Yesterday, the Housing Committee voted 16-1 to favorably recommend Governor Baker’s Housing Choice Bill out of committee. This is a strong move forward for the bill that had been in committee for some time.
Speaker DeLeo indicated that this favorable recommendation is not a sign that an agreement has been reached on the issue. Chair of the Housing Committee Rep. Kevin Honan said the goal is to vote on the bill sometime in 2020.
MAR has supported the Governor’s Housing Choice Bill since its introduction. A highlight of the bill is the reduction on the required votes to pass certain zoning changes from a super majority of 66% to a simple majority at 50%. On the North Shore, there have been several recent votes of the Salem City Council that would have passed if the Housing Choice Bill was in place but did not reach the supermajority threshold.
You can read more about what state legislators are saying here in CommonWealth Magazine.
