Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts seeks applications for Community Enrichment and Organization Development Grants

FITCHBURG, Mass. - The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts (CFNCM), an organization serving the charitable interests of donors throughout 33 communities in the north central region of the Commonwealth, is now accepting online grant applications for its Community Enrichment and Organizational Development Programs.

"As we all work to put the pandemic behind us, community enrichment projects can help restore communities, reinvigorate civic engagement and renew our collective efforts to improve the quality of life in the region," said Stephen Adams, president of the Community Foundation. "The Community Foundation is also looking forward to helping local nonprofits re-orient their operations to a post-COVID world."

The CFNCM is accepting online grant applications through August 20, and award decisions will be finalized in late September. Applications can be submitted by visiting the Community Foundation website at cfncm.org/Nonprofits/Apply-for-A-Grant/Community-Enrichment.

Examples of projects that would be considered for Community Enrichment grants include those:

• Promoting community development
• Building or strengthening artistic, historical or cultural assets
• Advancing community cohesion and civic participation

Last year's Community Enrichment grant recipients included the Boys & Girls Club of Fitchburg, More Than Conquerors and NewVue Communities in Fitchburg.

Projects that would be considered for Organizational Development grants should strengthen and increase the operational and strategic capabilities of local nonprofits through:

• Strategic assessments and plans
• Succession plans
• Board development
• Staff development
• Mergers or restructuring assessments

Last year's Organizational Development grant recipients included Beacon of Hope Community Services in Leominster, Habitat for Humanity North Central Massachusetts, Literacy Volunteers of the Montachusett Area and the Stevens Memorial Library in Ashburnham.

Applications must include a description of how the grant funds will be used, why the proposed project matters to North Central Massachusetts, measurable objectives and other details about the project.

The Community Foundation's grant programs seek to improve the quality of life in North Central Massachusetts by supporting initiatives that have a capacity for long-term viability, offer thoughtful plans of action and outcome measurements and leverage collaborations. To support these programs with a donation, visit donate.cfncm.org.

About Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts
The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts manages charitable funds established by individuals, families, businesses and non-profit organizations. We help philanthropists invest in the communities and causes they care passionately about. For more information, visit cfncm.org.

Local Legislators Announces Complete Street Grant Funding

BOSTON- Senator Anne Gobi (D-Spencer) and Representative Jonathan Zlotnik (D-Gardner) are pleased to announce today that the town of Winchendon has been awarded funding in the amount of $399,831 through the MassDOT Complete Streets Funding Program. The funding will go towards redesigning the Maple Street/Central street intersection to close network gaps and create connectivity to and between public amenities and vital services by implementing a lane diet and new pedestrian and bicyclist accommodations.

"This funding, projects of this nature, are important to ensure that residents have safe and accessible options to travel and enjoy their local community," Senator Gobi said. "By increasing connectivity and reducing traffic congestion we make our streets safer for all travelers while increasing accessibility."

"I am very excited for the Town of Winchendon to receive this funding," commented Representative Zlotnik on the announcement. "The Complete Streets Program has been helpful in assisting small towns with important infrastructure improvement projects which tend to be more expensive."

The MassDOT Complete Streets Funding Program provides technical assistance and construction funding to eligible municipalities. Eligible municipalities must pass a Complete Streets Policy and develop a Prioritization Plan. Complete Streets improvements may be large scale, such as corridor-wide improvements that include a separated bicycle lane, new crosswalks and new bus stops; or a small scale improvement, such as a new bus shelter to encourage transit use. Other Complete Street project examples include improved street lighting, minor changes to traffic signal timings, new bicycle or pedestrian facilities, a median refuge island, or improved connection to transit.

For more information, please contact Senator Gobi's office at (617) 722-1540.

Audit Finds No Deficiencies in Spending of Federal CARES Act Funding by Greenfield Community College

Today's audit is the first in a series that will examine state spending of COVID-19 federal funding

BOSTON (July 12, 2021) - Today, the Office of State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump (OSA) released an audit of Greenfield Community College (GCC) that found the college's use of federal assistance under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act has been consistent with federal guidelines. The CARES Act was enacted by Congress on March 27, 2020 and provided $30.75 billion for an Education Stabilization Fund (ESF) to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the audit, which examined March 1, 2020 through September 30, 2020, GCC received $1,070,523 in CARES Act grants and spent $709,249.

Today's audit is the first in a series of upcoming reports that will review state spending of COVID-19 federal funding.

"The CARES Act provided an economic boost and lifeline to so many of our public sector entities, including Greenfield Community College and its students. Now, as our state continues to recover from COVID-19, public trust demands that we provide an honest assessment of the appropriateness of state spending of these federal dollars," Bump said. "I commend GCC for its appropriate administration of these funds and for taking this process seriously."

Under the CARES Act, the United States Department of Education (US DOE) awarded grants to provide local educational agencies, institutions of higher education, and other education-related entities with emergency assistance funds. The Massachusetts Department of Education received $50.8 million from the Governor's Emergency Education Fund which it then distributed to elementary, secondary, and higher education recipients. The funds were meant to provide both institutional support for emergency assistance, as well as to students who have significantly impacted by COVID-19. Today's audit found GCC effectively and appropriately administered its CARES Act grants.

The audit found that initially two of GCC's CARES Act expenses which were used to recover previous lost revenue, were considered unallowable under US DOE spending guidance. However, after the guidance was modified and updated on March, 19, 2021, GCC's transactions became retroactively acceptable.

In addition, unrelated to the examination of CARES Act spending, the audit notes GCC had not established a program to ensure all IT system users had received IT security training, which is required under state regulations. The audit encourages GCC to require IT security training for all new employees and annually for all personnel.

GCC is a member of the Massachusetts public higher education system, which consists of 15 community colleges, nine state universities, and five University of Massachusetts campuses. GCC was founded in 1962, and its current campus was constructed and opened in 1974. In the 2019–2020 academic year, 3,409 students were enrolled at GCC, and as of December 2020, GCC offered 76 degree and certificate programs to students.

The full audit report is available here.

Massachusetts Legislature Passes FY22 Budget

The Massachusetts State Legislature on Friday unanimously passed a $48.07 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22). This budget maintains fiscal responsibility, does not cut services, and makes targeted investments to address emerging needs, safeguard the health and wellness of the most vulnerable populations and ensure residents will benefit equitably as the state recovers from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This budget not only provides necessary funding to our communities and the many agencies that provide critical services it also plans for the future by placing funds in stabilization," commented Senator Anne Gobi (D-Spencer), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Higher Education and a member of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. "I also expect that this balanced budget will have a positive effect on our credit rating. I am also appreciative to my colleagues who supported my amendments that directly benefit the district."

"With this budget, we can continue our work of getting back to better with a focus on increasing resources for services that are critical to everyday life in the Commonwealth," stated Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). "This compromise proposal, which does not draw from our rainy day fund, helps prepare us for the road ahead by investing in mental and behavioral health services, Family Resource Centers, early education and care, K-12, and more, along with providing additional supports for vulnerable families. I want to thank my partner, House Speaker Mariano, as well as Senator Rodrigues, Representative Michlewitz, the members and staff of Ways and Means as well as my colleagues and their staffs for their collaboration in advancing this proposal."

Taking into consideration strong tax revenue performance in Fiscal Year 2021 (FY 2021), the final FY22 conference report increases revenue assumptions by $4.2 billion over the December consensus revenue projection for a new tax revenue projection of $34.35 billion. The FY22 budget does not make a withdrawal and instead transfers funds into the Stabilization Fund, projecting an estimated balance of approximately $5.8 billion for this crucial 'rainy day' fund at the end of the fiscal year.

Notably, the Legislature provides substantial funds in the FY22 budget to invest in the Commonwealth's long-term obligations. Prioritizing funding for education, the new Student Opportunity Act Investment fund was funded at $350 million to be utilized in the coming years for the implementation of the state's landmark Student Opportunity Act (SOA). Additionally, a supplemental payment of $250 million was transferred to the Pension Liability Fund to reduce the Commonwealth's pension liability.

As a cornerstone of the Commonwealth's equitable recovery, the FY22 budget protects access to educational opportunity and charts a path forward for students, families, educators, and institutions. The budget maintains the Legislature's commitment to implementing the Student Opportunity Act by FY 2027. The conference report proposal fully funds the first year of the SOA consistent with the $5.503 billion local aid agreement reached in March, amounting to an increase of $220 million over FY21.

Despite the uncertainty created by the pandemic, this increased level of investment represents a 1/6th implementation of SOA rates and ensures that school districts across the Commonwealth have adequate and equitable resources to provide high quality educational opportunities for all students. The FY22 budget also includes a $40 million reserve consistent with the March local aid agreement to provide additional aid to districts experiencing increases in student enrollment compared to October 2020.

The budget invests in higher education allocating $571 million for the University of Massachusetts system, $315 million for community colleges, and $291 million for state universities. The budget also includes $130 million in scholarship funding and funds the community colleges SUCCESS Fund at $10.5 million and the STEM Starter Academy at $4.75 million.

The budget also includes large investments in labor and economic development, such as the creation of a trust fund dedicated to job training for the offshore wind industry to be administered by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center. This budget makes an initial deposit into this fund of $13 million to establish and grow technical training programs in our public higher education system and vocational-technical institutions. The fund will also prioritize grants and scholarships to adult learning providers, labor organizations, and public educational institutions to provide workers with greater access to these trainings.

Other education investments include:

• $388.4 million for the Special Education Circuit Breaker, reimbursing school districts for the high cost of educating students with disabilities at the statutorily required 75% reimbursement rate
• $154.6 million for reimbursing school districts at 75% for costs incurred when students leave to attend charter schools
• $82.2 million for regional school transportation
• $50 million for Adult Basic Education
• $27.9 million for the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (METCO) program
• $6 million for Social Emotional Learning Grants to help K-12 schools bolster social emotional learning supports for students, including $1M for a new pilot program to provide mental health screenings for K-12 students
• $4 million for Rural School Aid

"We could not have predicted the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic but over the past 16 months we have done our best to prepare for the future, and I'm proud the FY22 budget continues that work by making robust short- and long-term investments in mental and behavioral health services, education, local health departments, and so much more," said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means and member of the FY22 Budget Conference Committee. "I sincerely thank Senate President Spilka, Ways and Means Chair Rodrigues, and the rest of my colleagues in the Legislature for their work supporting all residents of the Commonwealth, especially those most in need."

"Today's passage of the FY 22 Budget is a reflection of sound and prudent decisions made by the Legislature to move the Commonwealth's economy forward," said Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante, Vice Chair of House Ways & Means (D-Gloucester). "This year's budget continues in that tradition by investing, protecting and growing jobs in our film industry, depositing funds into the Stabilization Fund and Accelerating Payments into the Pension Fund, all while protecting our most vulnerable by increasing the Commonwealth's investment in mental health and the student opportunity act. I want to congratulate Speaker Mariano and Chair Michlewitz for a job well done."

This budget supports working families by addressing the increasing costs of caregiving for low-income families by converting the existing tax deductions for young children, elderly or disabled dependents and business-related dependent care expenses into refundable tax credits. These tax credits will benefit low-income families who have little or no personal income tax liability and cannot claim the full value of the existing deductions. The conversion to a refundable tax credit would provide an additional $16 million to over 85,000 families each year. Coupled with the expanded Child Tax Credit and the Child and Dependent Care tax credits under the federal American Rescue Plan Act, these credits will help lift families out of poverty and support low-income working parents and caregivers across the Commonwealth.

The FY22 budget builds on the success of last year's efforts to tackle 'deep poverty' with a 20 per cent increase to Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) and Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled and Children (EAEDC) benefits over December 2020 levels, ensuring families receive the economic supports they need to live, work and provide stability for their children. Further, the final budget repeals the asset limit for Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Traditionally, asset limits on assistance programs further expose those who are already financially vulnerable to greater economic hardship. While families are recovering from the impacts of COVID-19, it is vital to make assistance programs accessible and effective, and removing the asset limit allows families to save for education, job training, reliable transportation, home expenses, and other emergency needs.

Other children and family investments include:

• $30.5 million for Emergency Food Assistance to ensure that citizens in need can navigate the historic levels of food insecurity caused by COVID-19
• $7.5 million for grants to our Community Foundations to support communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic
• $5 million for the Secure Jobs Connect program, providing job placement resources and assistance for homeless individuals
• $4.2 million for the Office of the Child Advocate, including $1M for the establishment and operation of a state center on child wellness and trauma
• $2.5 million for Children Advocacy Centers

To help families get back to work, the FY22 conference report includes $820 million for the early education sector, including $20 million to increase rates for early education providers, $15 million for Massachusetts Head Start programs, $10 million for the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative to expand public preschool, and $9 million to cover the cost of fees for parents receiving subsidized early education in calendar year 2021.

The FY22 budget provides resources to help with housing stability, including $150 million for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program to expand access to affordable housing, $85 million for grants to local housing authorities, $22M for the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition Program and $8 million for Housing Consumer Education Centers to help administer nearly $1 billion in federal housing relief.

"This budget represents an essential step forward as our Commonwealth looks ahead to recovering from the pandemic and rebuilding a strong and equitable economy for Massachusetts families, businesses and communities," said Senator Jason Lewis, Assistant Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means and Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Education. "I'm especially proud that this budget invests substantially in Massachusetts K-12 public schools and in early education and child care, which form a key pillar of economic opportunity for millions of working parents and families across the state."

"I'd like to say how proud we are to have passed the budget today," said Representative Paul J. Donato, Assistant Vice Chair of House Ways & Means (D-Medford). "We are growing our rainy day fund as well as the aid of vital state programs, such as the Chapter 70 program which provides financial support to public elementary and secondary schools, as well as funding for transportation, infrastructure and economic development projects. I look forward to seeing the results of this vital funding in the near future."

The budget makes the state's film tax credit permanent and requires an increase in the percentage of production expenses or principal photography days in the Commonwealth from 50 per cent to 75 per cent. The film tax credit was set to expire in January 2023. The budget also includes a disability employment tax credit for employers that hire employees with a disability.

To ensure long-term fiscal responsibility, FY22 budget repeals three ineffective tax expenditures as recommended by the Tax Expenditure Review Commission (TERC), namely the exemption of income from the sale of certain patents, the medical device tax credit, and the harbor maintenance tax credit, effective January 1, 2022. The TERC found that these tax expenditures are either obsolete, fail to provide a meaningful incentive, or fail to justify their cost to the Commonwealth. The TERC was created as part of a Senate budget initiative in Fiscal Year 2019.

"While it took some extra time to produce, this budget has been worth the wait," said House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. (R-North Reading). "We prioritized our spending to address the needs of the Commonwealth, investing in our long-term obligations while also building our reserves to historic highs to mitigate future revenue shortfalls. The budget balances present day needs and future obligations, whether they be educational funding or the pension obligations we face down the road. The budget also takes an important step forward in addressing the rights of sexual assault survivors by requiring all previously untested investigatory evidence kits to be tested within 180 days, building on the important reforms we enacted three years ago to assist survivors."

"Traveling the road to a state budget for Fiscal Year 2022 has been an odyssey filled with challenge and uncertainty, but by working together we have arrived at a spending document free of broad-based tax increases and stabilization fund withdrawals," stated Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester). "Now, with the acceptance of this conference committee report, we are on a path to support important priorities like education, regional school transportation, public health, and support for our cities and towns, while boosting out stabilization fund and other reserves to provide stability and continuity for the future."

"The investments we are making throughout the Commonwealth move us closer to our goal of ensuring no one gets left behind in our recovery efforts," said Senator Patrick O'Connor (R-Weymouth). "By investing in education, infrastructure, public health, housing, and more, we are investing in the livelihoods of our children, families, seniors, and small businesses. I am proud to have worked alongside my colleagues on the conference committee in a bipartisan fashion to make our state stronger and improve the quality of life for everyone that calls Massachusetts home."

"This budget reflects a bipartisan collaboration that funds the most important programs in our Commonwealth," said Representative Todd Smola (R-Warren). "Our commitment to local aid and education continues to be a primary focus and we are adding significant dollars to our stabilization fund, which provides us greater financial security for the future. This budget supports essential services and resources that are critically important given the challenges of the last year."

The Legislature's FY22 budget confronts the frontline health care impacts of the pandemic to navigate the challenges posed by COVID-19. It also sustains support for the state's safety net by funding MassHealth at a total of $18.98 billion, thereby providing over 2 million of the Commonwealth's children, seniors, and low-income residents access to comprehensive health care coverage. It also invests $15 million to support local and regional boards of health as they continue to work on the front lines against the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Understanding that the pandemic has been a stressor on mental and behavioral health, the FY22 budget invests $175.6 million for substance use disorder and intervention services provided by the Bureau of Substance Addiction Services. It also invests $12.5 million to support a student telebehavioral health pilot, public awareness campaigns, loan forgiveness for mental health clinicians, and initiatives to mitigate emergency department boardings for individuals in need of behavioral health support, as well as $10 million for Programs of Assertive Community Treatment (PACT) grants to provide intensive, community-based behavioral health services for adolescents.

Other health care and public health investments include:

• $98.4 million for children's mental health services, including $3.9M for the Massachusetts Child Psychiatric Access Program (MCPAP) and MCPAP for Moms to address mental health needs of pregnant and postpartum women
• $25 million for Family Resource Centers (FRCs) to grow and improve the mental health resources and programming available to families
• $56.1 million for domestic violence prevention services
• $40.8 million for early intervention services, to ensure supports are accessible and available to infants and young toddlers with developmental delays and disabilities, including funds to support health equity initiatives

To support economic development, the FY22 budget increases access to high quality and reliable broadband—which is crucial for businesses, students and families—by moving the duties of the Wireless and Broadband Development Division to the Department of Telecommunications, which is working to facilitate access to broadband, and has the institutional ability and knowledge to address broadband access issues. The budget also includes a $17 million transfer to the Workforce Competitiveness Trust fund, $15.4 million for Career Technical Institutes, and $9.5 million for one-stop career centers to support economic recovery.

Other investments in economic and workforce development include:

• $15 million for the Community Empowerment and Reinvestment Grant Program
• $6 million for Regional Economic Development Organizations to support economic growth in all regions of the state
• $2.5 million for the Massachusetts Cybersecurity Innovation Fund, including $1.5 million for new regional security operation centers, which will partner with community colleges and state universities to provide cybersecurity workforce training to students and cybersecurity services to municipalities, non-profits, and small businesses

To protect residents of the Commonwealth, the FY22 budget codifies and expands the existing Governor's task force on hate crimes to advise on issues relating to hate crimes, ways to prevent hate crimes and how best to support victims of hate crimes. The conference report makes the task force permanent and expands its membership to include members of the Legislature and an appointee from the Attorney General. The conference report also contains a provision that supports immigrants who are victims of criminal activity or human trafficking.

The budget also authorizes funds from the Massachusetts Cybersecurity Innovation Fund to be used for monitoring and detection of threat activity in order to investigate or mitigate cybersecurity incidents. In order to proactively combat threats and attacks, the budget provides funding for a public-private partnership with the goal of engaging educational institutions to jointly expand the training, employment and business development in cyber fields in Massachusetts through a combination of regionalized instruction and business outreach, state-wide shared resources, and real-life simulations for cyber training and business development.

Having been passed by the House and Senate, the legislation now goes to Governor Baker for his signature.

Gobi Amendment Reimburses Lost Funds to MassWildlife

BOSTON (July 9, 2021) - Senator Anne Gobi (D-Spencer), Co-Chair of the Massachusetts Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus and past Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture, fought successfully for the inclusion of an amendment to the FY22 state budget aimed at addressing lost revenue that the state is failing to reimburse to the Massachusetts Division of Fish and Wildlife. The bipartisan amendment targets the nearly $1 million/year the agency forfeits each year by providing free hunting and fishing licenses to residents aged over 70 that is not currently being reimbursed by the state and ensures that these funds are appropriated annually from the General Fund.

Gobi had this to say on the amendment's acceptance in the conference committee report, "Offering free licenses to those over a certain age is the right thing to do, especially now when we want people to enjoy the outdoors. Our sportsmen and women play a critical role in conservation, and the fees from licenses make sure that land is set aside for all types of outdoor recreation. Reimbursing the lost revenue is also the right thing to do, and I am proud that our body recognized and prioritized these important agencies in this budget."

"The work of MassWildlife benefits all residents of Massachusetts," says Emily Myron, policy manager at The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts. "It conserves and manages lands that provide habitat for our most imperiled and iconic species, recreational opportunities, and clean air, water and carbon sequestration, as well as hosts educational programs that inspire residents of all ages. The impacts of climate change and the pandemic have made this work even more essential. We are grateful to the legislature for recognizing MassWildlife's important role and for working to close its funding gap."

Massachusetts Division of Fish and Wildlife (MassWildlife) provides free fishing and hunting licenses to residents over 70 years of age, but is not reimbursed for this loss in revenue. As a result, the agency is losing approximately $1 million per year, and that loss is expected to increase as the 70+ population continues to grow. At the same time, MassWildlife is reimbursed each year by the state to offset losses associated with discounted fishing and hunting licenses offered to people ages 65-69. This amendment addresses this inconsistency while simultaneously raising desperately-needed dedicated funds for this important agency, tasked with overseeing sportsmen and women's activities while conserving and restoring critical habitat.

In addition to this the conference committee report saw the inclusion of $1million for the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, a significant boost for MassWildlife that will enable them to continue their work on behalf of Commonwealth residents.

For more information on the amendment or budget process, please contact Senator Gobi's office by email at Anne.Gobi@MASenate.gov.