Housing/ Transportation

Economic development, transpo bills coming down to wire

Meanwhile, climate change bill breezes through Legislature

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A FAR-REACHING climate change bill that could affect almost every facet of daily life whisked through both branches of the Legislature on Monday and landed on the governor’s desk, but time is running out for economic development and transportation bills that have been stuck in conference committees for close to six months.

Key lawmakers said they were still working on the legislation on Monday, but the odds of passage were not good, given that the legislative session expires at midnight Tuesday.

“They’re a really big deal,” Gov. Charlie Baker said of the two bills stuck in limbo between the two branches.

Baker said failure to pass the transportation bond bill, which authorizes state government to borrow money for transportation projects, would have a major impact on the state.

“We literally are almost out of transportation bond authority, and we need that bill for the spring construction and summer construction season, and we also need it to sign multi-year agreements that involve federal reimbursement,” Baker said at a State House press conference.

With the Legislature’s session set to expire Tuesday, here is where some of the bigger pieces of legislation stand.

Conference committees: Two panels set up to resolve differences between House and Senate bills have reached no agreements yet.

Transportation bond – Sent to conference July 23, 2020. Possible disagreement over whether funding to support the issuance of bonds is adequate. To learn more, click here.

Economic development – Sent to conference July 30, 2020. Possible areas of conflict including a change that would allow local boards to pass zoning bylaw changes with a majority reather than a two-thirds vote. The House version of the bill included sports betting; the Senate’s did not. To learn more, click here.

Ping-ponging between the branches:

Unemployment insurance legislation – Would ease impact on businesses about to be hit by a roughly 60 percent increase in assessments. H5206 is in Labor and Workforce Committee. To learn more, click here.

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Bruce Mohl

Editor, CommonWealth
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About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

Campus sexual assault legislation – H4418 is in the House Ways and Means Committee. To learn more, click here.

On the governor’s desk:

Climate change – Sent to conference committee on August 6, 2020. Released from committee Sunday afternoon and passed by both branches Monday. To learn more, click here. One provision in the bill would clarify how solar projects should be taxed.

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