人生一定要有的八個朋友：
推手(Builder)、
支柱(Champion)、
同好(Collaborator)、
夥伴(Companion)、
中介(Connector)、
開心果(Energizer)、
開路者(Mind Opener)、
導師(Navigator)。
chutze@bostonorange.com
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Healey-Driscoll Administration Celebrates GE Aerospace’s $42 Million Investment in Massachusetts Defense Manufacturing
LYNN – The Healey-Driscoll Administration highlighted GE Aerospace’s $42 million investment in its Lynn manufacturing facility, which is strengthening Massachusetts’ defense industry, supporting local jobs and advancing the state’s leadership in advanced manufacturing.
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley, Economic Development Undersecretary Zenobia Moochhala, and CEO of Mass Tech Collaborative Carolyn Kirk toured GE Aerospace’s facility in Lynn to mark the investment, which will upgrade machinery, expand test capacity, and modernize operations. The project is part of GE Aerospace’s broader $1 billion investment to expand manufacturing across the United States during 2026.
"Massachusetts' defense sector plays a critical role in our national security and our economy, supporting thousands of jobs and generating billions in economic impact,” said Governor Maura Healey. "That’s why we launched our Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange and Leadership in Defense (SHIELD) Initiative, to bring together advanced manufacturing, applied research and emerging technologies in a unified strategy. GE Aerospace’s investment strengthens our manufacturing base, supports good-paying jobs, and ensures Massachusetts continues to lead in building in the technologies that keep our countries safe."
“Here in Massachusetts, we have the tools, science and talent to help safeguard the nation. We have the innovative and coordinated ecosystem to ensure we’re protecting our servicemen and women, while also creating a lot of great jobs in our state,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “Through SHIELD, we are aligning advanced manufacturing, applied research and emerging technologies into one cohesive strategy. With partners like GE Aerospace, who are leaders in defense manufacturing, we’re building the next chapter of our legacy.”
Massachusetts plays a pivotal role in the nation’s defense ecosystem as the home of leading research institutions, advanced manufacturers, and a highly skilled workforce. The industry supports more than 130,000 jobs, contributes $15.2 billion in annual labor income, and generates $48.6 billion in annual economic output, underscoring the state’s critical role in national security and innovation.
This investment builds on Massachusetts’ continued momentum in advanced manufacturing and defense innovation, as the state attracts new investment, expands workforce pipelines, and strengthens partnerships between industry, government, and research institutions.
Governor Healey’s SHIELD initiative is designed to strengthen the state's defense leadership and accelerate the development of cutting-edge national security solutions. Through an Executive Order, Governor Healey directed state agencies to identify ways to increase support for defense sector initiatives across the administration, and established a SHIELD Working Group, led by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech), to advise the Governor and Lieutenant Governor on advancing the defense sector in Massachusetts.
“GE Aerospace’s investment in Lynn is a strong signal that Massachusetts remains a leader in advanced manufacturing and defense innovation,” said Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley. “We have the talent, infrastructure, and ecosystem that companies need to grow and compete. Through initiatives like SHIELD, we are continuing to invest in that foundation and make it easier for companies to build and scale here.”
Governor Healey has also invested in Massachusetts advanced manufacturing through the Mass Leads Act, which provides more than $300 million in capital authorization for new and existing programs at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to support advanced manufacturing, robotics, the Massachusetts TechHub Program, as well as for Small Business Technology Grants at MassVentures.
“At GE Aerospace, we are proud of the work that the Lynn team does every day to ensure the mission readiness and safe return of the warfighters,” said Paul Ferraro, Vice President & General Manager of Defense Engines & Services at GE Aerospace. “To meet their critical mission demands, we continue to invest in our people and our facilities to further strengthen our manufacturing capabilities to deliver to our customers. Today’s visit by the Lieutenant Governor was an opportunity to talk about our shared commitment to advance manufacturing in Massachusetts, and we look forward to working together on these key initiatives.”
GE Aerospace’s Lynn facility has a history that dates back more than 130 years and is recognized as one of the founding sites of the General Electric Company. The site is home to the first U.S. jet engine and continues to design, produce, assemble, and test military aircraft engines and components.
To further spur interest in manufacturing careers, the GE Foundation has funded $2.5 million in grants that established an Advanced Manufacturing Training Expansion Program (AMTEP) focused in Lynn and the North Shore. The program has helped address the skills gap in the region by supporting and coordinating advanced manufacturing training for 600 individuals since 2020 and connected them to full-time employment to meet the needs of manufacturing employers.
過去一年來，波士頓市還推出了比以往40年來更多的學校設備更新及建設計畫，同時擴大了高品質的幼稚園前，以及大學先修班的席位。為冬波士頓的PJ Kennedy小學，南端（South End）的William E. Carter學校，羅森岱爾（Roslindale）的sarah Roberts小學的校舍更新剪綵，還和麻州樓宇局（MSBA）合作，繼續推動麥迪遜（Madison）公園科技職業高中項目，在洛士百利（Ｒoxbury）為高中生提供職業人力培訓。今年還將和MSBA合作，開始為多徹斯特（Dorchester）的Ruth Batson學校，麥特潘（Mattapan）的Shaw-Taylor小學的翻修做設計。金秋會在Grove Hall的Lilla G Frederick大樓重新開張一所小學，翻修布萊頓高中的禮堂及內部裝潢。
MAYOR MICHELLE WU FILES FY27 BUDGET THAT PROTECTS CORE CITY SERVICES, INVESTS IN BOSTON’S FUTURE
BOSTON - Wednesday, April 8, 2026 - Mayor Michelle Wu today filed her Fiscal Year 2027 operating budget and five-year 2027-2031 Capital Plan. The FY27 budget reflects a deliberate and disciplined approach to protecting the core services our residents and businesses rely on while positioning Boston for long-term fiscal stability. It is designed to ensure the City overcomes the current fiscal environment and emerges in a stronger position.
As cities and towns across the Commonwealth and the country face a challenging fiscal environment marked by rising costs, slowing revenue growth, and economic uncertainty, the City’s $4.9 billion FY27 operating budget and the $4.4 billion five-year Capital Plan balance fiscal restraint with continued investment in Boston’s future.
Despite these structural challenges, Boston enters this environment from a position of strength, supported by years of disciplined financial stewardship, strong reserves and more than a decade of AAA bond ratings. However, the City is also navigating these conditions within the constraints of the Commonwealth’s rigid limitations on municipal revenue generation and diversification, including Proposition 2 ½. Escalating fixed cost pressures, combined with contractual obligations and inflation, continue to significantly outpace the revenue growth allowed under Proposition 2 1⁄2.
The FY27 budget increases by only 2.1%, the lowest growth rate since FY10 and well below the current rate of inflation. City departmental appropriations will decrease by 1.3% year-over-year, after accounting for health care and other central account costs. Unlike many other Massachusetts cities and towns, this proposed budget does not seek an override for additional revenue beyond what is allowed by Proposition 2 ½.
“City government is where we find a way to get things done, and where we do what matters most,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “This proposed budget funds city services for the highest quality of life, delivers significant savings, and protects Boston’s continued progress in tough economic times. I’m grateful to the City Council for their partnership, and we look forward to continued due diligence and collaboration over the next few months.”
“This budget addresses the challenges posed by the current fiscal environment with long-term stability in mind,” said Ashley Groffenberger, Chief Financial Officer for the City of Boston. “The City is focused on disciplined financial stewardship in an evolving, unpredictable economic climate. With our years of responsible budget management and strategic decisions, Boston is well-positioned to meet this moment from a secure position in the short and long-term while delivering on our core services and commitments to employees, residents, and families.”
Over the past four years, federal relief funding and city investments enabled the City to increase support for small businesses and nonprofit partners, fill vacant storefronts, expand cultural programming across our neighborhoods, and deliver critical projects across Boston communities. With tighter fiscal conditions and rising fixed costs, this year’s recommended operating budget significantly reduces or removes funding for many of these discretionary grant programs. The City has also sought to preserve other City programs that provide similar services or leveraged public-private partnerships to help bridge gaps in services. At the same time, strategic financial management has helped us avoid deeper, more disruptive cuts to essential services and operations while keeping us on track to meet our debt obligations and unfunded pension liability by 2028. By managing long-term pension and debt liabilities, the City will save $37.8 million compared to FY26.
“We know that, across Massachusetts, cities and towns are finding fiscal 2027 to be a particularly challenging year,” said MMA Executive Director and CEO Adam Chapdelaine. “Boston is by no means alone in facing unavoidable costs that are far outpacing inflation and revenue growth, and the reality of very limited options to address these costs and preserve the essential services that all residents and businesses rely on. This is a year of difficult decisions, and the mayor and her team are using every creative lever at their disposal to preserve core services.”
By protecting essential city services, funding core priorities and delivering significant savings, Boston will continue to build on our progress by meeting fixed and long-term financial obligations, delivering for residents, and remaining adaptable amidst a difficult fiscal environment.
To address key drivers of deficit in the prior fiscal year, this year’s FY27 recommended budget builds in the following cost containment strategies.
Health care costs
Rapidly rising health care costs continue to be a major challenge for the City. The City and the Public Employee Committee (PEC) recently reached an agreement to curb growing health care costs, generating an estimated $10.6 million in savings for the City and its employees through utilization management. In the next month, the administration will begin negotiations with all municipal unions on healthcare costs through the PEC, looking to set a new five-year health insurance plan that must take steps to address the unsustainable growth of costs that the City has faced. Even with these efforts, Health insurance costs for the City, Boston Public Schools (BPS), and Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) are projected to increase by $97.3 million this year, driven by a 20.3 percent rate hike for all non-Medicare health plans that far exceeds the average annual rise of $10.6 million over the past eight years.
Public Safety Overtime
Public safety overtime spending remains a significant long-term challenge. Over the past four years, the administration has implemented operational changes to reduce the number of overtime hours. The police overtime line item, for example, has increased with collective bargaining agreements adjusting wage per overtime hour, but the number of hours has decreased and continues to move in the right direction as new classes and management initiatives have begun to reduce the use of mandatory overtime to cover staffing shortages. The City will continue working to make public safety overtime spending more predictable and manageable while maintaining the safety of our neighborhoods.
Snow Removal
In five of the six fiscal years prior to FY25, the City underspent the budgeted snow removal line, resulting in surplus that accumulated in the general fund and contributed to the City's reserve balances. Historically significant snowfall in early 2026 resulted in a deficit in the snow removal budget line, which is an appropriate one-time cost to be addressed through an allocation from reserves accumulated over the last several years. As New England's weather patterns shift to less frequent but more intense snowstorms, this same pattern of uneven snow costs will likely persist. While this year's line item for snow removal represents level funding from the FY26 budget, not relying on additional use of reserves to balance the overall FY27 budget ensures that the City is able to maintain flexibility to utilize reserves in a future year to address extraordinary, unforeseen costs like those we experienced this winter. Additionally, the City will explore the possibility of creating a special snow stabilization fund to specifically address snow shortfalls in the future.
The FY27 recommended budget includes the following key priorities:
Housing Affordability and Stability
Our administration will continue to prioritize housing affordability and stability. This recommended budget maintains the City’s tools to preserve and strengthen stability and affordability across the city’s neighborhoods. Over the last four years, these investments by the City have helped build 6,210 new income-restricted units, the highest number of affordable housing units created during any comparable period in the last 25 years. Our Acquisition Opportunity Program (AOP) reached its goal of taking 1,000 units off the speculative market, years ahead of schedule. In FY27, the City will protect 100 families through AOP, stabilizing over 200 residents. While the Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH) will see an overall decrease in this budget, funding for key programs has been maintained, including homeownership assistance, supportive housing tenant stabilization, and housing vouchers. MOH will use federal and state funds, the Boston Acquisition Fund, and locally generated revenues from Housing Trust Fund, Inclusionary Development Policy (IDP) and the Community Preservation Act (CPA) to continue to build and preserve affordable housing.
Youth Employment and Development
Summer youth employment remains a core focus of the administration’s efforts to strengthen Boston’s future. Over the past two summers, nearly 11,000 students and young people worked jobs - the most in Boston’s history. This budget maintains our guarantee that every BPS student who wants a paid summer job has access to one. To ensure this work remains secure, several programs previously managed within the Office of Youth Employment and Opportunity (OYEO) focused on youth development and career readiness have shifted to other cabinets and bolstered through partnerships with the State and private sector.
Public Realm and Quality of Life
The City will continue to build on progress made with excellent constituent services to improve quality of life and maintain and improve streets for Boston residents, families and visitors. Over the four past years, the City has resurfaced 105 miles of roadway, filled over 27,000 potholes and nearly doubled the City's network of bike lanes. The Streets Cabinet will see a modest budget increase in FY27 due to the cost of existing long-term contracts for essential services, such as managing the City's mobility infrastructure, collecting residential trash, and maintaining the cleanliness of our public ways. Planned efforts include roadway resurfacing, sidewalk and ramp upgrades, street reconstruction and neighborhood safety projects. Several major projects are currently underway with construction in progress on A Street, Congress Street, and Sleeper Street, which will feature new, accessible sidewalks, safer crosswalks, street-light upgrades, landscaping, and separated bike lanes. In Mattapan, reconstruction of Cummins Highway is underway and expected to be completed this summer. The City is continuing to also invest in Boston’s parks, recently cutting the ribbon on renovations at Harambee Park, Walsh Playground, and Codman Square Park and are nearing completion of improvements to Copley Square and Clifford Park.
Public Health and Safety
The City is working every day across city agencies and with community partners to maintain Boston’s position as the safest major city in the country. The FY27 budgets for the Boston Police Department, Boston Fire Department, and Emergency Medical Services includes funding for recruit classes that will replace staff loss from normal attrition. Although there were targeted reductions to civilian positions in these departments, the City will be able to maintain service levels across these critical agencies due to key investments over the last few years, including a capital investment of $3.3 million to upgrade the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system, improving 911 call-takers' ability to quickly and securely receive and dispatch calls. To support continued progress on safety, Police, Fire and EMS will continue to utilize their cadet programs as steady pipelines to ensure departments are fully staffed and reflect residents of Boston.
The administration continues to take a public health-centered approach to addressing community violence with funding preserved or alternative response capacity, including programming with BEST clinicians and our partners at Youth Connect to address the underlying trauma, mental health issues, or family instability that often lead to police intervention. The Community Safety team will fully move from the Office of Human Services to the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) in FY27, reflecting the administration's continued focus to ensure residents and families are healthy and connected to services and supports.
Human Services
The City continues to maintain initiatives that engage residents and connect families to critical programming and resources across neighborhoods. The City’s Human Services budget maintains evening and weekend hours and programming at libraries and BCYF centers, as well as classes for adult English-language available at no cost to residents through the Boston Public Library. While Age Strong will see a decrease in FY27, the City secured a $1 million federal earmark for transportation services that will help older residents get around more easily across Boston. City funding that helps older residents access state and federal benefits is also maintained. Boston Veterans Services will continue to provide need-based financial aid to low-income veterans and their surviving spouses for food, shelter, clothing, medical reimbursements, and emergency aid for utilities and home repairs. The City is nearing completion of the new BCYF community center in Grove Hall and recently broke ground on a new Nazzaro Community Center in the North End. In Chinatown, the City recently broke ground on a project at 55 Hudson Street that will bring 110 affordable homes and a new permanent branch of the Boston Public Library to the neighborhood, turning a City-owned parking lot into a vital community anchor. The City continues to also plan for additional community facilities.
Education and School Facilities
Public education represents the largest operational departmental budget, with the FY27 Boston Public Schools budget maintaining our multi-year investments in the core academic priorities that improve student outcomes: inclusive education, bilingual programming, high-quality instructional materials, and expanded college and career pathways. The BPS FY27 appropriation of $1.7 billion reflects a year-over-year increase of 5.4 percent, or $88 million. After isolating the disproportionate impact of health care inflation, the underlying budget growth is 2.7 percent or $41 million. To continue these investments amid declining student enrollment and rising costs, BPS has made difficult decisions to align staffing levels with a smaller student body. In aligning staff with students, BPS is maintaining a ratio of 1 teacher for every 10 students and 1 paraprofessional for every 24 students. These are lower staff-to-student ratios than pre-pandemic, and equal to the staffing ratios in the FY26 budget. While these reductions in staff positions are difficult for school communities, they are essential to the responsible stewardship of public dollars.
To build on Boston Public Schools’ progress, the City has launched more school facility renovations and construction projects than at any time in the last 40 years, while expanding access to high-quality pre-K seats and early college access than ever before. Over the last year, we have cut the ribbon on major projects at the PJ Kennedy Elementary School in East Boston, the William E. Carter School in the South End, and the Sarah Roberts Elementary School in Roslindale. Through our partnership with the Massachusetts State Building Authority (MSBA), the City is moving forward with the Madison Park Technical Vocational High School project. This investment will deliver a nation-leading, wall-to-wall Career and Technical Education high school and hub of workforce development in the heart of Roxbury. We are also partnering with the MSBA on investments in the Ruth Batson Academy in Dorchester and the Shaw-Taylor Elementary School in Mattapan, which will begin design this year. At the same time, renovations are underway at the Lilla G. Frederick building in Grove Hall, which will reopen as a new elementary school this fall. Plans to renovate the auditorium and other interior spaces at Brighton High School are also in development.
Across the district, the City and BPS are accelerating state-of-good-repair improvements, upgrading bathrooms, roofs, windows, and doors; enhancing energy efficiency, and improving playgrounds. Next year, the City will complete the renovation of White Stadium, transforming it into a state-of-the-art athletic facility for BPS Athletics and a year-round, vibrant community hub for Franklin Park.
Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities Joins
2026 Dig Safe Awareness National Campaign
Governor Healey signs proclamation declaring April as Dig Safe Month
BOSTON — In recognition of April as Dig Safe Awareness month, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) is joining Dig Safe Inc., other states, and utility companies across the nation to remind contractors, excavators, and residents to call 811 before starting any outdoor digging projects.
Governor Healey and Lieutenant Governor Driscoll recently signed a proclamation announcing Dig Safe Awareness month in April across Massachusetts. The proclamation is just one of the many ways the state is promoting awareness of the free service that Dig Safe provides to all.
811 is the line for Dig Safe, Inc., an organization that notifies gas, electric, telephone, and cable companies about any intended digging project to ensure underground lines and pipes are not tampered with. Dig Safe tickets can also be obtained online at www.digsafe.com. At no cost to the excavator, professional locators will visit the requested dig site to mark the approximate locations of underground utility lines with flags, spray paint, or both. This ensures that underground utility lines are properly marked before digging starts and can prevent accidents from happening, keeping residents and their communities safe.
“Dig Safe makes it easy for all of us to be safe, not sorry. Buried utility lines are all around us, on both public and private property—sometimes just inches below the surface,” saidChair Jeremy McDiarmid. “Calling 811 is the best way to ensure these lines won’t be hit when starting outdoor projects this year.”
“No one wants to disrupt utility services, or even worse, become seriously injured when tackling an outdoor home project,” said Commissioner Liz Anderson. “Calling 811 or putting in a ticket online ensures your own safety and the safety of your community. This free service promotes safe digging practices and protects you, your home, and your neighbors from serious harm.”
“Make sure calling 811 is the first item on the to-do list any time outdoor excavation is being planned” said Commissioner Staci Rubin. “This keeps workers safe, prevents unnecessary disruptions and costs for ratepayers, and makes sure we’re all complying with state and federal laws.”
Excavations are the leading cause of damage to underground utility infrastructure. In 2025, the DPU investigated 2,645 excavation-related incidents involving possible violations of utility infrastructure in Massachusetts. The DPU’s investigation of these incidents resulted in over $15.4 million in civil penalties assessed to violators.
Additionally, the DPU’s enforcement actions and educational seminars for first-time offenders, which nearly 296 different contractors attended in 2025, have led to a continuous reduction in the total damage rate per thousand tickets. Since 2018, the DPU has reduced the rate by approximately 37.25%, going from a damage rate of 2.47 per thousand tickets to approximately 1.55.
It is required by law to call 811 at least three days before starting to dig on or near your property. Accidentally striking an underground utility line can result in serious personal injury, property damage, and costly service disruptions. Failure to follow the law and state regulations can also result in fines. Even small projects like planting a garden or installing a mailbox require homeowners to contact 811, as many utility lines are buried just a few inches below the ground.
Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants a call to 811. Examples of digging projects that require a call to 811 include:
·Installing a mailbox or fence;
·Building a deck;
·Installing a pool or basketball hoop; and,
·Planting trees and shrubs.
According to a 2026 survey from Common Ground Alliance, a national association committed to protecting underground utility infrastructure, roughly 10 million households could put themselves and their communities at risk by not contacting 811 before breaking ground this year. Massachusetts residents are highly encouraged not to join that statistic by planning ahead and making the necessary calls to Dig Safe.
(Boston Orange周菊子麻州報導)橫跨台灣、新加坡發展，年僅25歲的新銳導演黃筱雅，應第42屆「酷兒電影節（Wicked Queer Film Festival）」之邀，4月5日在劍橋市布瑞托（Brattle）戲院，為甫獲獎的「如果我從未離開（Last Day of Us）」短片和觀眾對話，表現備受矚目。
今年選映62部片，分成14個主題單元。黃筱雅的「如果我從未離開」一片，和來自中國的門天闊（Tiankuo Men）「留校日（The Left Behind）」，以及柬埔寨，日本，印度，加拿大等的共6部短片，一起編在「舊的終結，新的開端：亞裔酷兒故事（Old Endings, New Beginnings: Queer Asian Stories）」單元。
在拍攝影片這條路上，黃筱雅開始得很早，15歲就拿起攝影機了，2021年憑「Drive with Me 」入選新加坡當地的全國青年影片獎，2022獲台灣文化部非小說短片贊助，2023年的「再見長春（Farewell Chang Chun）」打入第一屆索尼未來電影人獎（Sony Future filmmakers Award ）全球學生紀錄片組決賽，得到在Taiwan Plus上放映機會，2024年再成為近3年來唯一獲選進入釜山國際影展（BIFF）亞洲電影學院的台灣導演，拍出「如果我從未離開」這部影片，贏得紐約三州國際電影節最佳LGBTQ電影獎，入選麻州「酷兒電影節」。
