Latest news with #ResidentialAssistanceforFamiliesinTransition
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ludlow mobile home park residents sue owner in 2 cases of housing discrimination
LUDLOW — When Kerwin Ortiz told his landlord that he would be using state assistance to pay for a month of missed rent, the owner refused to accept it. Now, Ortiz is suing Thomas Lennon, alleging that he discriminated against him for using public assistance toward his rental payment, according to the complaint filed April 1. Ortiz lives at West Street Village Mobile Home Community in Ludlow. While he owns his mobile home, he still pays rent on the lot. Over the last few months, Lennon raised the rents by 143%, jumping from $207 to $503, an increase most at the park can't afford. Many of the residents who live there are older, earn little income and/or are disabled. After dealing with some financial troubles near the end of February, he told Lennon in a text exchange that he'd use Way Finders' rental assistance to pay for rent, which is passed through to the agency from the state. 'I'm not accepting wayfinders (sic),' Lennon texted Ortiz, according to an exhibit in the complaint. 'Is there an assistance program you do accept?' Ortiz replied. 'No, it's a ton of paperwork a huge project for ME and I may or may not get the rent in 10 weeks,' Lennon texted back. The complaint alleges Lennon's actions in refusing to accept any form of state rental assistance from Ortiz were 'intentional and willful' with 'reckless disregard for the civil rights of the plaintiff.' Refusing to accept rental aid is a violation of fair housing laws, the lawsuit alleges. Ortiz is being represented by Joel Feldman, a Springfield housing attorney for Heisler, Feldman and Ordorica PC, and Destin Germany of the Central West Justice Center in Springfield. In a statement, Ortiz said tenants like him in a mobile home park are 'vulnerable to aggressive rent hikes.' While Massachusetts offers rental aid such as from the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition program, 'this option had been refused by our landlord,' he said in the statement. 'Actions like (the landlord's) allows individuals to unilaterally price out people they deem 'undesirables,' which would keep families like ours from ever being parts of communities like this,' he said. Feldman is expecting Lennon's reply in court within the next couple of days, he told The Republican. Other claims against Lennon Ortiz is not alone in his housing discrimination claims. In a lawsuit filed Monday, Lisa Pacheco, another West Street Village resident, alleged that when she told Lennon she could not make a monthly rent payment because of a serious health condition, Lennon again said he would not accept rental assistance from Way Finders. Lennon reportedly told Pacheco that it would be 'too much paperwork,' according to her complaint. When Pacheco told Lennon that she already had been approved for RAFT funding for her utility payments, and that it wouldn't be too much paperwork for Lennon, he allegedly said he was not 'willing to accept RAFT payments for rent, and that he would not go down that route.' At least two other residents were denied use of rental assistance, according to Pacheco's complaint. Both lawsuits say that, as a housing provider, Lennon and landlords like him must 'abide by state fair housing laws in their acceptance of state rental assistance programs.' Lennon's attorney, Robert Kraus of Kraus and Hummel in Plymouth, could not be reached for comment. Fighting back against rent increases Feldman also is representing three West Street Village mobile home park residents who filed an appeal last April on the Ludlow Mobile Home Rent Control Board's decision in July 2023 to increase the rent of the lots by almost $300. Judge Jonathan Kane, a state Housing Court judge, ordered in late March that the board's decision to increase the rent was not allowed. His reasoning was that two of the board members, who were not present for the vote, did not certify under oath that they reviewed the record of the proceedings, which violated a state law. Lennon, as owner, and Kraus, his attorney, are intervenors, meaning they are a third party in that case. Kraus filed a notice of appeal at the end of March, but he has not filed an official appeal in court. The case is ongoing, Feldman explained in a phone call Tuesday. 'We are waiting for the judge to decide whether the decision should be returned to the rental control board to decide on the rent after reviewing the record,' said Feldman. 'It would be premature for them to file an appeal at this point.' more news from Western Massachusetts Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mass. Gov. Healey seeks $756 million for ‘time-sensitive deficiencies'
On the eve of a legislative hearing on her surtax surplus plan, Gov. Maura Healey submitted another spending bill for the Legislature's review, filing a $756 million supplemental budget she said would address 'time-sensitive deficiencies' in state government accounts. The proposal Healey filed Wednesday afternoon (HD 4540) includes $134.5 million for supplemental payments to safety-net hospitals, $60 million for direct care for older adults, $240 million for state employee health care costs through the Group Insurance Commission, and more. It would carry a net state cost of $544 million after federal reimbursements, she said. Healey's office pitched the $190 million the bill includes for a child care financial assistance program as a way to 'support Massachusetts residents at a time of rising costs.' Another $43 million would go toward the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) program that offers aid to families facing potential eviction, which has faced increasing demand during a period of housing strain. The legislation additionally includes $15 million for grants and marketing related to the American Revolution 250th anniversary celebration, and $15.5 million for more secure electronic benefits transfer cards that Healey said would 'help combat food benefit theft.' 'This budget bill proposes targeted investments that improve quality of life in Massachusetts, such as ensuring access to health care, supporting families with child care costs, and making sure veterans get their benefits,' Healey said in a statement alongside the bill. 'We've also heard clearly from local officials and medical professionals across the state, especially in communities impacted by Steward Health Care's closures, that they need more support. That's why we're proposing significant funding for EMS providers that have faced extraordinary costs. Our administration remains committed to maintaining a responsible state budget that tangibly benefits the people of Massachusetts.' Other sections of the 25-page bill would ratify collective bargaining agreements with public employees, raise procurement thresholds under public construction laws, and allow Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency vehicles to use red and blue lights when responding to emergencies. The Legislature's Joint Committee on Ways and Means is partway through a series of hearings about Healey's $62 billion fiscal 2026 state budget, and the panel will meet Thursday to consider Healey's separate $1.3 billion proposal (H 55) to spend surplus surtax revenue. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Boston Globe
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Families in emergency shelters need long-term solutions
I went on to overcome homelessness, but I can't not forget the harm imposed by his choices, which each day left me in fear of whether I would have a roof over my head. For the thousands of homeless families that remained in flux, I hoped that a new governor would work to strengthen the state's shelter program. But with Governor Maura Healey, the emergency shelter program continues to be at risk. Countless families today depend on the Emergency Assistance shelter program to survive. This crucial program is a lifeline for families on the brink of or experiencing homelessness, giving them help before the cycle of poverty takes hold. Over the past year, however, the program has been pushed to capacity, the result of a growing in Massachusetts amid a housing crisis that has also pushed residents into state-funded shelters. Yet instead of focusing on addressing family homelessness, policy makers have begun Some have proposed rescinding the 'right-to-shelter' law, which guarantees homeless families access to emergency shelter. Healey has Advertisement Families with children, irrespective of citizenship, have been forced to These families need real solutions that prevent or interrupt homelessness, rather than arbitrary limits on their ability to access resources. For example, HomeBASE is a often spend more weeks in shelter than necessary because of bureaucratic Advertisement In light of the housing affordability crisis, policy makers need to better utilize vacant subsidized housing. such housing because they are unable to meet stringent eligibility requirements. Further, policy makers must invest more in eviction prevention resources, like the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition The solution to the surge in family homelessness does not lie in removing one of the few safety nets available to homeless families. It necessitates Furthermore, the root of this shelter crisis is the shortage of affordable housing in the state. Instead of destroying the family shelter system, our policy makers must protect it — and then expand their efforts beyond it — to end family homelessness once and for all. For all its flaws, the family shelter system provided my family with a roof when we needed it the most. It gave me the space to build a better future for myself, even under the worst circumstances, that led to my becoming a housing attorney. The thousands of homeless children in the Commonwealth deserve that same chance. Advertisement Timothy Scalona is a staff attorney in the Housing Unit at Greater Boston Legal Services and a board member at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.
