MBTA Ridership Trends Compared to Public Transportation Agencies Nationwide

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The COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating effect on our economy,…

NEW: MassWatch IRS Data Discovery Tool

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If you want a window into taxation, to learn where Massachusetts residents move to and where new residents are coming from, Pioneer Institute has an innovative research tool for you. With Pioneer’s new Mass IRS Data Discovery Tool, you can now compare state-to-state or year-to-year tax data without downloading up to 2,000 IRS files in many different, cumbersome formats.

Where are Barnstable residents migrating to?

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Using Pioneer Institute’s newest database, Massachusetts IRS…

Employment trends in the Greater Boston Area and Touristy Massachusetts Counties during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Using MassEconomix, Pioneer Institute’s database on employment…

The COVID-19 Impact on Massachusetts Community College Enrollment & Success Trends

Enrollment at Massachusetts community colleges has dropped 32.61…

Patterns Among Cape Cod Communities with a High Proportion of Private School Students

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In Massachusetts, the association between education and demographic…

Massachusetts Is Losing Adjusted Gross Income to No-Income Tax State Migration

In light of a proposed tax increase on million-dollar annual…

Why did some nursing homes experience more COVID-19 deaths and infections than others?

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The COVID-19 pandemic has caused great loss for Massachusetts…

Putting in the Extra Hours: The Spike in Mass. Department of Public Health Overtime Pay during COVID-19

During the heat of the COVID-19 pandemic, Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) payroll data presented a 29.09% increase in the average employee’s overtime pay from the previous year. Pioneer wanted to dig deeper into the Department’s compensation trends to put the $5M bump in 2020 DPH overtime pay into perspective.

Struggling For Sunshine: Transparency’s Power To Keep Leaders Accountable

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Host Joe Selvaggi talks with Pioneer Institute's Mary Z. Connaughton about the value of transparency and Pioneer’s extensive work to provide greater access to legislative and policy information to hold elected officials accountable and build trust in our state government. Read Pioneer Institute's Sunshine Week Transparency Resolutions.

Pioneer Institute’s 2021 Government Transparency Resolutions: Sunshine Week Edition

As it does each year, Pioneer shares the resolutions it hopes state leaders will adopt to bring government actions into better focus and invigorate our democracy with heightened public engagement. As the late Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis noted, “sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.”

COVID-19 Transparency – A Step Backwards

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Massachusetts has unfortunately taken the backwards step of ending its longstanding daily reporting of something basic and important: the virus’s cumulative impact on various age groups.

HHS COVID Funding Tracker

As of July, the Feds have distributed $86.7 billion to medical providers, of which $2.3 billion came to Massachusetts. Pioneer’s new HHS COVID-19 Funding app shows who and how much, from the $1 sent to American Current Care of Massachusetts, to the $418,034,675 sent to the MA Department of Public Health. We also break down the distribution by city or town.

Mapping COVID-19 in Massachusetts Cities & Towns

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Kudos to he Massachusetts Department of Public Health for posting the count and rate (per 100,000) of confirmed COVID-19 Cases in Massachusetts by City/Town.

Transparency Needed at Long-term Care Facilities

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The anxiety of having a parent in a nursing home under the constant…

Sunshine Week 2020 – When Government Transparency Is More Important Than Ever

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COVID-19 has overshadowed what was supposed to be Sunshine Week, but vigilance on behalf of open government is even more crucial during times like these, when the public has limited access. But government transparency is important at all times. Each year during Sunshine Week, Pioneer reviews some of its recent work to increase public accountability in Massachusetts government.

Pioneer Institute’s Government Transparency Resolutions 2020

As we do each January, Pioneer shares the resolutions it hopes state leaders will adopt to bring government actions into better focus and invigorate our democracy with heightened public engagement.

MassAnalysis: Highest income towns per capita within average debt range or higher

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Understanding debt limits Municipalities issue debt to fund…

Signs of Growth in Several Gateway Cities

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It’s safe to say that Boston is the economic hub of Massachusetts…

How Do Massachusetts’s State Pensions Compare with Their Peers?

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For those who have kept up with Pioneer’s work on pensions,…

No Clear Correlation Between Fare Revenue and Ridership

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In recent weeks, many MBTA riders have expressed frustration…

MassOpenBooks: A Look at the Highest Paid Private Vendors in 2018

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In 2018, quasi-public Massachusetts agencies made a total of…

A Follow-up on Pension Systems with the Highest Growth Rates in Unfunded Liability

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As Pioneer has previously discussed, Massachusetts continues…

MassPensions: Three Highest Growth Rates in Unfunded Pension Liability

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It’s no secret that Massachusetts’s public pension systems…

MassPensions: Highest Reductions in Unfunded Liabilities

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Despite the overall dismal performance of Massachusetts’s public…

MassOpenBooks: The Top Overtime Earners in 2018

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According to state law, most Massachusetts employees are entitled…

MassOpenBooks: A Look at Departments with the Highest Average Pay

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Ever wonder which public departments in Massachusetts pay their…