For much of September, the Legislature focused on education funding reform, leaving us to wait-and-see what will happen on our issues in the coming months. We continue to predict that the Senate will put forth their climate resiliency proposal this fall, especially in the wake of climate protests in late September. We continue to support GreenWorks, a climate resiliency bill that passed the House unanimously.
September Highlights
- 9/5 – CCIAOR’s Vacation Rental Council meeting – members provided great insight on the effects of the new short-term rental law, helping our continued advocacy efforts on this issue.
- 9/6 – Supporting Housing Choices – MAR participated in a discussion with several housing advocacy groups on the Housing Choices bill. We support the bill, which would promote much-needed housing development by changing the local voting threshold from 2/3 to a simple majority for approving certain zoning ordinances, by-laws, or amendments. MAR met with Speaker DeLeo on September 25 to discuss this bill and our other legislative priorities.
- 9/10 – Opposing Transfer Taxes – MAR submitted written comments to the Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government opposing transfer taxes proposed in H.1769.
- 9/17 – MAR Government Affairs Committee meeting – GAC reviewed HD.4374, a bill requiring IDs at open houses, ultimately deciding to remain neutral after thoughtful deliberation.
- 9/20 – Supporting Funding for MAR Priorities – MAR submitted written comments in support of the inclusion of additional funding for infrastructure maintenance and $20 million to the creation of affordable housing and down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers in the proposed Supplemental Budget.
- 9/25 – Supporting the H.O.M.E. Bill – MAR submitted written comments in support of H.187/S.96 to the Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses.
- 9/27 – Advocating on Short-Term Rentals – MAR submitted written comments on proposed short-term rental regulations to the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development.
A Look Ahead: October
It’s hard to predict what exactly will move and when, but we’re keeping an eye out for more hearings on our bills of interest. Sometime in the fall, we anticipate the Senate will release its own climate resiliency bill to counter the House’s GreenWorks proposal.