Salary Reserve

For additional information on the Salary Reserve and its FY01–FY05 impacts, go to the People First website at www.mass.gov/mddc/peoplefirst/index.html and click on the Salary Reserve chapter in the Volume I table of contents.

Line Item Analysis

Account: POS Salary Reserve
Line Item: 1599-6901

The Direct Care Worker Salary Reserve—also called the Purchase of Service (POS) Salary Reserve—provides modest but important salary increases for direct care workers employed by service providers that contract with state agencies. These agencies are administered by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) and the Department of Elder Affairs (DEA). Funding for the Salary Reserve is allocated within the Executive Office of Administration and Finance (EOAF) for distribution to private providers.

Each time the Salary Reserve is funded, the allocation serves a one-time purpose. To sustain the wage increases beyond a single year, these funds must be annualized into the budgets of all the agencies whose workers received a Salary Reserve-funded raise.

FY06 Needs

In FY06, advocates are seeking $35.7 million for the Salary Reserve account. The recommendation has broad support in the human services and disability advocacy communities.

House Budget Recommendations

The House budget allocated just $10 million for the Salary Reserve. An amendment to raise the amount to $35.7 million did not pass. H1 for FY06 provided no Salary Reserve funding.