Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey filed a $227.3 million supplemental budget April 14 that includes millions for snowstorm recovery as well as a variety of policy changes from social media limits for minors to eliminating the ban on Sunday hunting.
Healey filed her $63 billion FY2027 budget earlier this year. But, according to the Executive Office for Administration and Finance, the governor may ask the legislature to consider approving a supplemental budget when there is a potential shortfall. There is no limit to the number of supplemental budgets a governor may request in a fiscal year.
In this case, Healey said that this supplemental budget is necessary to fund “critical and time-sensitive needs and to cover previously unplanned costs.” Nearly three quarters of the budget is dedicated to costs associated with the “extraordinary weather” in Massachusetts this past winter, which saw the biggest blizzard in decades.
“This past winter, when Massachusetts saw some of the harshest weather we’ve had in years, our first responders, transportation officials, and municipal leaders rose to the occasion to keep our communities safe,” said Healey in a statement. “We’re making sure that state agencies and our cities and towns have the resources they need to cover their costs, balance their budgets and continue delivering for our residents.”
The supplementary budget also includes “outside policy sections,” which are policy changes that don’t necessarily relate to spending. The outside sections in this budget include limits on social media usage, a repeal of the ban on hunting on Sundays and changes to birth and marriage certificates.
Here are six items in the supplemental budget to know.
Snowstorm cleanup
Communities to the north of Worcester received about an inch of snow early Tuesday, April 7. This photo shows a road in Ashburnham, at an elevation of 1,200 feet.
Most of the supplemental budget’s appropriations would go towards costs associated with the particularly brutal 2025 – 2026 winter in Massachusetts.
Healey is proposing $159.8 million for snow and ice removal costs and $11.2 million for added personnel and safety response expenditures, including the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and the National Guard.
Social media protections
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announces legislation that would limit social media use for children and teens.
The budget includes the legislation to combat social media harms that Healey announced on April 14.
Her proposal would require social media accounts to have default settings that limit usage to two hours a day for all users under 18. It would also “deactivate addictive features,” like infinite scrolling and autoplay, and “end addictive algorithms” that target content to young people based on what they viewed in the past, in addition to other limits.
More: 2 hour limit, no more autoscroll: How MA law would change social media rules for kids
Elimination of Sunday hunting ban
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced her intent to file legislation to lift the state’s ban on Sunday hunting on March 19.
The budget would “modernize Massachusetts’ outdated hunting laws” by repealing the state’s centuries-old ban on hunting on Sundays. It would also allow crossbows to be used by everyone, not just hunters with disabilities; and reduce the setback limits for bow hunting from 500 to 250 feet.
Healey had announced her intent to file these measures in mid-March.
More: No more Sunday hunting ban? Healey supports hunting expansions
Family shelter system
The budget makes a more few changes to the state’s emergency shelter system that Healey has already changed significantly during her tenure.
“In response to declining caseload, this budget proposes programmatic updates to help make sure we can serve Massachusetts families in need, without adding new costs for taxpayers,” Healey said in her letter.
The changes include lengthening the length-of-stay policy in the emergency shelter system from six months to nine and increasing the emergency assistance income threshold to 120% of federal poverty guidelines to align it with cost-of-living increases.
Off-shore wind
WATERS OFF MARTHA’S VINEYARD 04/29/24 The offshore supply boat Cade Candies sits off one of the Vineyard Wind turbines now being installed 12 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard. Steve Heaslip/Cape Cod Times
The budget proposing redirecting underutilized offshore wind tax credits “to promote renewable energy and vital urban economic development.”
According to a press release, the changes to the offshore wind tax credit program will “kickstart” the first phase of construction for offshore wind at Salem port.
“Out of wedlock” and more
Another one of Healey’s proposals is to delete references to “out of wedlock” on birth and marriage certificates.
A child who is born “out of wedlock” is a child born to parents that aren’t married to each other. Removing the term would “modernize language and remove stigma,” according to the press release.
The bill proposes more changes too, such as for veteran’s bonuses and housing construction. It also includes more allocations for sheriffs, the Department of Corrections and the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Healey files supplemental budget. See six things that could affect you
