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November 2020 Statewide Trust Fund Distribution Announced

Posted on: November 12, 2020 - 9:36am

The Massachusetts Department of Revenue (DOR) released the Community Preservation Trust Fund distribution for each CPA municipality today. In total, over $55 million was paid to the 176 communities eligible for a distribution. All CPA communities received a 28.6% match on round one of the trust fund distribution this year. Communities that adopted CPA with a full 3% local property tax surcharge received a higher percentage. 

The base match is significantly higher compared to recent years due to an increase to the CPA Trust Fund passed in 2019. As you may know, the Community Preservation Coalition championed the decade-long effort to pass legislation increasing the fees that generate revenue for the CPA Trust Fund. The new fee schedule at the state’s Registries of Deeds went into effect on December 31st, 2019, more than doubling the monthly revenue for the Trust Fund. Without that legislation, the base match would have likely plummeted into single digits this year.

Three Straight Years of Higher Matches

The upward trend for the Trust Fund continues! For almost all communities, this was the third straight year that the Trust Fund distribution increased. And that’s despite the fact that there are 14 more CPA communities receiving matching funds this year compared to four years ago. 

But What About State Budget Surplus Dollars?

In five of the last seven years, the Coalition has advocated successfully for state budget surplus dollars to be transferred to the CPA Trust Fund to make up for declining revenues. With the passage of the legislation permanently increasing the Trust Fund fee revenue, we can no longer expect the state to provide surplus funding dollars for CPA. But the timing of the new legislation was fortuitous; with the pandemic impacting tax revenues, it’s unclear when the state will next have a budget surplus available.

What Did My Community Receive In Today’s Trust Fund Distribution?

Click on the links below for details on this year's distribution and to view the specific distribution amounts for each community:

> SPREADSHEET: Click here for the CPA Trust Fund distribution amount for each municipality <

>> PDF VERSION: Click here for the CPA Trust Fund distribution amount for each municipality <<

Statistics From This Year's Distribution: 

  • Total municipalities qualifying for a trust fund distribution on November 15, 2020: 176
  • Match percentage received by municipalities with a CPA local property tax surcharge of less than 3%: 28.6% 
  • Match percentage received by municipalities with the maximum CPA local property tax surcharge of 3%: Range of 29.1% to 100% 
  • Number of municipalities receiving a full 100% match: 11
  • Community with largest Trust Fund Distribution: Boston ($6,181,517)
  • Community with the smallest Trust Fund Distribution: Gosnold ($429)
  • Total payout in first round distribution: $48,885,738
  • Total payout in second round distribution: $4,306,346
  • Total payout in third round distribution: $2,476,403
  • Total payout for all rounds: $55,668,487

Further Resources: