Maura Healey

Force in Play

Publicly pressing MGB to resume negotiations

Contract talks between Brigham and Women's nurses and Mass General Brigham ran more than 15 hours on Nov. 9 and ended without a deal. The union reported some progress and said it was ready to resume bargaining, but no new session had been scheduled as of Nov. 10.

Updated 13 hours ago

Rule Changes

Signed emergency preamble on Nov. 6, 2026

Gov. Maura Healey signed an emergency preamble on Nov. 6 that put Massachusetts' new abortion law into effect immediately, hours after a repeal coalition submitted enough signatures to suspend it. The law, signed in August, allows abortions at or beyond 24 weeks based on a provider's medical judgment. Without the emergency action, it would have taken effect Nov. 9 but could have been frozen while opponents pursued a 2028 repeal referendum.

Updated 3 days ago

Built World

Announced the funding authorization and RFP release

Massachusetts is taking final bids from three teams to design and build a new Sagamore Bridge, with $956 million in federal money authorized and another $371 million expected. The state plans to pick a contractor by summer 2027.

Updated 6 days ago

Rule Changes

Part of four-state coalition demanding classified briefing on wind pause

All five East Coast wind farms that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum froze in December 2025 were back at work by early February, after federal judges in three districts granted preliminary injunctions. The building has gone on since: Ørsted's Revolution Wind finished offshore construction and has sent power to the New England grid since March, and Dominion's Coastal Virginia project is more than 80 percent built and delivering electricity.

Updated Oct 23

Rule Changes

Vineyard Wind fully constructed and delivering power as of October 2026 after the January injunction

Federal judges cleared all five East Coast offshore wind projects to resume construction by February 2, 2026, finding the Trump administration had not justified its national security suspensions. The five projects total about 5.8 gigawatts. Vineyard Wind and Revolution Wind are now fully built and sending power; Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind is more than 80% complete.

Updated Oct 23

Rule Changes

Running for reelection; says the House decision to drop her gas tax suspension was 'the wrong decision'

Massachusetts drivers will keep paying the state's 24-cent-per-gallon gas tax. The House voted 121-30 Wednesday to reject a Republican amendment that would have restored Gov. Maura Healey's two-month suspension, and the $2.35 billion supplemental budget moved ahead without it.

Updated Oct 22

Rule Changes

Administration backing the act, filing new regulations after the Milton ruling

Massachusetts's highest court upheld the MBTA Communities Act for the second time in September, rejecting the town of Marshfield's claims that the 2021 law violates home rule or is an unfunded mandate. The ruling locks in the state's power to require 177 MBTA-adjacent communities to zone for apartments and townhomes.

Updated Oct 19

Built World

In office

Orange Line trains can now hit 55 mph between Assembly and North Station, matching the speed already allowed between Assembly and Oak Grove. The limit was 40 mph as recently as 2025.

Updated Oct 18

Rule Changes

As of October 2026: Declared state of energy emergency; seeking reelection

Healey declared an energy emergency on Oct. 5, signing an executive order to expand heating assistance and suspend a solar charge on electric bills. Heating oil is running about $6.12 a gallon, up nearly 75% from a year ago, and heating aid applications are up 70%.

Updated Oct 11

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Sitting governor, announced the FTA decision

Four years after a federal investigation found a 'lax safety culture' at the MBTA, the Federal Transit Administration has closed its directive to the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities and returned daily safety monitoring to the state. The FTA's Sept. 11 letter found the state agency now meets federal standards, though seven directives the FTA issued to the MBTA itself remain open under state supervision.

Updated Sep 22

Money Moves

As of September 2026: Welcomed the office at its launch

Enterprise Singapore opened its Boston office on September 9 — the agency's fifth in the United States and the first Southeast Asia trade outpost in the city. It sits inside the Cambridge Innovation Center, minutes from the Kendall Square biotech cluster that anchors American life sciences.

Updated Sep 11

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: In office; signed Sept. 8 executive order

Massachusetts towns hold veto power over new data centers. Gov. Maura Healey's Sept. 8 order requires projects over 25 megawatts to win community approval and meet a 100% clean-electricity standard before state permitting.

Updated Sep 10

Built World

As of September 2026: In office

A Woburn developer sold a downtown Boston office building approved for conversion into 95 apartments for $8.6 million, or about $90,500 per approved home. KS Partners won the conversion approval in April 2025, then sold the site rather than build it.

Updated Sep 8

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Leading state's fight against FEMA denial

Massachusetts asked the federal government in April to declare the February blizzard a Major Disaster, unlocking funding for six coastal counties. The Trump administration denied the request in July, then denied Governor Maura Healey's appeal this week.

Updated Sep 6

Money Moves

As of September 2026: In office since January 2023

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced the state's largest housing funding round in over a decade: $278 million for 29 projects across 20 communities. The awards draw on the 2024 Affordable Homes Act, which expanded state subsidies and tax credits for housing.

Updated Sep 6

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Running for re-election; unopposed in primary

Mike Minogue, a former medical device CEO and Army veteran, won Massachusetts' Republican gubernatorial primary Sept. 1, defeating Brian Shortsleeve with about three-quarters of the vote. The 59-year-old political novice now faces Democratic Gov. Maura Healey in November.

Updated Sep 4

Built World

As of May 2026: Activated state emergency operations center, directed non-emergency employees to stay home; declared state of emergency and deployed 200 National Guard troops

A nor'easter developed into a bomb cyclone on February 22-23, 2026, burying the Interstate 95 corridor from Philadelphia to Boston under 1 to 2 feet of heavy, wet snow. In parts of New Jersey, totals exceeded 2 feet; Lyndhurst received 30.7 inches while New York City got 19 inches on February 24.

Updated May 29

Built World

As of May 2026: In office since January 2023

For 40 years, transmission bottlenecks and opposition blocked Hydro-Québec from selling more power to New England. On January 16, 2026, a 145-mile power line through Maine began delivering 1,200 megawatts of Canadian hydroelectricity to Massachusetts—20% of the state's needs and the largest clean energy transmission addition to the region in decades. The line went dark when a winter storm hit 10 days later.

Updated May 21

Rule Changes

As of May 2026: Declared January 2026 as Firefighter Cancer Awareness Month

Maryland's James Malone Act took effect January 1, 2026, requiring free cancer screenings for professional firefighters in every county with a self-insured health plan. The law targets ten cancer types that kill firefighters at dramatically higher rates than the general population.

Updated May 19