Public Policy
The Public Policy department works to seek social justice on behalf of Rosie’s Place guests. We work to achieve this goal through direct lobbying, coalition building and by empowering guests to be actively involved in civic life.
At Rosie’s Place, we don’t just educate our guests in the democratic process. We strive to engage and empower them through it.
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Rosie's Place 2019-2020 Priorities
In the 2019-2020 legislation session, Rosie’s Place will prioritize the following pieces of legislation:
- Dental Access - H.1916 Rep. Hogan | S.1215 Sen. Chandler
- Closing the SNAP Gap - H.1173 Rep. Livingstone | S.678 Sen. DiDomenico
- Rent Arrearage Assistance Program – H.1264 Rep. Decker
- Safe Place to Sleep - H.1265 Rep. Decker
Contact your State Legislators and urge them to support these pieces of legislation. You can find your State Senator and Representative at malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator, or wheredoivotema.com!
In the FY2020 budget, Rosie’s Place will prioritize the following budget line items:
- Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT), line item 7004-9316, FY20 request $27,000,000, including language to fund a pilot Rent Arrearage Assistance Program
- Mass. Rental Voucher Program (MRVP), line item 7004-9024, FY20 request $130,000,000, including language to adjust Fair Market Rates, which are currently set to 2005 levels, to 2019 levels
- Emergency Assistance Family Shelters and Services (EA), line item 7004-0101, FY20 request $180,000,000, including adding language to make sure no family sleeps in a place not suitable for human habitation
- Healthy Incentives Program (HIP), line item 4400-1001, FY20 request $8,500,000
- Common Application/SNAP Gap Closure Pilot, to create a pilot program for individuals to apply for Masshealth and SNAP at the same time
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Accomplishments in this Legislation Session
In the 2019-2020 legislation sessions, we have been able to make positive changes for our guests and poor and homeless women in the Commonwealth.
- Lift the Cap on Kids - H.104 Rep. Decker | S.37 Sen. DiDomenico - On April 25, 2019, the MA Legislature near unanimously overrode Governor Baker’s veto of the legislation to “Lift the Cap on Kids,” officially making it into law. Families impacted by this now-repealed law will possibly see an increase to their cash benefits after September 2019 that will be retroactive to January 2019.
Beyond our Priorities
In the 2019-2020 legislative session, in addition to our priorities, we will work along various coalitions to advance intersectional issues that are important to the advancement of social justice for poor and homeless women and beyond. This session Rosie’s Place has endorsed the following pieces of legislation:
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