Massachusetts House Passes $1.8 Billion Supplemental Budget 150 to 3

BOSTON — March 18, 2026 — Massachusetts House passes $1.8 billion supplemental budget, sending $740 million to the MBTA. The House voted 150 to 3 Wednesday to engross House Bill 5264, which deploys roughly $1.3 billion in surplus fiscal year 2025 fair share surtax revenue — an amount that exceeded projections by approximately $1.7 billion — alongside about $500 million in general fund spending on agency deficiencies. House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz of Boston said the transportation-heavy allocation, which directs $525 million to replenish MBTA reserves and $125 million for T workforce and safety needs, is designed to "rebalance the scales" after several education-weighted budget cycles. The bill also incorporates federal tax conformity measures responding to the Trump administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," which Representative Adrian C. Madaro of East Boston said threatens Massachusetts with a revenue shortfall exceeding $650 million in fiscal year 2026. A competing amendment from first-term Representative Justin Thurber of Somerset that would have distributed $100 million equally among all 351 cities and towns on a per-capita basis failed decisively, 25 to 128, after Representative James Arciero of Westwood argued the population formula would harm rural communities with extensive road networks.