How Bay Staters can help with the migrant crisis
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Gov. Healey's state of emergency declaration regarding the migrant crisis is a call to action for every business owner, nonprofit leader and individual willing to help people seeking shelter in Massachusetts.
Driving the news: The state is asking anyone able to host homeless families or migrants to open their doors, but first they must be vetted by the Brazilian Worker Center.
- People can start to get involved by calling 211 or emailing [email protected].
- The center is leading the process to onboard and match volunteers with new arrivals, similar to how nonprofits lead refugee resettlements.
Why it matters: State shelters have seen an 80% increase in the number of families in their system in the past year with many forced to stay in hotels, Healey said earlier this week.
- The system has been stretched past capacity for months, and despite state investments to make more room, officials and volunteers can't keep pace.
Zoom in: The state's new family welcome centers in Allston and Quincy are seeking donations including strollers, baby wipes, new car seats, diapers, formula, toothbrushes and more.
Reality check: The shelter system doesn't even cover all people experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts because so many don't qualify, Kelly Turley, associate director of the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, told Axios.
- Families must make under 115% of the federal poverty limit, have homeless children under age 21 or homeless pregnant people and meet other criteria to qualify for state shelter services.
- Individuals and families who aren't eligible have doubled up in apartments, are sleeping in cars or sheltering in emergency rooms, Turley said.
State of play: Massachusetts had between 15-20 host families providing short-term shelter as of late July, per the governor's office.
Meanwhile: The Healey administration on Wednesday signed into law a provision preventing a landlord from evicting a tenant with a pending application for emergency rental assistance.
- Lawmakers first passed this provision as a temporary measure during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yes, but: Housing advocates say that reinstating other pandemic-era eviction protections, such as the eviction moratorium or passing rent control, could further reduce strain on the shelter system.
- "We know that once a family or individual loses their existing housing, it's very difficult to secure new, affordable, permanent housing, especially given the current housing market," Turley told Axios.