Middleboro Review and so on

  New from  CommonWealth Beacon FLOOD INSURANCE:  Boston residents have collectively  faced  at least $785,000 in unnecessary flood insurance costs since 2021 because the city missed a self-imposed deadline for a federal program. Jordan Wolman has more.    Looming federal food aid cuts put state Democrats in the hot seat   October 31, 2025 By  Chris Lisinski and Jordan Wolman When federal money suddenly disappears, how much responsibility does the state have to use its own limited resources to minimize the impact?    The rapidly approaching cutoff of food aid to tens of millions of Americans is posing that question to Beacon Hill, boxing legislative leaders and Gov. Maura Healey into a corner over whether and how to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program now – and foreshadowing challenging budget math that looms on the longer-term horizon.   Anti-hunger advocates and budget analysts stressed that the imminent crisis is a fede...

  New from  CommonWealth Beacon ENERGY :  Boston is entering the energy affordability battle with a  new program it launched Wednesday  to install thousands of heat pumps and building upgrades around the city by 2027 to cut utility bills. But the program’s success could hinge on the city’s ability to tap into Mass Save, a program already under financial strain, Jordan Wolman reports.  CONVENTION : Top Democrats on Beacon Hill  moved to thwart a conservative push  for a new Constitutional Convention, joining 16 other states in doing so, explains Michael Norton at the State House News Service.  EXPANDING GATEWAYS? : State Sen. Bill Driscoll wants to  revise the state definition of Gateway Cities , adding two new criteria to the mix so that Randolph, which he represents, would qualify. But the bill he’s filed would also draw seven other communities into the Gateway Cities fold, including Boston and the Martha’s Vineyard town of Tisbury. Ha...