(Framingham) Last week, Representative Jack Patrick Lewis voted in favor of the Massachusetts House of Representatives’s Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget. Funded at $63.41billion, the House’s FY27 budget responds to the needs of residents, provides record support for the Commonwealth’s cities and towns, and among many critical investments, includes significant funding for education, transportation, health care, housing, and workforce development.
“This is the right budget for right now,” noted Representative Jack Patrick Lewis (Framingham). “With this budget, the Massachusetts House is responding to the crises that our communities face with vigor while also maintaining financial flexibility in the face of a reckless and unpredictable federal administration. In addition, we thwarted reactionary efforts to cut our budget writ large and abandon those that depend on essential services. I thank Speaker Mariano, Chairman Michlewitz, and House Ways & Means for their diligence throughout this process.”
Representative Lewis secured significant state aid for the 7th Middlesex District, which covers Ashland and a portion of Framingham. In “Chapter 70” education funding, the budget includes $1,431,680 and $450,880 for Framingham and Ashland, respectively, which embodies 1.6% and 3.8% increases from the previous fiscal year. In Unrestricted General Government Aid, Framingham received $93,606 and Ashland received $12,724, both a 1% increase from Fiscal Year 2026.
The FY27 budget includes a 2.8% increase in total local aid over last year's final budget, and an over $2,500,000 increase over the governor's proposal. It also includes a 34.75% increase for the Special Ed Circuit Breaker compared to FY26 and a $152 million increase from the Special Education Circuit Breaker Reserve over the governor's proposed budget.
The budget uses Fair Share money, which is collected from ultrarich incomes, to increase school aid to $160/per pupil, up from $150/per pupil. It also includes $10 million for school districts that have experienced an unexpected decline in school enrollment, in some cases due to ICE activity.
Representative Lewis also advocated for several organizations and other district-area projects:
“As a result of the Trump Administration’s sweeping federal funding cuts and reckless trade war, as well as two proposed ballot questions that seek to cut the Commonwealth’s revenues by more than $5 billion annually, this budget has come during a period of significant economic uncertainty. That’s why I’m incredibly proud of the investments that this budget makes despite those challenges, from funding for free school meals and for the final year of the Student Opportunity Act, to robust support for the MBTA, to nearly $10 billion for cities and towns across the Commonwealth,” expressed House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano (Quincy). “I want to thank Chairman Michlewitz and the Members of the House Committee on Ways and Means for all their work this budget cycle, as well as all my colleagues in the House for working to ensure that this budget delivers for every community across Massachusetts.”
“This budget builds off the successes of the last few years by prioritizing our constituents. Whether it is greater investments into programs like housing stability, public transportation, or early education, these initiatives are a reflection of our shared values,” expressed Representative Aaron Michlewitz, Chair of the House Committee on Ways & Means (Boston). “By reinvesting in the people of the Commonwealth, we will continue make our economy more competitive and equitable for years to come. I want to thank Speaker Mariano for his leadership during this budget process, as well as our Assistant Vice-Chair Kipp Diggs, and the entire membership of the House for their thoughts and guidance over the last few months to make this a more successful and well-rounded budget.”
Due to responsible fiscal management, the House’s FY27 budget is balanced, and makes significant investments across several issue areas, without needing to include new taxes or tax increases. The House budget also strengthens the Stabilization Fund, which is set to reach $8.39 billion, reinforcing the state’s bond rating to keep borrowing costs down and save taxpayer money, while protecting the Commonwealth’s long-term fiscal health.
Fair Share Investments
The budget that passed today includes $2.7 billion in investments for transportation and education initiatives supported through funding generated by the Fair Share ballot initiative that voters approved in November of 2022, which established a surtax of 4 percent on annual income above $1 million.
Local Aid and Education
The FY27 House budget delivers nearly $10 billion in aid to cities and towns across the Commonwealth, representing a $477 million increase over the FY26 budget. The budget funds Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA) at $1.33 billion and Chapter 70 education funding at $7.65 billion. The budget also funds the final year of a six-year implementation plan for the Student Opportunity Act (SOA), which was enacted in 2019 to modernize the state’s school funding formula to better support districts and expand resources for students, particularly those with the greatest needs. The budget increases the minimum aid total to $160 per pupil.
Public Transportation
The FY27 House budget includes $470 million for the MBTA, including $40 million for the MBTA Academy which supports workforce training and recruiting. The budget continues to support water transportation and income-eligible reduced fares.
Early Education and Care
Continuing the House’s longstanding commitment towards investing in the early education and care (EEC) workforce, the FY27 House budget includes $1.86 billion, $157.2 million more than in FY26, to sustain recent rate increases and other historic investments in child care access and affordability across the Commonwealth. This investment is in addition to the Fair Share supplemental budget that was recently passed by the House, which included $38.7 million to reduce the income-eligible waitlist, $8 million for child care for child care providers, and $7.5 million for an EEC educator loan forgiveness program.
Public Higher Education
The House budget allocates $866.5 million for the University of Massachusetts system, $419.8 million for community colleges, and $407.9 million for state universities. Other higher education investments include:
Health and Human Services
The House budget includes $22.41 billion for MassHealth, and invests in primary care rates and behavioral health.
The House budget extends the Health Connector’s ConnectorCare Pilot program, which offers lower premiums, no deductibles and reduced co-pays, until the end of 2027. The program currently enrolls 49,000 residents. As of January 1, 2026, residents with incomes of only up to 400% of Federal Poverty Level (FPL) were eligible because of the expiration of the ACA tax credits. The Pilot Program included in this budget extends coverage to those with an income of up to 500% of the FPL.
The House’s FY27 budget invests in the human services workforce, which provides services to our most vulnerable residents, by including $175 million for Chapter 257 rates for health and human service workers, and $132 million for rate increases for nursing facilities. The House budget also extends the Personal Care Attendant Program Working group and mandates that any additional cuts to the program can only occur with the agreement of the working group.
Speaker Mariano and the House Committee on Ways & Means introduced their FY27 budget proposal on April 15, 2026, following a review of the Governor’s proposal and a series of public hearings. The budget passed the House of Representatives 149-9 and now goes to the Senate for consideration.
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