Massachusetts is spending about $75 million each month on state-run shelters, a massive jump in expenses that comes as Gov. Maura Healey’s administration is expected to run out of cash for emergency services in early to mid-April without another financial infusion.
Beacon Hill lawmakers have spent most of the new year putting together a plan to pay soaring shelter bills just as state revenues have consistently come in below expectations, Washington has offered no help, and demand on services continues to persist at historic levels.
With cash likely running out ahead of an April time window, the Legislature is now locked in negotiations over a new spending plan that could allow Healey to access dollars at a critical moment. Top budget writers say they are confident they can find a compromise before time runs out.
House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz said he understands the need to produce a deal on a spending bill “as quickly as possible.”
“I’m hopeful that once we get into this discussion with our counterparts that we’ll be able to produce something with time to spare in terms of any funding running out,” the North End Democrat told the Herald Friday afternoon.
A spokesperson for the Executive of Administration and Finance, Matt Murphy, did not say if the Healey administration has a working date for when money could run out.
Read the full story at the Boston Herald
