Mass. Legislature sends Gov. Healey $426 million shelter bill that caps stays at nine months

That is on top of the $325 million in emergency shelter funding the House proposed in their fiscal year 2025 state budget. If both bills become law as they are written, Healey would have $500 million for shelters next fiscal year, well short of the $915 million tab the state is expected to rack up.

Democrats who negotiated the supplemental spending bill that cleared the Legislature Thursday said the document keeps the system “financially viable” because of the steps to curtail families’ time in shelters.

Senate budget chief Michael Rodrigues said the spending bill approves enough money for shelters to bring Beacon Hill “well into” fiscal year 2025 but lawmakers may be back at the negotiating table sooner rather than later.

“It does spend significantly less dollars than what the Senate provided for in its (version of the) bill so that means that we will … have to address this again in a shorter period of time. But right now, I think this is the right bill and the right version to vote on,” the Democrat said.

Local Republicans and Democrats have slammed Congress for not providing more federal aid to states like Massachusetts dealing with an influx of migrants or reforming immigration laws in the United States.

Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr said federal lawmakers have not acted to change policies “that are causing this incredible influx and incredible burden to be placed upon the commonwealth and other states like us around the country.”

“It has not acted to provide substantial resources to assist us with this problem even as we are dealing with declining revenues and trying to fund other long-standing priorities,” Tarr said.

Democrats also pointed to language in the bill that creates a commission to make recommendations by the end of the year on the sustainability of the emergency shelter system, how to ensure long-term “sufficiency,” and creating a regional response to support families in need.

Sen. Cindy Friedman, a Democrat, said the group is also charged with reviewing past work so members do not have to start from scratch.

“The purpose of having this commission and to take it very seriously and to keep our eyes on it is to start to once again address those programs and why they’re not working for so many of the residents of Massachusetts,” Friedman said.

The bill also codifies the popular pandemic-era law allowing for the purchase of cocktails to-go, though it cuts out beer and wine from the program, and makes permanent outdoor dining rules, another measure that dates back to COVID-19 times.