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It's a big Wednesday for bills and budgets. Let's get to it: On Beacon Hill: House lawmakers are expected to pass a bill today that aims to put new limits on federal immigration enforcement in Massachusetts. As WBUR's Chris Van Buskirk reports, the so-called PROTECT Act would ban warrantless immigration arrests at courthouses and prohibit local law enforcement from initiating contact with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in certain instances. - The backdrop: The bill comes after courthouse immigration arrests tripled in Massachusetts during President Trump’s first nine months in office. And as WBUR reported in December, that estimate is likely an undercount.
- What the PROTECT Act would do: Currently, in Massachusetts, ICE agents only need a civil detainer request saying a person does not have legal immigration status in order to make a courthouse arrest. The House bill would require them to present a criminal warrant from a judge.
- What else: The bill also would restrict local law enforcement from inking new 287(g) deals with ICE to help enforce federal immigration laws, prohibit local resources from being used for civil immigration enforcement and ban local police across the state from asking people their immigration status unless it's related to a criminal matter. (Read a summary of the wide-ranging bill here.)
- Next steps: The bill still needs approval from the Senate, which is on board with the idea of banning warrantless courthouse arrests. However, top Democrats in the Senate have indicated they want to go farther, like Gov. Maura Healey originally proposed. Healey's bill would also block civil arrests by ICE in hospitals, child care centers, schools, houses of worship, polling places and other "sensitive spaces." (Legal experts say those additions, if passed, could provoke legal challenges. ) State Sen. Cindy Friedman told Chris last week that there are other provisions the chamber would like to add as well — such as allowing people to sue federal agents who violate their constitutional rights. So expect more negotiating and changes to the bill before it makes it to Healey's desk.
Meanwhile at the Bolling Building: The Boston School Committee is set to vote tonight on the district’s $1.7 billion budget proposal for next school year. WBUR's Suevon Lee reports the proposal amounts to a 4.5% increase in simple dollars from the current year, but includes cuts of up to 400 positions. - Why? BPS leaders attribute the need for cuts to rising costs and declining enrollment. Around half of the potential job losses are due to school closures and grade reconfigurations in fewer than 10 schools, Superintendent Mary Skipper said last month. At the same time, Skipper said they're prioritizing investments in inclusive education, bilingual programming and alternative education.
- Counterpoint: The Boston Teachers Union says the cuts could be avoided if the city increased the BPS budget by $48 million. "One percent of the city's budget would reinstate every single position that has been cut," BTU president Erik Berg told Suevon. "Everything helps. And adding any more funding to support and restore needed student services is going to be a benefit to our students."
Now approaching: The MBTA is partnering with local libraries to add digital screens with real-time arrival estimates for nearby buses and trains. T officials said yesterday that the screens are now at nine Boston-area libraries — including in Arlington, Brookline and Chelsea — to help visitors plan their trips. - Since 2022, the screens have expanded from train stations and bus stops to offices and apartment buildings through a software partnership. The T says it's looking to expand to universities, museums and community centers.
PSA: Massachusetts' Department of Public Health is recommending that health care providers extend their use of RSV vaccines for infants for another month. The shots are typically administered to infants younger than 8 months from October through March. But this year's RSV season began later than usual and is continuing further into the spring. So DPH is advising extending the window through the end of April. P.S.— We recently announced the first wave of speakers for the second annual WBUR Festival on May 29-30. The names include José Andrés, Marty Baron, John Bolton, Katherine Maher, Bryan Stevenson and many familiar public media friends. Check out the full list of confirmed speakers so far and reserve your festival tickets here. |
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| | | Nik DeCosta-Klipa Senior Editor, Newsletters | | |
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Gov. Maura Healy wants to make Massachusetts the climate tech hub for the world. She says the emerging sector could bring tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment. But while the state excels at fostering innovation, some say it needs to do better at keeping companies in Massachusetts. Read more. |
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Nearly a month into the war with Iran, the Trump administration is keeping its options open: it has drafted a 15-point plan to end the war with Iran and ordering thousands of paratroopers to deploy in the Middle East. Read more. |
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Tens of thousands Transportation Security Administration officers are set to receive another $0 paycheck this week. Mike Gayzagian, a TSA officer at Boston’s Logan International Airport, says long stretches without pay have become enough of a “new normal” that he’s prepared for them. It shouldn’t be this way for federal workers, he said. Read more. |
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Data brokers buy up huge amounts of information from cell phones and browsers to sell for targeted advertising. But the government, including ICE, also buys the data. Read more. |
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In 2022, Cannon-Grant and her late husband, Clark Grant, were charged in a sweeping federal indictment that alleged they used the Violence in Boston donations for vacations and personal expenses. Read more. |
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- How casinos in New England are exploiting Asian communities for profit (The Boston Globe)
- What made Red Sox owner John Henry break his yearslong social media silence (New York Post)
- Airstrikes may have destroyed Iran's last F-14s, ending a long, strange saga (NPR)
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Inside the Boston Celtics’ competitive in-flight Catan games — and why Gonzalez has become the face of the games, despite never playing. Read more. |
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