Governor’s Transportation Funding Task Force & Budget Proposal Update
January 15, 2025
On January 14, 2025, A Better City leadership joined with Governor Maura Healey in Worcester to release the Governor’s Transportation Funding Task Force report and to announce the Governor’s $8 billion plan to stabilize our statewide transportation system. Please see the additional information below and let us know if you have any questions or feedback.
Governor’s Upcoming State Budget Proposal
On January 14, Governor Maura Healey announced a plan to make historic investments in the state’s roads, bridges, and regional transportation system and immediately stabilize the finances of the MBTA. The investments—representing $8 billion over the next 10 years—would be done without raising taxes and represent the largest state transportation investment in more than 20 years by creating an expanded financing plan involving Fair Share revenue.
The plan will be filed as legislation in the coming weeks as part of the Governor’s Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) state budget proposal and a separate supplemental budget. These bills would put into action many of the recommendations made in the Transportation Funding Task Force final report. The Task Force proposes multiple steps for stabilizing and enhancing transportation in 2025, while setting the stage for how best to finance transformative investments in transportation in the future.
You can read the Governor’s press release here. You can also view event photos here, as well as a recording of the event, featuring remarks from Kate Dineen, here.
"The central recommendations put forward by the Transportation Funding Task Force are strategic, fiscally responsible, and actionable—and Governor Healey's budget proposal takes immediate action to implement many of these recommendations by directing historic levels of investment to stabilize our statewide transportation infrastructure. By prioritizing the equitable use of Fair Share surtax revenue and utilizing federal funding, the Governor's proposal reflects the Task Force's tactical approach to expeditiously direct billions of dollars in capital and operating funding to support the MBTA and RTAs, while also investing in critical roadway infrastructure in municipalities across the state. Thank you to Governor Healey and her team for convening this Task Force, for giving A Better City the opportunity to serve, and for confronting our transportation crisis head on. We look forward to working with the Healey-Driscoll Administration, Legislature, business community, and transportation advocates in the coming weeks and months to build a stronger, more competitive statewide transportation system and regional economy."
Governor’s Transportation Funding Task Force Report
As you may recall, Governor Healey issued an Executive Order in January 2024 to establish the Transportation Funding Task Force, charging this group of 31 people with developing recommendations for a long-term, sustainable transportation finance plan. The recommendations aim to address statewide needs for safety and reliability in roadways, bridges, and public transit systems across the Commonwealth. Kate Dineen and Tom Ryan represented A Better City on the Task Force. You can read the EO here and see the full list of Task Force members here.
A Better City has been working closely with fellow Task Force members to optimize this effort and to produce a final report that will deliver meaningful improvements for transportation service and support our regional economic growth. We are pleased to share that the final report is focused on an organizing framework that prioritizes maximizing Fair Share surtax (aka Millionaire's Tax) revenue to address the immediate needs of the MBTA and MassDOT, in addition to RTAs and municipalities. There are immediate opportunities to use the Fair Share revenue to stabilize public transportation operations at the MBTA and also to address statewide capital needs. The report specifically calls for dedicating 50% of all Fair Share surtax revenue to transportation (transportation is currently receiving only 41.5%) and recommends additional state borrowing against this surtax revenue. The additional borrowing would allow for billons in new capital investments throughout the transportation system—this concept builds upon a plan originally suggested by A Better City in recent years.
The report includes additional recommendations that are intended to occur over the next few years, such as continuing to aggressively pursue federal transportation funds, rationalizing existing fees (e.g., RMV fees, TNC fees, gas tax) to align with peer states, and assessing the feasibility of new pricing strategies (e.g., new tolling, variable time-of-day pricing, Vehicle Miles Traveled approaches, etc.).
In the coming weeks and months, A Better City looks forward to working with the Administration, the Legislature, the business community, and transportation advocates to advance the Governor’s budget plan, as well as the broader recommendations in the report.
You can read the complete Task Force report here.
We are so grateful for your support and guidance as we advance these pragmatic strategies to invest in our transportation infrastructure—as well as our region’s future. Please reach out to Tom Ryan, Senior Advisor on Policy, Government and Community Affairs at tryan@abettercity.org.
