Most of the buildings at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst were constructed in the 1950s and the 1960s, and the signs of aging are clear, President Marty Meehan says. When it rains, roofs leak. And even during harsh New England winters, students crack windows open to air out stuffy dorm rooms.
But UMass is poised for a facelift, and so are other public schools and community colleges across the state, thanks to the state's so-called millionaire tax, which may back $3.65 billion in campus renovations.
If passed, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey's BRIGHT Act would authorize 10-year special obligation bonds to finance the fixes. The securities would be backed by revenue from the Fair Share Amendment, a 4% levy on taxable incomes over $1 million.
The bill — An Act to Build Resilient Infrastructure to Generate Higher Education Transformation – cleared the state's House of Representatives in November and awaits action in the upper chamber, where Sen. Jo Comerford expects it to pass.
She chairs the Joint Committee on Higher Education and was a member of the working group that came up with the plan to modernize higher education facilities in Massachusetts.
"We heard that schools needed a systemic solution to a systemic problem," Comerford said in an interview. "These buildings are owned by the Commonwealth, and we want to keep tuition and fees as low as possible. That means we have to lift the capital burden off campuses."
Outdated dormitories and classrooms are a big problem at UMass, Meehan said in an interview. The system has identified up to $4.8 billion in potential upgrades across its five campuses, an endeavor that would take 10 years to complete.
Falling behind on renovations can drive away potential students, a serious risk for most colleges in the Northeast as the pool of prospective students in the region is expected to shrink by 17% by 2041.
"In order to attract students, we have to upgrade our labs and buildings," Meehan said. "It will help make UMass a more desirable place for people to attend, because it does negatively impact your enrollment if your buildings aren't up to speed."
The BRIGHT Act would authorize $1.25 billion in funding to UMass and take some strain off its budget, Meehan said. The university has already borrowed more than $3 billion to support its facilities and would need to increase tuition to keep footing the bill on its own.
State Rep. Michael Finn, who heads up the Joint Committee on Bonding, said he's heard positive feedback from municipal-bond investors, especially since the securities will have a dedicated revenue stream.
Since coming into effect in 2023, the levy has generated more collections than expected without forcing significant high-profile departures from the state.
