DEERFIELD, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) - State leaders are back in western Mass., marking three years since the devastating 2023 floods that wiped out crops across the valley.

Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll toured farms in Greenfield, Deerfield, and Sunderland Friday, meeting with local growers and food system leaders.

The administration is celebrating new money in the fiscal year 2027 budget, $3.5 million dollars for anti-hunger programs, along with disaster and resiliency funds to help farms handle extreme weather. After the floods, the administration provided $20 million in immediate relief throughout central and western Mass.

Officials said they’re also permanently protecting farmland through the agricultural restriction program and supporting a new generation of farmers.

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