THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, MAY 7, 2021 Page 11 BUDGET | FROM PAGE 4 Means and Federal Stimulus committees await the issuance of spending parameters by the federal government, they have begun a process to better understand the needs of Massachusetts communities and analyze past expenditures of federal funds, particularly those received from the CARES Act. “I want to commend Speaker Mariano and Chairman Michlewitz on an impressive and comprehensive budget that addresses the needs of the Commonwealth at one of the most unpredictable times in the nation’s history,” said Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante, who is Vice-Chair of House’s Ways & Means Committee. “The economic development measures and strong social service supports position Massachusetts to recover from the pandemic and continue growing.” The FY22 House budget reflects the local aid commitment recently made by the House and Senate. It increases Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA) by $39.5 million (M) over FY21 for a total of $1.168B and Chapter 70 education funding by $219.6M over FY21 for a total of $5.503B, fully funding the first year of a six-year implementation plan of the Student Opportunity Act (SOA). The SOA was enacted in 2019 to support equitable funding for Massachusetts’s most vulnerable students, and the Legislature’s funding schedule ensures the SOA remains on track to be fully implemented over the course of seven years – contrary to the Governor’s budget proposal. The House’s FY22 budget creates a $40M enrollment reserve fund to help school districts whose fall enrollment is negatively impacted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. To help students with the consequences of prolonged remote learning and address the full educational and social-emotional needs of students, the budget provides $15M for summer education and supportive services. Additional education funding allocations include: • $367M for Special Education Circuit Breaker aid • $154M for Charter School • $82M for regional transportation • $14M for homeless student transportation Continuing the House’s commitment to high-quality Early Education and Care (EEC), the FY22 budget includes a $20M investment in rate increases for child care providers across Massachusetts. Other early education and care funding initiatives include: • $15M for Head Start grants • $12M for child care resource and referral agencies • $5M for EEC higher education provider opportunities • $2.5M for early childhood mental health grants Building on Speaker Mariano’s priority to ensure Massachusetts residents from diverse backgrounds have access to meaningful educational opportunities, the House budget invests in higher education, allocating $571M for the University of Massachusetts system, $315M for community colleges and $291M for state universities. The budget also includes a $10M increase in scholarship funding over the last fiscal year for a new total of $130M, and it funds the Supporting Urgent Community College Equity through Student Services (SUCCESS) fund at $10.5M and the STEM Starter Academy at $4.75M. The budget also includes large investments in labor and economic development, such as the creation of a trust fund dedicated to job training for the offshore wind industry to be administered by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center. This budget makes an initial deposit into this fund of $10M to establish and grow technical training programs in our public higher education system and vocational-technical institutions. The fund will also prioritize grants and scholarships to adult learning providers, labor organizations and public educational institutions to provide workers with greater access to these trainings. Additional investments include: • $50M for adult education • $24M for Youthworks Summer Jobs • $5M for Small Business Technical Assistance • $5M for Community Action Agency Operating and Outreach Support • $5M investment in Local Tourism Recovery Marketing • $2.5M for Urban Agenda Grants • $2M investment in Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership The Commonwealth’s commitment to MassHealth remains one of the largest drivers of the budget. In FY22 the House provides $18.969B to fully fund its caseload, which increased as more residents became eligible during the pandemic. The House’s FY22 budget accurately reflects this enrollment growth, showing the necessary increase in spending beyond what was included in the Governor’s budget proposal while also factoring in the increased Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) reimbursement levels. Many of the House FY22 budget’s most significant increases represent essential services and programs that serve Massachusetts’s most vulnerable residents, including $771.1M for the Department of Transitional Assistance to maintain support to families, at-risk parents, victims of intergenerational trauma, seniors and persons with disabilities. Other notable health and human services investments include $30M for Emergency Food Assistance, $13M for the Healthy Incentives Program and $500,000 for a public awareness campaign on the contraceptive ACCESS Law. The House’s FY22 budget also includes funding for housing and homelessness prevention, investing $22M in direct appropriations for the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) Program to promote housing stability and combat the threat of evictions. The budget also includes $148M for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP) and $84M for public housing subsidies. Additional investments for individuals include: • $56.4M for Homeless Individuals Shelters • $12.5M for the Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP) • $12M for Rental Subsidies for eligible Department of Mental Health (DMH) clients • $8M for unaccompanied homeless youths The budget funds the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) at $2.29B, which is aimed to support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. It includes $219.9M for Day and Work programs, $84.9M for Respite Family Supports, a $55.4M increase for DDS’s Turning 22 class, a $7M investment in transportation services and $23.4M for head BUDGET | SEE PAGE 12
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