House to vote on $425M bill that would restrict emergency shelter eligibility

The House will vote on a $425 million emergency shelter system bill Thursday that would temporarily create "stricter eligibility requirements, along with increased security measures." House Speaker Ronald Mariano said the reforms could help ensure the program can endure financially in the long term.

The House Ways and Means Committee began polling its latest draft of Gov. Maura Healey's mid-year spending proposal on Wednesday morning, teeing it up for debate in a Thursday formal session.

Mariano's office said the committee bill adopts the administration's recommendation on so-called presumptive eligibility by allowing the state to verify eligibility for shelter benefits during the application process by "requiring applicants to prove Massachusetts residency and an intent to stay in Massachusetts by providing certain documentation."

It also authorizes the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to "require benefits to be provided only to families who are residents of Massachusetts and who are United States citizens; persons lawfully admitted for permanent residence; or otherwise permanently residing under the color of law in the U.S.," the speaker's office said, but also requires that temporary respite sites be made available to non-eligible families for up to 30 days upon arrival in Massachusetts.

There are also measures to reduce the maximum length in an emergency shelter from nine to six consecutive months, and to remove the availability of two 90-day extensions for certain situations.

State housing officials would be allowed, under the House bill, to deem families that have income exceeding 200% of the Federal Poverty Level for three consecutive months to be ineligible for shelter benefits.

"Over the past several years, as the population of the emergency shelter system has grown, the House has attempted to uphold the commonwealth’s right to shelter law while also being mindful of the long-term fiscal sustainability of the program," House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz said. "The reforms contained in this proposal will ensure that right to shelter is maintained by further capping the length of stay and verifying eligibility, while also enacting stricter background checks on those who enter the shelter system to better protect the families who need these services the most."

On the safety front, the House bill proposes to require that each individual adult applicant or beneficiary in the emergency assistance system disclose all prior criminal convictions in Massachusetts and any other jurisdiction, except for convictions that are sealed or were expunged. It also would require CORI background checks for each individual adult applicant or beneficiary prior to shelter placement.

The last line of the House bill would impose a rigid cap on the number of families served by the emergency assistance system at 4,000 for 2026. There were 6,012 families enrolled in the system as of Jan. 30.

Ways and Means Committee members were given until 10:45 a.m. to vote on Michlewitz's recommendation to report the draft favorably. The House is expected to debate it in a formal session Thursday.

This is a developing story. It will be updated when more information becomes available.