POLITICO : "Her aides have been quietly shopping for presidential campaign headquarters space in the Boston area in recent weeks, according to a source with knowledge of the move. All that's left is for her to give the green light. When and if she does, she'll be rolling out arguably the most advanced and sweeping infrastructure in the Democratic field, a plug-and-play campaign that could give her a massive head start on nearly every contender in the burgeoning primary roster, with only Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) coming close."
- "As her DNA test still reverberates, Sen. Elizabeth Warren's political operation shows fissures," by Matt Viser, Washington Post: "Mindy Myers, who was one of the primary architects of Warren's political rise and has remained one of her close advisers, had been expected to play a senior role in the senator's campaign. But she has been in talks with several rival campaigns and is planning to meet soon with Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Tex.), who is considering a presidential run. Myers ran Warren's 2012 U.S. Senate campaign and then served as her senate chief of staff, giving her a deep understanding of Warren's strengths and weaknesses."
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| FROM THE DELEGATION |
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- "Massachusetts Delegation Eyeing Reins Of Power In US House," by Steve LeBlanc, Associated Press: "Massachusetts holds only nine of 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, but after eight years in the political wilderness the state's all-Democrat delegation is suddenly playing an outsized role in both the leadership and palace intrigue of the incoming Congress. Among the nine are two presumed committee chairmen, a rising star in the freshman class, another rising star on the Democratic Party leadership ladder, and a leader of an insurgent wing inside the Democratic Party. All that and a Kennedy, too."
- "Onetime Pelosi foe reverses course, announces support for her House speaker bid," by Mike DeBonis, Washington Post:"Democratic Rep. Stephen F. Lynch, who had opposed Rep. Nancy Pelosi's bid for House speaker, reversed course and announced on Friday that he will support her candidacy. It was the latest boost to Pelosi's bid to regain the speaker's gavel after eight years in the minority and the latest blow to the small band of Democrats who are threatening to withhold their votes to force a shake-up in the party's top ranks ."
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| THE TSONGAS ARENA |
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- "For retiring Lowell congresswoman, a chance to say thank you," by Chris Lisinski, The Lowell Sun: "It took U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas close to an hour to greet everyone who came out Sunday to her celebration. Hundreds of people lined up in the atrium of, fittingly, the Tsongas Center, hoping to catch a moment with the congresswoman and offer warm wishes as she heads into retirement next month. Tsongas stood at the front of the line, embracing friends and supporters who stood by her through more than a decade in office."
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| DATELINE MERRIMACK VALLEY |
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- "Columbia Gas Holds Community Meetings For Remaining Four Percent Of Affected Customers," by Tori Bedford, WGBH News:"Columbia Gas representatives are making themselves available to the public in a series of community meetings and fielding questions for customers still dealing with the aftermath of the explosions. In September, one person died and thousands of residents in Andover, North Andover and Lawrence were urged to evacuate their homes after a series of gas explosions rocked the Merrimack Valley. Now, 96 percent of residential meters have been restored, but 270 customers remain without gas service, according to a Dec. 6 statement from Columbia Gas. Most of the remaining four percent is made up of people who chose to self-mitigate, or use their own contractors."
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| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
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- "For Massachusetts city and town officials eyeing marijuana businesses, this forum seeks to demystify the new industry," by Gintautas Dumcius, MassLive.com "With two marijuana retail shops open and more on the way, city and town officials across Massachusetts are weighing traffic concerns, crowd control and other issues they'll see if they decide to welcome the new industry. State regulators hope those officials will get some answers at a December 18 forum in Boston. The forum is open to the public."
- "Lakeville medical marijuana facility starts growing first crop," by Robert Barboza, Middleboro Gazette" " Nature's Remedy co-founder Robert Carr received a warm reception from the Planning Board when he reported that the community's first medical marijuana cultivation site has passed all of the required state and local inspections and is ready to sow its first crop at 310 Kenneth Welch Drive. The state Department of Public Health has inspected the facility and 'given us the go-ahead to start planting,' Carr told the committee."
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| 2020 WATCH |
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- "Senator Cory Booker presents a vision of hope at N.H. Democratic fete," by Jeremy C. Fox, Boston Globe: "US Senator Cory Booker presented himself as a unifying figure in the mode of Barack Obama's 2008 campaign on Saturday, as the New Jersey Democrat addressed party stalwarts in the state that holds the first-in-the-nation presidential primary. Booker, who said he hasn't decided whether he will run for president, positioned himself as temperamentally opposite to President Trump — whom he never named — as he addressed Democratic voters at a celebration of the party's 'blue wave' in the midterm elections, when New Hampshire Democrats seized control of the state's Senate, House, and Executive Council."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "BRAVERY," — Globe: "Drama in the front row," "ERs given new role in treating addiction." |
| NO PLACE LIKE THE CITY OF HOMES |
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- "Ending homelessness in 10 years was an ambitious goal; with people still homeless, advocates turn to new approaches," by Diane Lederman, Springfield Republican: "In 2007, the city committed to ending long-term homelessness within 10 years. It's now 11 years later, and 'homelessness is not over,' said Bill Miller, vice president of housing and homeless services at Friends of the Homeless in Springfield. 'All these people with all these complications; the need keeps coming in,' he said. But those seeking to address homelessness say there have been improvements as well as changes in how they approach the problem."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "Firefighter dies in Worcester blaze," by Laurel J. Sweet and Mary Markos, Boston Herald: "A firefighter died in a Worcester fire today after evacuating from the second floor of a residential building under heavy fire conditions, officials said. Firefighter Christopher Roy, 36, succumbed to his injuries after he was rescued from the building, said Worcester fire Chief Michael Lavoie."
- "Some Newton teachers will miss school to respond to critics' records requests," by Laura Crimaldi, Boston Globe: "Thirteen history teachers in the Newton Public Schools are expected to miss some class time this week in order to gather documents for a public records request filed by an advocacy organization that has accused the district of anti-Israel bias in its high-school world history curriculum. The Watertown nonprofit Americans for Peace and Tolerance has submitted 16 public records requests to the school system so far in 2018, but this is the first time that teachers will need to step away from the classroom to assemble records, said Superintendent David Fleishman."
- "Watertown Becomes 1st Town In New England To Require Solar Panels On New Commercial Constructions," WBUR:"Watertown will now require commercial developers to put solar panels on new buildings, becoming the first town in New England to do so. The town council unanimously approved a zoning ordinance requiring new commercial construction, as well as renovations of existing buildings that are more than 10,000 square feet, to have solar collectors. Cambridge is considering a similar solar requirement, as both communities have been undergoing construction booms."
- "Developers left out in the cold as National Grid lockout continues," by Erin Tiernan, Patriot-Ledger: "Hillside Residences, a new luxury apartment building on a quiet side street in Quincy Center, has amenities including a roof deck, a private gym and top-of-the-line appliances. It's missing only one thing: people. Tenants were supposed to move into the 60-apartment building on Bridge Street on Sept. 1, but a nearly six-month lockout of National Grid workers, along with state and city moratoriums on new gas connections, means the building has no heat. Without heat, there can be no tenants, so the building sits empty, costing the developer, real estate agents and city thousands in lost income and tax revenue."
- "Regulators OK sale of Vermont nuke near Massachusetts border," by Mary C. Serreze, Springfield Republican: "The Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant will soon have a new owner. The Vermont Public Utilities Commission last week approved the sale of the shuttered 604-megawatt plant from Entergy, its former operator, to NorthStar Group Services, a private decommissioning firm. NorthStar proposes to decommission the site by 2030, instead of by 2075 as Entergy had planned. The plant in Vernon, Vermont, which stopped producing electricity in 2014, is located on the Connecticut River just north of the Massachusetts border."
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes and no! The Bruins beat the Senators 2-1. The Dolphins beat the Patriots 34-33.
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