| | | | |  | | By Kelly Garrity | MISSING CONNECTIONS — Could less than three miles of new train tracks winding under Boston’s streets really generate $30 billion worth of benefits for the state? A new study commissioned by Rep. Seth Moulton says so. The Salem Democrat turned to the Harvard Kennedy School to run the numbers on the costs and benefits of two major transportation projects that Massachusetts leaders have been weighing to try to expand subway and commuter rail access in Boston and beyond: the North-South Rail Link and the South Station Expansion. The results paint the Rail Link as a potential boon for the state over the next two decades, estimating that the roughly $8 billion project have a nearly $31 billion impact over 20 years — adding 86 million annual riders, incentivizing tens of thousands of new housing units and helping decarbonize suburban neighborhoods. The South Station Expansion, by comparison, will cost around $4 billion, according to the study — netting about $20 billion less than the Rail Link Moulton has long lobbied for. Lawmakers have batted around the Rail Link, which would bridge the state’s bifurcated rail system for decades. But the proposal has more recently taken a backseat to plans to grow South Station’s capacity — and to an MBTA that has been systematically working its way through a backlog of repairs while trying to get other long-awaited improvements, like the South Coast rail, out the door. Moulton is using the study as a warning to the state: Expanding South Station “would waste $4 billion in taxpayer money and barely last two decades,” while the Rail Link “does more to boost housing than any housing bill,” he says in a three-page overview of the research.
|  Rep. Seth Moulton commissioned a new study to revive the push for building the North-South Rail Link that would bridge the divide between the state’s north and south commuter rail lines. | Steven Senne | AP Photo | While the study shows the potential for big gains from what would be roughly 2.8 miles of underground track, the logistics of breaking ground on the billion-dollar infrastructure project are tricky. Any proposal for a tunnel through the heart of the city could see pushback from residents who remember the Big Dig and its repeated cost increases. And there’s the cost itself. The MBTA managed to balance its FY 25 budget by pulling from reserves, but it alone is facing down a $700 million fiscal cliff in FY 26, and talk of new revenue sources, like tolls, to fund the state’s transportation needs, hasn’t gone over without a hitch. But Moulton is making the pitch that the investment is essential. “The question is no longer ‘Can we afford to build the link?’ but ‘Can we afford not to?,” the overview concludes. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy Monday! Hopefully the Celtics can close out the series tonight. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll huddle with Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano at 2 p.m. in the Speaker’s office. Healey keynotes the Battle of Bunker Hill Remembrance Ceremony and Oration at 3:30 p.m. in Charlestown and speaks at a ribbon cutting 4 p.m. in Cambridge. Driscoll attends a Juneteenth event at 6 p.m. in Boston. Sen. Elizabeth Warren speaks about the future of the U.S. tax system at 1 p.m. in Washington, D.C. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu hosts a coffee hour in Brighton at 9:30 a.m. and speaks at the city’s Juneteenth flag raising at noon at City Hall. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: kgarrity@politico.com.
| | | | THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.
Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | |  | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | — “Massachusetts governor urged to overhaul State Police after trooper’s vulgar texts in Karen Read case as Facebook users rip agency,” by Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald: “Blistering criticism of a State Police investigator’s crude comments in the Karen Read murder case has a top law enforcement watchdog renewing its demand the governor overhaul the agency — as Facebook users rip into troopers online. It’s so bad that a forced receivership of the Massachusetts State Police should be considered, “before someone else does it,” said Dennis Galvin, president of the Massachusetts Association for Professional Law Enforcement (MAPLE).” — “Has Gov. Healey’s work for Biden paid off? She says ‘relationships matter’,” by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “From hosting a fundraiser in the glimmering Seaport last month to backing Biden’s executive action on the country’s southern border and promoting the administration’s workforce agenda earlier this year to officially serving as a ‘super-surrogate,’ Healey has ingrained herself in Biden’s bid to hold onto the presidency. At the same time, money for the rundown Cape Cod bridges has started to flow, Massachusetts scored one of the coveted ARPA-H hubs, secured millions to set up the Northeast Microelectronics hub, and pulled in $67 million from federal regulators to improve accessibility on the Green Line.” — “Lawmakers urged to repeal voter survey 'penalty',” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “Cities and town are required by state law to conduct annual population surveys to gauge the number of people in their communities, but local clerks also use the information to purge inactive voters from their rolls. Voting rights advocates say the ‘penalty' for not responding to municipal census surveys — which requires residents to provide proof of residency and fill out an affidavit to restore their voter registration — disenfranchises voters who overlook or don't respond to the yearly population counts.” — “Will local control be lost? State climate bill likely to usurp authority over siting of clean energy infrastructure,” by Emilee Klein, Daily Hampshire Gazette.
| | MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS | | — “Opening of overflow shelter at former prison in Norfolk ‘delayed,’ town officials say,” by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald.
| | FROM THE HUB | | — “Gunshot detection company contests ACLU's claims about the technology,” by Sarah Betancourt, GBH News: “Ahead of an upcoming Boston City Council hearing about its controversial gunshot detection technology, the company SoundThinking is roiled in a discourse match with elected officials and the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts about whether its product is effective and accurate, or a violation of civil rights.” — “The tents are gone, but the crowds and drug use are back at Mass & Cass,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald. — “The complicated history of school choice in Boston,” by Max Larkin, WBUR.
| | BALLOT BATTLES | | BOSTON’S POV — Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper didn’t directly weigh in on a potential ballot question that would remove MCAS as a high school graduation requirement when asked during an interview on WCVB’s “On the Record” Sunday. But she does want to see schools “expand” how they measure students’ skills, “instead of being so focused on one or two specific data points for graduation,” she said.
| | | PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES | | | FLIGHT CHECK — Could Massachusetts rename Logan Airport after Celtics legend Bill Russell, as The Atlantic’s Mark Leibovich pitched late last week? Maybe, but probably not in the immediate future; the change would require a bill to make it through the Legislature and onto the governor's desk, per a Massport spokesperson. Given the laundry list of legislation Beacon Hill lawmakers still have to sift through this session, General Edward Lawrence Logan’s moniker probably isn’t getting punted onto one of Terminal C’s six Dunkin’ storefronts any time soon.
| | DAY IN COURT | | — “Court orders DiZoglio to remove audit redactions,” by Colman M. Herman, CommonWealth Beacon: “A superior court judge has ordered state Auditor Diana DiZoglio to remove redactions from audits her office released last year involving medical care and inmate deaths in jails operated by two sheriffs’ departments. DiZoglio’s office had invoked an exemption from the state public records law in redacting passages in the reports, claiming their release could jeopardize public safety or cybersecurity, but Suffolk Superior Court Judge Michael Pineault ruled that the redactions were not justified.”
| | WARREN REPORT | | BIBI BOYCOTT — Sen. Elizabeth Warren is among the lawmakers planning to skip Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s joint address next month, per my colleagues in D.C.
| | FROM THE 413 | | — “Northampton school superintendent: Union’s no-confidence vote shows ‘lack of courtesy’,” by Alexander MacDougall, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Northampton Public Schools Superintendent Portia Bonner expressed ‘deep disappointment’ in the school union’s recent vote of no confidence in her, saying that it showed a ‘lack of courtesy.’ She also pushed back against the notion that she is not doing enough to advocate for the schools. … The Northampton Association of School Employees (NASE) union announced the no-confidence vote last Wednesday amid an ongoing fight over the school’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year.”
| | | | JOIN US ON 6/26 FOR A TALK ON AMERICA’S SUPPLY CHAIN: From the energy grid to defense factories, America’s critical sites and services are a national priority. Keeping them up and running means staying ahead of the threat and protecting the supply chains that feed into them. POLITICO will convene U.S. leaders from agencies, Congress and the industry on June 26 to discuss the latest challenges and solutions for protecting the supply lines into America’s critical infrastructure. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | — “'We are so grateful': Healey announces $3.6M from state for flood damage in Leominster in Sept.,” by Marco Cartolano, Telegram & Gazette: “To support repairs to city roads and public infrastructure damaged in the Sept. 11, 2023, storm, Gov. Maura T. Healey announced Saturday that Leominster will receive $3.6 million in state disaster relief funding. Leominster was hit hard by flash flooding as a result of the storm. In October 2023, Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella said the flooding caused up to $40 million in damages.” — “Somerville to construct nearly 30 miles of bike lanes by 2030; efforts divide other cities,” by Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald: “An ordinance requiring 29 miles of protected bike lanes be built in Somerville by 2030 — at least three miles per year — has received full support from the City Council, as similar efforts in other communities divide officials and residents. ‘Balancing the needs of all road users was at the heart of this ordinance,’ Councilor Willie Burnley Jr., said in an X post Thursday, ahead of the council’s unanimous approval.” — “Bidenomics Leaves a Blue State Industrial Heartland Behind,” by Saijel Kishan, Bloomberg
| | MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE | | TRUMP FACTOR — Former Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte told Fox News that she would accept an endorsement from former President Donald Trump if he does decide to wade into New Hampshire’s gubernatorial race on her behalf. “I certainly appreciate President Trump. … Anyone who is offering their support, I’d love to have their support,” said Ayotte, who made headlines for withdrawing her endorsement of the former president in 2016 when his “Access Hollywood” tape comments became public. “But on the other hand, you think about what’s the most important issue in this race, and it's the people of New Hampshire.”
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