By Brooke Thomson
President & CEO

The Massachusetts Senate’s proposed $63.3 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2027 is “responsible and future-focused” the Senate President told a gathering of AIM members last week.

Senate President Karen Spilka, D-Ashland said the chamber’s blueprint would increase spending by $2.3 billion over this year without imposing new taxes or fees. The plan would boost the commonwealth’s Stabilization Fund to reach a record $8.2 billion by the end of FY27.

President Spilka acknowledged that “this solid budget proposal does not change the fact that we have significant clouds forming on the horizon.” She said elected officials “have heard from all of you loud and clear” that cost pressures from energy, housing, workforce shortages are real.

“We are monitoring all of this In the Senate, because we believe we must work to keep the ship stable in these shifting seas by responsibly maintaining a strong fiscal foundation while protecting our residents, investing in our values, and keeping taxes stable,” she said.

“We have also been pleased to work with on Massachusetts’ economic competitiveness – which has yielded the largest tax relief bill in a generation, record investment in cradle-to-career education, ambitious economic and IT bond bills, and leveraging our robust stabilization fund.”

President Spilka said the Senate has been focused on affordability for business owners and residents. At the top of the priority list is housing.

She said the Senate is making strategic investments to strengthen housing stability across the commonwealth. That includes accelerating housing production statewide by streamlining local permitting processes to promote new housing construction and ease zoning barriers, building on the momentum from the Affordable Homes Act.

The Senate’s recent Fair Share supplemental budget also created a new sales‑tax exemption on building materials for qualified multifamily housing projects.

On other affordability issues:

• On health-care costs, President Spilka said the Senate has generated reforms aimed at reducing prescription drug prices and strengthening oversight in the many facets of the health-care system.
• On energy, she said the Senate is committed to balancing climate leadership, economic competitiveness and cost savings in our forthcoming energy bill.
• On education and training, President Spilka said that the Senate has increased funding for community colleges, state universities, and the vocational-technical system to close skill gaps and support emerging sectors. The chamber has also made community college free for all through MassEducate.

President Spilka also used her remarks to underscore the Legislature’s opposition to a potential ballot question that would reduce the state income tax from 5 percent to 4 percent.

“At a time when maintaining our competitive edge requires a careful balancing act, this proposal takes a sledgehammer to a process that is better off being finely-tuned with a scalpel…and I believe we will all be poorer as a result – if not in money than in the resources that make our state so successful,” she told the AIM audience.

“I personally remain cautiously optimistic about our future, in large part because of the amazing partnership we have with the business community – thanks to AIM’s efforts. I’m excited to continue moving forward together, confident in our strengths and committed to staying ahead of tomorrow’s challenges.”