The offending tweets were quickly deleted and Swift regained control of her Twitter account.

Taylor Swift's Twitter and Instagram accounts were apparently hacked with the culprits threatening to leak nude photos of the Grammy Award-winning superstar.

Hackers first gained access to the 24-year-old singer's Twitter account and began sending out tweets to her 51.4 million followers, The Verve reported. Tweets were dispatched urging fans to follow the profile @lizzard, who claims to be the leader of a hacker group called Lizard Squad.

@lizzard's owner claimed to posses stolen nude photos of Swift, which would be released in exchange for Bitcoin.

The offending tweets were quickly deleted once Swift regained control of her Twitter account. She dismissed the nude photo threat with a series of tweets.

Shaking it off, Swift tweeted, "Any hackers saying they have 'nudes'? Psssh you'd love that wouldn't you! Have fun photoshopping cause you got NOTHING."

PS any hackers saying they have 'nudes'? Psssh you'd love that wouldn't you! Have fun photoshopping cause you got NOTHING.

— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) January 27, 2015

To be a true blizzard, a storm must produce winds of 35 mph or more, with visibility reduced to a quarter mile for at least three hours, the Weather Service said,

Don't like the way some news organizations called the winter storm we just experienced "Winter Storm Juno?"

Some news organization like MassLive.com and the Weather Channel, referred to this week's nor'easter that way.

Well, now you you can officially call it the "Blizzard of 2015" the National Weather Service says.

According to CBS Boston.com, powerful winter storms are often called blizzards, but there are certain characteristics that must be present before you can use the term "blizzard."

"A true blizzard features falling or blowing snow with winds that frequently gust to 35 mph or more, and visibility that is reduced to 1/4 mile or less, according to the National Weather Service. Those blizzard conditions have to be in place for at least three hours.

"Mission accomplished for the "Blizzard of 2015," the CBS outlet reported.

According to a statement issued by the Weather Service, blizzard conditions were reached at many locations in Massachusetts and Rhode Island on Monday and Tuesday.

"Thus," the Weather Service says, " it is safe to calls this the Blizzard of 2015 for Southern New England. "This storm produced wind gusts of up to 58 mph on Nantucket and 35 to 55 mph across much of Rhode Island and Eastern Massachusetts. Snowfall totals from 24 to 36 inches were common, except less than a foot in far Western Massachusetts and much of Hartford County."

When reviewing a whether an observatory station was experiencing blizzard conditions, the Weather Service said, "we considered visibilities equal to one-quarter mile, because that is quite low for an automated sensor to detect.''

"The automated sensors did report zero to one-eighth mile visibilities for short periods of time," the Weather Service reported. "However, in our best judgment, blizzard conditions were occurring with automated sensor visibilities sustained at one-quarter mile with heavy snow being reported and wind gusts of 35 mph or more."

The Weather Service listed the following observation sites as having blizzard conditions on Tuesday.

1. Worcester
2. Boston
3. Hyannis
4. Marshfield
5. Nantucket
6. Chatham
7. Beverly
8. Westerly, R.I.
9. Newport, R.I.

The Weather Service said that T.F. Green Airport in Providence experience blizzard conditions for 2.75 hours, which it rounded up to three hours.

It listed the following sites as having near-blizzard conditions:

• Fitchburg
• Martha's Vineyard
• New Bedford
• Falmouth
• Smithfield, R.I.

Already, the online encyclopedia Wikipedia,org has updated its January 2015 nor'eater post to refer to the Blizzard of 2015, noting that the Weather Channel's policy of naming the storm Juno was controversial.

The Weather Channel's decision to name storms that are disruptive to people, "was met with criticism from other weather forecasters, who called the practice self-serving and potentially confusing to the public," another Wikipedia post says.

The company is calling each individual pack 'The 12th Pack' in honor of Seattle's fan base 'The 12th Man.'

Solstice, a Seattle-based marijuana retailer, is preparing 12,000 joints to be sold leading up to Super Bowl XLIX between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots on Sunday.

According to King5, Seattle's NBC affiliate, the joints will be sold in cigarette-style packs of 12 in reference to the Seahawks' fan base the '12th Man.' Each pack is a special edition called 'The 12th Pack.'

According to the report, The 12th Pack sold out within 15 minutes of the company's original announcement, and is now producing 2,000 joints per day to keep up with demand.

Washington state law allows for both medical and recreational state use of marijuana.

The city has spent approximately $1.3 million from its $1.6 million snow and ice removal budget, leading to the request to spend beyond the winter budget.

SPRINGFIELD - Snowstorms and icy conditions this winter have left a sizable melt of funds in the city's snow and ice removal budget, leading the Department of Public Works to ask for permission to deficit spend.

The City Council has scheduled a special meeting on Friday at 4 p.m., at City Hall, to consider approving the department's request to spend beyond its budget allocation, known as deficit spending.

The city has spent approximately $1.3 million on snow removal labor and materials, leaving a balance of roughly $300,000 in the snow and ice budget, said Christopher Cignoli, the city's director of public works.

The latest hit was winter storm Juno, which cost the city approximately $240,000 to clean up, Cignoli said.

The city annually sets aside approximately $1.6 million for snow and ice operations, including payroll, materials and hired plows, but with the knowledge that more funds will likely be needed, Cignoli said.

Under state law, cities and towns can deficit spend for snow removal costs if approved by city leaders, and needs to cover that deficit that year or the next fiscal year. Many communities are known to underfund snow budgets with the flexibility of deficit spending.

"Our budget item for snow removal is relatively low," Cignoli said. "This winter has been relatively mild - not a lot of big storms. But it didn't take a lot to get us to the limit."

There have been four winter storms that required plowing this winter, Cignoli said. In addition, there were 11 occasions this winter when the city had "major sanding and salting" events, he said.

For example, there are occasions where a thaw during the day ends up freezing overnight, requiring major sanding and salting, Cignoli said.

The city is also in need of purchasing additional salt for the city yard, and the price of salt is much more expensive this year, Cignoli said.

Jennifer Winkler, the city's budget director, said the city has already spent $418,000 on salt, and $54,000 on overtime costs, a figure that does not including winter storm Juno.

While the department needs approval to deficit spend from the council, no specific amount is approved, Cignoli said. The department would be allocated funds under the direction of the Finance Department under Mayor Domenic Sarno.

There could be a small snowstorm on Monday, Cignoli said.

UMass-Amherst has become a destination, Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy said.

AMHERST - University or Massachusetts Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy provided a kind of state of the state report to the Faculty Senate Thursday, outlining a number of accomplishments and goals ahead.

He said he's been chancellor for a about 2 1/2 years  - he took over in June 2012 form Robert C. Holub - and wanted "to take stock." He said he is an optimist and sees the glass as half full. He talked for about 10 minutes and would have answered questions but no one asked any.

He thanked the faculty for their collaboration and cooperation and said he initially saw his task as restoring the  relationship with campus adminstiration, trustees board of trustees, the legislature, business and town officials. " I believe I've largely succeeded in this fundamental task." 

He talked about a number of campus accomplishments and he said he is proud of the recent U.S. News & World report that recognized UMass as the 25th most efficient among its top-rated national universities.

The ranking looks at public and private colleges that scored the highest in overall undergraduate academic quality in the U.S but that spent relatively less to achieve that quality.

The university is also now ranked 30^th in public universities, moving up 10 spots during the past year in the 2015 Best Colleges guide released today by U.S. News & World Report last fall.

He said the "recent progress has occurred at a time when there's turmoil in higher education."   

He said that the UMass Rising Fundraising campaign launched in April of 2013 is 94 percent to its goal of raising $300 million. "We will continue until our end date to make sure all targets are met." The last figure on the UMass Rising website was $279 million. 

He also said that Umass has become "a destination of choices for the best and brightest." More than 40,000 applied for 4,700 seats he said and he said it was the brightest class.

Following a recent trend in which each entering class is a little more academically advanced than the previous year, the Class of 2018 had higher SAT scores and higher grade point average than the previous class.

 At the same time the mission is to "ensure access." That means developing recruitment tools to bring in minorities.

"We've had our share of crises," he said. The campus has dealt unruly behavior that led him to hire Edward Davis to help advise the campus on handling those events such as the up coming Super Bowl Sunday.

For now, he said there are transitions and bridges to build. He will be developing the campus' relationship with the new governor. Deval L. Patrick did not seek a third term and Charlie Baker was elected in November. Baker came to the campus shortly after the election.

Subbaswamy said there is a new UMass Board of Trustees chairman. This week chairman Henry M. Thomas III resigned and Baker named Victor Woolridge to replace him. And there will be a new UMass president.

Robert L. Caret will be leaving in June. 

   But he said through the changes "the campus will continue to thrive... continuing the positve momentum on this campus is essential."

When he was finished Faculty Senate presiding officer Richard Bogartz said, "it's a good thing we're so great, otherwise we wouldn't deserve such an awesome chancellor."

Baystate Health is spending $26 million to construct new operating rooms at its facility in Greenfield.

The former contractor was terminated after various financial hardships were discovered with the firm, according to city officials

Springfield launches audit of snow plow contract.

SPRINGFIELD – Patrick Sullivan, the city's director of parks and facilities, said Thursday he is not aware of any irregularities relating to billing and payments under a now-terminated $1.5 million contract with Northeast Grounds Management for city plowing and landscaping work.

Sullivan said he was contacted by Yong Ju No, the city's director of internal audit, to provide all financial records related to the contract on Thursday, after No was asked by the City Council Audit Committee for a full review and report. Sullivan is the director of the Department of Parks, Buildings and Recreation Management.

"We have all the records and copies of invoices paid to the vendor that correlate with the contract," Sullivan said. "I have no concerns for my department and what we do for the city."

Sullivan said he has not been informed of any regularities, and believes payments were paid for services rendered.

"The contractor had always done a good job," he said.

Councilor Timothy Rooke, chairman of the Audit Committee, requested the internal audit, and No said he will make it a department priority.

Rooke said he wants the internal audit department to do "a reconciliation of the account to make sure there was no double-billing, that each of the bills we received that the work was done, if that can be verified, and if there is a pattern that seems to be developing."

Northeast Grounds Management was terminated after financial issues were discovered by the city including $45,000 in excise tax debt to the city, along with late state unemployment taxes, and having its heavy equipment seized by creditors in early December.

The company was responsible for plowing of school parking lots and municipal lots, and for landscaping at city parks, terraces, schools and municipal buildings.

The city hired a new company this week, Gleason Johndrow Landscaping of Northampton, for the plowing and landscaping contract.

The state is moving many homeless families from hotels and motels and placing them in shared apartments.

SPRINGFIELD - Local and state officials have scheduled a meeting Monday in Boston regarding the placement of homeless families in shared apartments and other temporary housing and the city's stated concerns that Springfield is taking on an unfair share.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said that he will attend the meeting along with other city officials, scheduled at 11 a.m. at the John W. McCormack Building in Boston.

State Sen. James Welch, D-West Springfield, worked with local and state officials to schedule the meeting that he expected will include the city officials, some state legislators, and representatives of the state Department of Housing and Community Development and the Springfield-based Center for Human Development (CHD). CHD is one of the local agencies involved in homeless housing and services.

The meeting had been planned on Wednesday of this week but was postponed due to the repercussions of winter storm June.

Sarno will be joined by Geraldine McCafferty, the city's housing director, Kevin Kennedy, the city's chief development officer, and Lisa DeSousa, associate city solicitor. A state official said the meeting will be closed to the media.

Sarno said his goal is "to really bring to the forefront this homeless issue, not only to truly try to help the homeless, but to have the proper program and criteria and wrap-around services for any and all municipalities of the Commonwealth doing their fair share."

Representatives of the Department of Housing and Community Development and the Center for Human Development have defended the strategy of getting homeless families out of state-funded hotel and motel rooms, and into temporary, shared apartments. They have disputed Sarno's statements that Springfield is being "dumped on" and being overburdened by homeless families.

James Goodwin, president of CHD, praised the plans for a meeting this week, saying that hopefully issues can be resolved. It is not helpful to have "sort of a public wrestling match over something we are all trying to resolve," he said.

Sarno said Springfield has done "more than its fair share of housing the homeless, refugees and subsidized housing."

"Other municipalities need to do their fair share," Sarno said.

Sarno said that a large number of families are being located along lower Belmont Avenue in lower Forest park without collaboration with Springfield officials.

CHD officials said there has been discussion of increasing homeless families in co-shelter apartments and congregate housing, and that families are also being placed in other cities.

The New Jersey Treasury determined that Baker was not an employee of General Catalyst when he made a political donation to the New Jersey Republican State Committee, months before New Jersey invested money with General Catalyst.

An audit released Thursday by the New Jersey Treasury cleared Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker of wrongdoing in what had been deemed a potential pay-to-play scandal.

"The governor is pleased that this matter is now resolved," said Baker spokesman Tim Buckley.

It came out during Baker's gubernatorial campaign that Baker, a Republican, had made a $10,000 donation to the New Jersey Republican State Committee in May 2011. Baker wrote as his occupation on campaign finance documents that he was a partner at the investment management firm General Catalyst Partners. Seven months later, the New Jersey pension fund invested $25 million with General Catalyst.

Under New Jersey law, it is illegal for the state to hire an investment management firm if a professional associated with the firm made a political donation to a New Jersey political party within the previous two years.

Baker and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, are political allies. Baker said he made the donation to thank Christie, who campaigned for Baker during Baker's unsuccessful 2010 gubernatorial campaign.

Baker had said he was not an employee of General Catalyst but an "executive in residence," essentially a consultant who advised the firm.

The New Jersey audit found that under the definition laid out by New Jersey law, Baker was not considered an investment management professional for the division of General Catalyst that managed the pension fund money, and so the donation and the pension fund's subsequent investment did not run afoul of the prohibition.

"Mr. Baker's donation did not need to be reported and there was no violation of the Policy," the report concluded.

The audit did recommend that the New Jersey government revise its policy to clarify the definition of an investment management professional and avoid differing interpretations of the law in the future. It also recommended that in the future, the division that runs the pension fund proactively search for political donations made by employees of an investment management firm before investing.

During Baker's gubernatorial campaign, Massachusetts Democrats criticized Baker for the donation. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Martha Coakley repeatedly urged Baker to release his employment contract with General Catalyst.

Massachusetts Democratic Party Executive Director Matt Fenlon said Thursday, "At least voters now have heard from New Jersey officials. Perhaps Republican Gov. Baker will now address the matter so voters concerned about this issue will hear directly from him about why he put himself in the position to be audited by the New Jersey Treasurer's Office."

Investors welcomed better-than-expected quarterly results from several companies, including Ford, Coach and Harley-Davidson.

By ALEX VEIGA

After a shaky start, U.S. stocks rebounded Thursday, snapping a two-day losing streak.

Investors welcomed better-than-expected quarterly results from several companies, including Ford, Coach and Harley-Davidson. Homebuilder stocks surged.

Even energy stocks, which were down most of the day, recovered in concert with a slight uptick in oil prices. Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose 8 cents to close at $44.53 a barrel.

New government data showing that applications for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in almost 15 years added a dash of favorable economic news.

The broader market rally helped the major stock indexes regain some of the ground they lost earlier in the week, though they remain down for the year.

"We've had a bit of a turnaround since the lows we saw earlier in the day," said Anastasia Amoroso, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Funds. "It appears earnings outside of energy (stocks) have been rather strong."

Investors have had no shortage of market-moving news to digest this week, from the outcome of a national election in Greece with potential implications for the Eurozone, to the Federal Reserve's latest take on the economy and interest rates. It's also the busiest week of the current earnings season, with 142 companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 scheduled to report.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 225.48 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 17,416.85. The S&P 500 index gained 19.09 points, or 1 percent, to 2,021.25. The Nasdaq composite added 45.41 points, or 1 percent, to 4,683.41.

The gains were broad. All 10 sectors in the S&P 500 rose, led by materials stocks. Even energy stocks, which are down more than any other sector this year, eked out a 0.2 percent gain.

Electronics and audio equipment maker Harman International Industries led among the gainers, rising $24, or 23.7 percent, to $125.01. The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results and raised its profit forecast for the year.

Chipmaker Qualcomm notched the biggest drop among stocks in the S&P 500, shedding $7.30, or 10.3 percent, to $63.69.

The major market indexes drifted along through much of Thursday before turning higher in the afternoon. For much of the day, investors looked mainly on the latest batch of corporate earnings.

Homebuilders surged after PulteGroup reported that completed home sales increased 7 percent in the October-December quarter. PulteGroup climbed $1.24, or 6 percent, to $21.82. Rival Ryland Group led the sector, climbing $2.95, or 8 percent, to $39.62.

Traders also digested the implications of the steep drop in weekly unemployment benefit claims last week.

The big drop is a sign that hiring will likely remain healthy, which could bolster the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates from near zero sooner, rather than later, said Doug Cote, chief market strategist for Voya Investment Management.

"The market is reacting to the Fed being intent on normalizing interest rate policy, and today's numbers added to that pressure," Cote said.

Higher interest rates tend to make stocks less attractive in comparison to bonds.

The S&P 500 hit a record in late December, and it's remained relatively close to that since. Expectations for earnings, meanwhile, have been sinking with the price of crude oil.

Some companies have given weaker outlooks for growth, citing the impact of falling oil or a strengthening dollar.

That's contributed to heightened volatility in the market this month.

The average day-to-day swing for the S&P 500 index in either direction last year was about 10 points, but so far this year it's been about 20 points, said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at Schwab Center for Financial Research.

"It's oil prices, it's the dollar, it's interest rates, it's the Fed," said Frederick. "We're still bullish about the market, but we think volatility is not going to be as low as it was last year and right now that's been the case."

Chevron, Tyson Foods and Newell Rubbermaid are among the companies due to report earnings on Friday.

Investors also will have their eye on the government's latest estimate of U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter, consumer sentiment, and a key report on wage growth.

"If it's way off the (market) expectations either way it could be a market mover," Frederick said.

U.S. government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.75 percent from 1.72 percent late Wednesday.

AP writer Elaine Kurtenbach in Tokyo contributed to this report.

MassLive reporter Garrett Quinn and State House News Service reporter Gintautas Dumcius were sworn at by House court officers who attempted to physically remove the reporters from a public Democratic caucus meeting on Thursday.

BOSTON — Officials were mum about Thursday's dustup involving a pair of reporters and a foul-mouthed court officer who attempted to eject them from a House Democratic caucus.

"Call back tomorrow," said a man who answered the phone in the Office of the Clerk of the House, the division that apparently oversees the security officers. But it was unclear what office the court officer worked out of.

The officer allegedly swore at two Beacon Hill reporters – MassLive reporter Garrett Quinn and State House News Service reporter Gintautas Dumcius – while attempting to physically remove them from the House chamber before a required vote to close the session to the press.

The reporters stood their ground, however, and calmly repeated the procedural rules. That's when the visibly agitated court officer allegedly grabbed the arms of the reporters and began cursing at them.

"Am I going to have to have you escorted out of the (expletive) building? ... Are you telling me you're not going to leave?" the officer said, raising his voice. "Why can't you be a (expletive) gentleman?" he said.

A few more swears were hurled before the officer eventually left the reporters alone.

Minutes after the confrontation, House Democrats voted to close the caucus to the public. Among the issues expected to be discussed were proposed rules to eliminate the eight-year limit on the House speaker's tenure. Elimination of the rule, which House Speaker Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, championed in 2009, would allow the speaker to stay on beyond his full two-year session, the State House News Service reports.

House Democrats have expressed concern that with a rookie Senate president and a new governor in office, the House needs to bolster its authority by removing the limits, which would allow DeLeo to continue serving as speaker. DeLeo declined to comment as he arrived at the caucus late Thursday morning.

House Clerk Steven T. James was unavailable for comment late Thursday afternoon, according to a staff member in James' office. "We're still in session," said the state employee, who gave his name but asked not to be publicly identified for this post.

It remains unclear what action, if any, state officials might take in regard to the alleged mistreatment of the reporters.

Adair Gregory, a spokesman for the National Association of Government Employees, the union representing many state workers, said the House court officers apparently do not belong to the union.

Michael Norton, editor of State House News Service, declined to comment on the episode. "Our story pretty much lays out everything we know," he said, referring to the News Service's own article on the matter.

Michael Jonas, executive editor of CommonWealth magazine, posted a photo on Twitter of Quinn and Dumcius standing their ground before the vote to publicly close the caucus was held.

"Let public hear caucus debate! Reporters @gintautasd & @GarrettQuinn not budging. Forcing vote to close," Jonas tweeted.

Lemieux said his 31 years as a firefighter gave him experience dealing with abandoned buildings and the city's diverse population.

HOLYOKE -- Jordan M. Lemieux, a retired firefighter running for city council at large, became the first candidate to have nomination papers certified to put his name on the ballot in the Nov. 3 city election.

Lemieux, 56, of 48 Meadowview Road, said Wednesday (Jan. 28) that 31 years with the Fire Department gave him experience dealing with gutted buildings, a problem plaguing the city. He retired last year.

"I will need very little "on the job" training. I have worked on several task forces including one on vacant and abandoned buildings," Lemieux said.

"Holyoke needs to go after absentee landlords who continue to owe taxes. The city needs the money. I want to be part of that resurgence. Only as a last resort should the city take ownership of these vacant buildings," he said.

As a councilor, he said, he would push to ensure clear goals are set to improve the city, especially regarding economic development.

"I am a lifelong Holyoker. I was born here, raised here, educated in the public schools and raised my family here," he said.

Lemieux said his experience includes knowledge about the city's infrastructure, population of people with diverse backgrounds and economy. He has been a union official and had counselor training in stress management, he said.

He is a U.S. Air Force veteran and father of two sons and a daughter, and ensuring prosperity for his children is what prompted his candidacy, he said.

"I wish to serve the citizens of Holyoke and utilize these assets in ways to ensure fiscal solvency, curb unnecessary spending and work with the current administration on new cooperative ideas for generating revenue," Lemieux said.

To see a running total of those who have taken out nomination papers for city offices, go to the city website at holyoke.org and on the right under City Departments, click on City Clerk in the drop-down menu.

On the City Clerk page, the nomination papers update is available by clicking on Voter Information on the left .

Candidates must file nomination papers with signatures of registered voters by July 28 to be listed on the election ballot, she said.

Candidates for mayor must gather at least 250 registered voters' signatures while those for City Council and School Committee must file papers with at least 50 voters' signatures, she said.

Nomination papers are filed with the registrar of voters. If that office determines that the papers have the required number of signatures of registered voters for the intended seat, the candidate's name will be placed on the election ballot.

If necessary, a preliminary election will be held Sept. 22 and the general election is Nov. 3.

The last day to register to vote in the preliminary election is Sept. 2 and the last day to register to vote in the general election is Oct. 14, Murphy McGee said.

When more than two candidates qualify to run for a seat, that triggers the need for a preliminary election to narrow the field to the top two vote-getters, who then compete in the general election.

With all eight at-large seats on the 15-member City Council up for grabs, the trigger for a preliminary election is 17 candidates, or one more than twice the number of seats. The other seven council seats are ward representatives, which also are up for election.

This updates a story posted at 3:40 p.m., "State House reporters tussle with court officers before Democratic caucus on term limits for House speaker" BOSTON &#8212 Term limits on the Massachusetts Speaker of the House have been terminated. The Massachusetts House of Representatives voted on Thursday to repeal term limits on the speakership, a move that leaves the door open...

This updates a story posted at 3:40 p.m., "State House reporters tussle with court officers before Democratic caucus on term limits for House speaker"

BOSTON — Term limits on the Massachusetts Speaker of the House have been terminated.

The Massachusetts House of Representatives voted on Thursday to repeal term limits on the speakership, a move that leaves the door open for current House Speaker Robert DeLeo to stay on as the leader of the legislative body indefinitely.

Advocates for the move argue that it will strengthen the power of the body at a time when a new Senate president and new governor are still establishing themselves on Beacon Hill.

The House voted 114-40 in favor of the House rules package for the 2015-2016 session that included language stripping term limits for the speaker.

An amendment filed in an attempt to restore the term limits failed 45-109. All Republicans and 11 Democrats voted for the amendment. An unofficial role call of the vote noted the following Democrats voted for the amendment: Jonathan Hecht (D-Watertown), Bruce J. Ayers (D-Quincy), Denise Provost (D-Somerville), James J. Dwyer (D-Worcetser), Dennis A. Rosa (D-Leominster), Walter F. Timilty (D-Milton), Diana DiZoglio (D-Methuen), Jonathan D. Zlotnik (D-Gardner), Stephen L. DiNatale (D-Fitchburg) John Rogers (D-Norwood), and Carolyn C. Dykema (D-Holliston).

Term limits were placed on the speakership in 2009 during DeLeo's first term and in the aftermath of the federal indictment of former House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi. At the time DiMasi was the third consecutive House speaker to leave the office in disgrace and eventually face some kind of criminal charges.

During a brief scrum with reporters on Thursday DeLeo declined to say how long he wants to stay on as speaker.

"For me to state that this amendment was due to the fact that I have some idea in my mind that I want to be here for a certain amount of time just isn't true," said DeLeo.

DeLeo, once a supporter of term limits, said that he changed his mind on the issue because he's learned more about the role while serving in it.

"What we have done over these past six years, I think, has been remarkable," said DeLeo.

House Minority Leader Brad Jones said that while he was disappointed with the vote he hopes the members of the body can move past any disagreements over term limits.

"The members have spoken, and although not everyone may be pleased with the results, it is my hope that we can move beyond this vote and not allow this one issue to distract us from the important legislative agenda and budgetary challenges that lie ahead," said Jones in a statement.

A Superior Court judge on Thursday rejected a proposed anti-trust settlement with Partners HealthCare governing its expansion in Massachusetts, days after new Attorney General Maura Healey voiced her concerns about the deal.

By GINTAUTAS DUMCIUS

BOSTON — A Superior Court judge on Thursday rejected a proposed anti-trust settlement with Partners HealthCare governing its expansion in Massachusetts, days after new Attorney General Maura Healey voiced her concerns about the deal.

The proposed settlement, which was negotiated by Healey's predecessor, Martha Coakley, would have allowed Partners, the state's largest health care provider system, to acquire three hospitals. Coakley defended the deal last year, saying it was an alternative to litigation and included meaningful cost controls.

Superior Court Judge Janet Sanders said the deal would add three hospitals to Partners' system and at least 800 physicians, eliminating two competitors.

"First, it is not in the 'public interest' as that has been defined by case law," Sanders wrote in a 48-page opinion. "By permitting the acquisitions, the settlement, if adopted by this Court, would cement Partners' already strong position in the health care market and give it the ability, because of this market muscle, to exact higher prices from insurers for the services its providers render."

Sanders said her other reason for rejecting the agreement was her concerns about its enforceability.

"Where a consent decree contemplates ongoing judicial involvement, as it does here, and there are substantial questions regarding enforcement, this alone is sufficient to reject it," she wrote. The proposal "does little to restore any part of the competition that would be lost by these two acquisitions," she added.

The accord spelled out conditions for Partners to acquire South Shore Hospital in Weymouth and merge with Hallmark Health System in northeastern Massachusetts. Founded in 1994 through an affiliation between Brigham and Women's Hospital and Mass. General Hospital, Partners owns seven additional general acute care hospitals in the Bay State and its annual revenue in fiscal year 2012 was $9 billion.

Partners President and CEO Gary Gottlieb expressed disappointment with the judge's decision in a message to colleagues on Thursday afternoon.

"The judge has said 'no' to an agreement that we believe would have paved a pathway to delivering high-quality care closer to home for patients and their families in a lower cost community-based setting," he wrote.

Acknowledging Healey's court filing earlier this week stating she would void Coakley's agreement if the judge rejected it and take Partners to court if the not-for-profit moves ahead with acquiring South Shore Hospital, Gottlieb wrote, "Our leadership team will now take the time to evaluate all of our options."

During a hearing in November, Sanders had asked about Healey's view on the transaction, which she providedMondaya few days after taking office. The judge in her ruling said she delayed issuing the decision so Healey could have a chance to weigh in.

Healey said she has concerns about the South Shore Hospital acquisition, based on input from insurers, providers, and other stakeholders in the health care field.

If the judge did not accept the proposed agreement, "it will be my intention to litigate to stop the South Shore transaction from going forward," Healey told the News Serviceon Thursday, before the judge's decision was released.

She has said she would "further evaluate" the Hallmark portion of the multi-faceted Partners-Coakley deal if it's rejected.

"This is really an issue about health care costs, and people's ability on the North Shore, the South Shore, all over the state to access health care," Healey told the News Service. "Over the last year, as I was campaigning I heard so many stories from individuals and families, and employers and businesses about rising health care costs.

And as attorney general, working with others across the state in government and outside government, we need to do everything we can do to get costs under control."

Healey said studies show that as market power grows the ability to leverage grows with it, and "we've seen real price disparities among hospital systems based on size."

Both Healey and Sanders earlier had raised some of the same concerns about the enforceability and eventual expiration of some of the accord's provisions, including the five-year limit on the number of physicians, restriction of six and a half years for price growth and a ten-year restriction on component contracting.

A top healthcare union, 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, hailed the ruling.

"As healthcare workers, we applaud this ruling as a critical step towards reigning (sic) in the growth of Partners HealthCare, an entity that for too long has used its position in the healthcare market to drive up healthcare costs for consumers and patients," said Jeff Hall, a spokesman for SEIU 1199, which has 300 health care workers at Hallmark's Melrose-Wakefield Hospital. "Healthcare workers believe this is an important step towards protecting the role of community and safety net hospitals by countering the aggressive and unsustainable Partners business model of high costs for patients and low wages for many Partners employees."

In her ruling, Judge Sanders said Coakley's office "offered no real explanation" about why she chose to pursue the type of agreement that was brokered between her office and Partners.

"Certainly, there appears to be no impediment to a remedy that required Partners to divest itself of certain assets or that would partially block the proposed acquisitions -- a cleaner remedy that would not raise enforcement issues or require ongoing judicial involvement," Sanders wrote.

Sanders repeatedly cited the work of the Health Policy Commission (HPC), an independent agency that monitors the health care market and raised concerns about the effect of the deal on health care pricing.

"As to the acquisitions at issue here, although its conclusions are carefully worded, it is quite apparent that the HPC is of the opinion that they would not be in the public interest," Sanders wrote.

A coalition of health care providers and Partners competitors applauded the judge's ruling "to deny what would have been an unprecedented expansion of the market's largest healthcare system."

In a statement late Thursday, the coalition that includes Atrius Health, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Lahey Health System and Tufts Medical Center said, "Throughout the court process, Judge Sanders opened the door to public input, and for that, we are grateful. In doing so, Judge Sanders demonstrated just how important the insight of patients, doctors, nurses, caregivers, policymakers, employers, and other stakeholders is to policies that affect both the cost and quality of healthcare in Massachusetts. Her decision preserves the efforts of all those who have worked so hard over the last few years to reform Massachusetts' healthcare system."

Mary Serreze | Special to The Republican 

SPRINGFIELD - The 2015 Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony was held Thursday, Jan. 29. The event was held at Springfield's La Quinta Inn & Suites. This year's inductees included Red Sox broadcaster Joe Castiglione, former New York Yankees pitchers, Art Ditmar and Vic Raschi, Amherst youth baseball advocate Stan Ziomek, long-time American International College coach and Administrator...

SPRINGFIELD - The 2015 Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony was held Thursday, Jan. 29. The event was held at Springfield's La Quinta Inn & Suites.

This year's inductees included Red Sox broadcaster Joe Castiglione, former New York Yankees pitchers, Art Ditmar and Vic Raschi, Amherst youth baseball advocate Stan Ziomek, long-time American International College coach and Administrator Rich Bedard, former Holyoke High School coach Joe McCarthy and the 1934 Springfield Post 21 American Legion team.

In addition to enshrining the second class into the Hall of Fame, Castiglione, an honorary inductee gave the event's keynote address.

The Blue Sox and The Republican/MassLive.com sponsored the event.

But as she ran unopposed, following the Republican Party's massive victories in the recent statewide elections, Hughes says she looks forward to building off the gains they've recently made.

BOSTON — Two years after she was first elected to become the chair of the Massachusetts Republican Party, Kirsten Hughes was re-elected this week to another term at the helm of the Bay State GOP.

While the vote was originally scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Winter Storm Juno led the Mass. GOP to postpone the meeting until Thursday evening. But as she ran unopposed, following the Republican Party's massive victories in the recent statewide elections, Hughes says she looks forward to building off the gains they've recently made.

"I look forward to the next two years as Chairman of this Party, and working with our Governor and Lieutenant Governor to bring balance and fiscal responsibility to Beacon Hill," Hughes said in a statement. "In my second term, I will implement plans to build upon our recent successes, to grow the ranks of our party, to further strengthen our town and city committees, and to continue to improve our use of data and technology to reach and to inform voters about our outstanding candidates."

When she first ran to chair the Massachusetts Republican Party, she was challenged by the more conservative faction of the state GOP in entrepreneur Rick Green. The tally of the final vote in Jan. 2013 was 41-39 in Hughes favor, but the path to that conclusion was apparently disputed as two state committee members initially failed to vote, leading to a second round of voting which upheld the same conclusion.

In 2014, Republicans in Massachusetts saw great victories, as Charlie Baker and Karyn Polito became governor and lieutenant governor. The GOP also gained ground in both the House and the Senate, although Democrats are still the majority party by a huge margin.

Hughes is a lawyer, a singer and a Quincy City Councilor.

Snowy weather is on tap for much of Massachusetts from Thursday night through Sunday night.

FRAMINGHAM — The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency says another wintry blast might dump up to 6 more inches of snow in the Boston area, which is still reeling from the punch of Winter Storm Juno.

Framingham-based MEMA says northern Worcester County and all of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth and Suffolk counties are under a winter storm advisory from 12 a.m. Friday, Jan. 30, until 6 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 31. An advisory also is in effect for northern Berkshire County from 10 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, until noon on Friday.

The advisory was issued late Thursday afternoon by the National Weather Service. The alert is issued when snow and ice are expected to develop, but accumulations are generally expected to be light.

The snow will begin falling in Western Massachusetts on Thursday night, slowly spreading eastward through Friday morning, MEMA officials said. The snowfall is expected to intensify Friday afternoon and last through the evening before ending early Saturday morning.

The Boston area and northern sections of Massachusetts could get 3-6 inches and wind gusts ranging from 25-30 mph, according to the latest predictions. The snowfall is expected to create slippery road conditions and poor visibility during and after the Friday evening commute, officials said.

"Arctic air remains with us through the weekend with sub-zero nights," said Nick Morganelli, meteorologist with CBS 3 Springfield, media partner of MassLive / The Republican. By Friday night, some parts of Central and Western Massachusetts could experience wind chills of 15 to 20 degrees below zero.

And just when you thought things were going to die down, another storm is expected to pass south of New England on Sunday night. This storm, whose precise track is still up in the air, could drop another 3-6 inches of snow on areas that are mostly south of the Massachusetts Turnpike.

The former U.S. senator from Massachusetts was ticketed for failing to clear snow from the sidewalks outside his Louisburg Square home in Beacon Hill. A Kerry spokesman said the snow has since been cleared and that the secretary of state will gladly pay the fine.

Here's a photo of John Kerry's Beacon Hill home, minus snow on the sidewalks, that was taken Thursday evening by MassLive reporter Garrett Quinn. Kerry picked up a $50 fine for failing to shovel the sidewalk after Winter Storm Juno. All of the snow was removed by Thursday morning, according to Kerry spokesman, who said the former U.S. senator from Massachusetts will gladly pay the fine.GARRETT QUINN / MASSLIVE 

Someone used the city's online Citizens Connect service to send a photo of the unshoveled sidewalk outside Kerry's 9,178-square-foot home at 19 Louisburg Square, resulting in the fine for the former U.S. senator from Massachusetts.

Diplomats are just like the rest of us, according to a State Department spokesman, noting that Kerry was overseas when the blizzard walloped Boston.

Unfortunately, the snow-removal company misconstrued yellow hazard tape along the sidewalk – put up to warn people about falling snow and ice overhead – as police tape, thinking that the section of sidewalk was off limits, the spokesman said.

Once they understood they were allowed to enter the area, the contractors finished the sidewalk late Thursday morning – but not in time to avoid a ticket, which was issued for the unshoveled Pinckney Street side of Kerry's home.

The Louisburg Square side had already been shoveled.

The spokesman said Kerry will gladly pay the ticket.

Neighbors of the nation's top diplomat apparently didn't find anything particularly undiplomatic about the shoveling delay. One neighbor, who declined to give his full name, said he helped clear Kerry's driveway of snow, which wasn't too heavy.

The show begins tonight with Sing-a-Long-Grease host - Chris Zito from Mix 93.1 and on Saturday with Chris Pisano from ABC40/Fox 6 on Saturday.

SPRINGFIELD – Tonight and Saturday, the audience at CityStage will have a chance to rock like the Danny and Sandy and the kids at Rydell High School during a sing-a-long to the movie "Grease."

The show will begin at 8 tonight and on Saturday.

The show begins on tonight with Sing-a-Long-Grease host - Chris Zito from Mix 93.1 and on Saturday with Chris Pisano from ABC40/Fox 6 on Saturday. They will lead a vocal warm-up and showing audience members how to use their free fun pack during the film and suggesting some appropriate heckles and accompanying actions.

Fifties dress isn't required, but there will be a costume contest prior to the start of the movie which will feature the words from the songs on screen to help audience members sing along.

The highest grossing musical of all time, "Grease" was a box office smash bringing in $400 million internationally and $188 million in the United States. Directed by Randal Kleiser, the 1978 film was based on the Broadway musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. It starred John Travolta as Danny, Olivia Newton-John as Sandy and Stockard Channing as Rizzo.

Songs from the movie include: "You're the One That I Want," "Hopelessly Devoted To You," "Sandy," "Summer Nights" and many others from the sixth biggest selling soundtrack of all time selling some 28 million copies worldwide.

Tickets for tonight and Saturday's shows are $20.

The music of Cuba took center stage during the noontime performance on Friday with nods to the Haitian, African and salsa influences that shaped the style. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD – Students from the Springfield Conservatory of the Arts left their classrooms in a retro-fitted building in Indian Orchard behind on Friday to take up artistic residence at the Community Music School of Springfield where they practiced and presented a 45-minute music and dance program celebrating Cuban rhythm.

At the beginning of the show David Brewster, principal of the city's first arts magnet school, thanked the music school for lending space at the Robyn Newhouse Hall in its Arts Deco building on State Street to the students who are more accustomed to tighter quarters at their Kopernick Street school.

Students arrived at CMSS at 9:45 to practice for the performance which came together in just two weeks time, Brewster said. "This was a community wide effort," he said.

Elizabeth Olivera, a dance teacher at the conservatory, explained that the performance was a kick-off of a series of conservatory shows that will feature music from around the globe under the theme "collisions and connections."

The music of Cuba took center stage during the noontime performance #&8211attended by parents and teachers – with nods to the Haitian, African and salsa influences that shaped the style.

A drum corps, led by Springfield Conservatory of the Arts artist-in-residence Jo Sallins, kept the beat constant throughout the performance, with the music pausing for just enough time to allow new groups of students a chance at the drums.

About 100 students participated in the show choreographed by dance teacher Elizabeth Olivera.

Student performers received backup from teachers at the school, including music teacher Amanda Wooley, on vocals; English Language Arts teachers Justin Eck and Joseph Matronardi on guitars, guidance counselor Juan Vazquez on bass guitar; math and drama teacher Sky Halm on violin.

The conservatory offers an arts-infused curriculum grounded in academic inquiry, collaborative small-group instruction, and professionally guided arts training, according to its website.

All students receive classes in dance, music and visual arts and drama.

Students in Grades 6 and 9 have 11 arts classes per six-day cycle. The school, which will eventually include Grades 6 through 12, will add grades over the next four years.

In addition to specific arts classes, teachers integrate the arts into the core subjects of English Language Arts and Mathematics,