Governor Healey Takes Additional Steps to Enhance Safety, Lower Cost of Emergency Shelter System
New regulations disqualify individuals convicted of serious crimes from shelter placement
BOSTON – Governor Maura Healey today took additional steps to enhance safety at state family shelter sites and lower the cost of the system to taxpayers. At Governor Healey’s direction, all adults applying for Emergency Assistance (EA) shelter are required to undergo a CORI check, in addition to SORI and warrant checks. Under new regulations effective Friday, individuals will not be eligible for EA if they fail to consent to a CORI check or if they have been convicted of a serious crime, like murder, arson, kidnapping, rape and felonies against children.
In accordance with the supplemental budget recently signed by Governor Healey and recommendations from former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis, all families must have their identities and familial relationships fully verified prior to placement.
“These changes will empower our team to keep families, staff and communities safe by enhancing our criminal background check process and disqualifying anyone who has been convicted of a serious crime,” said Governor Healey. “Additionally, we are making real progress when it comes to lowering the cost of this system to taxpayers – and we are on track to hit all of our goals by the end of the year. Massachusetts is managing this federal problem, but Congress needs to act on meaningful immigration reform instead of making Massachusetts taxpayers foot the bill for their failures.”
In addition to the new CORI regulations, the administration is updating the state’s Emergency Declaration to reflect that the EA system’s capacity is now at 5,800 families, a more than 20 percent reduction from its peak in 2024. This change aligns with the funding provided by the supplemental budget and is a result of the administration’s successful efforts to reduce caseload and cost by tripling the number of families exiting shelter to stable housing each month, diverting more families from entering shelter in the first place, and closing hotel shelters. The administration is on track to reduce caseload to 4,000 families and close all hotel shelters by the end of the year. Caseload is currently at its lowest point since August 2023, the number of hotel shelters has already been reduced by half and currently 75 percent of families seeking shelter are long-time Massachusetts families.
The administration plans to release further guidance and enact the additional policy provisions from the supplemental budget, including changes to the eligibility process. The administration is also continuing to work with former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis and his team to implement recommendations from the Shelter Safety and Security Report.
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