The first known lawsuits seeking to have the state of Massachusetts extend rental assistance for a third year are finally having their day in court tomorrow after being denied coverage.
The program, HomeBASE, is run by the state Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) that helps low-income families in the state facing homelessness — who are emergency shelter eligible — with housing assistance. Eligibility is determined by the state.
One of the lawsuits reads: “Ms. Doe’s request for such ongoing assistance was improperly denied, in clear violation of the law, depriving her of funds and stabilization which would keep her and her child stably housed until the end of January 2027.”
Attorneys say the 2027 state budget has language saying that EOHLC “shall” provide a third year of HomeBASE stabilization “up to $15,000” to families who completed the first two years in good standing. They say they have continued to be denied, with the state pointing to budget restraints.
“It is a case of caution given the clients who tend to be affected by this unilateral decision,” said Claire Bergstresser, staff attorney in the housing unit at Greater Boston Legal Services, the organization representing plaintiffs in both lawsuits.
A spokesperson from EOHLC said in a statement that as a part of the reforms to the Right to Shelter law to keep the program sustainable, the agency “paused approvals for a third year of HomeBASE assistance so we can prioritize helping the greatest number of families with the resources available.”
One of the lawsuits, filed in August, is for “Jane Doe,” who GBH News is not naming due to the woman’s fears about previously facing domestic violence.
Doe fled her home with her son in 2021 due to violence from her partner that began when she was pregnant. She became homeless and spent time bouncing between distant relatives in apartments that didn’t permit long-term guests.
In the fall of 2023, she was determined eligible for emergency shelter and put on a waitlist, then was later offered HomeBASE diversion instead of waiting for a shelter placement.
She moved into an apartment for $1,877 per month in January 2024, with more than $1,600 paid for by HomeBASE, and found a position at a local health clinic as a personal care attendant a month later, making $18.50 an hour. Her rent was raised twice to $2,049, and she covered the difference.
In July 2025, Doe met with a caseworker, and was shown paperwork that she was eligible to receive just under $18,000 in assistance. A few weeks later, the caseworker said the balance was less than $3,000 and would expire in January 2026.
“Ms. Doe asked about the third year of assistance she was eligible for and the balance she saw in the office. Her caseworker stated that was a mistake,” attorneys wrote in the complaint. “The HomeBASE worker told her that EOHLC was no longer offering the additional 12 months of HomeBASE, and that there would be no additional help.”
Doe said there was no formal notice and she was not offered the opportunity to appeal.
By January, Doe was paying over $1,500 in rent herself and HomeBASE was providing just over $500. Her HomeBASE coverage has since been entirely cut off. She and her landlord have an agreement for her to keep paying, but it has been “challenging” and unsustainable, attorney Bergstresser said.
“They had originally told her she could get it, and then they told her that they had paused the program. We feel strongly that, per the legislative intent, it’s important that she has access to that,” she added.
Doe told GBH News she can’t get a second job because there would be no one to watch her 7-year-old.
“It’s just like trying to weigh my options and do the best that I can, but it’s like, there’s only but so much I can do being a single parent by myself.”
Doe makes about $2,700 a month as a personal care attendant, and is fully responsible for $2,095 in rent, not including utilities. Those have been high in the past due to heating issues, and a landlord providing her with space heaters that drove up the utility charges.
“I just feel like I just want to have a stable home for my son. He enjoys having his own room — I just want to continue that. I like being able to unlock the door to my own place,” said Doe in an interview.
The other lawsuit is focused on a mother who is limited in her ability to work because of the disability-related needs of her 5-year-old.
The lawsuits are getting a combined hearing at Suffolk Superior Court on Wednesday.
Legal advocates said in both cases that their landlords would prefer to keep the tenants, but the families cannot afford their market-rate rent without financial assistance.
Attorneys said they’re seeking injunctions in both cases, and that the legislature had fully funded the Governor’s fiscal year 2027 request for an additional $25 million in the HomeBASE line item, for a total of $82 million.
