Fire union officials decry cuts to budget

$1.68m loss for local departments

The Healey administration’s $375 million in budget cuts announced Monday will result in steep reductions to state funding to local fire departments for equipment purchases and station upgrades, according to Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts, a statewide union.

The union, which represents over 12,000 firefighters and EMTs, said in a letter to membership that local fire departments will lose roughly $1.68 million as a result of the cuts.

“The majority of these cuts are reducing local ‘earmarks’ by” 50 percent, union president Richard D. MacKinnon Jr. wrote in the letter, which was posted Thursday to X, formerly Twitter.

For example, the Easton Fire Department was slated to receive $100,000 for equipment purchases and will now receive $50,000, he said. The Taunton department was counting on $500,000 for “vital upgrades” to its central station but will now receive half, MacKinnon wrote.

Other communities affected by cuts include Auburn, Barnstable, Berlin, Billerica, Boston, Boxford, Braintree, Dracut, Duxbury, East Bridgewater, Everett, Georgetown, Hanson, Medway, Milford, Natick, Norfolk, Northbridge, Pembroke, Plainville, Quincy, Randolph, Saugus, Sharon, Southbridge, Stoughton, Stow, Tewksbury, Upton, Whitman, Worcester, and a firefighter cancer screening program, he wrote.

“We will continue to dig into these cuts and advocate for the funding to be restored,” MacKinnon wrote. “We implore you to start conversations with your Fire Chiefs and local elected officials to determine how these budget cuts may impact your members.”

In a statement, Governor Maura Healey’s administration said Friday that state officials are working to support firefighters.

“The Healey-Driscoll Administration is committed to supporting our hard-working firefighters and keeping them safe,” said a spokesperson for the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security. “More than 300 local fire departments have been approved for $5 million toward firefighter protective gear and other safety equipment, and we will be sending their award letters in the days ahead.”

The funding will reimburse departments for the purchase of protective gear, tools, and speciality equipment, officials said.

Administration officials said the state authorized the Department of Fire Services to use unspent funding for firefighter cancer screenings in the last fiscal year toward this year’s screenings, and that the agency expects to meet anticipated demand for screenings through June. The current fiscal year ends June 30.

Healey announced Monday that in response to a tax revenue shortfall, her administration is cutting $375 million in spending, slashing hundreds of millions from programs that provide outreach for seniors, behavioral health supports, homeless shelters, prostate cancer research, and more than 60 others.

In a letter to lawmakers, Healey said reductions to the state’s $56 billion spending plan for fiscal 2024 won’t impact school funding or local aid, and that state officials aren’t planning to lay off government employees.

Healey officials also confirmed, as previously reported by the Globe, that the administration will cut funding set aside for dozens of local earmarks by 50 percent as part of the spending cuts and reduce the amount of tax revenue expected this budget year by $1 billion.

State tax revenue is running $769 million, or about 4 percent, behind projections midway through the current fiscal year. December marked the sixth successive month that saw tax revenue fail to meet expectations.