The annual state budget process moved into the next stage this week with the release of the House Ways and Means fiscal year 2022 proposal. With many factors looming over state spending -- policy changes from the Biden administration, billions in federal aid dollars, and an evolving revenue picture -- the News Service's Chris Lisinski talks with Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation Executive Vice President Doug Howgate and Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center Policy Analyst Monique Ching to dive...
Apr 16, 2021•35 min
Advocates and public officials alike have been pushing for the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines even before the state announced its vaccination plan. On this week's "State House Takeout," reporter Katie Lannan sits down with Dr. Atyia Martin and Eva Millona of the Vaccine Equity Now! Coalition to discuss the group's demands and how the state can fairly get shots into residents' arms.
Mar 26, 2021•29 min
As the one-year anniversary approaches of Massachusetts' COVID-19 state of emergency, the SHNS reporters recount their memories from March 2020, recap the news of this week, and look ahead to the vaccination outlook for March 2021.
Mar 05, 2021•27 min
After the state's vaccine appointment website crashed the day that approximately 1 million residents became newly-eligible for shots, Gov. Charlie Baker took to GBH on Thursday to say his "hair is on fire about the whole thing." On this week's "State House Takeout," GBH's Mike Deehan, the Boston Herald's Erin Tiernan, and SHNS' Katie Lannan and Sam Doran round up the latest vaccination news.
Feb 19, 2021•26 min
On this week's "State House Takeout," reporter Chris Lisinski dives into new election reform efforts and legislation with Sen. Cynthia Creem and MassVOTE Policy and Communications Manager Alex Psilakis. Tune in this week to hear about the senator's new bill, dubbed the VOTES Act, the effort to implement same-day voter registration, and make voting by mail permanent in Massachusetts.
Feb 12, 2021•31 min
Wondering how lobbyists manage to serve their clients during a pandemic where face-to-face interactions have been forced into the virtual realm? Ben Fierro of Lynch & Fierro, LLP joins State House News Service's Matt Murphy on this week's "State House Takeout" to talk about the pandemic's impact on the lobbying world and what it's been like to keep an eye on and in contact with legislators from afar. Fierro is a 40-year veteran of the lobbying world and first started on Beacon Hill in 1981 w...
Feb 05, 2021•31 min
On this week's "State House Takeout", reporter Katie Lannan sits down with MassBudget President Marie-Frances Rivera and Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation Executive Vice President Doug Howgate for a close look at Gov. Charlie Baker's fiscal 2022 budget, what people should be paying attention to, and how the spending plan affects K-12 education.
Jan 29, 2021•33 min
A class of 19 new lawmakers joined the Legislature this month and many of them have only known lawmaking during the COVID-19 era where a large majority of House and Senate functions have been pushed into the virtual realm. On this week's "State House Takeout," hear from two of the new legislators, Sen. Adam Gomez (D-Springfield) and Rep. Meg Kilcoyne (D-Northborough) on what it's like to arrive at the State House virtually.
Jan 22, 2021•39 min
On this week's State House Takeout, join reporters Matt Murphy, Katie Lannan, Colin Young, and Chris Lisinski as they break down the start of the 2021-2022 session, vaccination rollout efforts, the latest on the climate and emissions bill, and the security situation at the State House ahead of the Presidential Inauguration next week.
Jan 15, 2021•35 min
With only hours remaining in a year that drastically reshaped all of our lives, the State House News Service crew sits down to reflect on the top stories of 2020. From a reckoning on race to former Speaker Robert DeLeo stepping down and a historically late budget to service cuts at the MBTA, the pandemic has touched every aspect of life and state government. For the last time in 2020, listen to this week's "State House Takeout" to revisit the most impactful events of the year as determined by th...
Dec 31, 2020•52 min
All signs point to House Speaker Robert DeLeo exiting his post on Beacon Hill after he filed a disclosure form revealing his plans to negotiate employment opportunities with his alma mater, Northeastern University. State House News Service's Sam Doran breaks down the latest developments with SHNS's Matt Murphy and the Boston Globe's Matt Stout on this week's "State House Takeout."
Dec 18, 2020•30 min
With Gov. Charlie Baker rolling back the state's reopening plan and issuing new COVID-19 guidance, retail store capacity limits have been cut and restaurant patrons will have to vacate their tables after 90 minutes. The State House News Service's Sam Doran talks to Retailers Association of Massachusetts President Jon Hurst and Massachusetts Restaurant Association President Bob Luz on this week's "State House Takeout" to break down how the orders affect dining locales and local shops
Dec 11, 2020•37 min
With 32 days remaining until the legislative session ends on Jan. 5, the branches sprung into action on two closely watched bills this week: policing reform and the five-month-overdue state budget. On this week's "State House Takeout," the News Service's Sam Doran talks with Shira Schoenberg of CommonWealth, Steve Brown of WBUR, and the News Service's Matt Murphy about what happened this week and what's left to tackle as the final month of the 2019-2020 session kicks off.
Dec 04, 2020•34 min
Budget talk never dies, it just fades away for a few months. With COVID-19 scrambling the timeline for pretty much everything, the passage of a fiscal 2021 budget is running up against the start of talks for fiscal 2022. The State House News Service's Katie Lannan checks-in with Marie-Frances Rivera of Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center and Eileen McAnneny of Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. Listen to this week's "State House Takeout" to satisfy all your budget cravings and hear two of th...
Nov 20, 2020•34 min
Numbers are flying around. Reporters are doing math. And in Massachusetts, election officials and budget writers are crunching those numbers during a week like no other. The "State House Takeout" crew sits down to parse through a huge news week including election results for legislative races and ballot questions. Stick around for a preview of next week's House budget debate and discussion of legislative leadership's commitment to debate reproductive health care legislation this year.
Nov 06, 2020•34 min
Rain? Snow? Sunny skies? None of the above ... only political forecasts on this week's "State House Takeout" with veteran commentator Jon Keller and the News Service's Sam Doran. Listen to Keller's thoughts on how a potential Biden administration might shake up the political scene in the Massachusetts, the legislative outlook for the fall and winter, and the 2022 gubernatorial race.
Oct 30, 2020•31 min
Every day around 2:30 a.m. Danielle Sicard wakes up and starts running checklists through her head of things she needs to do the next day. Did she miss something? What might she forget? If she's lucky, she'll write a few notes down and head back to sleep for a few hours. As town clerk of Easton, Sicard said she is working 10 to 14 hour days to prepare and manage the general elections in her community. Sicard and Northborough Town Clerk Andy Dowd, both members of the Massachusetts Town Clerks Ass...
Oct 23, 2020•32 min
Puzzling proposal or simple solution? Ranked-choice voting is on the ballot this November and it offers a chance for voters to decided whether or not they want to change the way elections run in the state. On this week's episode of the "State House Takeout," the News Service's Chris Lisinski moderates a conversation on ranked-choice voting with Yes on 2 Campaign Policy Director Greg Dennis and former Maine Congressman Bruce Poliquin, who lost his 2018 campaign during the state's first ranked-cho...
Oct 16, 2020•41 min
Earlier this week, three of the state's top budget chiefs gathered for an economic roundtable to hear revenue forecasts that will aid in the creation of a full fiscal 2021 budget. The news: a predicted revenue decline in the range of $2 billion to $5 billion. On this week's "State House Takeout," News Service reporter Katie Lannan chats with former Senate President Therese Murray about the budget-crafting process during an economic crisis. Murray, now a senior advisor at Rasky Partners, chaired ...
Oct 09, 2020•23 min
House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz sits down (virtually) with the News Service's Colin Young to mull through the status of the state's finances, the fiscal 2020 closeout supplemental budget, the conference committee negotiating an economic development bill, and the much anticipated fiscal 2021 budget. Listen to this week's "State House Takeout" to catch up on the latest fiscal news from the House's chief budget writer.
Oct 02, 2020•32 min
Former Senate President Stan Rosenberg joins the News Service's Matt Murphy on this week's Takeout to talk about his new career as lobbyist, the state of progressive politics on Beacon Hill, and some of the major policy issues currently before the Legislature. Read more about the interview here: https://www.statehousenews.com/news/20202037
Sep 25, 2020•42 min
Rep. Lori Ehrlich and Every Voice Coalition Co-Chairs Nora Gallo and John Gabrieli sat down with News Service reporter Katie Lannan on this week's State House Takeout to dive into a bill addressing sexual assault on college campuses. With formal sessions in both branches extended until Jan. 5, House Speaker Robert DeLeo earlier this week signaled his interest in taking up the legislation by the end of the year. The coalition and Ehrlich have been advocating for the bill for several years and DeL...
Sep 18, 2020•29 min
Ranking minority member of House Ways and Means Rep. Todd Smola sat down with the News Service this week to talk about the impact President Donald Trump is having on state elections, August tax revenue numbers, and uncertainty around federal stimulus relief. In an interview with the News Service's Matt Murphy, Smola pointed to the budget as the top priority for the House GOP caucus this fall and forecasted a "tough year" for Republicans in Massachusetts as races become more nationalized. Check o...
Sep 11, 2020•33 min
The primaries are over and the places are set for a full reporters' roundtable on this week's State House Takeout. The SHNS crew reviews the results in primary races for U.S. Senate, the Fourth Congressional District, and state House and Senate seats, and looks ahead to what we might expect in November.
Sep 04, 2020•33 min
On the latest Takeout, Secretary of State William Galvin checks in with the News Service ahead of next week's primaries about managing the elections during the COVID-19 pandemic. Reporter Chris Lisinski previews some of the races to watch and issues at play.
Aug 28, 2020•26 min
Three members of Beacon BLOC -- a coalition of Black State House staffers -- talk about their organization's mission and action points to change the institutional culture on Beacon Hill. The panelists are Black and Latino Legislative Caucus director Kyéra Sterling; Maia Raynor, legislative director for Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz; and Mark Martinez, policy and budget advisor to Sen. Pat Jehlen.
Aug 21, 2020•43 min
Reporters Katie Lannan and Matt Murphy stop by for some Friday takeout, detailing the state's new color-coded COVID map, the outlook for school reopenings and youth sports, and a look ahead to next week's Democratic National Convention.
Aug 14, 2020•22 min
On this week's Takeout, Senate President Karen Spilka checks in with Katie Lannan about the Legislature's ongoing work as formal sessions extend past July 31, with major bills in the negotiation process and a budget still on the to-do list. The president also talks about how her chamber has been adapting to the pandemic era, including the use of a lawmaker "buddy system."
Aug 06, 2020•27 min
Not your normal end-of-July #mapoli podcast. A roundtable of News Service reporters mull over the Legislature's decision to extend formal sessions past July 31 and potentially into January 2021. The corridors under the Golden Dome are still busy with lawmaking, and the SHNS crew has the latest on priorities like the budget, policing reform, and climate legislation... along with a look ahead to what we might see in the fall.
Jul 31, 2020•22 min
Beacon Hill debate was still underway on policing reform proposals Friday, and the Takeout has a preview of a big topic that hadn't yet hit the House floor: qualified immunity. Three big voices in the conversation joined the Takeout this week: Black and Latino Legislative Caucus Chairman Rep. Carlos Gonzalez, Mass. Law Enforcement Policy Group Chairman Larry Calderone, and ACLU of Massachusetts Executive Director Carol Rose. Matt Murphy moderates the panel, and Katie Lannan joins Sam Doran to re...
Jul 24, 2020•41 min
