Gov. Maura Healey pledged that the cost of running emergency shelters housing migrants and locals would decrease from its historic levels and pushed back on conservatives who have labeled Massachusetts a “sanctuary state” harboring illegal immigrants.
In an end-of-year interview with the Herald ahead of her third year in office, Healey cast blame on the federal government for immigration issues in the Bay State, but said the expected $1 billion tab taxpayers are set to carry in each of the next several years will eventually deflate.
“It’s going to go down,” she said from inside the State House. “This is not a permanent situation, and it certainly is not sustainable, which is why I felt comfortable making the policy decisions that I have made to ratchet down the numbers.”
Only migrants who are legally allowed or paroled into the United States can access the emergency shelter system, which Healey has placed a set of increasingly restrictive changes on ever since she declared a state of emergency in August 2023 amid an influx of migrants.
The restrictions, including a 7,500 family cap on the system and limiting length of stays, appear to have had some effect. State officials reported spending less on state-run shelters in fiscal year 2024 than originally anticipated — $856 million rather than $932 million.
The cost is still above the $325 million the state has historically spent on emergency assistance shelters, which were set up under a 1980s law to house homeless families with children and pregnant women.
Arriving migrants and the money spent to take care of them have become a flashpoint on Beacon Hill, where Republicans routinely tried this year to implement residency requirements on shelters and cut back spending.
Top budget writers working for Healey are expected to ask the Legislature to approve another round of spending early in the new year to cover shelters for the remainder of fiscal year 2025. Without another injection of cash, money is expected to dry up in January, officials have said.
Sen. Ryan Fattman, a Sutton Republican, said even though new arrivals “forced” Healey to cut shelter costs and reduce the number of families relying on state aid, that has not stopped her from asking for more dollars to fund the system.
“The cost is overwhelming,” he told the Herald in an interview this past month. “In my opinion, what cost containment looks like is reforming the amount of time that people from out of state coming into the state can stay. You want to say 30 or 60 days? Okay, that’s a good reform.”
Healey said the measures she has taken are working — though they have faced harsh criticism from some advocates — and are buoyed by the fact that 65% of families who have recently sought shelter from the state are from Massachusetts.
“We’re not a sanctuary state,” Healey said. “We have a limited budget, and the emergency shelter system really was meant for Massachusetts families who were experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity and needed a place to go that was temporary.
“We’re trying to get to that place where emergency shelter is temporary and that it’s really there just for a limited purpose for a family,” the governor added.
But even as Healey touts her changes to state-run shelters, she has started to face a wave of conservative criticism for running what Republicans say is a “sanctuary state” just as President-elect Donald Trump has promised to undertake mass deportations when he takes office next year.
The term “sanctuary state” generally refers to a state or municipality’s willingness to offer more protection to undocumented immigrants.
But just because a city or town in Massachusetts considers itself a “sanctuary” does not mean there is no federal immigration enforcement, said Sarah Sherman-Stokes, associate director of Boston University’s Immigrants’ Rights and Human Trafficking Clinic.
“There are gaps between some of the statewide laws and city policies that remain vulnerable and will still feed non-citizens into ICE custody,” Stokes told the Herald.
In Massachusetts, many point to a 2017 ruling from the Supreme Judicial Court that bars state and local police from detaining a person solely on the basis of their immigration status, a decision that has since been used to prohibit interactions with federal immigration officials.
Healey said she believes “violent criminals should be deported if they’re not here lawfully” and that local, state, and federal law enforcement should work together to investigate and prosecute crimes and remove people from the country who are criminals.
But the first-term Democrat said she does not back “showing up at a hotel, and rounding up groups of people who are suspected to be here unlawfully, who are here working, and just deporting all of them without a process.”
Healey said, “I think what we need to do is work together here in Massachusetts to do both things: investigate, hold accountable, deport as necessary folks who are here unlawfully, who’ve engaged in criminal activity, absolutely, and also stand up for and protect the people who have been working here, going to school here, raising kids here, to ensure that they are not scared to go to the doctors or drop their kids off or school or go to work.”
Where are layoffs happening in Massachusetts?
As part of the federal The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, employers in Massachusetts with 50 or more employees are required to provide advance notice of mass layoffs.
The state publishes this data, known as WARN notices, weekly on Fridays. See recent layoff notices.
John Hancock can be reached at john.hancock@globe.com. Follow him @Hancock_JohnD.
Correspondent Cam Pellegrino was in Norwell where the 15th-ranked Clippers’ boys’ lacrosse team stayed perfect with a win over No. 16 Scituate with help from Teddy Glynn’s five goals.
In boys’ volleyball, No. 3 Natick swept No. 8 Newton North as Luke Dratch handed out 32 assists.
It all started with good news for the hockey community, as the proposed return of the Super 8/Division 1A tournament cleared a major hurdle, gaining approval from the MIAA’s Tournament Management Committee during a morning meeting in Franklin. All it needs now is approval from the finance committee and Board of Directors.
Find the rest of Thursday’s results on our scoreboard. Looking for a certain game? Try our sport-specific scoreboards: Baseball | Softball | Boys’ lacrosse | Girls’ lacrosse | Boys’ volleyball | Boys’ tennis| Girls’ tennis
Did you see Varsity News in your inbox Wednesday? If not, subscribe free to receive the most comprehensive high school sports newsletter once a week.
▪ King Philip senior McCoy Walsh, commited to Hofstra, eclipsed 700 career strikeouts during a 3-1 loss to Dighton-Rehoboth.
▪ Plymouth North sophomore Chloe Stasinos notched her 100th career strikeout with six whiffs in a 14-4 win over Duxbury.
▪ Acton-Boxborough boys’ lacrosse scored a program-record 13 goals in the first period of an 18-10 win over Westford, paced by Will Cronin, who finished with six goals, Ethan Fennell, who scored five, and Thomas Quirk, who whipped five assists.
▪ Hoosac Valley senior Reagan Shea collected her 100th career goal during a win over Hampshire.
Congratulations to Reagan Shea on collecting her 100th Career Goal this afternoon! Her milestone day helped lead the ‘Canes to a hard fought win over Hampshire! Way to go Reagan! We’re proud of you! pic.twitter.com/HJQfLKXt7P
— Hoosac Valley Athletics (@HVHSHurricanes) April 16, 2026
It’s hard to say any game involving Bumila on the mound is an upset, but technically Feehan’s win over St. John’s (Shrewsbury) was a No. 9 over a No. 2 in the Globe’s baseball Top 20 poll.
It’s also difficult to consider any Dighton-Rehoboth win an upset as the Falcons seek a third-straight state title, taking down No. 2 King Philip, 3-1, in the process thanks to junior Maddie Simonds’s game-tying solo homer in the fifth inning and sophomore Courtney Botelho’s two-run homer moments later.
The unranked Middleborough softball team took took down No. 9 Bishop Feehan, riding a solo homer from Taylynn Robinson and a two-way performance from senior Taryn Clancy, who drove in two runs in the sixth inning and struck out 11 in the circle while scattering five hits to a 3-1 victory.
Also in softball action, No. 7 Norton defeated No. 4 Attleboro, 4-1.
▪ Freshman Payton Scuilli delivered the walkoff single to complete a 4-3 come-from-behind softball win for Silver Lake. Down 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh, Madisyn Thompson and Megan Arseneau walked before Katelyn Taylor’s sacrifice fly tied the game, setting the stage for Scuilli.
▪ With the clock winding down in overtime, Monomoy goalie Harry Beaumont walked the ball up the field and found Nick Garneau coming out of the substitution box. Garneau sprinted to the cage and deposited the winner with under 10 seconds remaining as the Sharks escaped with a 3-2 boys’ lacrosse win over Cape Cod Academy.
▪ With 11 seconds left, senior middie Zach Brady buried the winner for Milton, which beat Natick, 9-8, two days after scoring its first win over Needham in 20 years.
Plymouth North junior Emerson Boyd crushed a grand slam, and four schools featured two home-run hitters Thursday.
Dighton-Rehoboth got homers from Simonds and Botelho, John King and Manny Delcarmen III both left the yard for East Bridgewater, Norton’s Natalia Faria and Avery Tinkham launched longballs, and Greater Lowell’s Lauryn Ducharme and Cora Wilder cranked round-trippers.
The rest of the day’s blasts belonged to Woburn’s Aislin Grammer, Minuteman’s Alyssa Collins, East Bridgewater’s Maggie Schlossberg, and Middleborough’s Robinson.
Alyssa Collins, Minuteman — The senior stacked up 17 strikeouts without a walk, tossing a shutout and going 3 for 3 with a homer at the plate in a 12-0 softball win over Nashoba Valley Tech.
Danny Kenney, Plymouth North — The senior nearly no-hit Duxbury in a 1-0 baseball win, settling for a one-hitter.
John King, East Bridgewater — The junior nearly hit for the cycle, finishing a double shy and driving in four runs during a 10-0 baseball win over Rockland.
Julia Kipperman, Nauset — The Merrimack-bound junior followed up a 13-goal performance on Monday with nine goals in Thursday’s 20-5 win over St. John Paul II.
Ava MacLean, Walpole — The senior orchestrated the Timberwolves’ attack with eight assists, adding five goals in an 18-9 girls’ lacrosse victory over Wellesley.
Camryn Pendergast, Woburn — The sophomore fired a five-inning no-hitter, striking out five to blank Watertown, 13-0.
Senny Walton, Cape Cod Tech — The junior hit on fours, with 4 hits, 4 RBIs, and 4 runs scored in a 28-5 baseball rout of Mashpee.
Cormac Heney, Hamilton-Wenham — The senior not only fired a five-inning no-hitter, he tripled and doubled in a 10-0 win over Lynnfield.
▪ Pembroke announced the promotion of former Braintree star Bella Scarpa to head coach of its girls’ basketball program. She takes over for Tim Lopes, who had helmed the program since 2018, winning a Patriot League title and South sectional in 2019. Scarpa, whose sister Allie is an assistant coach at UMass Boston, played at Regis and Eastern Connecticut after winning a state title with the Wamps.
“Bella’s basketball acumen combined with her strong ability to connect with young athletes will surely bring the program to new heights,” Lopes wrote on social media.
▪ Former Norwell and Nobles basketball star Grace Oliver is headed home. The 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year has committed to transfer to Boston College after playing one season at Colorado and one season at Wake Forest, where she averaged 14.3 points and 6.1 rebounds while starting 29 games and shooting 38.8 percent from deep.
Former Norwell and Nobles hoops star Grace Oliver is heading to Boston College.
Oliver, a 4-star recruit and 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year, started her career at Colorado and averaged 14.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last year for Wake Forest.
Versatile, dynamic player… pic.twitter.com/xiAPl6MOF2
— Trevor Hass (@TrevorHass) April 16, 2026
▪ Bishop Feehan held a signing ceremony for its college-bound football players that featured Kane Mankins (Ole Miss), Mason Nealand (Bryant), Max Pennellatore (Utica), Momo Mills (RPI), Kaden Baltzar (Bentley), and Colin Lahiff (UNE).
▪ Masconomet senior Jimmy Farrell announced his commitment to play men’s basketball at WPI. The 1,000-point scorer averaged 19.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists while leading the Chieftans to the Division 2 championship game.
I’m extremely grateful to announce my commitment to continue my academic and athletic career at WPI. I want to thank Coach Bartley and Coach Naclerio for this incredible opportunity. I also want to thank my family, Coach Jaycob, and Coach OC for the endless support. pic.twitter.com/z1jLvPLYOU
— Jimmy Farrell (@JimmyFarrell_4) April 16, 2026
Former Nobles standout Caroline Ducharme, the two-time Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year, has signed a training camp invite with the Golden State Valkyries after wrapping up her challenging collegiate career at UConn.
The Milton native played 86 games at UConn, making 19 starts, and won the 2025 national title with the Huskies. If she makes the Valkeries roster, she will be teamamtes with Newton South graduate Veronica Burton, who is coming off winning the WNBA’s Most Improved Player award.
Cambridge Rindge and Latin sophomore Natalya Cafasso rose to No. 3 in the world in junior women’s épée after capturing a silver medal at the Junior & Cadet Fencing World Championships in Rio de Janeiro.
The 16-year-old Cafasso placed eighth in junior women’s épée and helped Team USA secure a bronze medal in the team event. Her run included a victory over the reigning junior world champion in the quarterfinals.
Julia Kipperman, Nauset, 9
Ciara Hendricks, Mashpee, 8
Cam Guedner, Tewksbury, 7
Riley Halloran, Walpole, 7
Bobby Olsen, Dover-Sherborn, 7
Pat Connor, North Quincy/Quincy, 6
Will Cronin, Acton-Boxborough, 6
Amelia Hawkins, Nashoba Valley Tech, 6
Claire Howard, Mashpee, 6
Sophia Morin, Mashpee, 6
Emily Regan, Cohasset, 6
Hanane Aboutoui, Methuen, 5
Ryan Brennan, Tewksbury, 5
Molly Campbell, Cohasset, 5
Avery Croteau, Barnstable, 5
Ethan Fennel, Acton-Boxborough, 5
Lucy Francis, Bridgewater-Raynham, 5
Teddy Glynn, Norwell, 5
Quinn Gray, Waltham, 5
Ava MacLean, Walpole, 5
Will Sesselman, Westwood, 5
Meg Sullivan, Nauset, 5
Reese Sullivan, Scituate, 5
Ava MacLean, Walpole, 8
Shea Sullivan, Scituate, 6
Thomas Quirk, Acton-Boxborough, 5
Anya Kelsch, Sandwich, 4
Grayson Ryder, Tewksbury, 4
Maddie Campbell, Scituate, 3
Quinn Gray, Waltham, 3
Trey Sweder, Methuen, 27
Harry Beaumont, Monomoy, 16
Jake Fiore, Newton North, 15
Ipp Routo, Brookline, 15
Devyn Blige, Norwell, 13
Norah Swanson, Nauset, 13
Than Hunt, Sandwich, 11
Julia Dunfey, Greater Lowell, 10
Alyssa Collins, Minuteman, 17
Amaya Flood, Greater Lowell, 14
Taryn Clancy, Middleborough, 11
Brody Bumila, Bishop Feehan, 9
Delaney D’Hondt, Methuen, 8
Danny Kenney, Plymouth North, 8
Lidia Miedema, Beverly, 8
Bob Widdop, Duxbury, 7
Hailey Boutin, Seekonk, 5
Sophia Cappiello, Tewksbury, 5
Erin Gunn, Somerset Berkley, 5
Aislin Grammer, Woburn, 4
John King, East Bridgewater, 4
Lila Sullivan, Cape Cod Tech, 4
Ryan Tullish, Middleborough, 4
Senny Walton, Cape Cod Tech, 4
Mia Basile, Woburn, 3
Mia Davis, Tewksbury, 3
MC Gambino, Concord-Carlisle, 3
Maggie Schlossberg, East Bridgewater, 3
Senny Walton, Cape Cod Tech, 4
Julius Soto, Methuen, 3
Lila Sullivan, Cape Cod Tech, 3
Brendan Kurie can be reached at brendan.kurie@globe.com. Follow him on X @BrendanKurie.
New England Travel
If you’ve ever scrolled Airbnb and found yourself saving a listing out of wanderlust, welcome to the wish list industrial complex.
Airbnb this week named the most wishlisted properties across all 50 states, and the Bay State’s winner might surprise you. Massachusetts’ top honoree isn’t a shingled cottage on the Cape or a waterfront Nantucket mansion. It’s a mid-century octagonal glass house perched on 7 private, wooded acres in Otis, deep in the Berkshires. And it has a quirkier origin story than you’d expect.
The Mid-Century Glass Octagon was built in the 1970s as a kit house by the owners who had purchased the surrounding land as a private ski hill for their friend group, current owner Katherine Auleta said. It was originally off the grid, heated by a single wood stove, and lit by candelabras hanging from the rafters. By the time Auleta, a former New York fashion photographer, became the third owner, the home had been updated by its previous occupants but had drifted into what she described as “twee” territory — lots of colors, lots of little bird things everywhere.
Auleta stripped the interior back, leaned into the boldness of the octagonal structure, installed a mid-century fireplace gifted by a friend, and lined a shelf with photography books hauled up from her old New York City apartment. The result is a 4.95-star, 463-reviewed juggernaut — one of the most-loved homes on Airbnb, per its listing — that regularly books out at a pace that has guests telling her they’ve been trying to lock in dates for years.
“It’s a special home to me, and I love sharing it with other people,” said Auleta, who now lives on an island off Vancouver and manages the property remotely.
Getting to its lofty, wishlisted perch required some guest-driven compromises. Auleta resisted adding air conditioning (the home’s wraparound slatted windows were designed for natural airflow, she said) but eventually relented.
“That’s what people were asking for, so I did it,” she said. “Your guests are your best teachers, in a way.”
The hospitable philosophy extends to every touchpoint: linen bedding, organic bath products, and a hospitality instinct she traces back to a $3-a-night bamboo hut she once stayed in near Lombok, Indonesia, where French linens and a ceiling fan made a $3 stay feel like luxury.
Guests typically come from Boston, New York, and around the region — often for a romantic weekend, sometimes to get engaged — and they usually bring their groceries, light the fireplace, and stay put.
“The people that really get into the place are the people that are coming to unplug,” she said.
Other New England honorees on Airbnb’s wish list roundup include a modern treehouse with hot tub and water views in Georgetown, Maine; a converted silo house on a Litchfield Hills estate in Connecticut; a tiny cabin retreat in Woodstock, New Hampshire; a tiny eco-cottage with lake views in Smithfield, Rhode Island; and a treehouse with sauna and stream access in Hardwick, Vermont. Consider these wishlisted homes proof that the folks looking for a Northeast getaway increasingly want something off the beaten path for true R&R.
Our weekly digest on buying, selling, and design, with expert advice and insider neighborhood knowledge.
‘Little Rascals’ star Bug Hall arrested in Ohio
Arkansas TV meteorologist Melinda Mayo retires after nearly four decades on air
ABC Kite Fest Returns to Austin for Annual Celebration – Austin Today
Dem fundraising giant in the hot seat as GOP lawmakers demand answers over dodged subpoena
Trump blasts Spanberger ahead of Virginia meetings, says state faces tax base exodus like New York, California
‘Dr. Pimple Popper’ Sandra Lee had a stroke last fall. Here’s how the TV doc is bouncing back
Woman discovers missing nose ring traveled to her lungs, causing month-long cough
President Trump terminates Presidio Trust
