Bill S.2512

SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2512

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)

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SECTION 1. To provide for supplementing certain items in the general appropriations act and other appropriation acts for fiscal year 2025, the sums set forth in section 2 are hereby appropriated from the Education and Transportation Innovation and Capital Fund established in section 2DDDDDD of chapter 29 of the General Laws, unless specifically designated otherwise in this act or in those appropriation acts, for the several purposes and subject to the conditions specified in this act or in those appropriations acts and subject to the laws regulating the disbursement of public funds for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. All appropriations in this section shall not be subject to section 5D of chapter 29 of the General Laws. These sums shall be in addition to any amounts previously appropriated and made available for the purposes of those items.

SECTION 2.

TRANSPORTATION

Massachusetts Department of Transportation

1596-2405 MBTA Low-Income Fare Relief................... $20,000,000

1596-2427 MBTA Workforce-Safety Reserve............... $100,000,000

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF EDUCATION

Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

7061-0012 Special Education Circuit Breaker.............. $58,000,000

Student Opportunity Act Investment Fund........................100%

SECTION 2A. The sums set forth in this section are hereby appropriated from the Education and Transportation Innovation and Capital Fund established in section 2DDDDDD of chapter 29 of the General Laws, unless specifically designated otherwise in this act, for the purposes and subject to the conditions specified in this section and subject to the laws regulating the disbursement of public funds for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. All appropriations in this section shall not be subject to section 5D of said chapter 29. These sums shall be made available through the fiscal year ending June 30, 2028.

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF EDUCATION

Office of the Secretary

1596-2513 For a grant program for capital improvements, long-term leasing of additional space and other initiatives necessary to build capacity and safely accommodate additional career technical education school opportunities; provided, that the funds shall be administered by the executive office of education in consultation with the Massachusetts School Building Authority and the executive office of labor and workforce development; provided further, that funds shall be made available to both vocational technical schools and comprehensive high schools; provided further, that in determining a process for awarding grants, the executive office shall prioritize meeting the workforce demands of regional employers, reducing demonstrable waitlists at career and technical education schools and providing equitable access to career and technical skills training for students likely to pursue a career in their field of study; provided further, that not less than $15,000,000 shall be expended for a pilot program for comprehensive high schools to support career and vocational technical annex buildings on comprehensive high school campuses; provided further, that career and vocational training offered within such annex buildings shall align with regional workforce demands; provided further, that the pilot program shall prioritize communities that: (i) have demonstrable waitlists for career and vocational technical programming; (ii) are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing; and (iii) have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development to be determined in consultation with the executive office of housing and livable communities; and provided further, that the executive office shall prioritize projects within this item that address disparities in opportunity gap data compiled by the department of elementary and secondary education and support student populations that (a) consist of high school juniors or seniors; (b) have not been accepted into a dedicated vocational school or program; (c) experience historically low admittance rates into vocation technical school districts; and (d) reside in the public school's district .....................................$100,000,000

1596-2517 For local one-time education projects............................$100,000

1596-2518 For capital and development costs for the Holocaust Legacy Foundation, Inc. to establish the Boston Holocaust Museum to provide interactive educational opportunities in the commonwealth, including, but not limited to, history and social science frameworks; provided, that funds may be used for: (i) exhibit buildout; (ii) accessibility; (iii) security infrastructure; and (iv) educational technology and curriculum................................ $5,000,000

Transitional Escrow Fund........................100%

Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

1596-2514 For educational grants to reduce the waitlist for English for speakers of other language services; provided, that funds shall be administered by the department of elementary and secondary education in coordination with the Workforce Skills Cabinet established in Executive Order No. 560, dated February 26, 2015; provided further, that in determining a process for awarding grants, the department shall prioritize programs focused on providing English language skills training to workers for in-demand jobs that require such skills; and provided further, that the commissioner of elementary and secondary education may transfer funds to item 7035-0002 and expend said funds subject to the conditions specified in said item in the general appropriations act for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2026 ....................................................$10,000,000

1596-2515 For an early literacy high dosage tutoring initiative program directed by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education; provided, that said program shall support public schools and districts to partner with providers approved by the department of elementary and secondary education to address pandemic-related learning loss and other identified underperformance in order to support accelerated literacy growth for students in kindergarten to grade 3, inclusive; provided further, that students characterized as below benchmark in grade 1 shall be prioritized; provided further, that funds shall only be awarded to support schools and districts that have adopted a high-quality, evidence-based reading instructional model as defined by the department; provided further, that funds may support activities including, but not limited to: (i) providing early literacy tutoring services for students in kindergarten to grade 3, inclusive, who have not met relevant benchmarks on early literacy screening assessments approved by the department of elementary and secondary education; (ii) statewide coordinating activities to a third party to facilitate high-quality implementation of the program; (iii) studying the impact of the tutoring provided; and (iv) providing foundational skills-focused tutoring that aligns with the research-backed characteristics of effective high-dosage tutoring practices; and provided further, that the department shall prioritize high-dosage tutoring for schools and districts serving a large proportion of high-needs students................................... $25,000,000

1596-2516 For a reserve to support reimbursements to school districts and direct payments to service providers for special education instructional and transportation costs pursuant to section 5A of chapter 71B of the General Laws and item 7061-0012; provided, that reimbursements shall be made in the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2026 for costs incurred in the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2025; and provided further, that funds may be transferred to said item 7061-0012 and expended subject to the conditions specified in said item 7061-0012 of the general appropriations act for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2026 ........................$190,000,000

1595-2522 For a program to provide supplemental grants for school construction projects previously approved for financing by the Massachusetts School Building Authority for projects experiencing extraordinary cost increases of materials due to inflation; provided, that notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, said program shall be made available in addition to amounts previously approved by the authority's board of directors for certain cities, towns and school districts with core program school facility projects in the authority's capital pipeline that have been impacted by unanticipated cost escalations; provided further, that said program shall be used to assist school districts with escalations incurred in connection with school facility construction projects that previously received project scope and funding agreement approval by the authority's board of directors; provided further, that notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the authority shall establish the rules and policies related to said program and the criteria for determining a project's eligibility and the appropriate amount of the supplemental grant; provided further, that the authority shall not award a supplemental grant under this program to cities and towns not in compliance with the multi-family zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws as determined by the executive office of housing and livable communities; provided further, that preference for supplemental grants under this program shall be given to cities and towns that are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing or have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development to be determined in consultation with the executive office of housing and livable communities; provided further, that cities, towns and school districts shall submit budget and project documentation to the authority in a form prescribed by the authority to be eligible for grants from the program funded under this item; provided further, that the authority, with the approval of its board of directors, may waive certain cost cap limits or other grant limits that have been established as part of the program funded under this item; provided further, that the amounts awarded to cities, towns and school districts from this item shall not be calculated as part of the limit in section 7 of chapter 70B of the General Laws on the estimated amount of grants approved by the authority during a fiscal year; and provided further, that not later than May 31, 2026, the authority shall submit a report to the executive office for administration and finance, the joint committee on education and the house and senate committees on ways and means detailing grant award recipients and the amount of the grant awarded for each project........... $50,000,000

Department of Higher Education

1596-2525 For a capital program at public institutions of higher education in the commonwealth; provided, that projects supported under the program shall reduce the deferred maintenance backlog of said institutions; provided further, that said projects may include, but shall not be limited to: (i) building envelope repairs and renovations; (ii) heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems replacement; (iii) Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility compliance projects; (iv) electrical systems repair and replacement; and (v) water and wastewater systems repair and replacement; provided further, that the program shall be administered by the division of capital asset management and maintenance in collaboration with the executive office of education; provided further, that the division of capital asset management and maintenance may expend funds from this item for the defeasance of debt in order to enable projects that reduce campus deferred maintenance backlogs; provided further, that not less than $10,000,000 shall be expended for an expanded nursing simulation lab at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst; provided further, that not less than $4,000,000 shall be expended for a combined health services and public safety facility at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth; provided further, that not less than $10,000,000 shall be expended for laboratory modernization and upgrades at community colleges; provided further, that not less than $3,000,000 shall be expended for capital improvements and infrastructure upgrades at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center at Roxbury Community College; provided further, that not less than $10,000,000 shall be expended for repairs and renovations at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design; provided further, that not less than $6,600,000 shall be expended for debt defeasance, revitalization or adaptive reuse of dormitory housing at Framingham State University; and provided further, that not later than December 1, 2026, the division of capital asset management and maintenance shall submit a report to the joint committee on higher education and the house and senate committees on ways and means that shall include, but not be limited to: (a) the amounts awarded delineated by campus; (b) the amounts awarded delineated by project; (c) the amount of deferred maintenance backlog eliminated by project; and (d) planned spending from this item through June 30, 2028....................................... $175,000,000

TRANSPORTATION

Massachusetts Department of Transportation

1595-2508 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to replenish the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority deficiency fund; provided, that the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority shall notify the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, executive office for administration and finance, house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on transportation not less than 30 days prior to withdrawing funds from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority deficiency fund; and provided further, that not later than June 30, 2025, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority shall submit a written deficiency fund policy to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the executive office for administration and finance, the joint committee on transportation and the house and senate committees on ways and means..................$200,000,000

1596-2503 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in section 4 of chapter 6C of the General Laws for a program of culvert and small bridge modernization, reconstruction, removal, repair, replacement and resilience improvements to culverts and small bridges with a span of not more than 20 feet under procedures established by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation in collaboration with the executive office of energy and environmental affairs; provided, that expenditures from this item may include the costs of engineering, design, permitting, climate change adaptation and resilience and other services essential to projects under this item; provided further, that funds may be expended from this item for matching grants to municipalities for municipally-owned small bridges and culverts; provided further, that funds from this item shall not be expended to municipalities not in compliance with the multi-family zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws as determined by the executive office of housing and livable communities; provided further, that preference for grants shall be awarded to cities and towns that are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing or have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development as determined by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation in consultation with the executive office of housing and livable communities; and provided further, that not later than March 30, 2026, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation shall submit a report to the joint committee on transportation and the house and senate committees on ways and means that shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the criteria used for distributing funds from this item; and (ii) a list and description of projects funded through this item or planned to be funded through this item, including the estimated costs for each project and the expected timeline for completion of each project $25,000,000

1596-2505 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in section 4 of chapter 6C of the General Laws for a program to support grants for workforce and training initiatives at regional transit authorities and support transit improvements across the commonwealth; provided, that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation shall oversee the distribution of grants under this item; and provided further, that not later than March 2, 2026, the department shall submit a report to the joint committee on transportation and the house and senate committees on ways and means that shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the grant criteria used to determine awards; (ii) a list of grant recipients, including the amounts received by each recipient; and (iii) a description of the specific uses by each recipient..........................................................................................................................$25,000,000

1596-2507 For local one-time transportation projects.................................. $100,000

1596-2520 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in section 4 of chapter 6C of the General Laws for a program to support grants for capital infrastructure improvements and equipment and facilities upgrades at regional transit authorities to support transit improvements across the commonwealth; provided further, that projects approved under this item shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the purchase of new buses, including electric or hybrid buses; (ii) upgrades to electrical infrastructure to facilitate charging of electric buses; (iii) capital projects to support microtransit initiatives and last mile transportation solutions; and (iv) improvements to bus stops and stations to promote pedestrian safety, user comfort, and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance; provided further, that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation shall oversee the distribution of funds; and provided further, that not later than March 1, 2026, the department shall submit a report to the joint committee on transportation and the house and senate committees on ways and means that shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the grant criteria used to determine awards; (ii) a list of grant recipients, including the amounts received by each recipient; and (iii) a description of the specific uses by each recipient $50,000,000

1596-2521 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in said section 4 of said chapter 6C for a program to support improvements to water transportation infrastructure across the commonwealth; provided, that funds shall be expended for projects that enable transitioning seasonal ferry services operated by or under contract with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to year-round operations; provided further, that not less than $16,000,000 shall be expended for the procurement of ferries to support and maintain quality water transportation services in the commonwealth; provided further, that said ferries shall be procured by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation but may be operated by service providers under contract with the department; provided further, that said ferries shall be utilized to expand commuter ferry services to communities that may include, but not be limited to: (i) the East Boston section of the city of Boston; (ii) the city of Chelsea; (iii) the city of Lynn; (iv) the city known as the town of Winthrop; (v) the city of Quincy; and (vi) the city of Salem; provided further, that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation shall prioritize expanded service for cities and towns that are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing and have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development including, but not limited to, the multifamily zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws; and provided further, that funds shall be expended for port infrastructure necessary to maintain and expand ferry services statewide............................... $20,000,000

1596-2523 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in section 4 of chapter 6C of the General Laws for the construction and reconstruction of municipal ways as described in clause (b) of the second paragraph of said section 4 of said chapter 6C; provided, that a city or town shall comply with the procedures established by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation; provided further, that a city or town may expend, without further appropriation, for these projects, amounts not in excess of the amount provided to the city or town under this item upon preliminary notice of such amount, which shall be provided by the department to the city or town not later than March 2, 2026; provided further, that the commonwealth shall reimburse a city or town under this item, subject to the availability of funds as provided in section 9G of chapter 29 of the General Laws, within 30 days after receipt by the department of a request for reimbursement from the city or town, which shall include certification by the city or town that actual expenses have been incurred on projects eligible for reimbursement under this item and that the work on such eligible projects has been completed to the satisfaction of the city or town according to the specifications of the project and in compliance with applicable laws and procedures established by the department; provided further, that not less than $82,500,000 shall be distributed using a formula based on each municipality's population, locally-owned road miles and employment; provided further, that not less than $82,500,000 shall be distributed using a formula based on each municipality's share of road mileage; and provided further, that funds from this item shall not be expended to municipalities not in compliance with the multi-family zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws as determined by the executive office of housing and livable communities ....................................$165,000,000

1596-2524 For improvements to the commuter rail system infrastructure of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority; provided, that the authority shall consult and receive approval from the executive office for administration and finance on the projects to be funded by this appropriation; provided further, that in distributing funds from this item, the authority shall prioritize projects that advance a rail system that is fully integrated into the commonwealth's transportation system and designed to make the system more productive, equitable and decarbonized; provided further, that funds shall be expended to facilitate the electrification of commuter rail; provided further, that preference for improvement projects, including, but not limited to, improvements to commuter rail stations, shall be awarded to cities and towns that are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing and have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development including, but not limited to, the multifamily zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws; and provided further, that not later than April 1, 2026, the authority shall submit a report to the joint committee on transportation and the house and senate committees on ways and means that shall include, but not be limited to: (a) the criteria used for distributing funds from this item; and (b) a list and description of the projects funded through this item or planned to be funded through this item, including the estimated cost for each project and the expected timeline for the completion of each project............................... $50,000,000

1596-2526 For an operating transfer to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund established in section 4 of chapter 6C of the General Laws for a program to support grants for capital microtransit initiatives and last mile transportation solutions including, but not limited to, providers that: (i) expand mobility options for rural communities; (ii) extend service to veterans, working families, older adults, people with disabilities and low-income individuals; (iii) provide mobility choices to people with mobility needs; and (iv) extend equitable and affordable transportation mobility improvements in the commonwealth; provided, that preference for grants shall be awarded to cities and towns that are taking meaningful steps to produce new housing and have adopted best practices to promote sustainable housing development including, but not limited to, the multifamily zoning requirement established in section 3A of chapter 40A of the General Laws .................$10,000,000

EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE

Reserves

1596-2026 For a reserve for publicly incurred transportation costs associated with the 2026 World Cup matches hosted in Massachusetts; provided, that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation shall prioritize commuter rail infrastructure and service improvements to Foxborough that increase service capacity, frequency and reliability...............$5,000,000

SECTION 3. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, income surtax revenue, as defined in section 2BBBBBB of chapter 29 of the General Laws, collected in the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2024 but certified after July 20, 2024, shall be transferred to the Education and Transportation Innovation and Capital Fund established in section 2DDDDDD of said chapter 29 from the Student Opportunity Act Investment Fund established in section 35RRR of chapter 10 of the General Laws, not later than 30 days after the effective date of this act.