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By BOB KATZEN

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local senator’s votes on roll calls from recent sessions in which the Senate debated the rules by which it will operate in the 2025-2026 legislative session.

By MITCH FINK

BOSTON — As they researched women’s health care for a civic action project at Frontier Regional High School in 2022, three eighth grade students were appalled to learn that menstrual products — such as tampons and pads — can contain potentially harmful chemicals and toxins.

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Two years after policymakers enacted mental health care reforms designed to mitigate the problem, the share of patients experiencing long waits in Massachusetts emergency departments remains elevated, according to new state research.

By Ella Adams

BOSTON — The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted unanimously Tuesday to put its proposed competency determination regulations out for public comment, and to solicit comment about a second potential pathway to graduation that could still feature use of the MCAS exams.

By CHINANU OKOLI

Applications are rolling in for the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources’ new Farm Transfer Planning Assistance initiative that connects aging farmers and their successors with experienced planners to set retirement goals and figure out how management and assets will be transferred.

By SAMUEL GELINAS

CHESTERFIELD — Kate Reid, formerly the assistant director of the town’s Council on Aging (COA), will be stepping in as interim leader and says she will use the time to “hold place.”

By ALISON KUZNITZ

BOSTON — Bay Staters struggling to afford hefty energy bills this winter could soon see modest relief, after state regulators instructed utility companies to slash costs.

By BOB KATZEN

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local senator’s votes on roll calls from the week of Feb. 10-14. There were no roll Calls in the House last week.

By ALISON KUZNITZ

BOSTON — With Bay Staters facing skyrocketing energy bills, Gov. Maura Healey demanded Sunday that a state regulatory agency and utility companies provide urgent relief to customers.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — The Cannabis Control Commission, the state’s regulatory body for marijuana products, said it will continue to raise its standards for testing after cannabis contaminated with mold and mildew was reported in more than 20 dispensaries, including those in Northampton, Easthampton, Greenfield and Montague.

By BOB KATZEN

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ votes on roll calls from the week of Feb. 3-7, 2025. There were no roll Calls in the Senate last week.

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey is proposing to limit spending on a rapidly growing home care program that is popular among the state’s expanding senior population but has become one of the state’s most expensive budget items.

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON – A federal judge on Tuesday tossed the remainder of a legal challenge automakers brought against a motor vehicle repair law Massachusetts voters approved more than four years ago.

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — As nonprofits across Massachusetts face uncertainty over the future of federal funding, some are also expressing concern over a proposal from Gov. Maura Healey that they fear could further strain their budgets.

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey intends to run for reelection in 2026, she said Friday.

By CHRIS LARABEE

BOSTON — When flooding devastated the Pioneer Valley in summer 2023, it took an extraordinary partnership between the state, nonprofits and private individuals to quickly bring millions of dollars in aid to those affected.

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — The astronomical cost of housing for Massachusetts households across the income spectrum and a bleak outlook for the new units needed over the next decade underscore the focus of the Healey administration’s new housing plan for the next five years — more production.

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — Accessory dwelling units are now allowed by right in single-family zoning districts across most of Massachusetts, under a law Gov. Maura Healey signed in August. The rule went into effect on Sunday.

By BOB KATZEN

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. Here are some of the many bills that were signed into law by Gov. Healey following the end of the 2024 session:

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — Attorney General Andrea Campbell wants to stop students from using cellphones in schools, but education regulators seem unsure how far they should go — especially when that power lies not in the state’s hands, but with local school districts.