Press Release: 2024-10-07

Senator Lewis Announces Passage of Legislation to Maximize Federal Funding for Massachusetts

State House



October 4, 2024



BOSTON—State Senator Jason Lewis joined his colleagues in the Massachusetts Legislature to pass a bill that will enable the Commonwealth to effectively compete for federal grant funding across multiple sectors, including transportation, housing, climate, economic development, and technology innovation.



An Act to provide for competitiveness and infrastructure investment in Massachusetts leverages the interest the Commonwealth’s Stabilization Fund accrues to provide the state matching funds that the federal government requires to compete for many federal funding opportunities. Three pieces of federal legislation — the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act — are making more than $2 trillion available to states through competitive grant programs and formula allocations. With the passage of this bill, the Commonwealth will be maximizing its ability to capitalize on these substantial federal funding opportunities.



“We should do everything possible to maximize our share of federal grant opportunities that help save money for Massachusetts taxpayers,” said State Senator Jason Lewis. “Using excess interest from the Commonwealth’s Stabilization Fund to unlock these federal opportunities is a smart way to do so, and will enable the state and local municipalities  to fund many important infrastructure projects in the years to come.”



At its current level, the Stabilization Fund will accumulate approximately $250 million in interest annually. This bill will allow the state to transfer interest from the Stabilization Fund to the Commonwealth Federal Matching and Debt Reduction Fund when amounts exceed 10 percent of the revenues budgeted for the previous fiscal year and the balance of the fund has not decreased in the previous year. When a diversion does occur, the state will use the interest for two key purposes: funds required for federal grants during this unique opportunity to capture federal investments; and long-term debt management strategies.



Over the coming years, this bill is expected to unlock more than $800 million in funds that the state can use to cover the state or municipal match requirement for federal competitive grant opportunities, as well as planning work that will help municipalities with the process of preparing applications for federal grants. Once federal grant opportunities expire, money left in this fund will go toward reducing the Commonwealth’s long-term liabilities.



After final passage in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, Governor Maura Healey signed the bill into law on September 24, 2024.