BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey said she is seeking expanded emergency budget-cutting powers in part to target Massachusetts’ quasi-public agencies, or a series of organizations that are part of state government but operate with some independence from Democrats on Beacon Hill.

As Healey signed a $61 billion yearly spending plan earlier this month, she also filed legislation to grant her more authority to slash spending across all of state government instead of just the executive branch that she oversees. Her office argued that Massachusetts could face fiscal troubles as a result of actions taken by President Donald Trump over the past seven months.

After an unrelated event at the State House Monday, Healey said the same budget-cutting rules that apply to executive branch agencies should apply to quasi-public agencies.

“Obviously, I don’t want to be having to make any cuts, and we’ve tried to be really prudent in this budget that I signed, that the Legislature got to me a little more than a week ago,” she said. “But we’re going to continue to be in a position, and I share the sentiment with legislative leadership, we’ve got to be in a position to continue to evaluate things as we go over the coming weeks and months.”

She did not name a specific quasi-public agency in Massachusetts, but instead said she is seeking “general authority to do what might be necessary at the appropriate time.”

“I’m not telling you that we’re going to do 9C cuts, but it was important to me to make sure that we have the flexibility and the tools in place to take whatever measures necessary in the best interests of the state and maximizing the dollars that we have,” Healey told reporters.

Quasi-public agencies in Massachusetts include the Massachusetts Port Authority, the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, and MassDevelopment, among many others. The organizations employ more than 1,300 people, according to the Office of the Comptroller.

Massachusetts law allows a governor to cut spending during emergencies only within the executive branch if they determine there is not enough money to pay the state’s bills. Healey slashed $375 million in 2024 after the state missed revenue projections for six straight months.

But Healey’s top budget-writer said earlier this month that the bill the governor filed attempts to go further.

The bill would allow the Healey administration to slash spending across the entire state budget only in fiscal year 2026 if revenues come in $400 million below initial projections or federal policy changes leave a $400 million hole in the budget.

That means if the measure is approved as written, Healey and Gorzkowicz could reduce spending across a vast array of programs and agencies, as well as other constitutional offices like the Attorney General’s Office, the Legislature, or the State Auditor’s Office.

The proposal drew a tepid reaction from the top Democrat in the House.

House Speaker Ron Mariano said his leadership team has not “really talked about it in great length yet” because the chamber has not yet addressed the $130 million Healey vetoed from the annual state budget.

“But it’s giving away some power,” the Quincy Democrat said. “We’re going to have to think long and hard about making changes like that.”

Mariano did agree that states are “getting hit hard” by Trump’s efforts to reduce the size of the federal government, cut spending, and the massive tax breaks and spending cut legislation he signed at the start of the month.

“I don’t think we’re any worse or any better than any other state in the country,” he said at the State House Monday. “I think if you listen to what’s going on in New York, and you look at what’s going on in other states, look what’s happening in California, we don’t have armed troops in our streets. So we’re not as bad off as some states. So we’re going to play it as best we can and keep it as normal as we can keep it.”

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—Previous Herald reporting was used in this article.

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