Senate Ways & Means Budget Moves to Full Senate

On April 14, the House Ways and Means Committee released its budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year, followed shortly with a budget debate by the full House, with a final House budget released on May 3 for the Senate's consideration.

On May 11, the Senate Ways and Means Committee released its budget proposal for FY 2022. The full Senate will debate the proposal later this month. Overall, the Senate Ways and Means budget continues to support some of the most critical commitments at the Department and the system of higher education, with notable increases in some key accounts:

• Senate Ways and Means included $1.5 million for the State University Student Internship program.
• Funding for the state scholarship line item (7070-0065) was increased over FY21 funding levels, continuing a positive funding trend in need based financial aid over the past few budget cycles. For FY 2022, Senate Ways and Means proposed $125 million in financial assistance, a $5 million increase over FY 2021.  With the House having put forward $130 million in its budget, state financial aid is well positioned for the upcoming fiscal year.
• The Commonwealth Dual Enrollment Program line item included a $3M increase in funding for the instructional costs of Early College to address the growing demand for this priority program.
• Formula funding for the Community Colleges and State Universities was included at 2% of base appropriations, signaling a shared commitment between the Senate and the House to providing incremental resources for public higher education that aligns with and incentivizes performance outcomes.

Here is a snapshot of funding proposals for higher education line items in FY 2022:

Line Item	GAA FY 2021	Governor Proposal	House Final	Senate Ways and Means
7066-0000 - Department of Higher Education	$5,186,847	$2,436,847	$3,602,288	$4,103,287
7066-0009 - New England Board of Higher Education	$368,250	$368,250	$368,250	$368,250
7066-0015 - Community College Workforce Training	$1,450,000	$0	$1,450,000	$1,450,000
7066-0016 - Foster Care Financial Aid	$1,485,000	$1,485,000	$1,485,000	$1,485,000
7066-0019 - Dual Enrollment Grant and Subsides	$3,000,000	$2,000,000	$5,300,000	$6,000,000
7066-0021 - Foster Care and Adopted Fee Waiver	$7,294,911	$7,294,911	$7,294,911	$7,294,911
7066-0025 - Performance Management Set Aside	$2,552,157	$2,552,157	$2,552,157	$2,552,157
7066-0036 - STEM Starter Academy and College and Career Pathways	$4,750,000	$4,750,000	$4,750,000	$0
7066-0040 - Bridges to College	$500,000	$0	$550,000	$0
7066-1400 - Massachusetts State Universities Performance Funding	$5,469,870	$0	$5,834,270	$5,834,270
7066-9600 - Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment	$2,002,977	$2,002,977	$2,002,978	$2,002,977
7070-0065 - Massachusetts State Scholarship Program	$120,000,000	$116,300,000	$130,000,000	$125,400,000
7070-0066 - High Demand Scholarship Program	$1,500,000	$1,500,000	$2,000,000	$1,500,000
7077-0023 - Tufts School of Veterinary Medicine Program	$5,500,000	$5,500,000	$5,500,000	$5,500,000
7100-4000 - Massachusetts Community Colleges Performance Funding	$5,883,238	$0	$6,271,863	$6,271,863
7100-4001 - Supporting Urgent Community College Equity through Student Services (SUCCESS)	$7,000,000	$0	$10,500,000	$0
7518-0120 - PACE Initiative	$300,000	$0	$300,000	$0
7520-0424 - Health and Welfare Reserve for Higher Education Personnel	$2,317,214	$5,317,214	$6,529,017	$5,317,214

For direct appropriations to higher education institutions, Senate Ways and Means proposed $22.8 million in additional funds beyond what was allocated in FY 2021 which includes allocations from the formula funding accounts from FY21.

Next Steps

The full Senate will take up the Ways and Means Committee’s recommendation as well as amendments to the budget proposal during the week of May 24-28. Following that debate, a House and Senate Conference Committee will meet to iron out differences between each chamber’s budgets, with a goal of presenting a final FY 2022 budget to Governor Baker by the end of June.