Press Release: 4/17/2026
Governor Healey Files Mass Wins Act to Create Jobs, Lower Costs and Attract Global Investment
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
4/16/2026
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Jacqueline Manning, Press Secretary
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Call Jacqueline Manning, Press Secretary at (617) 725-4025
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Email Jacqueline Manning, Press Secretary at jacqui.manning@mass.gov
BOSTON — Governor Maura Healey today filed the Mass Wins Act, an economic development bill that positions Massachusetts as a global destination for companies looking to invest, grow and create jobs in the United States, while strengthening the state’s competitiveness and lowering costs for businesses. Building on the progress of the Mass Leads Act, the proposal reflects a changing economic landscape and the need for continued, strategic investment to maintain Massachusetts’ leadership in key industries such as artificial intelligence, quantum, climatetech, defense and robotics.
“Massachusetts has always competed on the strength of our people, our ideas and our willingness to lead,” said Governor Maura Healey. “We’re taking decisive steps to strengthen our competitiveness, invest in cutting-edge sectors of our innovation economy like applied AI and quantum, and create more jobs across the state. We are supporting Massachusetts businesses by lowering their costs, making Massachusetts a more attractive place for our talented young workers to stay, and easing the burden for entrepreneurs to start up their businesses. While President Trump alienates our allies and makes America less competitive, we are making Massachusetts a global hub welcoming companies from around the world to come and grow jobs right here in our state.”
“Massachusetts is competing to win, and we’re making investments to stay ahead,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “This legislation brings together the tools to support our communities, back our businesses and unlock growth in every region. It reflects a clear focus on execution—moving quickly, staying competitive and delivering results for the people who power our economy.”
“This bill reflects the urgency of this moment by strengthening Massachusetts’ position in an increasingly competitive global economy,” said Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley. “It lowers barriers, invests in key sectors and makes it easier for companies to start and grow here. At a time of heightened federal uncertainty, we’re taking action to keep our innovation economy strong, resilient and leading in the industries that will define the future—while continuing to attract and retain the talent that powers that growth.”
The bill includes $305 million in capital authorizations and is organized around five core pillars focused on driving innovation, reducing barriers to growth, expanding access to opportunity, supporting business development, and strengthening the state’s long-term economic foundations.
“With these targeted new capital authorizations, this legislation ensures that we will continue to have the flexibility to drive the Massachusetts economy forward, capitalizing on our strengths and positioning the state to lead in areas life defense and AI and to attract new international investment,” said Administration and Finance Secretary Matthew J. Gorzkowicz. “A strong economy is central to everything else we do, and this is a fiscally responsible approach that will grow jobs and strength our economic foundation.”
The pillars and key provisions include:
GlobalMass: Elevating Massachusetts’ Global Economic Leadership
This Mass Wins Act includes a seed investment of at least $50 million to attract global capital into Massachusetts-based companies, strengthening the state’s position as a destination for investment and growth and ushering in new jobs. It also provides $20 million for site development and critical infrastructure to attract international companies to and help them locate, expand and succeed in Massachusetts.
A More Affordable Massachusetts: Lowering Costs for Businesses
The Mass Wins Act lowers costs for businesses and removes barriers to make it easier for businesses to start and grow. It lowers the fee for starting a new business from $500 to $100. It also gives 20,000 more businesses access to the Small Business Energy Tax Exemption. The bill also authorizes discounted utility rates for large employers relocating to Massachusetts without increasing costs for other ratepayers and makes the building code appeals process more consistent and predictable.
To support housing production and reduce development barriers, the bill establishes clear, statewide standards for site plan review, enables municipalities to adopt commercial conversion practices to transform underutilized properties into housing, and allows mayors to formally initiate zoning proposals.
Talent that Starts Here and Stays Here
The Mass Wins Act strengthens Massachusetts’ talent pipeline and supports early-career workers through targeted updates to the noncompete law, alongside a $10 million annual internship tax credit program to expand access to early-career opportunities and help connect talent to in-state employers.
A More Competitive Massachusetts
The Mass Wins Act strengthens Massachusetts’ innovation economy and long-term competitiveness and create jobs. It includes $100 million for defense sector innovation to support infrastructure, research and supply chain development across national security technologies. It also includes $75 million to expand the application of artificial intelligence across key industries and invest in emerging technologies like quantum computing. An additional $25 million is for Massachusetts’ globally recognized robotics cluster, while $25 million provides capital support for companies expanding or constructing facilities in the state. The bill also advances grid innovation and streamlines approvals for climatetech deployment, accelerating the adoption of new technologies while strengthening energy reliability.
OneMA: Expanding Opportunity Across the State
The Mass Wins Act expands access to economic opportunity across the state, with $25 million dedicated to downtown and community revitalization projects that support local growth and vibrancy. It streamlines zoning processes in Devens, reduces barriers for internationally trained nurses and licensed engineers to enter the workforce. Additionally, Mass Wins authorizes $25 million in new capital investments in the creative economy and expands eligibility for the Cultural Facilities Fund to support community and cultural assets. The bill also aligns key tax credit programs across agencies to improve consistency, coordination, and overall effectiveness, and
The full legislation and bill summary will be available at Mass.gov/MassWins.
Statements of Support
Udi Mokady, Founder, CyberArk:
“Massachusetts has built one of the strongest innovation ecosystems in the world, and as we looked across many attractive options, it was clear this was the right place for CyberArk to grow. The strength of the state’s talent and research institutions gave us a real competitive advantage, and expanding here has allowed us to create hundreds of jobs and deepen our presence in the global cybersecurity sector. That growth, which we built leading up to our recent acquisition, reflects our confidence in Massachusetts, and legislation like this will help more international companies make the same choice and deliver similar impact across the state.”
JD Chesloff, President & CEO, Massachusetts Business Roundtable:
“Massachusetts needs all the tools at its disposal to continue to compete in a global economy. This latest economic development legislation from the Healey-Driscoll administration proposes additions to the toolbox, offering a series of practical ideas to lower costs, attract global investment, and strengthen Massachusetts’ competitiveness for businesses and workers. The Governor and Legislature acted with urgency in 2024 to pass the landmark Mass Leads Act, and given the massive uncertainty in our state, federal and global economies, that urgency persists today. The Roundtable is grateful to our public leaders for continuing to focus on competitiveness and providing the tools necessary for the state’s sustained economic success, and respectfully urges the passage of economic development legislation this session.”
Jay Ash, CEO, Massachusetts Competitive Partnership:
“Our economy is evolving more rapidly than we’ve ever seen before. In order from Massachusetts to remain vibrant and vital, our state economic policy needs to evolve even faster. This bill, if adopted, will allow Massachusetts to address some long-standing issues while positioning our economy for growth in emerging areas. It’s a smart response to what many of us have been talking about, and one whose timing couldn’t be better.”
Jon Hurst, President & CEO, Retailers Association of Massachusetts:
“Energy costs are a top concern for our small business members, and the Healey-Driscoll Administration is clearly listening. The inclusion in the Mass Leads Act of an expansion of the Small Business Energy Tax Exemption will allow thousands of additional small businesses to take advantage of this important sales tax exemption on their purchase of electricity. We applaud this step to provide direct relief to small local employers on their energy bills.”
JD Chesloff, President & CEO, Massachusetts Business Roundtable:
“Massachusetts needs all the tools at its disposal to continue to compete in a global economy. This latest economic development legislation from the Healey-Driscoll administration proposes additions to the toolbox, offering a series of practical ideas tolower costs, attract global investment, and strengthen Massachusetts’ competitiveness for businesses and workers. The Governor and Legislature acted with urgency in 2024 to pass the landmark MassLeads Act, and given the massive uncertainty in our state, federal and global economies, that urgency persists today. The Roundtable is grateful to our public leaders for continuing to focus on competitiveness and providing the tools necessary for the state’s sustained economic success, and respectfully urges the passage of economic development legislation this session.”
Tamara Small, CEO of NAIOP Massachusetts, The Commercial Real Estate Development Association:
“From innovative proposals, such as the creation of commercial conversion districts, to targeted solutions that provide certainty and predictability for housing and commercial investments, the Governor’s bill represents a thoughtful approach to bolstering the Commonwealth’s economy. NAIOP looks forward to continuing our work with the Healey-Driscoll Administration and the Legislature to advance these critical policies.”
Aaron Vega, President & CEO, Western Mass Economic Development, and SHIELD Working Group Member:
"As a member of the SHIELD working group it's good to see that this bill will support the Commonwealth to build on the defense contracts many of our local manufactures rely on. Above all, this bill addresses the affordability issues for both residents and business, ensuring a string future for the Commonwealth and for Western Mass."
Laura Hooks, Ph.D., Vice President and General Manager, General Dynamics Mission Systems, and SHIELD Working Group Member:
"The Mass Wins Act's Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange and Leadership in Defense (SHIELD) Capital Fund represents a powerful investment in Massachusetts' defense future, strengthening domestic supply chains, accelerating cutting-edge technologies like applied AI and autonomous systems, and helping defense manufacturers compete for federal contracts. General Dynamics Mission Systems is proud to support the Healey-Driscoll Administration in securing Massachusetts as a premier hub for defense innovation and advanced manufacturing."
Cait Brumme, CEO, MassChallenge, and SHIELD Working Group Member:
“Massachusetts has always been a launchpad for ideas and technologies that drive progress, prosperity, and impact. The Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange and Leadership in Defense (SHIELD) Capital Fund reflects exactly the kind of bold, strategic investment that keeps the Commonwealth ahead - strengthening domestic value chains, accelerating defense technology transition, and helping small and mid-sized manufacturers compete and win. With institutions like MIT Lincoln Laboratory, MITRE, Draper, and UMass Lowell among dozens of other anchoring this ecosystem, Massachusetts is uniquely positioned to be the nation’s premier hub for defense innovation. We’re proud to partner with the Governor to ensure the solutions built here help safeguard the future everywhere.”
Dr. Julie Chen, Chancellor, UMass Lowell:
“The strength of Massachusetts’ defense ecosystem is rooted in deep partnerships across government, industry and higher education. At UMass Lowell, we are proud to work alongside partners including RTX, Draper, SAIC, Home Base, Hanscom Air Force Base and the Natick Soldier Systems Center to strengthen the defense supply chain and expand access to secure, classified capabilities that meet federal cybersecurity standards (like CMMC). Through investments in prototyping, workforce development and innovation, we are helping accelerate the path from research to deployment. We are grateful to the Healey-Driscoll Administration for their leadership through the Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange and Leadership in Defense (SHIELD), which will continue to position the Commonwealth as a national leader in defense innovation and talent.”