Massachusetts
Wary of Trump but vowing not to be ‘paralyzed,’ Mass. House leaders unveil $61 billion budget plan – The Boston Globe
Despite the White House’s aggressive moves to slash federal spending, House leaders also said their new budget plan does not build in any direct contingencies for potential cuts to federal aid, which have already come at breakneck speed as Trump implements his second-term agenda.
State Representative Aaron Michlewitz, the chamber’s budget chief, said their plan going forward will involve “monitoring how the situation is in Washington [and] being ready to pivot when necessary.”
“We can’t be paralyzed by the situation that’s taking place in Washington,” Michlewitz said. “We need to still be moving our budget forward, be aggressive in terms of our support for our constituents, and not get caught up, try to keep blinders on and build the best budget with the information that we have.”
House Speaker Ron Mariano told reporters that Trump has begun wreaking “havoc” on programs on which residents rely. The Trump administration, for example, is closing the Boston Head Start office, which administers free care to families in need. The House budget includes $18.5 million in Head Start funds.
“Government can be both fiscally responsible and an agent of good,” the Quincy Democrat said.
The House budget included several items that amounted to the chamber’s first meaningful response to the Trump administration so far, nearly three months into his presidency.
Mariano said the House budget would include a “significant increase” in funding — to $82.5 million, a roughly 7 percent increase from last year — for Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s office, just shy of the total number Campbell requested last month as she’s waged several legal fights against the Trump administration. That amount is $6.8 million more than the $76 million Healey’s January budget would allocate to Campbell, a sum that would be less than what Campbell received during the last fiscal year.
The extra funds are designed “to ensure that AG Campbell can continue to push back against any unconstitutional actions taken by the Trump administration.”
Lawmakers also allocated $5 million to a new immigration legal assistance fund that would be distributed as grants to organizations who assist non-violent offenders. Another $1 million will go to a new gender-affirming care program to community health centers, as the federal government has cut funding to organizations that administer transgender care.
The House also included a measure designed to alleviate Massachusetts’ exorbitant housing costs by ending renter-paid broker’s fees in many situations, which renters typically pay to secure a home or apartment. The House plan would prohibit prospective renters from being charged a broker’s fee if they did not “initiate contact with the broker” during their housing search.
Their proposal comes after Healey included a measure in her own budget requiring the party that hires a broker, usually the landlord, to pay for brokers’ fees, after she said they “should be abolished” in January. The Senate included a similar change in its version of a sweeping housing bill last year, but it failed to make it into the final version of the law passed last July.
The House also allocated $275 million for the state’s emergency shelter system, $50 million less than what Healey’s budget had suggested. It would be far less than the $1 billion the state has committed in total to the program this fiscal year, but, Michlewitz said, reflects the state’s efforts to rein in costs, including instituting a 4,000-family cap starting this December.
The Healey administration said Wednesday that fewer than 5,000 families were in the system as of this week, the first time it’s dipped below that level since the summer of 2023.
The Trump administration has already begun cutting aid tabbed for Massachusetts on several fronts. It has already sought cuts to school aid and health funding, and Healey’s office on Wednesday said the Trump administration canceled another $90 million in disaster prevention aid for Massachusetts communities from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Healey said that move “ripped the rug out from under” 18 cities statewide that had planned to upgrade local infrastructure to withstand natural disasters.
Meanwhile, Congress is pursuing a spending blueprint that Democrats and state officials warn could mean deep cuts to Medicaid, through which the state is reimbursed billions of dollars each year for its MassHealth program. In all, the state budget typically leans on roughly $16 billion in federal aid — most of which is tied to health insurance for 2 million Massachusetts residents, including children, low-income families, and those with disabilities.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Matt Stout can be reached at matt.stout@globe.com. Follow him @mattpstout. Anjali Huynh can be reached at anjali.huynh@globe.com.
Massachusetts
Body part found in Shirley, Massachusetts pond, police suspect foul play
A body part was found in a pond in Shirley, Massachusetts and investigators said foul play is suspected.
It was discovered around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday as a group of people were walking along Veterans Memorial Bridge on Shaker Road.
Police said the group noticed something suspicious in the water of Phoenix Pond. The Middlesex District Attorney confirmed that the item was a body part, but would not elaborate.
Police shut down the road and divers could be seen exploring the pond late Wednesday. Authorities were back at the scene Thursday morning.
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.
Phoenix Pond connects to the Catacoonamug Brook, which flows into the Nashua River. It’s also connected to Lake Shirley.
Shirley, Massachusetts is about 44 miles northwest of Boston and around 13 miles from the New Hampshire border.
Massachusetts
Foul play suspected after human remains found in water in Shirley
Human remains were discovered Wednesday in the water in Shirley, Massachusetts, and authorities suspect foul play.
Police in Shirley said in a social media post at 7:15 p.m. that they responded to “a suspicious object in the water near the Maritime Veterans Memorial Bridge on Shaker Road.” Massachusetts State Police later said the object was believed to be human remains.
The bridge crosses Catacoonamug Brook near Phoenix Pond.
The office of Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said a group of young people was walking in the area around 5:30 p.m. and “reported seeing what appeared to be something consistent with a body part in the water.”
Foul play is suspected, Ryan’s office said.
Authorities will continue investigating overnight into Thursday, and an increased police presence is expected in the area.
No further information was immediately available.
Massachusetts
Ice covered highways, streets and sidewalks in Boston area rattled nerves during morning commute: “I’m ready for the thaw”
It was a treacherous commute for drivers across Massachusetts Wednesday morning. Ice on roads and highways caused several crashes during rush hour.
In Danvers, 22 miles north of Boston, the ramp from Interstate 95 to Route 1 north was covered in ice, leading to three separate crashes involving twelve cars. Three people were taken to local hospitals.
In Revere, just seven miles north of the city, two tractor-trailers collided on North Shore Road. Police said it will be shut down for most of the day. It’s unclear if this crash was caused by icy conditions.
Forty-four miles west of Boston, a tractor-trailer ran off the westbound side of the Massachusetts Turnpike in Westboro. One person was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester with what were described by the fire department as “non-life threatening injuries.”
The ice wasn’t just a problem for drivers. People walking around Boston were also slipping and sliding Wednesday morning.
“I almost fell at least five times but I didn’t. I don’t know how. I screamed and caught edges,” Swapna Vantzelfde told CBS News Boston about her walk to work in the South End. It took longer than usual.
“The internal streets they just don’t get plowed, the little ones that people live on and then these arteries, the big streets, they’re cleaned a lot better,” she said.
Those on two legs and four were all stepping gingerly across slick spots.
“A little treacherous. Very slick and icy out here,” said a father pushing a stroller. “Sometimes you have something to hold on to, which helps.”
With plenty of snow piled along sidewalks and between parking spots, most people are done with winter.
“I’m over it. I’m ready for the thaw,” said one man.
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