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Call to Action: Ask Your Legislator to Support MAPC Priority Amendments

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MAPC Call to Action

Help us support smart growth and regional collaboration in the budget by contacting your state representative today!

Please call or email your state representative to ask her or him to cosponsor amendments that fund key priorities in our region: District Local Technical Assistance (DLTA), which provides technical assistance to cities and towns, and the Shannon Grant, which provides funds for municipalities to address youth gang violence prevention. These funds are critical in supporting municipal needs in our region and across the Commonwealth.

Please take a few minutes this week to do three things to support DLTA and Shannon:

  1. Contact Your Representative: Email or call your Representative (or all the representatives who represent the region that you serve) and ask them to co-sponsor Rep. Donato's amendment. (We even have a sample script for you below!)
  2. Spread the Word! Forward this message to your networks and share on social media. Let your friends and family know!
  3. Let Us Know You Took Action: Please send a quick reply to let me know you took action.

Click on our fact sheets below to learn more about why DLTA and Shannon are important to our region and to see examples of projects!

How to Identify Your Representative(s)

Use This Message for your call or email:

[Ask to speak with a staff member in the Representative's office]

“Hello, my name is [NAME] from [CITY or TOWN] in the Representative’s district. Programs that support smart growth and regional collaboration are important to me. I am requesting that the Representative support Rep. Donato's amendment to increase funding for District Local Technical Assistance and Rep. Madaro's amendment to increase funding for the Shannon Grant. Thank you.”

About District Local Technical Assistance (DLTA)

Representative Paul Donato’s amendment increases funding for the DLTA program to $3.4 million. Municipalities statewide are able to access technical assistance for land use and planning functions through DLTA. Demand for the program routinely outstrips the supply of funding, even with Regional Planning Agencies providing a match of at least 10% on all projects.

About the Shannon Grant

Representative Adrian Madaro's amendment increases funding for the statewide Shannon Gang Prevention Grant Program to $10 million. Shannon Grant funds have been used to support regional law enforcement operations, hire outreach workers, fund job training programs, and support after school programs in many cities and towns struggling with youth violence. More than 40 communities and over 100 agencies have benefited from this program over the last 13 years.

Questions?

Thank you for your action! Learn more about the legislation MAPC supports on the Legislative Priorities page. Please contact Senior Government Affairs Specialist Leah Robins with any questions at [email protected] or 617.933.0710.