In rare move, House holds line on unrestricted local aid

Yahoo

17-04-2025

BOSTON (SHNS) – Cities and towns would not see any increase in one of their largest sources of state aid under the budget proposal House Democrats rolled out Wednesday.
The House Ways and Means Committee's $61.4 billion fiscal 2026 budget would level-fund unrestricted general government aid, or UGGA, at $1.31 billion. It's an account that elected officials usually take pride in boosting.
If the House's approach prevails, it would be the first time since fiscal 2021 — which began early in the COVID-19 pandemic — that Beacon Hill did not increase that annual appropriation.
Gov. Maura Healey in her January budget filing proposed boosting UGGA funding by $28.8 million, a 2.2% increase that mirrors the rate of growth that state budget-writers forecast for overall state tax collections.
A House Ways and Means Committee spokesperson said the panel opted to increase other sources of local funding, including the per-pupil minimum school aid, instead of UGGA.
'Given the tight budget year, HWM decided to focus more of our local aid increases in education, which is why we allocated $150 per pupil for school districts, 100% charter reimbursement, and helping school districts with special education circuit breaker FY25 and FY26 costs in the supplemental budget the House passed last week,' spokesperson Blake Webber said. 'Those education items were one of the most prominent items the committee heard about from both members of the House and from municipalities as well.'
House Minority Leader Brad Jones said he worries the UGGA freeze could 'somewhat undercut' the push to increase per-pupil minimum aid. He praised unrestricted government aid as one of the most flexible options for municipalities, who can use it on education, police, public works and other needs.
'If we're taking money that's completely eligible to be spent anywhere and using that to subsidize just education, I think we're taking it out of the left pocket to put it in the right pocket,' Jones said in an interview.
City and town leaders rely on UGGA to supplement property tax revenues and support their local budgets. The funding stream is one of several in the local aid bucket, and House Democrats estimate their budget includes more than $9.5 billion in total local aid.
Adam Chapdelaine, executive director of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, said his group would push for an increase in UGGA.
'The MMA and local leaders are deeply grateful for the House Ways & Means proposal's investments, including a historic increase for K-12 education, with $150 per student in minimum new aid,' Chapdelaine said in a statement. 'In a time of economic uncertainty, the MMA will continue to work with the Legislature during this months-long budget process to enhance investments in cities and towns, including Unrestricted General Government Aid, to address escalating costs and protect essential local services.'
For years, state government increased unrestricted general government aid by the same rate as the anticipated increase in tax revenues. But in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, some municipal leaders said even that level of growth was insufficient to match inflation.
While House Democrats are moving to freeze UGGA in a departure from Healey's approach, they also went beyond the governor's proposed increases to other sources of local aid.
The House budget calls for $7.12 billion in Chapter 70 education aid, plus a $240 million minimum aid supplement, together about $40 million more than Healey suggested, according to a Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation analysis.
Representatives are moving to double Healey's minimum aid per pupil, from $75 to $150.
Jones suggested his caucus will 'look to see if there's a way in the budget to restore [UGGA], in whole or in part,' when debate begins the week of April 28.
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