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MLRI staff regularly write and disseminate policy papers, reports and other publications on issues impacting economic, racial and social justice for low-income people.

Policy Recommendations: The Affordable Homes Act
Policy Recommendations: The Affordable Homes Act

Policy Recommendations: The Affordable Homes Act

by Massachusetts Law Reform Institute House Practice Group

On October 18, 2023, Governor Healey filed a $4 billion housing bond bill, The Affordable Homes Act, H.4138 (Bond Bill), calling for significant investments in housing as well as policies intended to protect tenants and provide new tools for local communities. We applaud the Administration for proposing critically needed investments in preserving and creating affordable housing, as well as important policies to loosen municipal zoning and pilot social housing models. In addition to these commendable goals, however, we must ensure that this Bond Bill emerges as the comprehensive vehicle we need to meet our housing emergency.

Models of Justice: MLRI Annual Report 2021-2022
Models of Justice: MLRI Annual Report 2021-2022

Models of Justice: MLRI Annual Report 2021-2022

Review of the Housing Development Incentive Program (“HDIP”)
Review of the Housing Development Incentive Program (“HDIP”)

Review of the Housing Development Incentive Program (“HDIP”)

by Judith Liben, Housing Attorney and Access to Justice Fellow at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute

Using information gathered from public records requests to the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), this report reviews the the Housing Development Incentive Program ("HDIP").

The Default Project: A Survey of the Reasons for Tenant Defaults in Housing Court Eviction Cases
The Default Project: A Survey of the Reasons for Tenant Defaults in Housing Court Eviction Cases

The Default Project: A Survey of the Reasons for Tenant Defaults in Housing Court Eviction Cases

by the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute and the Justice Center for Southeast Massachusetts

Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI) and the Justice Center of Southeast Massachusetts (JCSEM) have released an innovative report analyzing the high rate of eviction cases where tenants default, or do not appear, at a court hearing.

Family Voices
Family Voices

Family Voices

by Susan R. Elsen, Esq. and Sarah E. Esposito, MPP

Families and youth shared essential insights into what services worked for them, both those they received through DCF and those they found outside of DCF. They also talked about the services they needed but did not get. Finally, they shared important information about the impact of the DCF system on the effectiveness of its services.

Connecting Community College Students to SNAP
Connecting Community College Students to SNAP

Connecting Community College Students to SNAP

by Ashley Burnside and Parker Gilkesson of CLASP, and Patricia Baker of MLRI

Food insecurity is on the rise throughout the country, including for low-income college students struggling to complete their education. COVID has further exacerbated the crisis for students. Although Congress authorized states to implement temporary measures to extend federal nutrition benefits or SNAP to more college students during the pandemic, these measures will likely expire by the end of 2021. In 2010, MLRI successfully negotiated a policy solution to ensure community college students had access to SNAP benefits. Since then, PA, WA, OR and a few other states have followed in MA’s foot steps.  In April of 2021, MLRI collaborated with the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) in drafting a report, Connecting Community College Students to SNAP which describes in detail the MA SNAP policy option, legislative history and recommendations for how stakeholders can reduce food insecurity among college students with low incomes by expanding their access to SNAP.

Improving SNAP Access for Older Adults
Improving SNAP Access for Older Adults

Improving SNAP Access for Older Adults

by Vicky Negus and Pat Baker

Alarmed by a drastic drop in SNAP participation due to the Massachusetts SNAP agency’s past flawed practices, MLRI and Massachusetts anti-hunger advocates initiated a multi-year advocacy effort to improve enrollment and reduce access barriers. This policy brief describes advocacy strategies and state options to increase SNAP enrollment and retention. It shares approaches to reduce state administrative costs, and barriers to SNAP participation for older adults.

Evicted for Life
Evicted for Life

Evicted for Life

by Annette Duke and Andrea Park, MLRI Staff Attorneys, with Research and Contributions from Laura Spark

Evicted for Life is a new MLRI report that highlights how publicly available eviction court record information is harming tenants and exacerbating the housing crisis. Eviction court records are freely available online at MassCourts.org, the Trial Court's case management system, creating devastating barriers for tenants statewide — especially vulnerable tenants, people of color, low-income renters, elder tenants, and children who are named in their parents' eviction cases. Through extensive interviews and research, Evicted for Life details the increasing damage being done by the unrestricted availability of information on MassCourts, as well as policy recommendations to mitigate and reduce these harms.