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After lawsuits, Mass. drops gender ideology mandate for foster parents

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After lawsuits, Mass. drops gender ideology mandate for foster parents


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Massachusetts will no longer require prospective foster parents to affirm foster children’s gender identity.

Massachusetts will no longer require prospective foster parents to affirm the sexual orientation and gender identity of the children they foster, following legal challenges and criticism from religious groups.

The change comes after the conservative legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a federal lawsuit in September on behalf of two Massachusetts families, who claimed the requirement conflicted with their religious beliefs, according to a Fox News report. One couple had its foster care license revoked, while the other was threatened with revocation.

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That same month, federal regulators with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) sent a letter to Massachusetts criticizing the mandate as discriminatory and a violation of the First Amendment. The agency said it would open an investigation into the matter.

On Dec. 12, the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) updated its regulations, replacing language that required foster parents to affirm a child’s “sexual orientation and gender identity” with a requirement that they support a child’s “individual identity and needs.”

The shift comes amid a broader national debate, as states grapple with whether foster parents should be required to support children’s gender identity even when it conflicts with their personal or religious beliefs.

In a statement to GBH News, DCF Commissioner Staverne Miller said the agency’s top priority is ensuring children in foster care are placed in safe and supportive homes.

“We are also committed to ensuring that no one is prevented from applying or reapplying to be a foster parent because of their religious beliefs,” Miller said.

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ADF lauded the change in a statement released Wednesday. 

“Massachusetts has told us that this new regulation will no longer exclude Christian and other religious families from foster care because of their commonly held beliefs that boys are boys and girls are girls,” said ADF Senior Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse. 

“Our clients—loving, caring foster families who have welcomed vulnerable children into their homes—as well as many other families affected by this policy, are eager to reapply for their licenses,” Widmalm-Delphonse continued. “This amendment is a step in the right direction and we commend Massachusetts officials for changing course. But this case will not end until we are positive that Massachusetts is committed to respecting religious persons and ideological diversity among foster parents.”

Morgan Rousseau is a freelance writer for Boston.com, where she reports on a variety of local and regional news.





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Massachusetts RMV under fire after illegal immigrant trucker kills state trooper

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Massachusetts RMV under fire after illegal immigrant trucker kills state trooper


Following the tragic death of a Pennsylvania state trooper, Gov. Maura Healey is being asked to urge the state RMV to conduct an immediate review of all commercial driver’s licenses issued in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts House Republicans are calling for the audit to include a scan of non-domiciled CDLs, as the Bay State already faces federal heat for issuing a commercial driver’s license to the suspect, a Haitian illegal immigrant.

The review would “determine whether any current license holders are facing any pending suspensions, revocations, or other outstanding issues,” GOP leadership wrote in a letter to the governor this week.

Michael Bon, a 33-year-old Haitian living illegally in Brockton, has been charged with killing  Michael Pahira, a 44-year-old state trooper, in a fiery crash on July 1 in Schuylkill County, Penn.

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The Department of Homeland Security has said that Bon has been in the country illegally since June 2025 and that the Massachusetts RMV had issued his CDL. But the RMV has pointed its finger at the federal government, arguing that Bon was eligible for and received a non-domiciled commercial driver’s license under federal standards at the time of his application in March 2025.

In their Wednesday letter, House Republicans requested that Healey direct the RMV to review all commercial driver’s licenses within 30 days and submit details to the state Joint Committee on Transportation and the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security.

The GOP stated that the review could ultimately lead to safer roads.

“Due to the most recent tragedy in Pennsylvania and the uptick in wrong-way driving accidents in our Commonwealth,” GOP leaders wrote, “we call on you to take immediate action on this request to protect motorists and pedestrians on Massachusetts roadways and to ensure that the Commonwealth is in line with current federal roadway safety standards.”

A governor’s spokesperson deferred a Herald request for comment to the RMV.

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An RMV spokesperson told the Herald Friday night that the agency is “preparing a thorough response to the letter.”

“We are confident that our programs for issuing commercial driving credentials,” the spokesperson said, “which are subject to annual review by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, are compliant with federal law.”

Bon arrived in the U.S. in early July 2024 as a parolee at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

That October, he filed an application for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services under the Biden administration, which ultimately was never granted. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the federal government to end TPS for Haitian nationals earlier this month.

DHS has said that USCIS terminated Bon’s parole on June 13, 2025. Despite that, Bon has allegedly refused to leave the country and has remained in the U.S. illegally, settling in Brockton.

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The RMV has described Pahira’s death as a “horrific and terrible tragedy,” calling for Bon to be “prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

At the same time, the agency has said that the non-domiciled CDL program is under federal purview, arguing Bon was “ruled eligible based on the Trump administration database and allowed to drive by federal law and Trump administration policies.”

Bon applied to renew his CDL in February 2026 and was again approved, the RMV has said, adding that he would not have been approved if he applied for renewal next year. The Trump administration implemented a new rule on March 16 directing states not to renew or issue new non-domiciled CDLs.

“These restrictions,” the House GOP wrote in its letter to Healey, “coupled with the reinstatement last year of federal English-language proficiency requirements for commercial truck drivers to ensure that they can read and understand traffic signs, represent ongoing efforts to enhance public safety on America’s roadways.”

The fiery crash happened on I-81 in Schuylkill County and resulted in Pahira’s death.

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The Pennsylvania trooper was conducting a routine commercial inspection on another tractor-trailer at 7 a.m. on July 1. Authorities say both the tractor-trailer and Pahira’s police vehicle were pulled over on the right-hand shoulder of the highway.

Pahira had been speaking with the other driver, Walter Alfredo Reinoso, of New York, during the routine stop when Bon’s tractor-trailer suddenly veered into the right-hand shoulder and struck them.

ICE lodged a detainer request against Bon earlier this month. The illegal immigrant is being held in Schuylkill County Prison after failing to post his $700,000 bail.

At the federal level, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association – the largest national trade association representing small-business truckers and professional drivers – is demanding that Congress pass Dalilah’s Law to ensure that CDL holders are properly trained and meet safety standards, including proficiency in English.

Non-domiciled CDL holders are often unable to be vetted, whereas U.S. applicants have had their past 10 years of driving history reviewed.

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“Had this legislation been previously signed into law,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer wrote in  a Wednesday letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, “the driver responsible for Trooper Pahira’s death would not have been eligible to receive a CDL in the first place.”

Pa. State Police and WFMZ-TV photos

Pennsylvania State Trooper Michael Pahira Jr. was killed in a crash that police say was caused by Michael Bon, 33, of Brockton, Mass., who is in the country illegally. (Pa. State Police and WFMZ-TV photos)



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Free Ice Cream Deals In MA For National Ice Cream Day 2026: Cheap Eats

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Free Ice Cream Deals In MA For National Ice Cream Day 2026: Cheap Eats


Several chains and local shops are marking the July 19 holiday with giveaways, rewards offers and limited-time discounts. Some offers require an app or loyalty account, and participation may vary by location.

Here are some deals for National Ice Cream Day in Massachusetts:

New City Microcreamery: The Massachusetts scoop shop is giving away a $25 gift card for National Ice Cream Day. To enter, customers must like the giveaway post, comment with a favorite New City flavor and follow the shop on Facebook and Instagram. You can find the post here.





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Noah Kahan Backs Massachusetts Bill Limiting Ticket Resale Prices

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Noah Kahan Backs Massachusetts Bill Limiting Ticket Resale Prices


Following similar legislature in his native Vermont, singer-songwriter supports “The Great Divide Act” combating speculative tickets, resale fees, and more

Noah Kahan has thrown his support behind a new Massachusetts bill aimed at capping ticket resale prices.

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Like other states in recent weeks — including Washington, D.C. just a day earlier — Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has announced “An Act Relative to Closing the Great Divide between Ticket Prices and Affordability” — or “The Great Divide Act,” named in part after Kahan’s latest LP — a bill that would limit ticket resales prices, bar speculative tiket sales, and cut down on some ticket fees.

Kahan, who previously backed a similar bill in his native Vermont and is fresh off four sold-out shows at Boston’s Fenway Stadium, appeared via video at Healey’s press conference Thursday.

“I heard about what you’re announcing today and I just wanted to let you know how excited I am about it,” Kahan said. “The artist community and fans will greatly benefit from limiting ticket scalping and the sales of speculative tickets. I love my fans and want to protect them however I can. Artists alone could not tackle the market manipulation of secondary resellers. So, thank you so much for making this a priority in Massachusetts.”

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Under the proposed Great Divide Act, concert tickets on the secondary market would be capped at 110 percent of their original face value, and secondary ticket sites would similarly only be allowed to take a 10 percent cut of resold tickets.

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In the aftermath of the World Cup games at Gillette Stadium, where “speculative tickets” — or sellers offering tickets they don’t actually have — resulted in hundreds of people getting turned away from the soccer games, the Great Divide Act will also aim at prohibiting the practice. “Far too many Massachusetts residents have experienced the pain of being excited to buy tickets to see their favorite singer or sports team, only to realize that resale prices and fees have driven up the cost to outrageous levels,” Healey said Thursday. 



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