This week on the Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jenn Smith talks to Doug Howgate president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation (MTF) about the Fiscal Year 2026 state budget. They break down differences between the House and Senate plans, discuss why some parts of the process always happen behind closed doors, and consider the future of the wealth surcharge split between education and transportation.

This week on the Codcast, Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd sits down for a wide-ranging interview with CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith. They discuss trust in the judiciary, the role of the trial courts and the SJC, and if independence feels more achievable for state courts than the federal bench.

This week on the Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Kenzie Bok, head of the Boston Housing Authority, to discuss the threat of President Trump’s budget on rental assistance spending.

CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Margaret Low, CEO of WBUR, to discuss the role of NPR in the news ecosystem, defending journalistic institutions and values while upholding rigorous standards, and the upcoming WBUR Festival.

This week, Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Kennealy joins Gin Dumcius of CommonWealth Beacon to discuss why he's running for governor of Massachusetts, his time as secretary of housing and economic development under Charlie Baker, his thoughts on housing and immigration policy, and more.

John McDonough of the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and Paul Hattis of the Lown Institute are joined by Tiffany Joseph, assistant professor of sociology and international affairs at Northeastern University, to discuss her new book, 'Not All In: Race, Immigration, and Healthcare Exclusion in the Age of Obamacare.'

This episode of the Codcast is a recording of a live event that took place April 30 in Provincetown, Mass., co-moderated by CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith and Eve Zuckoff of CAI (the Cape and Islands NPR station). Together with a panel of conservation, planning, and community development experts, they discussed what it means to live and plan responsibly on the Cape and Islands, understanding the realities of climate change and the housing crunch as a collective crisis.

The panelists were:

Mark Borrelli – A coastal geologist and director of the Coastal Processes and Ecosystems Laboratory (CaPE Lab), a joint research effort between the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) and the School for the Environment within the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Jay Coburn – President and CEO of the Community Development Partnership – the non-profit community development corporation serving the eight towns of lower Cape Cod.

Timothy Famulare – Community Development Director for Provincetown, formerly the town's environmental planner and conservation agent.

CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Marty Meehan, president of the University of Massachusetts system, to discuss UMass's work in climate technology and its response to the federal government's attacks on higher education.

CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by state Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa of the First Hampshire district and Laura Sylvester, public policy manager at the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, to discuss transportation challenges in Western Massachusetts and how they connect with other policy areas.

CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith is joined by Kristin Uiterwyk, director of the Urban Harbors Institute at UMass Boston, and Chris Krahforst, Director of Climate Adaptation and Conservation for the town of Hull, to discuss managed retreat in Massachusetts coastal communities threatened by rising waters and shrinking sands.