(Boston Orange 編譯) 麻州州長奚莉（Maura Healey）今（4）日提出《光明（BRIGHT） 法案》，要投資25 億美元升級麻州大學（UMass）各校區、州立大學和社區學院的建築和設施，期以更新、維修校園，支持新建設項目，並創造2萬個建築工作崗位，推動麻州經濟。
《光明（BRIGHT ）法案》的全稱是「建設彈性基礎設施以促進高等教育轉型法案」，旨在解決長期以來，許多麻州公立大學校舍建築始於20 世紀 70 年代，如今都已明顯老舊，維修成本不斷增加，目前州府資金不足應付的問題。執行「光明法案」的經費，將來自選民已批准的「公平份額修正案 （Fair Share）」。
奚莉州長此舉是為了把公立學校帶進21世紀，在維修就建築之際，還要建新的實驗室，現代化的教室，為學生創造更好學習環境。
這項法案還鼓勵採用新技術的項目，例如改進的線上或混合學習空間，也支持住房開發，允許州政府協助大學支付出售土地以用於新住房建設的相關費用。
麻州州長奚莉，副州長Kim Driscol，以及包括多名廳長在內的其他州政府領導人，都堅決支持該法案。他們強調，優秀的公立高等教育對麻州的經濟競爭力和勞動力發展至關重要。這法案可促進校園現代化，為學生畢業後的就業做更充分準備。
Governor Healey: BRIGHT Act Will Create 20,000 Jobs, Modernize Higher Education Campuses
Governor Healey’s BRIGHT Act proposes $2.5 billion to upgrade infrastructure at UMass, state universities, and community colleges
Boston — Today, Governor Maura Healey testified before the Legislature in support of her higher education bond bill, the BRIGHT Act, which would make historic investments to modernize Massachusetts’ public higher education infrastructure while creating nearly 20,000 construction-related jobs.
Administration and Finance Secretary Matthew J. Gorzkowicz, Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler, Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance Commissioner Adam Baacke, Department of Higher Education Commissioner Noe Ortega, higher education presidents and chancellors, students, labor leaders, and construction industry leaders also supported the bill through testimony before the Joint Committee on Higher Education.
In January, Governor Healey filed An Act to Build Resilient Infrastructure to Generate Higher Education Transformation (the BRIGHT Act), which would use funding from the voter-approved Fair Share amendment to unlock $2.5 billion in new capital funding to improve UMass, state university, and community college campuses across the state. The investments authorized in the bill will modernize facilities, including new labs, classrooms and mental health spaces, address deferred maintenance and enable major capital projects.
“Massachusetts is the number one state for education, and it is our core competitive advantage. Our public higher education campuses play a critical role for students, communities, workers, employers, and our economy – but our campuses are not in great shape and investments are long overdue,” said Governor Healey. “The BRIGHT Act will modernize our campuses, expand access to 21st-century skills for students, and create welcoming new spaces for students and community events. Importantly, it will also create 2015,000 good construction jobs that are badly needed right now. We appreciate the Legislature’s consideration of this critical proposal.”
“As a proud graduate of Salem State University, I know firsthand the value our public colleges bring to our economy – 75 percent of public higher education graduates stay in Massachusetts and contribute to their communities,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “The BRIGHT Act will make sure that we can modernize our campuses and help them stay competitive so they can support the next generation of our workforce, while also creating thousands of new construction jobs right now.”
Many facilities on Massachusetts public higher education campuses were constructed in the 1970s, and the cost to address this aging infrastructure is rising due to increased construction and material prices, regulatory requirements, and labor shortages. As a result, there is not enough traditional capital funding sources to keep up with rising campus maintenance needs. The BRIGHT Act proposes a solution by using Fair Share resources to support new borrowing for capital projects.
The bill will support construction of new labs, classrooms, and training facilities that meet the needs of today’s research and applied learning methods, as well as improvements to facilities for student health, mental health, wellness and safety. The BRIGHT Act also incentivizes technology capital projects, such as improvements to online or hybrid workspaces, and supports housing development by authorizing the state to help higher education institutions pay costs associated with selling off land and buildings for new housing production.
"By leveraging Fair Share revenues to unlock new bonding capacity, our administration has already made long-overdue investments in Massachusetts’s transportation system. The BRIGHT Act envisions expanding that proven approach to our public higher education system and provides the authorization we need to modernize and decarbonize our campuses across the state to give students the facilities they need to learn and succeed,” said Administration and Finance Secretary Matthew J. Gorzkowicz. “We are grateful for the Legislature’s partnership and eager see the BRIGHT Act pass so that we can make transformative investments in Massachusetts’s future.”
“The BRIGHT Act investments will enable students to learn in more modern, greener, safer and innovative high-quality environments,” said Education Secretary Dr. Patrick Tutwiler. “This funding will go a long way toward transforming our higher ed campuses and facilities to ensure that Massachusetts remains the best place to pursue a two or four-year degree.”
“The new capital resources made available by the BRGHT Act represent a generational investment in the Commonwealth’s public higher education campuses,” said Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance Commissioner Adam Baacke. “DCAMM supports 29 institutions, and this level of funding will greatly expand our ability to modernize and decarbonize facilities, in addition to addressing considerable deferred maintenance needs.”
“Our public higher education students, and the entire Commonwealth, will be better served with modernized facilities that match the high quality of teaching happening on our campuses,” said Commissioner or Higher Education Noe Ortega. “Improving physical spaces on our public campuses will help Massachusetts prepare students not just for today's careers, but for the rapidly evolving demands of tomorrow's economy.”
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