2023-2024 Legislative Session Debrief
- Katharine Lange
- Aug 5, 2024
- 3 min read
Massachusetts has a two-year legislative cycle, and a one-year budget cycle. Mass Rivers is there through it all to advocate for strong environmental and climate policies that will protect and restore our rivers. We are so grateful to our organizational partners and members who join us in advocacy all session long - it takes a village to pass good policy!
The 2023-2024 legislative session ended on August 1, 2024. Here’s a legislative session debrief on how our priorities ended up:
THE DROUGHT BILL: LEGISLATIVE STRIDES, AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Our top legislative priority this year was the drought bill (H.861/S.475). As the Commonwealth seeks to expand housing, ensuring the sustainability of our water supplies becomes even more urgent. This bill is a small yet crucial step toward creating a proactive, coordinated, statewide drought response that safeguards our environment, our economy, and public health. The bill advanced further than it ever has, passing the Senate this June. That’s a huge accomplishment, only possible with strong coalition support - again, THANK YOU!
Here are highlights from the bill’s journey this session:
January 2023: Introduction
The bill is introduced by its sponsors, Representative Joan Meschino and Senator Jamie Eldridge.
March 2023: Lobby for the Rivers Day
Mass Rivers hosts Lobby for the Rivers Day, the largest land and water lobby day in the state. 120 advocates join 67 legislator meetings in support of the drought bill and other local priorities. Together, we prioritize water at the State House.
April 2023: Public Hearing
The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources hosts a public hearing for the bill. Mass Rivers testifies in-person alongside seven other organizations, and many more submit written testimony.
November 2023: Letter Writing
Mass Rivers organizes a letter from 47 groups from around the state asking the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources to report the bill out favorably so it may advance in the legislative process.
February 2024: Bill Makes it out of Committee and goes to Ways & Means
The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources reports the bill out favorably for the second session in a row, and sends the bill to the Senate Committee on Ways & Means.
March 2024: Boston Globe Op-Ed
The bill sponsors, Rep. Meschino and Senator Eldridge, publish an op-ed in the Boston Globe in support of stronger drought management for the Commonwealth.
June 2024: Drought Bill Added to Climate Bill, Passes the Senate!
As the end of session looms, legislators combine smaller bills into a few larger omnibus bills. In the Senate, renewable energy siting and permitting recommendations become the basis for a larger Climate Bill. Senator Eldridge files the drought bill as an amendment to this larger bill. A few hours before the bill’s vote, the Senate Ways & Means Committee redrafts the drought bill language, making some minor changes. That new version is then voted upon in the Senate chamber. Senator Eldridge makes a speech on the Senate floor, explaining why this bill is essential for climate resilience in the Commonwealth. The Senate votes to ADOPT the drought bill into the Climate Bill - the drought bill has passed the Senate!
July 2024: Legislature Fails to pass Climate Bill, Including Drought Bill
The House of Representatives passes their own version of the Climate Bill without the drought bill (nor many other policy provisions beyond energy siting and permitting). Now a conference committee composed of three Senators and three Representatives must reconcile the House and Senate versions of the bill to produce the final version that will go to the Governor. Mass Rivers activated our members, and our community sent numerous calls, emails, and letters to the conference committee, urging them to retain drought management provisions in the final Climate Bill. Unfortunately, despite advocacy from a wide range of climate organizations, the conference committee did not reach an agreement on a final Climate Bill, and the legislation has been left on the cutting room floor - including our top priority on drought. We are, of course, extremely disappointed in this result. At a time when there is resounding agreement that the Commonwealth needs urgent climate action, the legislature’s failure to pass major climate legislation is a loss to our communities, our rivers, and our future.
WHAT’S NEXT ON DROUGHT?
Disappointing as it is not to see our bill pass in the State House, there are other avenues for achieving better drought management in the Commonwealth, like through regulatory advocacy and cultural change. We have ongoing work in these other arenas that will continue during the legislature’s informal session. Our success in the Senate gives us a strong start to the next legislative session, which starts in January.
STOPPING HARMFUL LEGISLATION: SUCCESS
From the beginning of the session, the legislature stated their intent to go big on addressing the housing crisis. That intention culminated in a Housing Bond Bill, which was one of few bills that the legislature did end up sending to the Governor for approval. The Senate version of the Housing Bond Bill contained an amendment to create a commission to review (and very likely weaken) the Interbasin Transfer Act (IBTA), one of the state’s foundational water management laws. When a municipality or water supplier suggests moving water from one watershed to another, for either water supply or wastewater, the IBTA requires that the applicant demonstrate via scientific review that the transfer won’t negatively impact either the donor or receiving basin. In the law’s forty-year history, only three applications have been rejected by the Water Resources Commission, who currently administers the law; overwhelmingly, this law enables housing and growth by ensuring that local water management is sustainable.
While it’s always a good idea to review how our laws are functioning, the proposed commission consisted mostly of water suppliers and industry groups - entities that have a financial interest in expanding water supply. The IBTA is not an obstacle to housing production. Any hastening of the review process or weakening of the law could result in poor water management decisions.
Mass Rivers strongly opposed this amendment and successfully advocated for its deletion from the final version of the bill. We are grateful to member organizations, legislative leaders like Senator Comerford, and members of the Healey administration, who mobilized to help educate legislators on the value of scientific review during water management decisions.
INCREASING INVESTMENT IN ENVIRONMENTAL AGENCIES: SUCCESS
Mass Rivers advocated for investments in our state environmental agencies this year as part of the Green Budget Coalition. In a tough budget year, legislators still granted increases to many of our priority line items. We’re grateful to Ways & Means Chairs Michlewitz and Rodrigues for their leadership in crafting a strong FY25 budget.
Highlights:
Department of Environmental Protection Administration: MassDEP has a broad set of critical responsibilities for public health and safety, including ensuring clean air and water, watershed planning and permitting, the safe management of toxics, enforcing environmental laws, reducing solid waste, the timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills, and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.
FY24: $52,038,191
FY25: $54,359,482
Department of Conservation and Recreation State Parks: DCR is responsible for the stewardship, management, and safety of our parks, beaches,forests, pools, skating rinks, and campgrounds including: 450,000 acres of land across over 250 properties and nearly 2,000 miles of trails, habitat for 291 state-listed rare species, including 8 species found only on DCR land, and forests that protect drinking water supplies to support millions of residents.
FY24: $105,597,351
FY25: $110,044,560
Department of Fish and Game Administration: In autumn of 2023, Governor Healey directed DFG to conduct a review of existing biodiversity conservation efforts across all agencies and to establish biodiversity goals and strategies to achieve a nature-positive future for Massachusetts in 2030, 2040, and 2050. These nation-leading goals will focus on sustaining the diversity and abundance of plants, animals, and habitats, allowing them to survive and flourish, while providing equitable access to nature and ensuring a climate-resilient landscape for the future.
FY24: $1,389,248
FY25: $2,077,659
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