A progressive look at housing | Today's Sponsor

By Ella Adams and Eric Convey

Progressives make the case for going beyond housing bond bill

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Today's News

What exactly do progressives think can help address the state's 200,000-unit housing deficit?

Grassroots group Progressive Massachusetts looks at the Healey administration’s recent housing bond bill as a good step forward, but still falling short in a housing environment that needs much more investment.

Progressive Mass. Executive Director Jonathan Cohn told MASSterList that as the group prepares for next session, it's continuing to support authorization of local option transfer fees and rent control, a pair of ideas that have pockets of support but have failed to unite legislative Democrats.

Cohn is calling on lawmakers to be more vocal and to "hear from and listen to" their constituents more on housing. He also thinks the way municipalities need to get approval from Beacon Hill in order to implement local housing policies — like the aforementioned transfer fees — needs to change.

"I think that we really need comprehensive reform around home rule in Massachusetts because on too many issues, cities and towns are blocked from taking necessary action by the state," Cohn said. He added that the state could "use its power of the purse better" by closing tax loopholes and raising more revenue from high earners that could fund housing.

"A step, but still a lot left" is roughly the same theme of a new report from the left-leaning Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center think tank. The report described the latest housing package as containing a "meaningful increase," but also pointed out that the actual spending that follows bond bills is often lower than the borrowing authorization.

Officials are still optimistic about the impacts of the bond bill. They view some of the policy changes, like clearing the way for more accessory dwelling units, as game-changers, even though the roughly 8,000 ADUs forecast to be built in the next five years is still only a fraction of the total housing gap. A Housing Advisory Council is also working on the state's first five-year housing plan.

Meanwhile, the controversial MBTA Communities Act continues to gain steam, with 75 municipalities signing on to create at least one district of multi-family zoning within their borders. The biggest battle on that front begins Monday, when the Supreme Judicial Court takes up a lawsuit about the state's attempt to force Milton to comply. — Ella Adams

Send tips to Ella Adams: Editor@MASSterList.com. For advertising and general inquiries, contact Dylan Rossiter: Publisher@MASSterList.com. Click here to post a job on the MASSterList Job Board. Follow @MASSterList on X. Did someone send you this edition? Subscribe here!

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Happening Today

9:10 | Gov. Healey appears live from the State House on La Mega Radio along with Lt. Gov. Driscoll to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month | 97.9 La Mega

10:30 | Department of Public Health's Office of Problem Gambling Services holds a stakeholder listening session in Springfield | Springfield | Register

1:00 | U.S. Sen. Markey meets with Pittsfield Mayor Marchetti and stops at local businesses in downtown Pittsfield to talk about economic development | Dottie's, 444 North St., Pittsfield

5:30 | Asian Community Fund Gala takes place, with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu offering the keynote | Westin Copley, 10 Huntington Ave, Boston

6:00 | MassDOT holds an open house focused on its electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plan, required under the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The public will have time to weigh in and ask questions | Pollard Memorial Library, 401 Merrimack St., Lowell | More Info

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Manager, Compensation, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston

President and Chief Executive Officer, Bay Cove Human Services

Executive Assistant and Office Coordinator, Charles Group Consulting

Hellman and Simons Fellowship in Science and Technology Policy, American Academy of Arts and Sciences

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ICYMI... State Auditor Diana DiZoglio will be "Walking for Sunshine," embarking on Friday on a cross-state, 141-mile, week-long walk to raise support for Question 1, which would empower her office to audit the Legislature. A northeast treasure hunt for a $26,000 golden prize has come to an end, after a man found it in Wendell State Forest. And a Lexington-based photographer won gold in the international Comedy Bird Photo competition for a picture she took last November of a penguin sliding on ice in Antarctica.