MASSACHUSETTS IS THE LEAST TRANSPARENT STATE IN THE COUNTRY. PERIOD. While its leaders give big speeches at a No Kings Rally, MA operates much more as an autocracy than the federal government. MA is the ONLY state in the entire country where the Governor’s Office, the Judiciary and state Legislature are all exempt from the public records law. The Society of Professional Journalists named the Bay State the 2026 recipient of its “Black Hole” award, meaning it is the #1 state where transparency and information is lost. Only 12% of state lawmakers even think they should be subject to records laws. Open Meeting Law also exempts legislative committees from the same sunshine rules towns and agencies follow. MA has had a one-party legislative democratic supermajority for decades - no term limits coupled with leadership-controlled committee assignments concentrates power in a handful of leaders rather than rank-and-file members. And when 72% of voters demanded the state legislature be audited by the state auditor - making it the law of the land in MA - the legislature refused to comply. Not to mention we have a U.S. senator who’s been in elected office for more than one-fifth of America’s entire existence.(John E Deaton)