One more day until the full House consideration of the Housing Bond Bill and one day until CHAPA's advocacy action at the State House! (Not to mention one day until CHAPA's Annual Celebration ...)
Housing News
(Don't forget to register for CHAPA's Housing Bond Bill Advocacy Action on Wednesday at 12:30pm!)
On Monday morning, the wait for the Legislature's response to the Governor's Affordable Homes Act came to an end. The House Ways and Means Committee released their version of the 2023 Housing Bond Bill.
As if next week wasn't going to be exciting enough with the CHAPA Annual Celebration on Wednesday, it got taken up a notch when House leadership announced that the Housing Bond Bill will be on the floor the same day.
CHAPA is now seeking applicants for the MBTA Communities Manager and Senior Policy Associate roles. Review the job descriptions and how to apply on CHAPA's Jobs Board.
Late last Thursday evening (or technically very early Friday morning), the Senate passed its final FY 2025 budget. When the Legislature began consideration of the budget earlier this spring, many had grave concerns about the impact that lower than expected revenue figures would have on housing line items. Fortunately, both the House and the Senate protected these programs from funding cuts, and in most cases increased their bottom lines.
On Tuesday, the Senate is scheduled to begin its consideration of the FY 2025 state operating budget. Earlier this month, senators filed 1,100 amendments to the Senate Ways and Means proposal, including CHAPA's priority amendments below. Please contact your senator and ask them to support the inclusion of these provisions in the final Senate budget that is expected to pass later this week:
Last month, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, along with members of the Housing Advisory Council, kicked off a series of listening sessions across Massachusetts to inform the development of a Statewide Housing Plan. To date, EOHLC has held four sessions in Lynn, Springfield, Dartmouth, and Brockton. Between now and June 4, there will be ten more, including two virtual opportunities to provide input.
On Tuesday, the Senate Ways and Means Committee released its budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2025. Overall, the bill mostly mirrored the version that passed the House last month – MRVP funding was the same at $219 million ($40 million more than FY 24), RAFT received $197 million ($7.4 million more than FY 24), and HomeBASE came in at $57 million ($20 million more than FY 24).
Last week, the House of Representatives passed its FY 2025 budget. Representatives filed nearly 1500 amendments but less than $110 million in funding above the level proposed by the House Ways and Means Committee was approved.
Although CHAPA’s priority amendments were not included in the final House budget, housing accounts generally fared well considering difficult revenue projections. The final House budget includes: