January 14, 2025

Dear Kelly,

This Thursday, legislators will gather at the State House to hear Governor Maura Healey deliver her annual State of the Commonwealth address. We will be mobilizing folks earlier that day to shine a light on the state of family homelessness in Massachusetts.

Please join the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, Homes for All Massachusetts, UU Mass Action, City Life/Vida Urbana, Lynn United for Change, Greater Boston Legal Services, and other allied organizations this Thursday, January 16th for our "The People's State of the Commonwealth: A Spotlight on Family Homelessness" event. We will have an in-person action at the State House and a call-in day. We will highlight the impacts of current limits and restrictions on access to Emergency Assistance (EA) shelter and ask the Legislature to fully fund Emergency Assistance, reject further punitive family homelessness policies, and invest more in rehousing and homelessness prevention. Keep reading for more details on our requests.

In-Person Action:

Description: This action will feature speakers and chanting in front of the Massachusetts State House. Following the action, participants are encouraged to meet with legislators and staffers inside the State House.

Date: Thursday, January 16th

Time: 12:00–1:00 p.m.

Location: In front of the Massachusetts State House, on the Beacon Street

Call-In Day Action:

Description: Join us from wherever you are in calling on the Legislature to make the investments and policy changes needed to protect children and families and to prevent more families from having to sleep on the streets, at train stations, and in other places not meant for human habitation. A script is included here, with more details on key requests included near the bottom of this alert.

Date: Thursday, January 16th

Time: 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Contact Details:

• Senate President Karen Spilka: 617-722-1500; Karen.Spilka@masenate.gov
• Speaker of the House Ron Mariano: 617-722-2500; Ronald.Mariano@mahouse.gov
• Your State Senator and State Representative: Find out who your state legislators are here: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator and call them via the State House switchboard: 617-722-2000

Sample script:

“Hello, my name is [your name] and I live in [city/town]. I am asking you to act quickly to protect children and families experiencing homelessness by supporting the Emergency Assistance shelter system. Please:

• Swiftly provide the $425 million in supplemental funding needed to keep shelters open
• Reject the proposed 6-month time limit and attempt to cut extension opportunities
• Strengthen support for families leaving shelter, including by increasing HomeBASE rehousing resources"

RSVP: Please let us know you will be joining us for the in-person action or call-in day by completing this short form: https://tinyurl.com/ea-event-rsvp

Thank you for partnering with us!

With gratitude,

Kelly and Julia

Kelly Turley

She/her/hers

Associate Director

kelly@mahomeless.org

Julia Garvey

She/her/hers

Community Organizer/Legislative Advocate

julia.garvey@mahomeless.org

P.S. Stay up to date with the Coalition’s advocacy initiatives by following us on social media: Instagram, Facebook, and X/Twitter. (Links also included at the top of this message.)

Take Action:

Ask the Legislature to Fully Fund Emergency Assistance Shelter for Children and Families and Reject New Restrictions

On January 6th, Governor Healey filed a Fiscal Year 2025 supplemental budget request, House Bill 51, An Act Making Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2025 to Provide for Supplementing Certain Existing Appropriations and for Certain Other Activities and Projects.

This bill would:

• Provide $425 million in supplemental FY25 funding from the Transitional Escrow Fund to fund the Emergency Assistance (EA) system and related resources for children and families experiencing homelessness. Existing funds are expected to be depleted by the end of the month.
• Restrict access to EA to 6 months, replacing the current 9-month limit, which already is harming families
• Eliminate opportunities for families to seek up to two 90-day extensions to their time in EA shelter and require families to receive a waiver from the Secretary of the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) to stay in shelter beyond 6 months
• Allow EOHLC to terminate an unlimited number of families each week from the EA program by removing the current cap of 150 families/week

Join us in calling on the Legislature to:

• Swiftly approve the $425 million in supplemental funding needed to provide shelter and services to families for the rest of this fiscal year
• Reject the proposal to further limit shelter stays to 6 months from 9 months
• Uphold current provisions that allow more families to receive extensions beyond the standard 9-month stay, so that families have the time they need to successfully transition out of shelter. The current policies better recognize the unique needs and circumstances of families.
• Limit weekly shelter terminations, as currently mandated by the Legislature since April 2024
• Focus on strengthening the HomeBASE program, the key rehousing resource for families. The Governor initially indicated that her supplemental budget proposal would include a request to allow families to access up to $50,000 over two years, up from the current limit of $30,000 over two years. The supplemental budget request as filed did not include this provision.

Thank you for your advocacy and partnership!

Details and resources:

• Shareable flyers in English and Spanish for January 16th actions
• January 6th supplemental budget request from Governor Healey
• EA Guidance on Contact List and Prioritization Procedures (updated 12/10/24)
• Information on EA Contact List from EOHLC
• Policy FAQs, 12/12/24