[MUSIC PLAYING]
[GAVEL BANGS]
House will be in order.
[INAUDIBLE] now moves that the House stand in recess
till the hour of 1:50?
1:50.
All those in favor, say aye, All those opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
House stands in recess to the hour of 1:50.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
House will be in order.
Mr. Jones of North Reading [INAUDIBLE]
the presence of a quorum.
Chair can ascertain a quorum is not present.
[INAUDIBLE] officers, summon the members.
Indicate a roll call quorum is now in progress.
Mr. Jones of North Reading removes his requests
for a roll call vote.
The chair objection-- the chair has none.
Could all members please take their seat.
Today we have the opportunity to honor the courageous work of 60
CR Park Rangers.
Earlier this month, DCR Park Ranger Steven Crombie
suffered a medical episode while on duty at the Statehouse.
He was found in a gut check, not breathing and unresponsive.
With determination and teamwork, a group of Rangers
performed CPR and administered an AED.
Excuse me.
Because of their quick thinking, Steven
was breathing by the time emergency services arrived.
He was transported to the Mass General Hospital
and was discharged to go home a few weeks later.
Steven is alive because of the action of the six Rangers.
I want to offer my personal gratitude.
In addition to being a colleague,
Steven is also a Winthrop native who I've known for many years
and have known his family for some time as well.
I am honored that we have with us here today Rangers
[? Godding, ?] [? Boze, ?] Brown,
[? Melee, ?] [? Rego, ?] and Lieutenant [? Dowd ?]
for their quick thinking and heroism on January 3, 2018,
which saved the life of DCR park ranger Steven Crombie.
Before I have their respective state representatives present
citations to them, I not only want to thank these Rangers,
but I want to thank all of the members of the DCR Park Rangers
that we have in the statehouse.
And I want each of you to know how greatly we appreciate
the fact of the service that you provide to us,
the public safety you provide to us,
and the attention that you provide
to us as members of the Massachusetts
House of Representatives.
That your hard work does not go unnoticed.
And for that, we sincerely thank all of the DCR Park Rangers.
[APPLAUSE]
And also we have four rangers in the back.
I want to thank you as well.
With that, I would now like to have the presentation
of the citations, if we may, to James [? Godding ?] of Quincy,
citation to be presented by representative Tackey Chan.
[APPLAUSE]
Representative Tom [? Boze, ?] presentation
to be made by representative Mark Cusack.
[APPLAUSE]
Oh.
Lloyd Brown, presentation by Representative Barber.
[APPLAUSE]
Sean [? Melee, ?] presentation to be
made by Representative Cutler.
[APPLAUSE]
Eric Rego, presentation to be made by Representative Lyons.
[APPLAUSE]
And Mike [? Dowd, ?] presentation
made by Representative Ryan.
[APPLAUSE]
Thank you and congratulations to all of our DCR Park Rangers.
[APPLAUSE AND CHEERING]
The chair would also like to offer our congratulations
to a new grandfather--
or he's been a grandfather before.
A newly grandfather-- baby born in Israel, I believe.
Correct?
Please-- Representative Lou Kafka, congratulations.
[APPLAUSE AND CHEERING]
When I said he was not a new grandfather--
this was his 14th grandchild, by the way.
Mr. Honan of Boston.
Moves for the suspension of rule 47
to take calendar item 279 on page 24.
Question comes on that motion?
All those in favor, say aye.
Opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The rule is suspended.
Third reading of the bill.
An act, financing the production and preservation
of housing for low and moderate income residents.
Question comes on passing the bill to being grossed.
The chair recognizes Mr. Honan of Boston.
Members are pleased ask to take these seats
and subdue their conversations.
[GAVEL POUNDING]
Mr. Honan of Boston.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and through you, the members.
I rise today in support of House Bill 4134.
This is the housing bond bill, an extension of tax credits.
I want to thank the Housing Committee for all their work.
I also want to thank the gentlemen
from New Bedford and the Bonding Committee
for their work on this bill.
And the gentleman from Jamaica Plain
and the Ways and Means Committee for their work.
I also want to thank you, Mr. Speaker.
You're a true housing champion.
And thank you for taking this important bill up right
at the beginning of the new year.
It's the critical time in the Commonwealth
in terms of housing.
The metro Boston area has the third highest housing costs
in the country behind New York and San Francisco.
Greater Boston, more than 52% of the households
are paying more than 30% of their income,
and statewide 70% of the low income and extremely low
income households are struggling in the same way.
At the same time, our economy is growing.
And Massachusetts is clearly a great place
to live with all of museums, colleges, universities,
and hospitals.
But we know that housing is the cornerstone
of our economy and our society, and we
must build and maintain strong, vibrant, affordable,
and diverse neighborhoods.
That's what this bill seeks to do here today.
This bill is all about production and preservation
of affordable housing all across Massachusetts.
Last week I had the pleasure of attending
a ribbon cutting at 48 Boylston Street in downtown Boston.
It was at the historic Young Men's Christian Union building
that was built in 1875.
So St. Francis House partnered with the archdiocese of Boston
along with the city, the state, and private banks,
and preserved and developed 46 units
of affordable housing, of which 26 are
for formerly homeless people.
Now that's right in downtown Boston.
You can't do that without bond funds and tax credits.
The bond funds and tax credits that we're re-authorizing today
are used in very creative fashion here in Boston
to help people who are in need-- and in Massachusetts.
Those two bond accounts that we used there
are re-authorized here today.
The Housing Innovations trust fund,
$100 million dollars, and $400 million
for the Affordable Housing Trust fund.
The Affordable Housing Trust Fund
is a very flexible bond fund that's
used for work force housing, mixed use, and preservation.
Down at North Station you've probably
seen a new, big building developed
there called the Beverly, and its 239 income-restricted units
right at North Station.
It's a 100% affordable and workforce housing development.
That's the first time in the city of Boston in 25 years
that they've built a 100% affordable development.
Bedford-- Bedford Green Apartments,
70 units in Bedford, and it's for low income veterans
and on site VA caseworkers.
Today, we recommit ourselves to the elderly, disabled,
and homeless.
The home modification loan program, the $60 million
in that, and that's to allow seniors to age
in place and other individuals to live independently
in their communities.
$65 million for the Facilities Consolidation fund,
and $55 million for community-based housing.
These accounts are for supportive housing,
and they're for clients of GMH and DDS.
And today we build on the successes
of those programs, which the Facilities Consolidation
fund has allowed for 2,400 units of serviced-enriched housing.
There's $150 million for the Housing Stabilization fund.
This helps first time home-buyers
and promotes reinvestment in weak markets.
Some of the projects that it has funded in Midfield
on a vacant parcel, four buildings
with 92 affordable units in Northampton, 16 units
for women who are veterans.
In Holyoke, a multi-million dollar rehab which will bring
market rate and affordable housing under one roof.
There is $600 million in this fund
for state-assisted public housing.
Now, I know many of you have great relationships
with your public housing authorities.
I see you always at the narrow events.
And this is money that they critically
need to rehabilitate, produce, and modernize public housing.
Our committee last session visited 25 housing authorities
across Massachusetts.
We met with the boards of directors.
We met with tenant's groups, and we met with the staff,
with the superintendents of these buildings.
And we realized in a firsthand way
how significant it was to do these repairs.
The senior citizens who live in public housing,
the most important thing for them,
when we were doing our housing reform
bill as it pertains to public housing,
was knowing the building superintendent,
and their desire for long term delays and repairs
to be taken care of.
Roof replacements, ADA upgrades, and elevators.
These are tangible upgrades that benefit
our most vulnerable residents, including our seniors.
There's also $50 million in there for public demonstration
projects that are going on across the across the state.
There's a $125 million in this bill for capital improvement
and preservation fund.
We passed 40T in 2009 that allows municipalities
to designate certain areas within their municipalities
for more denser development-- it's smart growth--
and this particular fund will help with those projects.
40T has helped preserve 11,000 units in Massachusetts.
We are facing a real, serious problem here in Massachusetts.
We have 2,875 what are called 13A units.
Those are expiring use buildings that
were-- units that were funded by the Commonwealth.
They run the risk in the next two years
of losing their affordability.
We just had a hearing yesterday, and the members of the housing
committee who are here will tell you the fear that the seniors
and the residents who live in these buildings--
and they're mostly seniors--
the fear that they're living in is quite real.
And it's important for us to fund
this particular fund, the capital improvement
preservation fund, to try to preserve these 13A units.
And again, we should be very proud
that in 2009, this house put through 40T, which
did give the right of first refusal to the Commonwealth
to purchase these buildings that have protected the tenants
from three to five years.
Those are in HUD buildings, HUD expiring use, again in 13A.
We put $50 million into the Capital Area Transit Node
Housing Program.
This is for smart growth.
These are the 40R districts that we
allow municipalities to create.
And again, some people have a real problem with 40B,
but this is 40R.
So this empowers the local municipality.
It needs to be a better known program, the 40R program.
This empowers the municipalities, again,
to designate areas within their municipality for more denser
development.
The tax credit.
This reauthorizes important tax credits
that are used to develop housing and economic opportunities
across the state.
There's a low income housing tax credit created in 1999.
It has helped create 10,000 units of affordable housing.
It reauthorizes this month for five more years.
The Community Investment Tax Credit
is something that you may have heard from your Community
Development Corporation.
It's a very successful program.
It's funded at $6 million, and it's
to prove economic and housing opportunities
for low and moderate income households.
Brownfield Tax Credit-- I've heard from many of you
about this fund, which your municipalities have utilized
to revitalize sections of your municipalities,
complete environmental cleanup and remediation
in economically distressed areas.
There's also the Housing Development Center Program--
promotes mixed income housing in gateway cities.
Also funding for the renovation and construction of facilities
serving low income children.
It's a daycare fund that we also have
included for wrap around services
in housing developments.
We are experiencing a housing crisis here.
I know you all know that.
I think that one of the key constituent service
issues we all receive is the desperate need
for affordable housing from people who call our offices.
We did have a hearing in July.
Many of our members testified before the committee
and expressed the urgent need for affordable housing
in their districts.
And these funds are critical.
They're tried and true tools that
have been used here in Massachusetts,
that have been successful.
And Mr. Speaker, while our work is far from over,
passage of this bill signifies the commitment of this house
to affordable housing and to the working
people of our commonwealth, and the vulnerable and those
facing homelessness.
The Housing Bond Bill is a tangible commitment
of this house to affordable housing.
And Mr. Speaker, I move that when a vote is taken,
it be taken by a call of the ayes and nays.
Mr. Honan of Boston asked when the matter
is taken, it be taken by call of the yeas and nays.
Those joining with him arise.
The monitor will return the count.
First division, eight.
Second division.
27.
Sufficient number have arisen.
Matter taken.
Taken by the calls yeas and nays.
Chair recognizes Mr. Sanchez of Boston.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and through you, to the members.
First and foremost, I'd like to thank you, Mr. Speaker,
for bringing this bond authorization bill before us
today, before the members.
And I'd like to thank the gentleman from Brighton
for his hard work not only now on this,
but on the many, many years that he's
committed his life to making sure that we committed
ourselves to the needs of our constituents
through a fundamental need, housing.
Not only in the building, but also in terms of making
sure the adequate supports and so many other programs
that have made a difference and will make a difference
today in the lives of so many people
here in the Commonwealth.
As well as his able staff that worked so hard on this
that we're so proud of, and also our staff in Ways and Means.
And your staff, Mr. Speaker, that worked diligently
on it as well.
And this was the first major bill
that my new general counsel has worked on,
so we're extremely proud of her in putting and working
with so many of you in making sure
that we had such a strong bill before us today.
As well as the hard work of the gentleman from New Bedford who,
he and his staff, put a significant amount of work
on this as well.
This bill comes at a very important time,
because bond authorizations for certain housing programs
are running low while projects are continuing
to apply for funding.
And since some of these programs are forward funded,
they have to be reauthorized so that these deals can move
forward in a timely manner.
We know that some of the tax credits that are out there,
they're about ready to sunset in 2019
and they have to be extended.
Not only that, we are facing--
and all of us know--
a serious affordable housing crunch.
According to the Census Bureau's 2015 ACS survey,
Massachusetts had the seventh highest rents in the country
with Boston area ranked as the fourth most costly urban area
for housing.
Not only that, according to the Joint Center
for Housing Studies at Harvard, nearly 50%
of all renters in Massachusetts are
rent burdened, pay more than 30% of their income for rent.
Very dramatic.
The last time we did this housing bill back in 2013
under the great leadership of the gentleman from Brighton
and yourself, Mr. Speaker, we authorized about $1.4 billion.
Those bonds supported over 40 projects
and created over 12,137 total housing
units, of which 90% were affordable
and were spread throughout the Commonwealth.
This bill authorizes $1.7 billion
to build on that success.
We know that successful Housing Finance
is a patchwork of state programs, grants,
partnerships that includes so many, including the banks.
Sometimes, the money that the Commonwealth puts
is first in the different patchwork of programs.
But one thing that we know that it can start and end
with us in terms of making sure that that happens.
We all know how important it is to help families find a place
to call home, and this bill ensures
that the Commonwealth is able to hold up its end of the deal.
The chairman Honan did a good-- the chairman did a great job
in outlining the details.
And Mr. Speaker, I hope that when a vote is called,
it is called by a call of the yeas and nays.
Thank you.
Gentleman from Brighton has already requested that
and voted.
Chair recognizes Mr. Hill of Ipswich.
This is a bill that I think we all support,
and it's certainly a subject matter that we all
work with our communities on and our nonprofits on.
But we have to remember one word that we
have heard from the last two speakers, and that is bond.
The dollars that will be passed today
will be for authorizations for bonding.
My question to either of the speakers before me would be,
can you inform the membership where
we are in regards to ratings of our bonds as it sits today?
And if this is to be passed today, how that affects
our bond rating moving forward?
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
House will be in a brief recess.
Chair recognizes Mr. Cabral of New Bedford.
Through you, Mr. Speaker, if I may.
This bond bill before us will not
have any impact on the bond rating itself.
We have one of the highest bond ratings in history.
We have a AA, AA plus, and AAA if its the transportation
account.
So I think we have one of the best
ratings in the country, never mind
in history of the Commonwealth.
Also, as you said when you-- before you asked the question,
this is an authorization bill.
The last authorization was in 2014,
so we need to authorize additional possibilities
for additional programs.
But also, we need--
we needed also to reauthorize previous line items as well,
or else the governor would not be able--
or the administration would not be
able to go out and issue bonds for specific programs
that they want to pursue.
As you heard last night, the governor would like to have--
to build about 135,000 units of housing
on the next several years.
I think he gave a specific date.
This bond bill is crucial, very crucial
for that particular goal of the governor.
House will be in a recess.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[GAVEL BANGING]
House will be in order.
To Petrolati of Ludlaw, offers an amendment
to the hands of the clerk.
Clerk will read the amendment.
Amendment number 10.
Mr. Petrolati of Ludlaw moves to amend a bill by adding
the following section.
Amend [INAUDIBLE] chapter 40A, section six,
fourth paragraph by inserting the following language
after the first sentence.
Any such increase will also not apply
if after such recording or endorsement
the lot is held at any time in common ownership
with the adjoining land.
Question now on the amendment.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, nay.
The nays have it.
The amendment is not adopted.
Brief recess.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
House will be in order.
Mr. Jones of North Reading offers an amendment
in the hands of the clerk.
Clerk will read the amendment.
Amendment number 39, Mr. Jones of North Reading
and other members of the House move
to amend the bill by striking out section 22 in its entirety
and inserting [INAUDIBLE] the following section, section 22.
Section 125 of chapter 287 is hereby amended
by striking out the following, 46, 48, 56 a, 61, 63,
[INAUDIBLE].
The question now is on the amendment.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The amendment is adopted.
Ms. Peake of Provincetown offers an amendment
in the hands of the clerk.
The clerk will read the amendment.
Amendment number 44 has changed.
[INAUDIBLE] Peake of Provincetown moves to amend
the bill by inserting after Section 10 the following new
section, section 10A, Subsection [? I ?] of said section,
6M of said chapter 62 is amended--
If there be no objection, the clerk
will dispense with the reading of the paper.
The chair has none.
Question on the amendment.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, nay.
The ayes have it.
The amendment is adopted.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
House will come to order.
Mr. Jones of North Reading offers an amendment
in the hands of the clerk.
The clerk will read the amendment.
Amendment number 40 has changed.
Mr. Jones Of North Reading moves to amend
the bill in section two by striking out in line
33 to 34 the following words--
If there be no objection, the clerk
will dispense with the further reading of the amendment.
Does the chair objection?
Chair has none.
Question comes on adoption of the amendment.
All those in favor, say aye.
Opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The amendment is adopted.
Mr. Sanchez of Boston offers an amendment
in the hands of the clerk.
The clerk will read the amendment.
Amendment number 55.
Mr. Sanchez of Boston moves to amend the bill in section 29
by striking out line [? 518, ?] the figure 10
inserting in place--
If there be no objection, the clerk
will dispense with the further reading of the amendment.
Does the chair have objection?
Chair has none.
Question comes on adoption of the amendment.
All those in favor, say aye.
Opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The amendment is adopted.
House will be in a brief recess.
Mr. Donato of Medford doubts the presence of a quorum.
The chair can ascertain that a quorum is not present.
Therefore, the court officers will
please summons the members, indicate to them
that a roll call is in progress and will remain open
for three minutes.
Have all members voted who wish to do so?
[INAUDIBLE]
Yeah, he sent a letter.
Have all the members voted who wish to do so?
The time for voting has expired.
The clerk will displayed the tally,
there being 148 members present.
The chair can ascertain that a quorum is present.
Members will take their seats.
[GAVEL BANGING]
Members will please take their seats
and subdue their conversations.
Members will please take their seats
and subdue your conversations.
The chair recognizes Mr. McGonagle of Everett.
[GAVEL BANGING]
Members will please subdue their conversations.
Mr. McGonagle of Everett.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and through you to the members.
I come from a very different background than most of you.
I never saw house chamber until I was elected.
And Mr. Speaker, I've never told you this,
but I actually had to take the statehouse tour
to find out where your office was, and that's the truth.
But Mr. Speaker, when I first walked into this chamber,
two things struck me.
Number one, I hope that my mom and dad are proud of me.
And number two, I hope that I can
live up to the legacy of Speaker Keverian, Representative
[? Connolly, ?] and those before them,
and earn the trust and the confidence
that the people of Everett have placed in me.
When we met, Mr. Speaker, I was overwhelmed,
but you made me feel welcome and gave me confidence.
You gave me advice and offered kind words
that I am forever grateful for.
And please bear with me.
I know it's been a long day, but there's just a few
more people I'd like to thank.
I'd like to thank our majority leader,
the gentleman from Quincy--
for his words of wisdom the first time I met him.
And for those of you who know the majority leader,
you know that I can never share those words with you--
[LAUGHTER]
--or repeat them in public.
So thank you, Mr. Leader.
And as many of you know, Everett has a strong tradition
of leading this House.
Speaker Keverian held this honor for six years.
So once again, I would like to thank the assistant majority
leader, the gentlemen from Medford,
who gave me this honor for six minutes in an informal session.
Now everybody gets at least three minutes
of fame in their life.
Mine was six minutes.
And being from Everett, I'll take it.
But Mr. Speaker, some colleagues when they found out
about my fame joked on Twitter, god help the Commonwealth.
Not God save, god help the Commonwealth, Mr. Speaker.
And I know who you are.
[LAUGHTER]
And finally, finally, ladies and gentlemen,
on a more serious note, I would like
to thank the gentleman from Brighton, our housing chair,
for his guidance, his advice in giving me the opportunity
to address you as Vice Chair, and speak
to you on such an important piece of legislation.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I don't have my glasses, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Speaker, I think he's hiding on me.
Do you know who he is?
I think he's hiding on me.
I'm glad you know who he is.
[LAUGHTER]
It's a tough audience.
But anyways.
[LAUGHTER]
Mr. Speaker [? SEAM ?]
Since my first day in office the most important issue
I have faced in Everett is housing.
And this housing bond bill is one
of the most impactful pieces of legislation
for my city in the Commonwealth right now.
In Everett, we are doing everything
we can to provide housing, specifically
affordable housing.
But we can't do it alone because of the high costs
of acquisition, construction, and the difficulty of financing
affordable developments.
We need funded state initiatives with federal incentives
in order to get these projects built.
Mr. Speaker, I recently returned from a trip to Haiti.
I came back last Sunday.
Each year I travel there with Reverend Mimi and Pastor Paul.
We bring school supplies, donated clothes, and even
wedding dresses so families can dress up and celebrate
one of the most important days that families share.
We are in the process of building a bread factory,
something so many of us take for granted.
And I have witnessed tens of thousands
of men, women, and children living with very little shelter
or no shelter at all.
And Mr. Speaker, I relate this to our own work
here in Massachusetts, because so many families are struggling
to make ends meet and afford a stable place to live,
a place to call home.
And shelter is one of the most basic needs for human beings.
We hear charity begins at home.
Home is where the heart is.
Home sweet home.
They're cliches, but they are true nonetheless.
We hear these statistics, even earlier today,
from both chairmen and studies calling
for the need for affordable housing.
Massachusetts, third most expensive housing market
in the country.
Massachusetts, large housing shortage.
In Massachusetts, the lack of housing
will create a drag in our economy.
They're all true.
But I-- I choose to simplify things and look
at issues with common sense.
Because home is the heart and soul of the family.
Whether it's a house, condo, or apartment, whether occupied
by a senior citizen, an empty nester, a veteran,
a growing family, or an immigrant from Haiti,
everyone deserves a roof over their head and we must act.
This housing bond bill contains so many opportunities
to help our communities build the kind of housing stock
we need to benefit all of our residents
and continue to grow our economy.
Ladies and gentlemen, this bill takes a giant step in turning,
someone should do something about this,
into someone is doing something about this.
So that, Mr. Speaker, is why I rise in support of this bill.
And I ask my colleagues to join me
in doing something that makes having
a roof over your head and a place
to call home affordable, attainable,
and a reality for all.
Thank you.
[CHEERING AND APPLAUSE]
Roll call being honored.
Roll call be honored forthwith and will remain open
for three minutes.
For the edification of the members,
there'll be no further roll calls today.
We will be meeting tomorrow in an informal session,
but there will be no further roll calls today.
The clerk will make an announcement.
The voting stations from representatives Dwyer and Kocot
are locked.
Have all members voted who wish to do so?
Time for voting has expired.
Clerk will display the tally.
In this matter, 151--
150.
150 have voted in the affirmative, 1 in the negative.
The item is passed to be engrossed.
Message from His Excellency, the governor.
A message from His Excellency, the governor,
submitting the annual budget of the Commonwealth
for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2018.
House number [? two ?] was [INAUDIBLE] office of the clerk
this afternoon at 3:19 PM.
The message will be referred to the Committee
on Ways and Means.
Mr. DeLeo of Winthrop offers an order
in the hands of the clerk.
The clerk will read the order.
Order that when the house adjourns today,
it adjourn to meet tomorrow at 11:00 AM.
Question comes on adoption of the order.
All those in favor, say aye.
Opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The order is adopted.
Members and guests are asked to rise for a moment of silence.
Ms. Peake of Provincetown asks that the House
have a moment of silence for Mr. Olson,
graduated from the Roxbury Latin School in 1960,
Harvard College in 1964, and Harvard Law School in 1968.
He was a member of the US Coast Guard
reserves from 1965 to 1972, and he
served as Bond Counsel at Palmer and Dodge
in Boston until his retirement in Provincetown in 1988.
In addition to his love and support of arts organizations
in both Boston and Provincetown, he embraced public service.
He served on the Provincetown Board of Selectmen
for five years, four of which overlapped
with representative Peake's service on the board.
In addition, he also served five years on the planning board,
and later became chair of the Cemetery Commission,
a post he held until 2017.
He passed away on July 3rd.
He was 75 years old.
Thank you.
Thank you, [INAUDIBLE].
It would mean the world to him.
Thank you.
Ms. Williams Gifford moves that the House now stand adjourned,
should meet tomorrow in an informal session at 11:00 AM.
Question comes on that motion.
All those in favor, say aye.
Opposed, no.
The ayes have it.
The motion is carried.
House stands adjourned.
[MUSIC PLAYING]