Governor Healey Files Mass Ready Act to Strengthen Infrastructure and Prepare for Disasters
On June 24, 2025, Governor Maura Healey introduced the Mass Ready Act, a bill that proposes nearly $3 billion in bond authorizations to strengthen infrastructure and protect Massachusetts communities against increasing extreme weather events. This is the Environmental Bond Bill.
The full legislation and key issue briefs are available here.
ACEC/MA President-Elect Gerry Preble (Beals and Thomas) and ACEC/MA Water Energy and Environment Committee Co-Chair Seth Lattrell (VHB) attended this event on behalf of ACEC/MA.
This legislation focuses on crucial infrastructure improvements, including upgrades to roads, dams, and bridges, and establishes a Resilient Revolving Fund for these types of projects. It also streamlines permitting for priority housing, culvert replacements and salt marsh restoration projects by cutting redundant reviews and improving coordination.
The five-year bond bill Governor Healey proposed calls for $764 million in borrowing to fund upgrades at Department of Conservation and Recreation properties, $401 million for dams and flood control projects, $315 million for the Municipal Vulnerabilities Preparedness program, and $304.5 million for land stewardship and conservation.
Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper said about 200 of the state’s 3,000 dams are in “poor condition,” and warned that many of the 25,000 culverts and small bridges sprinkled across Massachusetts “are too small for the kind of rain that we are now getting.”
“This bill gives cities and towns the help they need. It removes old, unsafe dams and replaces broken culverts before disasters hit,” she said.
Other major funding proposals include $505 million for clean water infrastructure and addressing contamination from PFAS, sometimes referred to as forever chemicals due to how long they take to break down, and $125 million for food security programs.
Governor Healey made the announcement at Braintree Town Hall, near the site of a recently completed dam removal project that has improved neighborhood safety, restored the natural environment and allowed the river to flow freely for the first time in over 200 years.