Press Release: 5/7/2026
Senate budget committee proposes UGGA boost for FY27
As state leaders continue to navigate economic uncertainty, the fiscal 2027 state budget process moved forward today with the release of the Senate Ways and Means Committee’s proposal, which totals $63.3 billion.
The Senate bill (S. 4) would boost Unrestricted General Government Aid by $53 million (4%), while concurring with the House’s proposed increase of minimum new education aid to $160 per pupil.
The Senate budget committee’s UGGA proposal, which would bring the total to $1.376 billion, is higher than proposals from the governor or the House.
The Senate plan calls for the $53 million increase for fiscal 2027 to be distributed to municipalities by their proportional share of the statewide population, with a cap such that no municipality would receive more than 4% of the new funding.
“The Senate’s proposal offers an important focus on the partnership between state and local government through a critical program: Unrestricted General Government Aid,” said MMA Executive Director and CEO Adam Chapdelaine. “These investments help to reinforce our partnership, at a time when we need it most.”
Both the House and Senate budget bills are intended to be paired with a fiscal 2026 supplemental budget that is under consideration by a conference committee.
The Senate bill, like the House’s, does not include language proposed by the governor that would significantly change the collection process for overdue motor vehicle excise taxes and parking tickets.
• View full text of the Senate Ways and Means budget proposal (use the Local Aid link to see proposed Chapter 70 and UGGA distributions for each city and town)
• The Division of Local Services will be posting updated Cherry Sheet estimates for each city, town and school district based on the Senate Ways and Means proposal.
Local accounts
The following are key components of the Senate bill:
• UGGA: The Senate plan would increase UGGA by $53 million over fiscal 2026, $43 million more than the House’s proposal.
• Chapter 70: With $7.66 billion for Chapter 70 education aid, the Senate bill would continue implementation of the funding schedule in the 2019 Student Opportunity Act to fulfill the sixth and final year of the law’s rollout. Like the House, the Senate proposal would boost per-pupil support for minimum aid districts from the statutorily obligated $30 per student to $160 per student — $10 per student more than was provided in the current year. The minimum aid increase would benefit 84% of school districts.
• Special Education Circuit Breaker: The Senate bill proposes $652.7 million for the Special Education Circuit Breaker program. This amount is intended to be paired with additional aid proposed in a fiscal 2026 “Fair Share” supplemental budget that is moving through the legislative process simultaneously. Both the House and Senate versions of the supplemental budget bill would complement the fiscal 2027 state budget to satisfy the state’s funding obligation for this important program.
• Charter schools: The Senate bill would fund the charter school reimbursement account at $200.4 million, intended to meet the commitment to fund the state’s statutory obligation to mitigate Chapter 70 losses to charter schools. This is a slight increase over fiscal 2026.
• Rural school aid: The Senate bill would fund rural school aid at $16 million for eligible towns and regional school districts, $4 million more than fiscal 2026. The proposal would maintain current eligibility requirements, amending the governor’s proposal to expand eligible entities. Additional funding for rural school aid is also under consideration in the fiscal 2026 Fair Share supplemental budget.
• Regional school transportation: The Senate proposal would provide $114.2 million for regional school transportation reimbursements. According to the administration, this would represent 90% of anticipated eligible regional school transportation costs.
• Out-of-district vocational transportation: S. 4 proposes $1.4 million for out-of-district vocational transportation, which would fund 25% of anticipated costs. Additional funding for regional and out-of-district vocational transportation is under consideration in the supplemental budget.
• McKinney-Vento: Reimbursements for the transportation of homeless students would be funded at $35.2 million to support districts in meeting their federal mandate. This represents 58.2% of anticipated claims for fiscal 2027. This proposal matches the House’s.
• PILOT: Payments in lieu of taxes would be funded at $55.4 million, an increase of 1.6% over fiscal 2026, which is intended to hold communities harmless from updated valuation changes. This Senate proposal matches the House’s.
• Universal school meals: The Senate bill includes $180 million to continue the universal school meals program, allowing all Massachusetts students to eat for free at school, regardless of household income. The Senate proposal is $18 million less than the House’s.
Outside sections
The several outside sections in the Senate Ways and Means budget bill include the following:
• Foundation Budget Review Commission: Sections 27 and 38 recommend a reconvening of the Foundation Budget Review Commission to examine the current K-12 funding formula. The commission would assess potential new ways to address rising costs and the allocation of school resources statewide.
• Massachusetts School Building Authority Commission: Section 39 would establish a special commission to study and make recommendations regarding the financial capacity of Massachusetts School Building Authority to meet the needs of current and future school facility projects, and ensure that the authority’s grant funding formula allocates resources responsibly and equitably.
• Local permitting: Several provisions focused on housing production in Massachusetts would “streamline” local permitting processes. The provisions aim to simplify rules for homeowners, municipalities, and developers regarding “non-conforming” properties built under older codes, timelines for projects to proceed under existing zoning rules, and modifying the variance standard.
• EMS study: Language in S. 4 would direct executive agencies to study and recommend a plan to modernize and improve the efficacy, service delivery, and long-term sustainability of emergency medical services in the Commonwealth.
Next steps
Members of the Senate have until 3 p.m. on Friday, May 8, to file budget amendments. The Senate is expected to begin its budget debate on May 19, with a final Senate bill expected by the end of that week.
A House-Senate conference committee will then be appointed to reconcile any differences between the two proposals.
As the budget process proceeds, the MMA will continue to engage in timely advocacy efforts on behalf of critical municipal and school aid programs.
The Legislature has the goal of coming to consensus on a state budget before the new fiscal year begins on July 1.