Amendment #892 to H3900

Equitable Shelter

Mr. Honan of Boston moves to amend House Bill 3900 in line-item 7004-0101 by inserting at the end thereof the following: “Provided further; to ensure that homeless families are receiving both quality professional care and living in Emergency Assistance shelters that are not substandard, The Department of Housing and Community Development is instructed to utilize additional funds from FY 22 levels to be equitably distributed to those currently contracted Emergency Assistance family shelter providers with shelter operating gaps identified by 1) FY 21 Uniform Financial Report (UFR) submitted to Operating Service Division operating deficits are attributable to 2) shelter maintenance and unit supply costs, 3) unit rental rates that are not aligned to regional fair market rents (FMR), and 4) professional shelter staff (social workers) compensation that is not equal to compensation and benefits rates determined by geographic region for similar professional positions, as denoted by the United State Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Department of Housing and Community Development is further instructed to report back to the legislature’s joint committee on housing with detailed fund allocations to insure that these supplemental funds have been equitably distributed based on those four factors; prior appropriation continued.”