Massachusetts House of Representatives Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Budget
The Massachusetts House of Representatives passed its Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) budget. Funded at $61.47 billion, nearly $500 million below Governor Maura Healey’s budget proposal, the House’s FY26 budget responds to the needs of residents, provides strong support for the Commonwealth’s cities and towns, and among many critical investments, includes significant funding for education, transportation, health care, housing, and workforce development.
The budget that passed today includes $1.95 billion in investments for transportation and education initiatives made possible because funding generated by the Fair Share Act. This funding is used to continue universal school meals for school kids, free community college, child care grants and major investments in the MBTA.
This budget includes investments in several key areas:
EDUCATION
Chapter 70 education funding at $7.121 billion and increases the minimum aid total to $150 per pupil. Additionally, the budget includes the following education initiatives include $483.2 million for Circuit Breaker Special Education reimbursement.
It also establishes a 15-member vocational school admissions task force to review admissions policies and standards of review. This budget also prohibits the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) from promulgating new regulations, and from amending regulations, until the completion of a report by the task force.
Continuing the House’s longstanding commitment towards investing in the early education and care (EEC) workforce, the House budget includes $1.67 billion for child care access and affordability across the Commonwealth in FY26. Other early education and care investments including:
- $475 million for Commonwealth Cares for Children (C3) grants
- $448.2 million for child care for children involved with the Department of Children & Families and the Department of Transitional Assistance
- $517.6 million for child care for low-income families
- $15 million to reduce the income-eligible waitlist
- $20 million for child care resource and referral agencies
- $18.5 million for Head Start grants
- $7.5 million for an EEC educator scholarship program
- $7.5 million for an EEC educator loan forgiveness program
The House budget allocates $838 million for the University of Massachusetts system, $416 million for community colleges, and $409 million for state universities. Other higher education investments including $14.2 million for the Early College Initiative.
HOUSING
The FY26 budget maintains the House’s commitment to protect renters and homeowners across the Commonwealth from eviction and homelessness by investing in the following programs:
- $275 million for the Emergency Assistance (EA) program, which provides shelter to families with children and pregnant women
- $258.1 million for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP)
- $207.5 million for Rental Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) program
- $57.3 million for HomeBase
- $10 million for shelter workforce assistance
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The House budget makes rent more affordable for tenants or prospective tenants by prohibiting a real estate broker from charging a broker’s fee (commission or other fee) to a tenant or prospective tenant for finding an apartment to lease or rent if the tenant did not initiate contact with the broker. The budget only allows fees to be paid by a tenant or prospective tenant if all the following requirements are met: the tenant or prospective tenant initiated the contact with the broker; the tenant or prospective tenant received a rental brokerage fee disclosure from the broker; and the tenant or prospective tenant agreed to all terms and conditions of the brokerage fee disclosure in writing.
WORKFORCE
The House budget funds the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development at $113.4 million through investments in initiatives including $58.9 million for Adult Basic Education Services, $15.2 million for Summer Jobs for At Risk Youth, $9 million for Career Technical Institutes and $3.1 for Career and Technical Education Grants.
VETERAN SERVICES
The Executive Office of Veterans’ Services provides educational opportunities, outreach centers and service benefits, as well as personal care services through the Veterans’ Homes in Chelsea and Holyoke. The House budget includes the following investments:
- $81.8 million for Veterans’ Benefit Payments
- $79.8 million for the Veterans’ Homes in Chelsea and Holyoke
- $9.5 million for Veterans’ Outreach Centers
- $4 million for Veterans’ Homelessness Services
ENVIRONMENT
The House budget also includes a $25 million transfer to the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, and $20 million in continued support for Green SchoolWorks program to decarbonize and increase efficiency in our schools through green energy projects. It also includes a $14 million transfer to the Disaster Relief and Resiliency Fund, which was created last year for permanent emergency disaster relief from natural disasters or other catastrophic events such as hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, landslides, extreme winds, and extreme temperatures.
PUBLIC HEALTH
The House budget includes $22.43 billion for MassHealth, including $13.8 million in primary care rates and $5.3 million in behavioral health investments in outpatient and substance use disorder services. The budget invests in the human services workforce through $207 million for Chapter 257 rates for health and human service workers, and $132 million for rate increases for nursing facilities. It also includes $29.5 million for Councils on Aging across the Commonwealth.
The House budget includes $55 million for the Emergency Food Assistance program, $20 million for the Massachusetts Healthy Incentives Program, which provides a dollar-for-dollar match to SNAP recipients purchasing locally grown healthy food, and $8.4 million for the SNAP for low-income workers program.
The Department of Public Health is funded at $1.05 billion and the Department of Mental Health at $1.28 billion for FY26. Investments include:
- $194.5 million for the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services (BSAS)
- $35 for HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention
- $14.3 million for statewide and community-based suicide prevention
- $10.4 million for community health centers, including $1 million for a new gender-affirming care program
- $661.9 million for adult mental health supports
- $128.6 million for child and adolescent services
- $5 million for DHM loan forgiveness program
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The budget includes investments in business development in key sectors of the Massachusetts economy including life sciences, biotechnology, clean energy, manufacturing, and the blue economy; and provides grant opportunities and tourism supports to help foster economic activity across Massachusetts. The budget also includes over $24 million for local economic development projects and tourism to bolster their ongoing operations and economic impact.
This is in addition to $8 million for small businesses and $7.5 million for small business technical grants, which provide funding to community and economic development non-profits to deliver services to small businesses to help small businesses with technical assistance, skills training, and access to financing. The budget also provides $1 million for Urban Agenda Economic Development Grants to work with urban entrepreneurs to promote small businesses, create new jobs and support workforce development and training initiatives in urban communities and $1 million in funding for the Massachusetts Office of Business Development for regional economic development organizations.
The budget passed the House of Representatives 151-6 and now goes to the Senate for consideration.