Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The Honorable Aaron M. Michlewitz
The Honorable Michael J. Rodrigues
The Honorable Ann-Margaret Ferrante
The Honorable Joanne M. Comerford
The Honorable Todd M. Smola
The Honorable Patrick M. O’Connor
State House, Boston
Delivered electronically
Dear Chair Michlewitz, Chair Rodrigues, and Distinguished Members of the Conference Committee,
On behalf of cities and towns across the Commonwealth, we are writing to express our deep appreciation for the many provisions in the fiscal 2026 budget bills approved by the House (H. 4001) and the Senate (S. 2525) that benefit communities throughout Massachusetts. Both bills reflect a dedicated commitment to the Commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns amid growing uncertainty from the federal government.
We thank the House and Senate for advancing a state budget framework that continues to value a strong state-local government partnership through the support of several key local aid accounts. Top among them is agreement on historic per-pupil new aid funding under Chapter 70 of $150, which will be critical to school districts across the Commonwealth this year.
While there are a number of areas where the House and Senate agree on funding levels for municipal and school aid accounts, there are several areas where the two branches will have to resolve differences. In this letter, we offer municipal government’s position on important funding and policy proposals that would impact communities, and we respectfully ask for your favorable consideration on these matters.
As you know, municipalities across the Commonwealth are facing very tight operating budgets for fiscal 2026. Property taxes, the primary source of municipal revenue, are capped at below-inflation levels by Proposition 2½, and local receipts are limited. Mandated increases in costs, including contractual obligations, health insurance, required local contributions under the Chapter 70 aid formula, school transportation costs, are all outpacing municipal revenues. As a result, the Legislature’s continued leadership in funding key municipal and education aid accounts, as well as infrastructure investments, is vitally important and deeply appreciated.
We ask you to please invest in essential municipal and school aid programs, as well as adopt provisions that will support critical services provided to residents by cities all across Massachusetts.
Appropriations
Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA)
The Senate appropriated $1.337 billion for the Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA) account (1233-2350 and section 3), an increase of $28.8 million, or 2.2%, over the fiscal 2025 level of funding. With property taxes tightly capped by Proposition 2½, cities and towns rely on funding from the Commonwealth to provide municipal and school services, ensure safe streets and neighborhoods, and maintain vital infrastructure. Unrestricted General Government Aid is the program that cities and towns receive to fund these essential municipal services. We respectfully ask the Conference Committee to include the UGGA funding increase included in S. 2525. This is once again a top priority for municipalities throughout the state, as these funds will all be devoted to balancing local budgets and maintaining the local programs and services that residents rely on every day.
Chapter 70 School Aid
We greatly appreciate the support from both the House and Senate to fund Chapter 70 School Aid to keep the Student Opportunity Act following the original intended schedule. In addition, both chambers recognized the significant challenges facing “minimum aid” districts that by statute would only receive an increase of $30 per student over the previous year. We applaud the House and Senate for significantly increasing minimum aid in each proposal, providing at least $150 per student in new aid. We are grateful for both chambers in answering this call for action to address the significant needs in every single school district in the Commonwealth. This roughly $40 million investment will provide major relief to 245 school districts.
Special Education Circuit Breaker
We support the appropriation for Special Education Circuit Breaker (7061-0012) in H. 4001 and S. 2525, which would reimburse school districts for the high cost of educating students with learning disabilities. We also appreciate the additional special education funding planned as part of the surplus surtax supplemental budget, which will be leveraged to meet the state’s anticipated costs as calculated by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. We applaud both the House and Senate for committing to this full funding, and respectfully ask the Conference Committee to include the $492 million included as part of S. 2525. As special education needs continue to grow, we urge the Legislature to work with municipalities and school districts to support students’ ongoing and complex needs.
Charter School Mitigation Payments
We support full funding of the charter school impact mitigation account (7061-9010) for charter school mitigation payments. We are grateful of the House and Senate’s ongoing commitment to funding the state’s statutory obligation for charter school mitigation payments as outlined in the Student Opportunity Act. We respectfully ask the Conference Committee to support the $199 million included in H. 4001.
Rural School Aid
We support the appropriation of $16 million in S. 2525 for Rural School Aid (7061-9813), representing level funding from the current fiscal year. This program provides rural school assistance to eligible towns and regional school districts. These grants help schools facing declining enrollment to identify efficiencies in school services or opportunities for regional collaboration. We respectfully ask the Conference Committee to support the $16 million included in S. 2525.
Regional School District Student Transportation
We support the critical funding for Regional School District Transportation (7035-0006) in both H. 4001 and S. 2525. This account is vital to all regional districts and their member cities and towns, particularly in sparsely populated parts of the state. We also understand that up to $15 million of additional funding could also be leveraged from the surplus surtax supplemental budget, as proposed in the House’s bill. We respectfully ask the Conference Committee to support the total of $122 million included in H. 4001 and H. 4010, which would represent 98% of estimated claims.
Out-of-District Vocational Student Transportation
We support the Senate’s appropriation of $1 million for reimbursements due under statute for part of the cost of transporting students to out-of-district vocational education placements (7035-0007). Chapter 74 of the General Laws requires the state to reimburse cities and towns for the cost of transporting students to out-of-district vocational education programs. This reimbursement program recognizes the significant expense of providing transportation services for out-of-district placements, as these students must travel long distances to participate in vocational programs that might not be locally available. We respectfully ask the Conference Committee to support the funding included in S. 2525, which level-funds this account and reflects a 13% reimbursement rate of estimated claims.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Student Transportation
We support the appropriation in both the House and Senate budgets of $28.6 million to provide school transportation for homeless students (7035-0008). This funding reflects 58% of DESE’s anticipated claims for fiscal 2026.
In light of major cost increases in providing all types of school transportation, we respectfully request the Legislature’s consideration of future supplemental funding during the upcoming fiscal year to address these needs.
Payments in Lieu of Taxes on State-owned Land
We support the appropriation of $54.5 million included in both the House and Senate bills to pay a portion of the payment-in-lieu-of taxes (PILOT) amount to cities and towns with state-owned land (1233-2400). This amount represents an increase of $1.5 million above the current fiscal year. We applaud the Legislature’s efforts to make significant investments in recent years to this key account, and to hold communities harmless from valuation changes.
Outside Sections
Liquor Licensing Reform
We support sections in each bill that would modernize aspects of the liquor licensing process in the Commonwealth.
• We urge the Conference Committee to include Section 28 in H. 4001, which would allow, by local option, any onsite consumption licensee currently selling wine and malt beverages to trade the license in for a license to sell all alcoholic beverages.
• We also urge the Conference Committee to include Sections 59-67,148, and 151 of S. 2525, which would lift statutory liquor license caps and allow municipalities, at local discretion, to create a plan for the number of liquor licenses that it deems appropriate.
Chapter 70 Local Contribution Study
We support language included in 7010-0005 of S. 2525, which charges the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education with studying and making recommendations to improve the adequacy and equitability of the formula to determine a municipality’s target local contribution and required local contribution.
Disaster Relief and Resiliency Fund
We support Section 74 of H. 4001, which would direct the state’s comptroller to transfer $14 million from any consolidated net budget surplus for fiscal 2026 to the Disaster Relief and Resiliency Fund. Capitalizing this important fund would make important progress in developing a rapid-response effort for cities and towns in the Commonwealth as they experience damage or incur emergency response costs from extreme weather. This is more timely than ever with an evolving landscape involving federal disaster relief support.
MSBA Special Commission
We support Section 137 of S. 2525, which would establish a special commission tasked with studying and making recommendations regarding the Massachusetts School Building Authority’s capacity to meet the needs of current and future school facility projects.
Rate of Payment Flexibility for MassHealth Ground Ambulance Services
We oppose inclusion of Section 110 of S. 2525, which would jeopardize the important financial relief for emergency medical service providers for the transport of patients who are eligible for both Medicare and MassHealth. The “MassHealth crossover” reimbursements for dual-eligible transports was recently restored as part of the fiscal 2024 budget. Since then, this has provided needed financial relief to both public and private EMS providers. The MMA has been proud to partner with the Fire Chiefs of Massachusetts, Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts, and the Massachusetts Ambulance Association in this effort.
Summary
In H. 4001 and S. 2525, you and your colleagues have demonstrated thoughtful consideration and strong support for municipal needs and priorities, and we again express our appreciation to you for your ongoing partnership with cities and towns.
Legislative leaders have kept municipal government at the forefront of fiscal year 2026 budget discussions, and we especially appreciate your attention to school funding, which is a major cost driver for municipal governments across the state. Regardless of size or geographic location, cities and towns are struggling to keep pace with increased costs related to educating students.
As municipalities must work within the revenue confines of Proposition 2½, other city and town departments are often reduced to make up the difference. As a result, your support for Unrestricted General Government Aid is also critical. As the sole source of discretionary state aid, it importantly allows municipalities to use it where it is needed most.
If you have questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me or Senior Executive and Legislative Director Dave Koffman at any time.
Thank you very much for your support, dedication and commitment to the cities and towns of Massachusetts.
Sincerely,
Adam Chapdelaine
MMA Executive Director and CEO
CC: The Honorable Ronald J. Mariano, Speaker of the House
The Honorable Karen E. Spilka, President of the Senate