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S 939

Establishes a fund for the creation of affordable housing

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Liz Krueger and 1 co-sponsor

Creates a Hunger-Free Campus grant program and dedicated trust fund to fund public Massachusetts colleges and partners to address student food insecurity and support completion.

COMMITTED TO RULES
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Bill Summary · S 939

Summary — S.939: “Hunger‑Free Campus Initiative”

Status: Committed to Rules (introduced March 11, 2025; filed Jan. 16, 2025)
Presented by: Sen. Joan B. Lovely (with multiple Massachusetts legislators as petitioners)

Purpose

To create a grant program and dedicated trust fund to help public higher‑education institutions in Massachusetts address student food insecurity and hunger, with the stated goals of supporting post‑secondary career and technical education completion and strengthening the Commonwealth’s workforce.

Key provisions

  • Adds Section 46 to Chapter 15A of the General Laws establishing a “Hunger‑Free Campus” grant program (subject to appropriation).
  • Authorizes grants to:
    • State public higher education institutions,
    • Municipally administered colleges,
    • Minority‑serving institutions as defined in 20 U.S.C. §1067k(3).
  • Funding sources may include appropriations (explicitly may include the Education and Transportation Fund under ch. 29, §2BBBBBB) and public/private gifts, grants, and donations.
  • Creates the Hunger‑Free Campus Trust Fund, administered by the Commissioner of Higher Education:
    • Credits: legislative appropriations, interest, gifts/grants.
    • Money in the fund does not revert to the General Fund.
    • Uses: grant awards and program administration.
  • Program administration:
    • Department of Higher Education (DHE) may hire a program director reporting to the commissioner.
    • Director develops grant guidelines, procedures, and may conduct surveys and collect data on campus food insecurity.
    • DHE provides technical assistance to campuses.
  • Grant criteria/guidelines must address (including, but not limited to):
    • Campus staff designated to interface with DHE,
    • Campus hunger awareness and notification about federal/state nutrition benefits,
    • Acceptance of federal/state nutrition benefits by on‑campus meal vendors,
    • Student meal credit sharing programs,
    • Income‑based standards for grant amounts,
    • Any other criteria DHE develops.
  • Reporting:
    • Annual program report (by July 1) to the Governor, clerks of the Legislature, and Joint Committee on Higher Education including: participating institutions, activities, student engagement, grant counts/amounts, and outcomes.
    • Annual fund activity report (by Oct. 1) to legislative committees and clerks including sources/amounts received, expenditures, grants awarded, and projections.

Who/what is affected

  • Primary beneficiaries: students at public higher‑education institutions in Massachusetts, including municipally administered and eligible minority‑serving institutions.
  • Institutions: community colleges, state universities, and other public campuses that apply and meet DHE criteria.
  • State government: Department of Higher Education will administer the program; appropriation and oversight responsibilities rest with the Legislature and DHE.

Legislative timeline / procedural notes

  • Filed Jan. 16, 2025; introduced in the Senate and read twice (Mar. 11, 2025).
  • Referred to the Committee on Higher Education (Feb. 27, 2025); hearing scheduled May 5, 2025.
  • Advanced to third reading (Mar. 17, 2025).
  • Accompanied by a new draft (see S.2535) and later committed to Rules (June 13, 2025).

Potential impacts and considerations

  • Directly targets student food insecurity, which research links to academic persistence and completion—especially for career and technical education students.
  • Establishes a sustained funding mechanism (non‑reverting trust fund) that could enable multi‑year planning if funded.
  • Program effectiveness depends on legislative appropriations, the rigor of DHE guidelines, outreach/awareness, and campus capacity to implement vendor/benefit integrations.
  • Administrative costs (director, technical assistance, reporting) are authorized and would be paid from the trust fund.

For full legislative text and institutional eligibility detail, see the bill language adding Section 46 to Chapter 15A.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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