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By CHRIS LISINSKI

Auditor Diana DiZoglio and her hodgepodge of political allies took a major step toward asking voters for the authority to probe the Legislature, announcing that they gathered enough signatures to remain on track for a 2024 ballot question.The ballot...

By Bob Katzen

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local representatives’ votes from the week of Nov. 6-10. There were no roll calls in the Senate last week.FREE PHONE CALLS FOR PRISONERS (H 4051): House 132-26, (Senate on a voice vote without a...

By JAMES PENTLAND

WILLIAMSBURG — It’s not quite in shape to host emergency services yet, but the town’s gleaming new Public Safety Complex is ready for its close-up with the public.A guided tour of the $5.3 million, 8,000-square-foot building is being offered Saturday,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Even as policies, programs and spending included in Gov. Maura Healey’s $4 billion Affordable Homes Act are being strongly supported by Amherst officials as a means of ramping up housing production, the governor is being advised that...

By CHRIS LARABEE

SOUTH DEERFIELD — With supporters describing it as a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity, voters at Monday’s special Town Meeting approved the acquisition of the old St. James Church at 85 North Main St. The purchase of the property for $420,000 with...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — Shutesbury’s Conservation Commission, bringing a series of new and revised wetlands regulations forward for public review, is continuing a hearing on the proposal Wednesday night, after being forced to delay taking input when the virtual...

By SOPHIE HAUCK

HOLYOKE — Three candidates for the open Holyoke Ward 7 City Council seat will compete in a preliminary election Tuesday to determine which two contenders advance to the November general election.Eileen Brady Leahy, Meagan Magrath-Smith and Steve N....

By SAM DORAN

Gov. Maura Healey on Wednesday swore in the members of a new state board set to help get state benefits flowing to veterans who were denied an honorable discharge because of the U.S. military’s former “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.The reception in...

By SOPHIE HAUCK

HOLYOKE — The Holyoke School Committee voted unanimously to petition state Education Commissioner Jeffrey Riley to release the city’s public schools from state receivership during a special meeting on Monday night.All eight committee members appeared...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON — Cannabis Control Commission Chairwoman Shannon O’Brien was suspended from her position Thursday by Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, who chose her for the job a year ago, as upheaval continues to collide with the CCC’s hefty regulatory and policy...

By SAM DORAN

BOSTON — A Governor’s Council meeting that featured approval of four new pardons took an unexpected turn Wednesday as one member persistently rebuked her colleagues, before councilors across the room successfully moved to establish a new Rules...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

More than 200 farms across western and central Massachusetts started receiving checks last week from the Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund, which was launched by the Healey administration and United Way of Central Massachusetts after devastating...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

Nearly $2 million in federal dollars will flow into Massachusetts and Boston city coffers to tackle the migrant housing crisis, with the money arriving just over a week after Gov. Maura Healey declared a state of emergency due to strained shelter...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst Town Hall’s large granite steps, in place since the building opened at the corner of Main Street and Boltwood Avenue in 1889, have been dismantled and removed as part of an ongoing repair project.Since the project began June 19, the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Earl Miller, Amherst’s director of the unarmed police alternative Community Responders for Equity, Safety and Service department, is on paid administrative leave until the completion of an independent investigation, according to town...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

BOSTON — Investigators in Auditor Diana DiZoglio's office uncovered more than $1 million worth of public benefits fraud from April through June, with the majority linked to cases involving the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).The...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — All of the town’s more than 5,000 rental units would be inspected at least twice a decade for building and health code compliance rather than waiting for a complaint to prompt an inspector to investigate under a proposed revamp of rules...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Hadley officials are interested in buying new budgeting software to assist various financial and personnel offices at Town Hall, though this will come at a potential cost of more than $25,000 annually.The Select Board last week unanimously...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Residents who live on a cul-de-sac in South Amherst and deal with regular flooding on the road, and the deterioration of pavement the standing water causes, are making a new appeal to the Town Council and town officials for a specific plan...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Regulating large-scale solar projects proposed for land that is actively being farmed or is significantly wooded remains a sticking point for an Amherst committee attempting to write a solar bylaw to be adopted by the Town Council.“It’s...