Budget negotiators have “agreement in principle”

BOSTON, Mass. (SHNS)–House and Senate negotiators have reached agreements on an overdue budget for fiscal year 2025.

Seventeen days after the start of fiscal year 2025, the conference committee negotiating the general budget bill picked up the paperwork needed to file a final deal around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.  Shortly afterwards, the top negotiators confirmed an “agreement in principle.”

“Our respective teams are ironing out the details and completing the work necessary to formalize the agreement,” Rep. Aaron Michlewitz and Sen. Michael Rodrigues said in a statement. “We are confident that the conference committee report will be filed in the coming days, ensuring that both the House and Senate will send a budget later this week to Governor Healey and her team that moves Massachusetts forward on an affordable and fiscally sustainable path.”

Both branches approved spending plans in the $58 billion range, but negotiators faced a slew of decisions to resolve major differences in particular spending accounts and outside sections calling for new policies.

Democrats did not reveal any details Wednesday about where their agreement landed on myriad differences between the two bills, including its bottom line, division of surtax spending, or various policy riders.

A spokesperson for Senate President Karen Spilka said details would be released once the agreement is finalized.

The governor gets 10 days to review any legislation before acting on it, and legislative rules call for formal sessions — where roll call votes to override any vetoes take place — to end after July 31. Lawmakers would need to ship the final budget to Healey by Sunday to guarantee their ability to push through any spending or policy ideas over the governor’s objection.

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