Lobby Day 2017
The members and staff of SCC showed up in full force earlier this month for Lobby Day, an annual event sponsored by the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations (MACDC).Held at the State House, the day provides opportunities for community development organizations and supporters from across the Commonwealth to:
- Advocate for policy priorities that support equitable community development.
- Discuss relevant local issues with state legislators.
- Connect, strategize and explore collaborations with colleagues from across the state.
- Learn about the latest trends and innovations from local and national leaders in the community development movement.
As part of the day’s activities, SCC had the oppportunity to meet with our legislative delegation: State Senator Pat Jehlen, State Representative Mike Connolly, State Representative Denise Provost, and State Representative Christine Barber (in photo with SCC members and staff, third from right, rear row). We appreciate their unified support for MACDC’s and SCC’s policy priorities, which include two critical legislative priorities:
- The Housing Bond Bill, an act financing the production and preservation of housing for low and moderate-income residents. The bill would authorize $1.7 billion in capital funding for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, Housing Stabilization Fund, Housing Innovation Fund and other housing programs.
- An extension of the Community Investment Tax Credit (CITC), an act that provides a 50% tax credit against Massachusetts tax liability for donors that invest in a CDC’s Community Investment Plan. The act would extend CITC through 2025, lift the overall cap progressively to $12 million in 2023, and lift the individual CDC caps in alignment with the overall cap to $300,000 in 2023.
SCC Board Member Kathy McGilvray,who was a featured speaker at the event, heartily endorsed the extension of the CITC legislation, sharing how she came to be, and why she remains, a CITC donor.
Kathy explained that the nonprofit for which she works supports its nonprofit partners through the program, giving twice as much as it would otherwise. After giving to charities for many years in small increments of “$25 here and $50 there,” she decided in 2014 to make her own CITC donation and make a big impact on her community with an investment that offered a Massachusetts tax credit, plus a deduction on her federal taxes.
Ultimately, Kathy would receive a 75% return on investment and became an advocate for the program. She sees CITC as is an important vehicle for neighbors helping neighbors succeed. Read Kathy’s full testimony at the 2017 MACDC Lobby Day.