Governor Healey Announces Housing Initiatives
Governor Maura Healey recently announced several initiatives that will help increase the construction of new housing units in Massachusetts. Her administration has identified 450 acres of state-owned surplus property that the state intends to sell which can be developed into approximately 3,500 new housing units in 20 different communities. The administration expects to make 17 sites available for construction this year and intends to hold an auction in September for an additional 7 parcels. Communities that will benefit from the first phase of development include: Bedford, Boston, Bridgewater, Brockton, Chelsea, Concord, Fitchburg, Lancaster, Lowell, Monson, Oak Bluffs, Salem, Wenham, and Westboro.
The Governor also announced the award of $7.4 million in funding to support two office-to-residential conversion projects in downtown Boston. The two projects will create 190 new housing units which will include 36 income restricted units. These projects will also receive support from the City of Boston’s new Residential Conversion Program that will provide a payment in lieu of taxes incentive program for developers. The city has received 15 applications to convert an additional 20 Class B and C office buildings into 762 new housing units.
Housing Secretary Ed Augustus recently announced that 75 percent of the 177 communities covered by the MBTA Communities Act have approved the required multi-family housing districts with more than 4,000 new housing units already being built under the new law. To date, the state has awarded $87 million in grants to compliant communities.
The Healey Administration is also considering a future executive order that would create an “Interagency Modular Housing Task Force” that would investigate proposals to support the construction of modular housing manufacturing in Massachusetts. The Governor believes modular construction is an effective tool for increasing housing production and lowering costs. The Governor cited a 2022 federal report that said off-site construction, including manufactured housing, modular homes and prefabricated structural components could help make housing production more efficient, improve quality and lower costs.
2025 Sales Tax Holiday Announced
The Legislature has announced that the 2025 sales tax holiday will be held on the weekend of August 9 and 10. All businesses must take part in the sales tax holiday if the business normally makes taxable sales of tangible personal property. The tax exemption applies to any individual retail item with a value of up to $2,500 that is used for personal use. Purchases by companies and individuals for business use remain taxable. The consumer may combine as many items as possible under $2,500 and the purchases will all be tax free even if the total invoice exceeds $2,500. The tax exemption does not apply to layaway sales but does apply to items paid in full for delivery at a later date. A consumer cannot cancel a prior purchase and re-book the purchase for the sales tax weekend if they put down a deposit on the purchase, prepaid or otherwise promised to pay for an eligible item prior to the sales tax holiday weekend.
Please contact Patrick Huntington at ph@mabayassoc.com if you have any questions about the sales tax holiday.
MRLDA Members Participate in 2025 Lobby Day
MRLDA members gather outside the State House during Lobby Day 2025 before meeting with lawmakers to discuss electric truck mandates, multilingual hoisting exams, local sprinkler codes, and credit card surcharge regulations.
On Wednesday June 4, 14 members of the MRLDA visited the State House and met with more than 25 members of the House and State Senate. The priority issues discussed with the legislators included support for the Senate’s proposal to exempt building material supplies from the sales tax. Support for legislation sponsored by the MRLDA that would enable foreign language speakers to qualify for forklift licenses and for legislation that would enable retailers to recoup the surcharges imposed by credit card companies. We also continued to oppose the legislation that would enable individual communities to enact local option sprinkler code requirements for one and two-family homes.
The lobby day gave members the opportunity to meet with veteran legislators as well as several of the newly elected legislators that are serving their first term in the House and Senate. The relationships that our members have developed through these visits over the years have helped the MRLDA to advance our legislative agenda. Thank you to all of the MRLDA members who helped make this year’s lobby day an enormous success.