MassGOP calls on Bill Galvin to release unredacted emergency shelter records as acting governor

The Massachusetts Republican Party called on Secretary of State Bill Galvin, who was poised to become acting governor Tuesday afternoon, to release documents related to the state’s emergency shelter system with critical information left unredacted.

Gov. Maura Healey’s administration has routinely released records on the system to the public but has kept hidden the locations of hotels that are being paid to host local and migrant families, certain vendors providing services, and details of “serious incidents” at shelters.

MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale said Galvin holds a “rare and critical opportunity to do something the Healey administration has refused,” to inform residents of the commonwealth about how the state has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the taxpayer-funded shelter program.

“For nearly 30 years, Bill Galvin has served as secretary of the commonwealth in a bipartisan capacity. We now call upon him to exercise his authority as acting governor and disclose where these taxpayer dollars are being spent, identify the vendors receiving this funding, and provide transparency on the over 600 ‘serious incidents’ reported in taxpayer-funded shelters,” Carnevale said in a statement.

Galvin was set to serve as acting governor through early Friday afternoon because both Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll were either in or traveling to Chicago for the Democratic National Convention.

A spokesperson for Galvin declined to comment, citing a series of pending appeals related to shelter-related records.

Massachusetts is expected to spend more than $1 billion on the emergency shelter system in this and each of the next few fiscal years, according to the Healey administration.

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State officials have spent $819 million on the shelter system through June of fiscal year 2024, according to data released last week. Final numbers for the fiscal year that ended in June are expected to be released in the coming months, Healey’s budget-writing office has said.

The billion-dollar price tag has largely been fueled by an influx of migrants over the past year who have sought shelter services through a state-run program for families with children and pregnant women.

The MassGOP also pointed to hundreds of “serious incidents” reported at emergency shelters. The state’s housing department has withheld detailed records on the incidents from multiple media outlets, including the Herald.

The “lack of transparency is staggering,” the party said in a statement.

“Given this refusal to disclose crucial details regarding spending and safety risks, the Massachusetts Republican Party calls on Secretary Bill Galvin, in his role as acting governor, to release the unredacted documentation concerning the expenditures on the emergency housing program and the safety incidents associated with the state shelter system,” the party said.

The Healey administration has said releasing detailed information on emergency shelters could put families staying at the sites in danger. Officials have also said “serious incident” reports contain a wide variety of information about the individuals involved, including “highly sensitive information about shelter residents.”

The state’s housing and health agencies last week declined to provide specific details on the millions spent on services for the emergency shelter system with taxpayer-funded credit cards.

The departments acknowledged they had used the credit cards for shelter-related purchases but declined to provide information on specific charges, including thousands spent at hotel chains across the state.

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