Bill Strengthens Assistance Programs, Streamlines Local Procurement Processes
(BOSTON—11/5/2026) The Massachusetts Senate today approved a supplemental budget to close the books on the past fiscal year and ensure seamless continuity for the state services that residents rely on. The legislation, supported by Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), also makes it easier for people to cancel their online subscriptions, bolsters the state’s core assistance programs, and cuts red tape for cities and towns to help them mitigate high costs.
Funding in the closeout budget, S.3290, covers state expenses in key areas that serve residents across the state, including wintertime snow and ice removal, municipal public safety needs, early education, MassHealth, and essential services for crime victims, witnesses, and survivors of crimes.
“The annual closeout budget ensures that our state agencies and departments are adequately funded to best support our residents with the important programs and services they are entitled to,” said Senator Friedman, Chair of the Senate Committee on Steering and Policy. “It is so important that we mitigate federal funding and policy impacts to our state’s safety net services provided by the Department of Transitional Assistance and MassHealth, and this supplemental budget does just that. I am also pleased to see increases in early education funding, municipal flexibility for procurement, and proactive winter snow and ice removal funding included in this budget. I thank my Seante colleagues for moving this budget expeditiously but responsibly.”
The closeout budget helps people keep more money in their pockets by requiring simpler cancellation processes for online subscriptions. Companies offering subscription products would have to make the process to cancel a subscription just as easy for consumers as it is to sign up.
For local families who are getting by with help from the Commonwealth’s core assistance programs, the supplemental budget provides $69.5 million for new technology and additional caseworkers at the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) to ensure the integrity of the system in the face of federal cuts while helping to put food on the table of those in need.
The legislation also streamlines procurement processes for cities and towns, giving them more flexibility in how they purchase goods and services. This would provide one additional tool to help municipalities manage notably higher costs driven by national economic trends and respond more quickly to timely local needs, such as snowstorms.
During today’s session, Senators voted to add language that makes an important update to ‘Nicky’s Law’ to protect people with intellectual or developmental disabilities from risk of abuse at MassHealth day habilitation services. This section, based on a bill that was debated and passed by the Senate earlier this session, ensures people receive the same protections at day habilitation services that they receive in other care settings.
The supplemental budget will result in $1.79 billion in net spending by the state. The bill’s total bottom line is $2.62 billion before accounting for revenue from federal reimbursements. The spending includes:
- $18.5 million for subsidized early education in FY27 for both family childcare providers and center-based providers;
- $13.8 million for the Massachusetts Office of Victim Assistance (MOVA) to make up for decreases in federal grant awards and support essential services for crime victims, witnesses, survivors, and families in need;
- $2 million for fair housing enforcement to help Massachusetts residents who face housing discrimination, amid harmful attempts by the federal government to inflict damaging repercussions on fair housing enforcement organizations;
- $159.8 million for MassDOT snow and ice removal;
- $2 million for grants to support a statewide response to homelessness;
- $4 million for the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative;
- $2 million for Community Action Agencies;
- $1.03 billion in net spending for MassHealth ($1.8 billion in gross costs prior to federal reimbursements) as the state continues to see effects of the rising cost of health care;
- $52 million for MassHealth supplemental nursing home rates;
- $14 million for substance addiction services through the Department of Public Health (DPH);
- $2.25 million for maternal and child health, particularly increasing support for access to postpartum mental health services;
- $2 million to aid municipalities with public safety needs;
- $5.95 million to support the restructuring of the Cannabis Control Commission, strengthen oversight, and implement reforms from the 2026 cannabis laws modernization act;
- $78.9 million for unemployment insurance interest repayments;
- $10 million for the Boston Holocaust Museum;
- $10 million for the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center to continue the Commonwealth’s support of its innovation economy; and
- $244.8 million to address deficiencies at the 14 county sheriffs’ offices and pay outstanding bills from FY2025 and FY2026.
Full details of the legislation are available in a fact sheet in the Senate’s online press room.
The Senate Committee on Ways and Means redrafted the bill and reported it to the full Senate on October 29. A previous version of the bill was passed by the House of Representatives earlier in October.
The Senate passed the bill today and sent it back to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
###