Pact expected to coordinate transit plans

Governor Deval Patrick signed an agreement between nine state transportation agencies yesterday to foster more cooperation. The pact between the governor's office and agencies overseeing the state's highways, rails, and airports is aimed at coordinating construction projects, collaborating on bulk purchases of fuel and other supplies, and integrating agency services. "It's time that we take a more comprehensive approach to how we address the regional transportation needs that are ahead of us," the governor said after the agency heads signed the agreement at the state Transportation Building. (AP)

Tax collections for fiscal 2007 were $436 million over estimates, state revenue officials said yesterday. Total collections for the year that ended June 30 totaled $19.7 billion, an increase of $1.2 billion or 6.8 percent over last year, said Revenue Commissioner Henry Dormitzer. That's $436 million above the revised fiscal 2007 estimate of $19.3 billion. Collections in June hit $2.3 billion, topping the revised estimate by $192 million in that month alone. A preliminary analysis by revenue officials shows about three-quarters of the 2007 revenue increase came from sources that are either one time or subject to uncertainty, Dormitzer said. He said only about $100 million to $200 million could be counted on as an increase for the new fiscal year. Only the increase in withholding taxes should be considered sustainable, he said. (AP)

A bill requiring companies to immediately notify consumers when their private information has been breached won final approval in the Senate yesterday and is on Governor Deval Patrick's desk. The bill also lets residents place a "security freeze" on their consumer credit reports, at a cost of up to $5 per request, and establishes rules for the disposal of old records that contain personal information such as Social Security numbers. Under those rules, state officials would be required to delete the first few digits of Social Security numbers when handling personal information if federal authorities don't require the full number. (AP)

The suspect in a 1995 fatal stabbing in Dorchester was returned to Boston yesterday, where he is to face second-degree murder charges, the Suffolk district attorney's office said. Arnaldo "Nardo" Lopes, 28, formerly of Dorchester, is expected to be arraigned Friday in the Oct. 10, 1995, death of Bobby Mendes, District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a prepared statement. Lopes was at large from 1995 until April 30, when he was arrested at the Baltimore-Washington airport.

UXBRIDGE

The pilot of a single-engine plane escaped unscathed after crashing into a tree in Uxbridge last night, police said. Uxbridge authorities received multiple calls reporting a small plane in a tree in the area of 219 Quaker Highway about 7:30 p.m. Police, fire, and ambulance crews were dispatched to the scene, and the Federal Aviation Administration and Massachusetts State Police also responded. Police identified the pilot and owner of the aircraft as David Lavalle, 47, of Uxbridge.

RAYMOND, N.H.

Police said yesterday that they found 150,000 images of child pornography in a man's home, perhaps the largest case of its kind they have seen. Scott Martin, 42, of Raymond, was arrested Friday and charged with three counts of sexual assault. Investigators said they found a collection of child pornography images they believe he had been collecting for years. "He was creating and manufacturing photographs and other images of children he was assaulting," Rockingham County Attorney Jim Reams said. Police said they have identified three victims from the pictures, girls ages 11, 12 and 13, all from Raymond. They accused him of getting one of the girls drunk, assaulting her, and taking pictures. (AP)

CONCORD, N.H.

A federal grand jury has indicted a former New Hampshire resident on a charge of failing to update his registration as a sex offender. The US Marshals Service in New Hampshire says John Collins, 38, now of Massachusetts, is the first person in New Hampshire to be charged under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act. Collins was arrested in March in Haverhill, Mass. (AP)