by Matt Noyes | Apr 28, 2025 | Housing News
Massachusetts needs 222,000 new homes by 2035 and we need every tool available to reach that goal. Unfortunately, there are several proposed amendments to the FY2026 House budget that would hold us back if adopted.
Please call your state representative and urge them to oppose these amendments when they are considered by the House this week:
#311 – Eliminates State Enforcement of MBTA Communities Act by removing the authority of the Attorney General to enforce the MBTA Communities Act. This change would have profound implications not only for the future of this law, but for the Constitutional authority of the Office of the Attorney General.
#572 – Allows Towns to Claim Compliance Without Meeting Requirements and demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the MBTA Communities Act. The law is not about what is on the land now – it is about what will be allowed to be built in the future. To produce homes that people, our communities, and the Commonwealth need, local zoning needs to allow for it.
#585 – Exempts Municipalities by Narrowing “MBTA Community” Definition, significantly limiting the number of new homes that could be permitted through the law and ignores the good-faith efforts made by nearly four dozen adjacent communities and small towns to comply with the MBTA Communities Act.
#606 – Limits The Use of Grant Funding to Encourage Compliance, letting communities that choose not to do their part to address the Commonwealth’s housing challenges off the hook from the consequences established by the law.
#1196 – Repeals Chapter 40B, the Commonwealth’s most effective tool to create affordable housing. Over the past 50 years, Chapter 40B has been responsible for creating nearly 70,000 homes across the Commonwealth. Losing this tool would make it exceedingly difficult to build homes that low and moderate income households can afford.
#1643 – Calls for the SJC to determine if Chapter 40B is constitutional, which ignores the history of previous rulings on the law. The SJC has heard many cases related to Chapter 40B and has consistently chosen not to determine the statute to be unconstitutional.
by Jordan Stocker | Apr 25, 2025 | Featured News, Housing News
Amendment #1263, filed by Representative Vanna Howard, would significantly increase funding for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP) in the FY26 state budget. The amendment would raise MRVP funding to $270 million — enough to maintain current rental assistance and create 800 new vouchers for households across the Commonwealth.
Right now, no new MRVP mobile vouchers are being issued due to funding constraints, and more than 168,000 households remain on the waitlist. Strengthening MRVP is essential to meeting urgent housing needs and ensuring that new affordable homes are truly within reach for the lowest-income households.
MRVP helps households avoid housing crises like eviction, exit emergency shelter, and move toward long-term stability with better access to schools, jobs, and healthcare. It offers a sustainable alternative to emergency shelter, saving thousands of dollars each month while supporting stronger futures for all.
You can find more information about the impact of Amendment #1263 in this fact sheet.
Please contact your representative and urge them to co-sponsor Amendment #1263 to expand access to safe, stable, and affordable housing across Massachusetts.
by Jordan Stocker | Apr 23, 2025 | Featured News, Housing News
Next week, the House is scheduled to begin debate on the FY26 state budget. Lawmakers filed more than 1,600 amendments to the House Ways and Means proposal — the highest number in over a decade — reflecting the widespread need for support across the Commonwealth. With federal funding uncertain and local communities navigating increasing challenges, these housing amendments offer a meaningful opportunity to respond to needs on the ground.
We’re urging representatives to support the inclusion of CHAPA’s priority housing amendments in the final House budget. The amendments would strengthen rental assistance, support unhoused youth and individuals returning from incarceration, preserve public housing, and address housing discrimination — all essential steps toward greater housing stability across the state. You can find a full list of the amendments below in this fact sheet.
Please contact your representative and ask them to co-sponsor the following amendments:
Rental Assistance
- #1263 – Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP) (Rep. Vanna Howard)
Increases funding to $270 million for approximately 800 new vouchers.
- #1402 – Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP) (Rep. Rob Consalvo)
Modernizes AHVP to make it easier to use and administer.
- #1 – Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) (Rep. David LeBoeuf)
Improves RAFT by eliminating the requirement for a notice to quit or utility shutoff to access benefits to allow for more upstream access to benefits. Also requires EOHLC to establish criteria for demonstrating that a household is experiencing or is at risk of homelessness.
- #1276 – Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) (Rep. Marjorie Decker)
Improves RAFT by increasing the 12-month benefit cap to $10,000, provides direct payment to tenants of unresponsive landlords, authorizes forward rent payments and stipends, and moves access to benefits more upstream by eliminating requirements for imminent eviction or utility shutoff.
- #435 – HomeBASE (Rep. Christine Barber)
Improves the HomeBASE program by increasing benefit caps for recipients and making it easier for families experiencing housing challenges to access benefits.
- #1509 – Housing Assistance for Re-Entry Transition (Rep. Chyna Tyler)
Increases funding to $5 million for housing assistance for individuals exiting incarceration.
Public Housing
- #731 and #1351 – Public Housing (Reps. Paul McMurtry and David Biele)
Increases funding to $119 million to provide more for the operation and maintenance of the 43,000 homes provided by public housing.
Fair Housing
- #654 and #1256 – Fair Housing Centers (Reps. Patricia Duffy and Christopher Hendricks)
Provides $150,000 for the Massachusetts Fair Housing Center and $75,000 for the South Coast Fair Housing Center to support the vital work of addressing housing discrimination
EOHLC Administration Line
- #1631 – EOHLC Administration (Rep. Chris Markey)
Increase administrative funding for EOHLC to $22.2 million to support the work of the Office in addressing Massachusetts’ housing needs.
Housing Stability
- #1401 – Housing Consumer Education Centers (HCECs) (Rep. Rob Consalvo)
Restores proposed cuts to HCECs with funding of $8.974 million to provide critical support for people experiencing a range of housing challenges.
- #1649 – Healthy Homes Program (Rep. Shirley Arriaga)
Provides $5 million to address issues such as mold, lead, and asbestos to keep people in their homes and improve the quality of aged housing stock.
- #851 – Tenancy Preservation Program (TPP) (Rep. Andy Vargas)
Provides $42,755 to support TPP and to preserve the line item.
- #1410 – Direct Surplus to Community Preservation Fund (Rep. Kassner)
Dedicates up to $20 million from the FY25 surplus to the state match pool for cities and towns that adopt the Community Preservation Act.
- #285 – First-Time Homebuyer and Foreclosure Prevention (Rep. Samantha Montaño)
Restores funding to $3.05 million to provide a crucial tool that keeps people in their homes when experiencing housing challenges.
- #883 – Department of Mental Health (DMH) Rental Subsidy Program (Rep. Sean Garballey)-Increases the allocation to $21.548 million for housing people experiencing homelessness and disabling mental health conditions.
Homelessness and Supportive Housing
- #368 – Home and Healthy for Good (HHG) (Rep. James Hawkins)
Increase funding for HHG to $8.89 million to address the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness through the successful Housing First model.
- #1221 – Unaccompanied Homeless Youth (Rep. Jim O’Day)
Increases funding to $12 million for housing and services for youth experiencing homelessness.
Homeownership
- #983 – Saving Toward Affordable and Sustainable Homeownership (STASH) (Rep. Christopher Worrell)
Provides $500,000 for STASH to support first-generation homebuyers through matched savings.
Zoning and Planning
- #570 – MBTA Communities (Rep. Brad Jones)
Expands the scope of the MBTA Communities Act to include all cities and towns in Massachusetts.
Thank you for being a partner in the effort to ensure everyone in Massachusetts has a safe and stable place to call home!
by Matt Noyes | Apr 16, 2025 | Housing News
Just after noon today, the House Ways and Means released its budget for Fiscal Year 2026. With state revenues coming in lower than hoped and a great deal of uncertainty at the federal level, legislators are faced with significant challenges in developing a spending plan for the state.
The housing items in the House Ways and Means proposal reflects these challenges. While there were modest increases for some housing programs (MRVP, RAFT, Sponsor-Based Supportive Housing, and Access to Counsel were all funded at a higher level than in the Governor’s budget), others were level funded (AHVP and Unaccompanied Homeless Youth), and several other important programs were significantly cut (Housing Consumer Education Centers and Public Housing Reform).
Legislators have until Friday afternoon to file amendments to the Committee’s budget proposal, with the full House slated to debate the FY2026 budget starting the week of April 28.
A tracking grid of CHAPA’s budget priorities is available here.
by Jenna Connolly | Mar 20, 2025 | Housing News
Last summer, CHAPA announced the Musicant Cohen Family Fund’s generous $1 million gift to launch the new CHAPA Housing Policy Action Center. Today, we’re pleased to name Jennifer Gilbert as the first Musicant Cohen Executive Director of the Center.
Jennifer brings more than 25 years of experience in the affordable housing field as a developer, manager, funder, planning board member, grant-maker, and technologist.
“CHAPA’s Housing Policy Action Center will become a critical, permanent part of the housing policy ecosystem and Jennifer is primed to spearhead this effort. Under her leadership, this new research center will build on CHAPA’s long history of affordable housing advocacy to develop the next generation of housing policies that will put Massachusetts on the path to a bright future,” stated Howard Cohen.
From 2018-2025, Jennifer founded and led Housing Navigator Massachusetts, Inc., taking a Tech for Good nonprofit from an idea to a nationally-recognized, free 24/7 affordable housing search tool with 35,000+ users each month.
Before Housing Navigator MA, Jennifer was the Executive Director of the Kuehn Charitable Foundation, launching its practice-based Kuehn Fellows program now in its sixth round with 29 alumni Fellows. She further guided over $3 million in investments in affordable housing and historic preservation. You can find Jennifer’s full bio on CHAPA’s website.
Jennifer’s proven leadership will establish CHAPA’s Housing Policy Action Center as a leading institution bringing research and real-world experience together to advance the future of housing policy in Massachusetts. This research will inform and shape CHAPA’s policy agenda, advancing a thriving Commonwealth where everyone has a safe, healthy, and affordable home in the community they choose.
Please join us in welcoming Jennifer to the CHAPA team and stay tuned for updates on the Center’s work!
by Matt Noyes | Mar 20, 2025 | Housing News
Through Friday, March 31, senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey will be accepting preliminary requests for Congressionally-Directed Spending (CDS) for Massachusetts-based projects in the FY2026 federal budget. See below for communication from their offices:
Good afternoon:
On behalf of Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, I am happy to share that our Senate offices are now accepting preliminary requests for Massachusetts-based projects for Fiscal Year 2026 Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) items as well as programmatic funding and language requests. The requests must be submitted by Monday, March 31st, 2025, at 11:59 pm ET. Please read this entire email in full before submitting applications. Receiving funding through FY26 CDS could be unlikely, and we encourage anyone interested in applying to understand the parameters of this process before preparing an application.
Senators Markey and Warren use a joint application for all CDS requests. You only need to apply through one office’s portal, and your application will automatically be received and personally reviewed by both offices. Each office has a separate portal for programmatic and bill language requests.
The portals to apply can be found here:
Senator Markey: https://www.markey.senate.gov/fy-2026-appropriations-requests
Senator Warren: https://www.warren.senate.gov/fy2026-appropriations-requests
As you likely know, CDS is designed to provide one-time funding to high-impact, community-based projects in Massachusetts. Generally speaking, this is funding for a specific project in a specific location. CDS requests are restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and historically only tribal, state, and local governments and eligible non-profit entities are permitted to receive CDS funding.
A specific list of the CDS accounts and eligibility requirements for last year’s FY25 process is available here. Please note that the final FY26 guidance will likely differ from the FY25 guidance, and you may need to adjust your FY26 request in light of the final FY26 guidance. We will update our websites and forms accordingly when the FY26 guidance is available.
While funding projects through CDS is a federal funding option, applicants should also pursue other sources of funding. CDS is not a long-term option to stabilize an organization’s budget. Instead, it should be used for one-time projects that can be seen to completion with help from this funding, or to help establish new initiatives that will draw from funding sources other than CDS in the long-term. CDS funding is awarded only when an appropriations bill passes both chambers of Congress, and therefore is most suitable for projects that will be underway 1-2 years from now.
Our offices do not yet have formal guidance from the Senate Appropriations Committee regarding the timeline and criteria for the FY26 process including whether CDS will be accepted. However, in order to give applicants sufficient time to prepare CDS requests, Senators Warren and Markey are opening the FY26 request portal on a provisional basis. The FY26 CDS Applicant Form is subject to change pending final guidance from the Senate Appropriations Committee. This guidance will include a list of the types of projects and entities that are eligible for CDS in FY26. Our application portals will be updated when guidance becomes available.
Unfortunately, due to nuanced eligibility criteria and limited available funds, many requests will not be able to move forward, and not all projects that advance in the process will ultimately receive funding. There is no guarantee at this stage that CDS requests will ultimately be included in the FY26 spending bills.
If CDS requests are ultimately included, it could be an 18-month long process, or longer, from the time of request to when your organization receives an award. We encourage applicants to keep these caveats in mind as they consider whether to apply and when preparing their applications for funding.
If you submitted a project for FY25 that has been included in one of the Senate’s FY25 Appropriations bills, please get in touch with staff about reapplying for FY26 if you have not already. Prior requests do not automatically carry over. Questions may be directed to appropriations@warren.senate.gov or appropriations@markey.senate.gov.
Thank you for your work on behalf of the people of our state – we remain committed partners in this effort. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to be in touch. We look forward to reviewing your applications.
-From the Offices of Senator Markey and Senator Warren
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