BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey is seeking to tighten rules on the state’s beleaguered emergency shelter system, which is costing taxpayers more than $1 billion a year amid a historic surge of asylum seekers.
The new rules, some of which will require legislative approval, call for reducing the limit on stays in the emergency housing system from nine months to six months while extending the amount of time homeless families can stay in large-scale “respite” centers, from the current five days to 30 days, before they must move out.
Healey said the shelter system has become “unsustainable” and while the state has seen “tangible results” in steps it has taken steps to cut costs “more needs to be done so that Massachusetts taxpayers do not continue to be on the hook for this federal problem.”
“The changes we are making will reduce costs, phase out the use of hotels and better meet the needs of all families,” the Democrat said in a statement.
The changes follow the release of a report last week by a state commission showing that the state shelter system will run out of funds in January with a current price tag of more than $1 billion a year to provide temporary housing, food and other necessities for new arrivals.
The report by the Special Commission on Emergency Housing Assistance Programs said the state’s costs for emergency housing in the current fiscal year will rise to more than $1 billion, depleting a special fund set up to cover the costs unless lawmakers pump more money into the system.
The governor said she will be filing a supplemental budget soon to request approval from lawmakers for the changes and “sufficient funding” to keep the shelter system running.
Healey is also moving to end the state’s reliance on hotels and motels for emergency shelter, another key recommendation of the panel’s report, which criticized the practice for costing taxpayers too much money while creating barriers to getting families out of the shelter system.
Healey has taken steps over the past year to tighten the rules on the shelter system, including setting the current six month limit on stays and giving preference to veterans, people with health needs, and families with newborns for emergency housing.
President-elect Donald Trump, a Republican who ran on a platform of cracking down on immigration, has pledged to launch “the largest deportation program in American history” when he takes over the White House in less than two months.
Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, has put Massachusetts, New York and other states with so-called ‘sanctuary’ policies on notice that they will face cuts in federal funding if they do not cooperate with immigration crackdowns.
Healey said recently she would “absolutely not” direct the state police to assist with any immigration crackdowns under the second Trump administration.
“No, absolutely not,” Healey told MSNBC recently. “But let me say this, I do think it’s important that we all recognize that there’s going to be a lot of pressure on states and state officials, and I can assure you, we’re going to work really hard to deliver.”
Massachusetts has seen an influx of tens of thousands of migrants from a historic surge of immigration along the US Mexico border, which prompted Healey to declare a state of emergency last year and set a 7,500-family cap on the number of people eligible for emergency housing.
Under the state’s “right-to-shelter” law, Massachusetts is required to provide emergency housing to homeless families, regardless of their immigration status. But critics say the law was never designed to provide for a large migrant population.
Healey has resisted calls to temporarily suspend the law or set residency requirements on those who can stay in emergency shelters.
As of Thursday, the emergency shelter system had 7,115 families, according to the state Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. About 3,400 families are staying in hotels and motels, while others are in traditional shelters. Hundreds are on waiting lists to get into shelter, according to the agency.
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com.