Friday, April 12, 2013
The House proposal cuts out increased funding for early education, one of the centerpieces of Patrick's plan.
House leaders on Wednesday proposed a budget that was a billion dollars less than the one Gov. Deval Patrick put forth in January. The $33.8 billion House budget includes increased funding for higher education and local aid but not more money for early education, one of the centerpieces of Patrick's budget that emphasizes prekindergarten funding and investment in transportation. Speaker Robert A. DeLeo said the House budget would not increase these funds over concerns that the Department of Early Education and Care is inefficient and wasteful, the Boston Globe reported. Altogether, the House proposal would raise taxes by $500 million, compared to Patrick's plan calling for a $1.9 billion tax hike, resulting in a 3.9 percent spending …
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Davey was at the British Beer Company on Route 1 in Walpole Tuesday morning at a breakfast hosted by the Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce.
MassDOT secretary and CEO Richard Davey was in Walpole Tuesday morning for a breakfast with members of the Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce. A day after the House passed a $500 million transportation bill to help balance MassDOT's budget gap, Davey was asking those in attendance, at the British Beer Company on Route 1, to support a much larger bill - about $1.9 billion - that would help fund transportation and education in the state. “What I really want you all to understand…is that the current transportation system we have we cannot afford. We just can’t,” Davey said. Davey said the MBTA is the most indebted transit agency in the United States with almost $9 billion in debt. He said that the proposed $500 million bill by the House …
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
The tool includes a maps for transportation funding and educational funding for each legislative district.
In an effort to promote his $34.8 billion budget proposal, Gov. Deval Patrick unveiled an online tool with 400 maps that shows what each legislative district would receive in education funding. “This tool will help people see exactly what to expect in their own backyard as part of the investments we’ve proposed,” Patrick said. “Meaningful investments in education and transportation today will significantly improve our economic future both in the short term and for generations to come.” There are two maps per district – one displaying transportation investments and one displaying education investments in each community. For example, according to the maps, the 8th Norfolk House District, which includes Sharon, would see a total of $236,…
Monday, January 28, 2013
New legislation is proposing teens convicted of murder before age 17 to be eligible for parole 15 years after being incarcerated.
Gov. Deval Patrick introduced a new piece of legislation on Monday in an effort to offer convicted teenagers a second chance earlier in their sentence. The proposal, "An Act to Reform the Juvenile Justice System in the Commonwealth", offers new plans regarding how the state treats teenagers who have been convicted of murder, according to MyFoxBoston.com. Specifically, the plan aims "to create a fairer justice system for the state’s youth by extending the juvenile court jurisdiction" from age 17 to 18, and eliminating mandatory life sentences without parole for juveniles convicted of first-degree murder, according to an announcement from the Executive Department Office of Gov. Patrick Monday. If the proposal is passed, anyone aged 14-17 …
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
The fingerprint background checks would also apply to everyone seeking to adopt children or become foster parents.
The Associated Press is reporting Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is considering signing legislation that would require teachers, workers at child care centers, school bus drivers and others to submit fingerprints for criminal background checks. The fingerprint background checks would also apply to everyone seeking to adopt children or become foster parents, as the legislation is written. Fingerprints would be submitted to the Massachusetts State Police for a state criminal history check and forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history check, reported the Associated Press. What do you think? Tell us in the comments.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Former Congressman Barney Frank told the "Morning Joe" Show on MSNBC he is interested in being the interim senator.
Senator Barney Frank? One day after watching Joseph Kennedy III take over his former Congressional seat, Frank told the "Morning Joe" show on MSNBC he wants to be the interim senator if John Kerry is confirmed as Secretary of State. “A month ago, or a few weeks ago, I said I wasn’t interested,” said Frank Friday morning on the show. “It was kind of like you’re about to graduate, and they said: ‘You gotta go to summer school.’ But [the fiscal cliff deal] now means that February, March and April are going to be among the most important months in American financial history.” Frank said Friday he told Gov. Deval Patrick he wanted to be the interim senator. He wouldn't be a candidate in the special election, according to Politico. Former …
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Governor Deval Patrick speaks with Patch readers live at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. What questions do you want him to answer?
If you could ask Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick one question, what would it be? Patrick will join Patch Thursday at 1:30 p.m. for a live chat with readers. Now's your change to ask the executive of the commonwealth your question about casinos, the JP crime lab, the economy, elections or whatever else you want to know Can't make it to the live chat? Leave your questions for Patrick in the comments to have them considered for the live Q&A session. We'll be sure to ask about the most popular topics when we chat Thursday. To join the chat, head on over to our homepage from 1:15 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday.
Ask Gov. Deval Patrick about any topic you like during our live chat at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
Gov. Deval Patrick will take your questions live on Patch this Thursday. The governor will spend 45 minutes fielding your questions as they come. Head on over to our homepage from 1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. on Thursday to join our chat. You'll simply have to provide your name, and you'll be able to ask your questions immediately. If you can't make the live chat, leave your questions as comments to this article, and we'll do our best to add them to the queue. We will publish the live chat transcript immediately and a recap first thing on Friday morning. Questions submitted will be subject to moderator approval. No vulgar or libelous comments will be allowed. Because we expect a high volume of questions for the chat session, we will keep the …
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
The $1.5 billion bill helps build infrastructure that strengthens the state’s economy over the long term, governor says.
Gov. Deval Patrick called the $1.5 billion transportation bond bill he signed Thursday what the state needs to strengthen its economy and "quality of life for the long term.” “Our transportation infrastructure had suffered from years of neglect, so this administration started rebuilding roads, rails and bridges in every corner of our state and creating thousands of jobs," Patrick said after he enacted the bill, which enjoyed the strong support of the Legislature, passing the House by a vote of 150-2 on July 31, the last day of the session. The bond bill ensures funding for many projects already under way and allots money for the planning of future improvements across the state. It also continues funding for the final year of 2008's five-…
Monday, July 9, 2012
Meth traffickers now eligible for prosecution.
Gov. Deval Patrick has signed into law a methamphetamines trafficking bill presented by two of Sharon's state legislators. The law closes "a glaring loophole" in Massachusetts' drug trafficking laws by creating penalties for methamphetamines trafficking, state Rep. Louis Kafka (D-Stoughton) said in a press release today. Methamphetamines now are on "the list of drugs eligible for prosecution," the release notes. Kafka and state Sen. James Timilty (D-Walpole) spearhead the bill after Walpole Police Chief Richard Stillman raised the issue to them, according to the press release. "Correcting this oversight was a no-brainer, and I'm grateful to the Chief for bringing it to our attention," Timilty said in the release. "Meth use has become a …
Jerry Chase
9:37 pm on Thursday, February 7, 2013
Where is the evidence to support the governor's rationale for "fairer" sentences? There isn't any. more ›