Local lawmakers blame Congress for shelter crisis in Mass.

Date: 11/9/2023

AGAWAM — Three local legislators discussed nationwide and statewide issues on Oct. 18 at the West of the River Chamber of Commerce Legislative Breakfast. The event was hosted by Crestview Country Club.

The three legislators were state Sen. John Velis (D-Westfield), state Rep. Michael Finn (D-West Springfield), and state Rep. Nicholas Boldyga (R-Southwick).

Finn began by speaking about a recently passed tax relief package signed by Gov. Maura Healey. The bill cuts the short-term capital gains tax from 12% to 8.5%, allows municipalities to create senior property tax relief programs, and includes a low-income housing tax credit to encourage first-time homebuyers.

Finn said no one was exceptionally happy about the bill, but he sees that as a positive. Many people, he said, saw partial victories, and lots of compromise was made.

“At the end of the day, I think that the tax bill that was passed was something that everybody should be able to take a little something from and see a positive benefit,” he said.

Boldyga said the bill did not go far enough. He said the tax decreases don’t make Massachusetts competitive in New England, and won’t prevent people and businesses from moving to New Hampshire.

“We need business and we need rich people to come to Massachusetts,” he said. “It’s good for us, it’s good for the economy, almost everybody”

On immigration, Finn said West Springfield “carries an exceptional burden” with the state’s emergency shelter program. He said he has collaborated with other legislators to limit the program’s disproportionate reliance on West Springfield properties for 14-15 months.

“We’re asking other communities to step up,” he said.

Finn said the cost of the program was extraordinary and that Western Massachusetts cities don’t have enough money to continue. He said the Legislature reallocated $350 million for it, which is “long gone.” The shelter program is costing the state $40 million per month, he said.

Speaking during the long period when the federal House of Representatives could not agree on a speaker, Finn described Congress as “literally rudderless.” He said the state has received no help from Congress and that it is being forced to address the consequences of federal immigration policy.

As Healey has stated that Massachusetts will run out of emergency shelter space in November, Finn asked where people who are still immigrating to the state are going to live. He also asked whether state funding for the shelter program will cut into its support of other programs.

Boldyga took a hard-line stance against illegal immigration. He criticized the Biden administration for going back and forth on building a U.S.-Mexican border wall. He described people crossing the border as unvetted gang members, felons, and “violent murderers.” He also said crime was rising and people were “being randomly stabbed.”

“This is a great country,” he said. “I think everybody should come here if they want to, but legally. You have to get in line, you have to get your citizenship like everybody else does.”

Velis said the country has an immigration crisis. He said inaction by the federal government is causing the issue to trickle down to the states. He said that has also happened with gun policy and abortion rights.

“They have abdicated their authority and it’s shameful,” he said.

Boldyga described Congress as hyperpartisan. The House was speakerless at the time, he said, because it is balanced 50-50 Democrats and Republicans. While he said it’s great that taxes won’t go up and no laws infringing on people’s rights are being passed, he said he would also like to see some action from Congress.

Velis said when people ask for his vote, he asks them for their opinion on compromise. If they don’t show support for it, he sends them on their way. He said the American political system is ceasing to work because partisans only listen to the people already on their side.

“If your loyalty is to the political party, get out of here, you’re a waste of time,” he said.

Velis and Boldyga also touched on Ukraine and Israel. Boldyga said if the country can afford to fund foreign wars, it can afford to fund roadwork and education, too.

“We’re more than willing to step up to the plate — and we should — and fund these other countries, but yet I’m still dodging potholes in Westfield and Agawam because ‘we don’t have the money to fix those things,’” he said.

Velis said there is a good chance in the future America will be at war with China. He also warned of a Russia-China alliance in the future.

He also described the Israel-Hamas war as a big deal, citing reports of babies at Israeli kibbutzim being killed. Foreign policy, he said, isn’t sexy, but is always at the forefront.

“Right now as we speak, America is being challenged in more ways than we have in the history of our policy,” he said.

Speaking about gun control legislation that recently passed the Massachusetts House, Velis said he was worried that the behavioral health concerns behind mass-murder incidents are being overlooked. Everyone in the room, he said, knows someone who struggles with mental health, and thinking of solutions for this crisis keeps him up at night.

“Imagine this scenario where a human being, a fellow human being, is stuck in their mind,” he said. “It’s sad.”

Addressing housing, Velis said he spoke with Westfield State University students and they told him it was too expensive to live in Massachusetts. The problem, he said, stems from supply and demand. Building new housing, he said, would make prices decrease.

What prevents new housing is a not-in-my-backyard, or NIMBY, mentality, he said. People want more housing, he said, but oppose it when it’s proposed in their community.

“If we don’t build, we’re not going to have places,” he said.