migrant crisis

Lawmakers started negotiations Monday on a bill that’s expected to eventually inject hundreds of millions more dollars into the state’s family shelter system and put time limits on how long homeless families can stay in the system. Ways and Means Chairs Rep. Aaron Michlewitz and Sen. Michael Rodrigues will lead the negotiations, as they also both work on their...

Massachusetts House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Aaron Michlewitz says it’s been difficult to develop this year’s spending plan because he’s not exactly sure what’s led to state tax collections running $186 million behind last year and $275 million behind the year-end estimate that has already been slashed by $1 billion

Massachusetts will soon require migrants staying in the state’s at-capacity shelter system to begin showing they’re trying to get work or housing, according to an announcement from the Healey administration Monday. The state also announced Monday that it will be opening a new so-called safety-net site at a vacant building at the Chelsea Soldiers’ Home that’s been slated for...

The Massachusetts Senate has approved limits on how long homeless families can stay in emergency state shelters as part of an $850 million plan to fund the system that has been at the center of the migrant crisis. The bill approved late Thursday would limit maximum stays to nine months, with the possibility of 90 more days for veterans, pregnant...

The town of Stoughton says it is shouldering a unique struggle to manage an influx of migrant families and it is calling on the state for help. The town sent a letter to Gov. Maura Healey stating this situation has become a burden on their resources and that while they understand other communities are also taking on the challenge, they…