Posted August 14, 2023; last updated August 24th

Statement in Support of the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s Call to Action for Families Experiencing Homelessness, Appeal for Coordinated State Action

The Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless (MCH), Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), and the undersigned organizations support the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s efforts to expand resources for shelter, housing, and other resources for families experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts. We affirm the Administration’s commitment to preserving access to the Commonwealth’s Emergency Assistance family shelter system for all eligible families with children. We are also grateful for the broad call to action to support newly arrived immigrant families. We stand ready to share our knowledge and assistance in these efforts in the days and weeks ahead, and we offer key recommendations today. 

We believe there are immediate actions available to alleviate the current crisis, uphold human dignity, and invest in long-term housing solutions that expand deeply affordable and permanent supportive housing. With the state’s leadership, together we can and must: 

• Help families swiftly move out of Emergency Assistance and other temporary shelter programs into permanent affordable housing
• Strengthen homelessness prevention resources to ensure that more families and individuals can maintain housing stability
• Expand available services for newly arrived immigrant families and improve service coordination for all families experiencing homelessness

 

The fiscal year 2024 state budget, signed into law on August 9th by Governor Healey, includes new tools and resources that will move us in the right direction. The budget provides record funding to keep Emergency Assistance shelters open, strengthens the HomeBASE diversion and rehousing program, provides additional long-term housing subsidies through the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program, includes policy changes to make housing more affordable for residents with low incomes, and reinstates Chapter 257 eviction protections to prevent unnecessary evictions for renters applying for emergency rental assistance. We call on the Administration and Legislature to take the next steps to bring these service, housing, and prevention resources to scale through supplemental appropriations, passing an Affordable Housing Bond Bill with increased investments in deeply affordable housing, and deploying federal resources, such as the remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds.

We also know that money alone is not enough to end the emergency. In addition to mobilizing communities, businesses, organizations, and individuals, we call on the state to take bold, creative, and coordinated action to intensify efforts to help families move out of shelter into housing, strengthen homelessness prevention resources, expand available services to all families experiencing homelessness, and target supports to newly arrived immigrant families. In doing so, we call on the Commonwealth to bring key stakeholders to the table and uplift the experiences and expertise of families and communities most affected by the crisis.

We offer our assistance towards achieving the shared goal of ensuring that every family has a safe, affordable, and permanent place to call home and the safety of shelter while awaiting those housing opportunities. We know we can come together for a strong Commonwealth for all.

Sincerely,

Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless

Kelly Turley

Associate Director

 

Massachusetts Law Reform Institute

Andrea M. Park

Director of Community Driven Advocacy

 

 

Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association

Rachel Heller

Chief Executive Officer

 

Endorsing Organizations as of August 24th (in alphabetical order):

Abby’s House

Advocacy Network to End Family Homelessness

All Saints Episcopal Church, Worcester

Arise for Social Justice

Belmont-Watertown United Methodist Church

Berkshire County Regional Housing Authority

Berkshire Housing

Berkshire United Way

Bourne, Cataumet, & West Falmouth United Methodist Churches

Casa Myrna Vazquez, Inc.

Catholic Charities Worcester County

Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance

Central West Justice Center

Chicopee Public Schools

Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association

Community Action Agency of Somerville, Inc.

Congregation Beth El of the Sudbury River Valley

Craig’s Doors

Domus Incorporated

El Colibrí

Eliot Community Human Service

Everett Haitian Community Center (The EHCC)

Fair Haven Ministries Inc.

Falmouth Jewish Congregation

Family and Community Resources, Inc

Family Health Center of Worcester

Family Promise North Shore Boston

FamilyAid

First Church in Sandwich, United Church of Christ

First Parish, Concord

Food Bank of Western Massachusetts

Grace City Church

Grace Episcopal Church, Great Barrington

Grandmothers’ Village Project

Greater Boston Legal Services

Greenfield Housing Authority

Greening Greenfield

HarborCOV

Housing Families Inc

Housing Greenfield

Housing Justice for Survivors, Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School

I.C. Solutions LLC

Immigrant Family Services Institute

Independence House Inc.

Islamic Society of Western Mass

Jane Doe Inc. (JDI), The MA Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence

Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center

Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action

Jewish Family Service of MetroWest

Justice Center of Southeast Massachusetts

Louis D. Brown Peace Institute

LUK, Inc.

Massachusetts Alliance of HUD Tenants

Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers (MAPS)

Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless

Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition

Massachusetts Law Reform Institute

Massachusetts Public Health Association

Metro Housing|Boston

Metropolitan Area Planning Council

MetroWest Legal Services

Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center

My Life My Choice

NeighborWorks Housing Solutions

New Lease for Homeless Families

Northeast Justice Center

Northern Middlesex Council of Governments

One Family

Open Sky Community Services

Pine Street Inn

RCAP Solutions

REACH Beyond Domestic Violence, Inc.

Regional Housing Network of Massachusetts

Rosie’s Place

Salasin Project

SEIU Local 509

Shir Hadash

Sisters of Saint Joseph of Boston

South Shore Resource and Advocacy Center

Spanish American Center, Inc.

St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Community

St. Mark Congregational Church, UCC

Stop Bullying Coalition

Temple Anshe Amunim

Temple Beth Am, Framingham

Temple Beth David

Temple Emmanuel of Chelsea

Temple Sinai Brookline

The Rian Immigrant Center

Tifereth Israel Congregation

UniteBoston

United Way of Massachusetts Bay

Valley Community Development

Vasquez Mary Kay

Veterans Inc.

Way Finders

Western Massachusetts Network to End Homelessness

Women’s Money Matters

Worcester City Councilor At-Large Thu Nguyen

Worcester City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj

Worcester Community Action Council

YWCA Central Massachusetts

Zen Center North Shore

 

Last updated 8/24/23

* Click here for a PDF version of the statement, listing the endorsing organizations as of August 23rd.