Welcome to Wednesday.

• Gov. Maura Healey faces criticism over her gas tax holiday proposal, and an elderly penguin is trying out acupuncture.

🌤️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny, with a high of 61 and a low of 54.

🎂 Happy birthday to our member Kathleen Barton!

🎤 Sounds like: "Crossfire" by Brandon Flowers, who plays Roadrunner today.

Today's newsletter is 1,123 words — a 4-minute read.

Gov. Maura Healey wants lawmakers to suspend the state's 24-cent-per-gallon gas tax for two months, saying it's relief for drivers and truckers as fuel costs climb.

Why it matters: The eight-week time period would give drivers some savings at the pump at the same time they'll be going to the polls to determine if Healey deserves a second term.

• Healey's move comes days after her Republican rival for governor, Mike Minogue, called for a similar suspension of the tax.

The intrigue: Healey now faces criticism from both the right and within her own party's legislative leaders over the timing and approach.

• When it was solely Minogue's idea, House Speaker Ron Mariano called a gas tax suspension "fiscally irresponsible." He's sticking by that assessment even after Healey made her move.
• Senate President Karen Spilka said in a statement Tuesday she's open to reviewing Healey's plan.

Minogue, who proposed his own gas tax holiday last week, argued outside the State House Tuesday that Healey's plan is just an election season ploy instead of more permanent relief.

• Minogue said he'd offset lost revenue by finding undiscovered fraud and waste within the state budget.

Between the lines: There is enough difference in Healey's temporary (and paid for) plan vs. Minogue's more permanent relief play (with uncertain funding) to give Democrats some room to maneuver.

• They could argue the governor's plan is more fiscally sound than the Republican's, which would rely on uncovering savings from fraud and abuse.

By the numbers: Massachusetts' average gas price is around $4.40–$4.41/gallon and diesel is $6.39–$6.40/gallon, per the governor's office.

• They say that's up from around $3.00 (gas) and $4.00 (diesel) in February 2026, before the Iran war began.
• Healey estimates the two-month pause would cost the state roughly $120 million. She'd fund it with surplus Fair Share revenue coming in from the state's surtax on high incomes.

State of play: Healey blamed President Trump's handling of the Iran war for the price surge.

• Her office says the plan would require retailers to pass savings directly to consumers and would protect station owners from absorbing losses on fuel already purchased.

What's next: Healey plans to include the suspension in an upcoming closeout supplemental budget.

• Mariano will have to reverse course if the plan stands a chance to pass the Democrat-dominated House.

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New England Aquarium veterinarians are turning to acupuncture to help out their oldest penguin.

Why it matters: Pip, a 29-year-old African penguin, has lived about twice as long as his species typically survives in the wild.

• His care team is trying a new treatment as he ages.

State of play: Staff noticed Pip's limp and altered gait late last year, and feared arthritis-related conditions common in older penguins.

• After trying pain medication, vets added acupuncture and physical therapy from an outside specialist to Pip's routine.

By the numbers: The Aquarium houses 49 penguins — about 60% have already outlived the 15-year wild life expectancy for the species.

• There's even a dedicated space for geriatric birds.

The bottom line: Nine months into treatment, the Aquarium says Pip has grown more at ease with the sessions and his gait has reportedly improved.

Share this with the flock

📋 State Auditor Diana DiZoglio found the Department of Unemployment Assistance "mismanaged" call center performance and failed to pay claims on time for years before its 2025 system overhaul made delays even worse. (CommonWealth Beacon)

• Wait times exceeded an hour for about a quarter of the 700,000-plus calls reviewed and claimants hung up roughly 30% of the time some months in 2024.

⚖️ Online personality Braden Peters, known as "Clavicular," was charged with rape, drugging someone for sex and providing liquor to a minor over an alleged 2025 incident in Chatham. (CBS News)

• Peters denies the allegations.

⚾ The Red Sox named interim manager Chad Tracy their permanent skipper on a three-year deal and locked in chief baseball officer Craig Breslow through 2030. (ESPN)

🏫 Revere agreed to pay the former owners of the Wonderland dog track site another $16.5 million to settle a dispute over land the city seized for a new high school.

• The deal canceled a jury trial. The city had already paid $29 million.
• Mayor Patrick Keefe Jr. called it a win for taxpayers. A lawyer for the former owners said they would have preferred more.

🏢 The National Association of Industrial and Office Properties, better known as NAIOP, renamed itself the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, or CREDA.

• It said the new name better reflects the range of projects its members build and own.
• CEO of CREDA Massachusetts Tamara Small said the mission is unchanged.

🏗️ The Boston Planning Department board approved a 20-unit condo building at 2062 Dorchester Ave. near Ashmont.

• The developers will contribute $5,500 toward the city's bike-share system.

Brach's candy has made its iconic fall candy wearable.

The big picture: Burning leaves, pumpkin pie and, now, candy corn. The Chicago-based candy conglomerate's latest invention banks on the waxy, orange, yellow and white treat being one of fall's evocative scents.

Driving the news: The first-ever Ode to Candy Corn perfume is only available today and Oct. 1 at 7pm for $22.

State of play: The waxy treat can be polarizing. The super sweet little wedges prove addictive for some candy lovers, while other trick-or-treaters are less than jazzed when it shows up in their bag.

Yes, but: Brach's reports it was the No. 1 seller in the seasonal candy aisle last year.

Dig in: Ode to Candy Corn starts buttery, then a caramelized sugar scent sets in, punctuated by vanilla.

The verdict: A fun treat, especially for a young person who wants perfume but isn't ready for Chanel No. 5 or Drakkar Noir.

HubSpot's UNBOUND 2026 conference put on a very large, very purple, show at the Menino Convention and Exhibition Center last week.

Deehan is way too excited about his new compost bin.

Steph really hopes there's not an actual nor'easter headed our way this weekend.

This newsletter was edited by Jeff Weiner.