The Massachusetts state legislature released their final FY20 state budget over the weekend following conference committee deliberations, and there’s good news for many of Mass Audubon’s priority programs, including our Blue Hills Trailside Museum:
- Trailside received $500,000, the amount we requested and a $200,000 increase compared to FY19
- A long-awaited deeds fee increase that would restore needed Community Preservation Act funding was upheld, and an additional $20 million was directed to the CPA Trust Fund
- Our recommended funding levels were met or exceeded for several Green Budget line items and the Mass Cultural Council (see table below)
- The conference committee also included $2.19 million for state climate change adaptation programs
Now the budget is on its way to Governor Baker’s desk for final approval. He can still veto line item funding, so help make sure he knows Massachusetts residents value these programs! You can email his office and encourage him to pass a budget that upholds funding levels for these programs.
Mass Audubon will be submitting our own request to the Governor as well.