Housing News

Governor Maura Healey submitted a supplemental budget on September 13th to ensure that Massachusetts closes Fiscal Year 2023 in a balanced financial state. This budget serves multiple purposes, including covering spending deficiencies, supporting new collective bargaining agreements, and providing shelter and services for families experiencing homelessness. See the Governor's letter and the budget allocations. Key points about the supplemental budget include:

The Joint Committee on Housing will host a hearing on housing-related bills on Wednesday, September 27, at 1:00 p.m.

Earlier this year, the House and Senate each passed tax relief legislation. Included in the Senate version was an increase in the authorization for the state’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program by $20 million for a total allocation of $60 million, and a provision to make the program permanent. This provision was not included by the House. 

CHAPA applauds the additional guidelines issued by the Administration to the MBTA Multi-family zoning law (3A) that adds thirteen state funding programs communities will be eligible for upon achieving compliance under the 3A law. The additional guidelines also allow communities to offset the minimum multifamily unit capacity in certain mixed-use zoning districts that require first-floor commercial space.  

On August 8th, Governor Healey declared a state of emergency and issued a call to action to expand resources for shelter, housing, and services for the more than 5,000 families now in the state's emergency shelter system.

On August 17th, the Healey Administration issued additional guidelines to the MBTA Multi-family zoning law (3A). The guidelines add 13 state funding programs that MBTA communities will be eligible for upon achieving compliance and allow MBTA communities the option to require ground-floor commercial space in multi-family buildings in up to 25% of their multi-family districts. Because commercial requirements can drive up the cost of housing production and make projec

The Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless (MCH), Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), and the undersigned organizations support the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s efforts to expand resources for shelter, housing, and other resources for families experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts. We affirm the Administration’s commitment to preserving access to the Commonwealth’s Emergency Assistance family shelter system for all eligible families with children.

Governor Healey signed the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, a $56 billion budget with increased investments in rental assistance programs, and vetoes on other critical priorities. 

On July 31st, the House and Senate passed a roughly $56 billion dollar budget (H.4040) for fiscal year 2024 which began on July 1st. The Legislature has also passed a second interim budget to continue the government payroll and operations through August while Governor Healey reviews the FY2024 budget. 

On June 5th, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced housing vouchers to address homelessness among people in unsheltered settings and in rural communities across U.S. HUD is awarding $45 Million for 3,379 Stability Vouchers to 135 public housing authorities and partnering Continuum of Care (CoC) communities across the United States.