AFTER A PERIOD of unprecedented drought and wildfires last year spurred urgent calls for water conservation in Massachusetts, the arrival of flood season has seemingly washed away that momentum – with no policy to directly tackle drought included in Gov. Maura Healey’s environmental bond bill, which outlines the administration’s climate priorities. 

As climate change fuels worsening drought and wildfires across the Northeast, Massachusetts lawmakers have pushed for three bills – two in the Senate and one in the House – that would codify the state’s existing drought management task force and allow the head of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to mandate water conservation during severe droughts, including the ability to limit nonessential outdoor water use. However, none of the bills were incorporated into the bond bill Healey filed on June 24. 

Healey’s environmental bond bill proposes nearly $3 billion to strengthen infrastructure, fund climate resilience projects across the state, protect water and natural resources, streamline permitting for housing and restoration, and help communities prepare for extreme weather and environmental challenges. It has drawn praise from environmental groups like The Nature Conservancy.  

The administration declined to answer questions about why the drought management legislation was not included in the bond bill, but suggested the issue is a priority. “With droughts increasing in severity and frequency, our administration is committed to being a partner with communities to help them prepare and respond,” the governor’s office said in a statement. “We will review any legislation that reaches the Governor’s desk.” 

During the height of last year’s drought season, the Healey administration called for more water conservation. In a November 19 press release, the state’s energy and environmental affairs secretary, Rebecca Tepper, said, “Water conservation is more important than ever. We urge municipalities, residents, and businesses — including those with private wells — to help us reduce stress on our water systems. We need to work together to ensure we have enough clean drinking water, protect wildlife habitats, and maintain effective fire control.” 

Drought management legislation would allow for a regional water conservation strategy. Proponents say that this is essential because drought and wildfires aren’t often contained within municipal boundaries.  

Bond bills filed by the governor are more likely to be taken up by the notoriously unproductive Legislature. Big policy packages like the state budget or bond bills are often vehicles for passing important policy. 

The drought management bill passed the Senate last session as part of the 2024 climate law, but the House didn’t take it up. This session, the bill has been reported favorably by the Senate from the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources to the Senate Ways and Means Committee. It will continue making its way through on the Senate side but it’s not clear if the House will move on it. 

Sen. Jamie Eldridge, who filed one of the three drought management bills, advocated for the legislation to be included in Healey’s bond bill and expressed disappointment that it was not included. 

“With the continued impacts of climate change leading to extremes in water, whether it’s flooding or drought, the state needs stronger tools to regulate water use and to protect clean water access for residents and communities across Massachusetts,” said Eldridge. “In the past 10 years, we’ve seen a growing number of regions of the state designated as having drought conditions, and so there is urgency to passing the drought management bill.” 

Eldridge praised the bond bill for its increased investments in environmental programs but said that it is “pretty light on traditional environmental policy.” Measures banning plastic bags, addressing PFAS or “forever chemicals,” and raising tax credits for landowners who use their land for conservation are all policies that should have made it into the environmental bond bill, he said.  

Eldridge is expected to testify at a July 15 hearing to push lawmakers to tack on the drought management bill and several other pieces of legislation to the larger bond bill.  

Steve Long, the director of policy at The Nature Conservancy, largely praised Healey’s bill and said that some policies it includes that don’t directly address drought or wildfires will still lessen the impacts of both. Specifically, he noted that the bond bill includes funds to remove obsolete dams which can improve the health of rivers and $30 million that is directed toward forestry and tree planting.   

“Even though you might not see the words wildfire and you might not see the word drought in the bond bill, if you keep natural systems healthy, that will both reduce the chance of wildfires and the impacts of drought,” said Long. 

Average spring and summer temperatures in Massachusetts have climbed over the past five decades, and these warmer, sunnier seasons dry out soil and vegetation, making wildfires and droughts more likely and severe.  

Mass Rivers Alliance, an advocacy group, emphasized the urgency of passing drought management legislation as the climate continues to warm.  

“The urgency is that we are experiencing drought in new ways, and it’s happening on a fairly regular basis,” said Heather Clish, the group’s policy director. “We want to be prepared every time we experience drought to help sustain the water supply in our rivers during drought period.”