Author: Mass Union

Mass Union’s Policy Priorities for Public Housing Day 5.7.25

The Mass Union of Public Housing Tenants respectfully requests our Senators’ support for the following so that we, tenants in public housing, may live with the dignity we deserve.

    • Increase the Public Housing Operating Subsidy, Line Item 7004-9005.

 ASK: $153 million

 Cosponsor and support any amendment that increases this line item. Tenants in state-aided public housing live with mold, rats, bedbugs, broken elevators, sewage problems and more. Massachusetts can and MUST do better. We don’t deserve to live this way. Your help is crucial.

    • Provide more funding for the Access to Counsel Program, Line-item 0321-1800.

 ASK: $5 million

 Cosponsor and support any amendment that increases this line item. Public housing tenants facing eviction need your support. Sometimes, we face eviction because our rent was miscalculated, or we are trying to improve the conditions in our community. Your support for Access to Counsel will provide full representation for those of us who need it most.

    • Support Tenant Voice in Redevelopment.

 ASK: $350,000

 Mass Union is very grateful that the Affordable Homes Act provides protections for tenants undergoing redevelopment with private partners, including requiring that tenants be provided with Technical Assistance to help us navigate complicated deals. These protections are crucial. We are working to find funding sources for Technical Assistance for tenants so we may provide meaningful input into this process. Please stay tuned.

Resident Leader Training Series – Spring 2025

Register below by May 14!
Wednesdays, May 21, 28, June 4, 11
11:00am – 12:30pm
Via Zoom – Link provided after you register

Please join us for our flagship training, the four-part Resident Leader Training Series. This series will focus the core concepts of Mass Union’s network leadership model. Whether you are a seasoned resident leader or new in your leadership journey, join us to learn skills to build and sustain tenant power in your community. The core concepts covered in the training include the following:

    1. Balance of Power
    2. The Big Four
    3. Spaghetti Power
    4. Network Leadership
    5. The Blueprint for Change

 

April 30 – Special Advocacy Training – i.e. Public Housing Day Prep Webinar

Wednesday, April 30, 2pm – 3pm Via Zoom

This online session will help tenants prepare for our Public Housing Day on May 7 . We’ll review our plan for the day, our state policy agenda, and talking points. This will ensure that together we can make our voices heard to support fair funding for public housing, Access to Counsel for tenants facing eviction, and protection for tenants undergoing redevelopment. Tenants who register for Public Housing Day will be sent the link for this session as well.

April 16: LTO Business Banking Workshop in Brockton

Wednesday, April 16, 10am – 3pm – Please arrive by 9:30 at the latest
Caffrey Towers, Brockton, MA
Breakfast and Lunch Provided
Spanish Interpretation Provided

Is your Local Tenant Organization (LTO) ready to open up a bank account, secure an EIN, and get up to date on budgeting practices that ensure compliance?  If so, we invite you to join us on Wednesday, April 16th for an in-person workshop at Caffery Towers in Brockton, Ma. In collaboration with our new community partner, JPMorgan Chase, the workshop will provide information on general business banking products and basic budgeting practices. We look forward to hosting you and supporting your LTO.

April 30: MKI Training: Sustainable Strategies for Language Access

9:30am

Duration:

6 hours

 Online

Description

Language Access is a fundamental component of equitable community engagement. To meet the needs of underserved communities, our projects and outreach strategies must be multilingual and culturally welcoming. Language access allows people’s voices to be heard and affirms that their voice does matter. We live in a globalizing and increasingly multilingual world. Our public processes need to be multilingual, too.

Join this interactive webinar series to:

  • Work through sustainable strategies for language access.
  • Talk about bridging from providing access to meaningful multilingual participation.
  • Address the intersection of language and disability justice and examine how communication access benefits everyone and strengthens your public process overall.
  • Strategize on public participation design that is not only linguistically accessible but culturally inclusive.

Session 1: April 30 | 9:30AM-12:30PM

Session 2: May 14 | 9:30AM-12:30PM

Registration deadline

April 16: MKI Webinar: LHA Board Stewardship and Fundamentals of Non-Profit Governance

April 16 (Wednesday)
5 pm – 7 pm
This training will focus on effective Local Housing Authority Boards and Commissions stewardship strategies, meant for and free for all members. Topics will include fundamentals of non-profit governance, building capacity, resilience, and diversity, the roles and responsibilities of board members, and conflict of interest avoidance.

March 27 MKI & EOHLC Webinar: RSC and Supportive Housing Programs

March 27 (Thursday)
10 am – 11:30 am
The Resident Service Coordinator program and the state Self-Sufficiency Program are two grants administered by the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) to support residents living in state-aided public housing. Speaker Ann-Elizabeth Young, Livable Public Housing Communities Specialist, will discuss each program’s scope, purpose, and impact in this presentation.

Mass Union Signs Letter to Stop Elon Musk and DOGE from Gutting HUD

As we know, HUD is the federal agency dedicated to addressing our most pressing housing, community development and homelessness challenges and serves millions of renters, homeowners, and people experiencing homelessness.

Attempts by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to terminate at least half of all HUD employees, if successful, would be DISASTROUS for our communities.

Mass Union has signed a national letter to stop this. Read the full letter here, which will be finalized on March 11, 2025.

March 28 – Reasonable Accommodations Webinar

Date: March 28th
Time: 11:00am- 12:15pm

Zoom: Register below for link!

The Tenant Advocacy Project—also known as TAP—is a student practice group at Harvard Law School that represents current and prospective public housing tenants and Section 8 voucher recipients in administrative hearings and other disputes with their housing authority.

On March 28th, we will be joined by law students, Sarah Berton and AJ Williamson to learn what a Reasonable Accommodation is, how to request one, and what to expect after submitting a request. We will also spend time answering general questions about the process. The hope is that you leave the webinar confident and knowledgeable about approaching your housing authority to request any Reasonable Accommodation you might need.