July 15, 2021

BOSTON, MA – On Friday, Representative Antonio F. D. Cabral (D-New Bedford) joined his House and Senate colleagues in unanimously passing a $48.07 billion budget proposal for FY2022. Focused on providing critical support to help residents and businesses in Massachusetts recover from the pandemic, the budget proposal includes many priorities championed by Rep. Cabral.  

The City of New Bedford will receive $25,282,408 in unrestricted general government aid for the City’s budget. The New Bedford Public Schools will receive $173,746,584 in state funding, an increase of $1.15 million over the Governor’s original proposal and $7.7 million more than FY21’s allocation. 

To help families get back to work, the FY22 conference report includes $20 million to increase rates for early education providers, $15 million for Massachusetts Head Start programs, $10 million for the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative to expand public preschool, and $9 million to cover the cost of fees for parents receiving subsidized early education in 2021. 

New Bedford 
The following funding awards are the direct result of Rep. Cabral’s advocacy for these local programs: 

• $80,000 for youth programs at the Dennison Memorial Community Center  
• $75,000 for outreach and educational programming at AHA! Arts, History, & Architecture of New Bedford  
• $50,000 for opioid abuse treatment at the Greater New Bedford Community Health Center  
• $50,000 for water quality and natural resource monitoring for the Buzzards Bay Coalition 
• $50,000 for the support of productions and programming at the Zeiterion, Inc. 
• $25,000 for the youth apprenticeship program at the New Bedford Festival Theatre  
• $25,000 for cultural educational programming at the Cape Verdean Association of New Bedford  
• $25,000 for programming at the Frederick Douglass House  
• $25,000 for the New Bedford Municipal Airport  

“The work these organizations do is far-reaching and vital to our community.  From keeping our youth engaged, promoting the creativity and spirit of downtown, preserving our multicultural history, and providing vital health services to our neighborhoods, these programs are a window into the heart of New Bedford and I am pleased partner with them,” said Rep. Cabral.  

Rep. Cabral again secured $450,000 for UMass Dartmouth’s SMAST for fisheries research. Also, working with Senate colleagues, Rep. Cabral helped deliver $250,000 for the Center for Portuguese Studies and Culture at UMass Dartmouth.  

“UMass Dartmouth is not just an affordable option for local college students, but also a focal point of our community, bringing together the best of our local culture and business to stimulate economic development that works for the South Coast and reflects our strengths beyond our community,” said Rep. Cabral. “SMAST and the Center for Portuguese Studies are at the core of that mission.” 

Gateway Cities 
Rep. Cabral and the Gateway Cities Legislative Caucus (GCLC) focused their budget priorities on education support programs and community development initiatives that meet the specific needs of Gateway Cities, such as New Bedford. The GCLC secured:

• $6,000,000 for Dual Enrollment grants, which enables high school students to earn college credit
• $1,000,000 for the English Language Learners Gateway Cities Program 
• $750,000 for neighborhood stabilization efforts within the Transformative Development Fund to support community-led revitalization efforts 

The FY22 budget provides resources to help with housing stability, including $150 million for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program to expand access to affordable housing, $85 million for grants to local housing authorities, $22M for the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition Program and $8 million for Housing Consumer Education Centers to help administer nearly $1 billion in federal housing relief. 

Spending Accountability & Transparency 
The FY22 budget proposal also includes language which requires the state’s county sheriffs and the Department of Corrections to report the costs, reimbursements, and expenses associated with their agreements with US Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) every quarter beginning in October 2021.  

“I have been fighting this fight because I believe deputizing prison officials to act as federal immigration agents is bad public policy. It is ineffective, breaks down the relationship between the immigrant community and genuine law enforcement, and is costly to Massachusetts taxpayers who must cover the expense. This new reporting requirement is the first step in understanding the true cost of these programs.” 

The budget now heads to Governor Baker’s desk for his review.