EBC All-of-Government Climate Leadership Award
In Recognition of the Healey–Driscoll Administration’s All-of-Government Climate Leadership, Delivering Coordinated, Equitable Climate and Clean Energy Solutions Across the Commonwealth
Award Recipient: Maura Healey, Governor, Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Kim Driscoll, Lieutenant Governor, Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Award Details
This one-time special recognition, the EBC All-of-Government Climate Leadership Award, recognizes the Healey–Driscoll Administration for advancing a coordinated, all-of-government approach to climate and clean energy through high-impact programs that integrate climate resilience, energy affordability, emissions reductions, infrastructure delivery, and environmental justice across state agencies.
The Administration’s leadership is grounded in the creation of a first-in-the-nation, cabinet-level Climate Chief, ensuring climate considerations are embedded into policy, planning, and investment decisions statewide. This governance model enables consistent coordination, accountability, and collaboration across agencies, municipalities, labor partners, and communities most affected by climate change.
In particular, this EBC Award recognizes the following programs:
- Mass Ready Act
- Embodied Carbon Intergovernmental Coordinating Council
- Climate-Ready Culverts
- Energy Siting & Permitting Reform
- Affordable Housing Decarbonization
Collectively, these programs and many more demonstrate how coordinated governance and technical integration can translate climate policy into actionable, sector-specific outcomes. Through an all-of-government approach, the Administration is delivering resilient infrastructure, accelerating emissions reductions, and advancing equitable climate solutions across the Commonwealth.
Mass Ready
An Act to Build Resilience for Massachusetts Communities is a historic, $3.1 billion environmental bond bill authorizing funding and new policies to strengthen infrastructure, invest in local economies and protect water and nature to prepare communities for future conditions. Mass Ready significantly increases Coastal Zone Management and Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness funding to help communities protect themselves from flooding and extreme weather. It establishes a Resilience Revolving Fund to provide low interest loans for resilience projects, streamlines permitting for culvert and restoration projects that reduce flood risk, requires flood disclosures for residential properties, and adds climate expertise to the Board that establishes the state building code.
Embodied Carbon Intergovernmental Coordinating Council
Embodied Carbon Intergovernmental Coordinating Council advises state government on cross-cutting policy, with the goal of implementing measures to begin measuring and reducing lifecycle emissions associated with public building and infrastructure construction projects. In January of 2026, the Council published its first set of recommendations to the Massachusetts Legislature, outlining a comprehensive “Embodied Carbon Reduction Plan” for the Commonwealth. This effort involved in-depth collaboration between state agencies and authorities, including Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance, Department of Transportation, MBTA, MassPort, Department of Energy Resources, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, Executive Office of Economic Development, and Massachusetts Clean Energy Center—as well as numerous external stakeholders and industry experts. The Council, chaired by DCAMM Commissioner Adam Baacke and state Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer, will continue to drive progress in low-embodied carbon construction policy, providing updated guidance to the legislature every 2 years.
Climate-Ready Culverts
Massachusetts is working across secretariats to help communities repair and replace culverts so roads remain passable as we face more intense storms. In 2025, Governor Healey made historic investments in municipal culvert projects by increasing resources for existing programs and launching a new Community Culverts Program. Massachusetts Department of Transportation and Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs are working together to coordinate programs and establish criteria and priorities to ensure culvert projects will be able to withstand current and future hydrologic conditions, improve infrastructure reliability, and enhance aquatic habitat.
Energy Siting & Permitting Reform
Energy Siting & Permitting Reform implements the 2024 Climate Law signed by Governor Healey and accelerates the deployment of clean energy and transmission infrastructure by reducing permitting timelines, improving stakeholder input in siting decisions, establishing site suitability criteria, and consolidating permitting proceedings. The new framework emphasizes predictable timelines, coordinated agency review, and technical standards that maintain environmental protection while reducing permitting risk and project delays.
Affordable Housing Decarbonization
Affordable Housing Decarbonization programs are joint efforts with MassHousing, Massachusetts Community Climate Bank, Department of Energy Resources, Mass Housing Partnership, Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation, and Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to fund, finance, provide technical support, and establish design standards for energy efficiency, electrification, and emissions reduction in affordable housing. These collaborations yield cost-effective building performance improvements that reduce operating costs for residents, better protect residents from extreme weather events, and align affordable housing development and preservation with statewide climate targets. For example, one new funding partnership between DOER and MassHousing will help upgrade and build over 2,000 housing units with modern heating and cooling systems, better insulation, improved air quality, reduce emissions, and in many cases, on site-energy generation.
