In poll after poll in Massachusetts, the #1 issue on voters’ minds is housing. And it’s no surprise why. Escalating rents and soaring housing prices have forced people out of their communities or out of the state entirely. That’s not sustainable, and we need robust policy action to address this growing housing crisis. Over the past few months, the MA Legislature has been working on its main piece of housing policy this session: Governor Maura Healey’s H.4138, the Affordable Homes Act (known as the “housing bond bill”), with the House expected to vote soon.  Among the key provisions of the ..read more

Gintautas Dumcius and Bruce Mohl, “Political Notebook: Healey’s no-new-taxes talk | Rollins pay adjustment | Who is Jeanne Louise?,” CommonWealth Beacon, May 3, 2024. Jonathan Cohn, policy director for Progressive Massachusetts, said Healey’s “clichéd ‘no new taxes’ line is out of step with her own promises and the needs” of the state. He pointed to high child care costs, health insurance premiums, and traffic as forms of taxation that hit working and middle-class residents ..read more

Editorial Board, “Healey’s ADU proposal: small homes, big impact,” Boston Globe, May 1, 2024. “It is essential, then, for lawmakers to recognize that the housing crisis is one shared by everyone in this state. Every town’s resistance to reasonable housing development will only worsen every other town’s shortage.” Katie Lannan, “‘Raise the age’ bill, free community college are top priorities for the state Senate,” WGBH, April 222, 2024. “I would love to raise the age to 21,” said Spilka, an Ashland Democrat. “All research shows that emerging adults’ brains really aren’t formulated till almost 2 ..read more

Andrew Brinker, “‘It’s an invasion.’ In towns across Eastern Mass., resistance grows against ambitious state housing law.,” Boston Globe, March 3, 2024. “If we don’t have enough thoughtful people who understand what’s really going on here, [a zoning proposal] will be defeated, because there will be people who just don’t want any change at all,” said Shaw, who says Rockport needs more housing to maintain its economic vitality. “It is pretty easy to imagine a group getting 30 or 40 people to go to Town Meeting and vote, and kill this zoning.” Shannon Larson, “These 10 homes were among the most e ..read more

Happy Earth Day! Earth Day serves as a reminder of the fragility and interconnectedness of our planet and how much more we need to do to protect our common home. A few years ago, Massachusetts set a commitment to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. For us to meet that goal (or a more ambitious one), then we need bold and comprehensive action on climate from our state legislature.  That means putting a pause on new gas infrastructure so that we aren’t building new pipelines and compressor stations that create a lock-in effect for fossil fuels and divert time, attention, an ..read more

Last year, Massachusetts passed critical legislation to guarantee free communication in prisons and jails, the most comprehensive such legislation passed in the country so far. With No Cost Calls in effect, the number of calls made from MA’s prisons rose by more than 60% in January relative to just a few months prior, and the number of electronic messages sent nearly tripled, meaning that people who are incarcerated are better able to stay connected with their loved ones back home. But the larger work of keeping families connected is not done. We need to make sure that there is robust reportin ..read more

Marianne Rutter, “Letter: Mass. Can Do More to Lower Housing Costs,” Newburyport Daily News, April 12, 2024. To the Editor: It should come as no surprise to my fellow readers that Massachusetts has a housing crisis. To rent the average 2-bedroom apartment in Massachusetts requires an income equal to $41.64 per hour, more than twice the minimum wage.  Do the math yourself:  Coming up with monthly rent is a near impossibility in a two-earner household working $15/hour minimum-wage jobs, even if both wage-earners are holding down two jobs. Home ownership has become increasingly out of r ..read more

Rachel Roth, “Letter: Transfer fee could boost affordable housing,” Your Arlington, April 4, 2024. I am stunned by how much the cost of housing in Arlington has increased since my family moved here about 20 years ago. Renovated upstairs units in two-family condos routinely list for $1 million, and to rent the average two-bedroom apartment, someone must earn $41.64 per hour, more than twice the minimum wage – and that’s for the entire state, not just high-cost areas like greater Boston.1 We are fortunate to have Reps. Dave Rogers and Michael Day fighting for housing security, such as the right ..read more

Testimony submitted from Progressive Needham member Bill Okerman on March 23, 2024 Dear Members of the Special Joint Committee on Initiative Petitions: I write to you regarding the initiative petitions that were the subject of your hearing on March 19. I have for quite some time been closely following, and to a certain extent involved in (for example, I served as an advisor to a group of drivers called the Boston Independent Drivers Guild for a couple of years beginning in early 2020), this multifaceted controversy involving the legal rights and responsibilities of these so-called “app-based ..read more

Jason Brown, “Letter: More Housing Helps Older Residents to Downsize,” West Roxbury / Roslindale Bulletin, April 4, 2024. My older family members have lived here in Boston for a majority of their lives. As they grow older, their options to age-in-place or downsize are quite small: either stay in a too-big house (with too many stairs), or face a limited and expensive housing supply in Boston and across the Commonwealth. Massachusetts faces an affordable housing crisis, and I’m hopeful of the proposals in Governor Healey’s Affordable Homes Act, which combines funding authorizations for various h ..read more