Mass Loses $7M in Homeland Security Grants

03:22PM / Tuesday, September 30, 2025Print Story | Email Story

BOSTON — The Trump administration has cut $6.9 million in public safety funding for Massachusetts communities.

Gov. Maura Healey said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security notified the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security on Saturday that its previous award allocation of $22.2 million from the federal Homeland Security Grant Program is being reduced to just $15.3 million.

This abrupt loss of nearly $7 million jeopardizes Massachusetts' ability to equip local emergency services and safeguard critical infrastructure against terrorist threats and other emergencies, she said.

"President Trump and [Homeland Security] Secretary Kristi Noem just made every community in Massachusetts and in states across the country less safe. Our cities and towns use this grant funding to keep their residents safe from threats and support law enforcement," Healey said. "President Trump is playing politics with our public safety, and he's using these funding cuts to punish those who disagree with him. He needs to restore the funding that we are owed."

Delivered without notice and only days before the end of the fiscal year, this sudden cut threatens to destabilize preparedness efforts statewide immediately, said the governor.

EOPSS administers homeland security grant funds through its Office of Grants and Research, which distributes them to the state's four Regional Homeland Security Advisory Councils, the Metro Boston Urban Area Security Initiative, and several state agencies.

Collectively, these partners provide the training, planning and critical resources that state and local stakeholders, as well as communities, need to respond to evolving threats, terrorist incidents and natural disasters, according to the governor's office.

Healey said her administration stands with Attorney General Andrea Joy Campell, who on Tuesday joined a coalition of 12 attorneys general in filing an emergency lawsuit against the Trump administration's reallocation of federal homeland security funds. The lawsuit seeks to block politically motivated cuts that diverted lifesaving resources away from Massachusetts and other states, despite decades of bipartisan practice treating all states equitably in disaster preparedness.

This sudden slash in funding undermines DHS's own stated priorities of strengthening emergency preparedness and enhancing community resilience by stripping resources from programs specifically designed to achieve those goals, according to state officials. The reductions will affect the Boston Regional Intelligence Center, which coordinates threat-related information sharing among local, state, federal, and private partners, as well as other competitive funds that support protective equipment, advanced training, and critical exercises such as Active Shooter Response.

Past homeland security grants have supported investments including rapid deployment robots and situational awareness drones for fire services, mobile emergency operations equipment for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, dive team gear for the State Police Marine Unit, and advanced training programs for Massport Fire Rescue.

The administration calls for the immediate reinstatement of homeland security funds to ensure Massachusetts and its partners can continue to protect communities and ensure our collective ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from emerging threats.

Tags: emergency preparedness, federal grants,

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Companion Corner: Princess at Berkshire Humane Society

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
02:17PM / Wednesday, August 05, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There is an energetic girl waiting to find her new home at the Berkshire Humane Society.

iBerkshire's Companion Corner is a weekly series spotlighting an animal in our local shelters that is ready to find a home.

Princess is a six year old shepherd mix that has been at the shelter for just over a month.

Canine caregiver and adoption counselor Simone Olivieri told us about Princess.

"She's very social, very friendly. When you're out walking her, she just wants to go say hi to every single new person. Loves to make new friends. She's a lot of fun. She's very active. She's very spunky. She's very playful, and she's going to need a very very active family who's going to do a lot with her."

But Princess is no stranger to the shelter. She was a puppy five years ago and got adopted quickly, but now she needs a new family to take care of her.

"She was adopted out fairly quickly as a young puppy. She's been in the same home for the past five years. Unfortunately, they were moving out of state somewhere," Olivieri said. "They could not take her with them, so she ended up coming as a return to shelter, and she came back to stay with us."

Princess needs to go to a home as the only animal or with other male dogs that are her size or bigger.

"Her perfect home would be kids eight and up. No cats. No small animals. She has quite a prey drive. She could go to a home with another dog around her size or larger, preferably a male dog. She does a little bit better with male dogs, and she's looking for a home where people are home quite a bit, so that she's not left alone for too long. She has some separation anxiety," Olivieri said.

She also needs a very active home that can let her use her energy every day, as she is very rambunctious. Especially with playing with her favorite toy, the flirt pole.

"She could use a home where people are going to give her a lot of attention and more than just a few walks a day; she's going to need lots of exercise, lots of playtime, lots of mental stimulation," Olivieri said. "She likes to learn, so someone who would be willing to take her to training classes or work on some training with her, as well as hikes, getting out and about, doing new things, different things. She is very athletic. She'd excel at things like agility, some dog sports. Just someone who is really going to want to engage and do a lot of different kinds of activities with her."

Once you let her get her energy out, she is a cuddler who wouldn't mind being held like a baby from time to time.

"She's very sweet. She's very cuddly. She's very affectionate, but she is not a couch potato. She will stay on that couch with you for a little bit, and then she's ready to go off and do something else. So she's very busy. She's very active," Olivieri said. "Once all of her exercise needs are met during the day, she will settle down nicely, and she will want to be right by your side, cuddle with you at night on the couch, sleep with you."

Princess is very healthy but does experience some anxiety and is not fully potty trained and might have the occasional accident.

"She does have a little bit of anxiety, so she is on some medication for it right now," Olivieri said. "So a lot of structure, a lot of outlets, and familiarity, getting used to a new routine and everything is gonna be really good for her. I mean, she's just lovely. Like I said, she's very social. She likes to play with other dogs. She likes to meet new people."

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