David Wluka – 40B a ‘successful tool’
Their official lobbying day isn’t until May, but Bay State Realtors aren’t wasting any time until then.
In upcoming weeks, local Realtor groups will be priming their members about 2002 legislative goals, which including instituting uniform standards for septic systems and preserving the state’s anti-snob zoning law.
Taking the lead is the Northeast Association of Realtors, which represents more than 1,000 members in the Merrimack and Nashoba valleys and Southern New Hampshire. NEAR has invited leaders representing 15 cities and towns to its annual legislative breakfast this Friday at the Wyndham Hotel in Andover. So far two state senators and 11 representatives have indicated they will participate.
“They [NEAR] have been among the more active groups in the state,” said David Wluka, vice president of government affairs for the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. “We’re hoping to carry that energy across the state.”
Steve Ryan, MAR’s general counsel, will be briefing NEAR members and lawmakers about the top legislative issues affecting Realtors. The 17th annual MAR Legislative Day on Beacon Hill is May 8, but in the next few weeks, Ryan will be speaking to local organizations like NEAR and the North Central Massachusetts Association of Realtors to gear them up.
“This is a great opportunity for Realtors to have a dialogue with their legislators,” said Ryan. “I hope legislators get a clearer sense of the issues that are of concern to Realtors as advocates of the real estate community.”
One of the key topics that Ryan plans to address is the omnibus housing package that is currently being considered by a conference committee of three state senators and three representatives.
The housing package includes measures that would require the escrowing of rent during tenant/landlord disputes and changes to Chapter 40B, the state’s anti-snob zoning law.
For years, real estate practitioners have been pushing for a law that would require tenants to continue paying when there is a dispute over a health code violation. Realtors and landlords have complained that tenants abuse the system to withhold rent and were pleased when the House passed a bill requiring the escrowing of rent.
The Senate, however, later passed a different version of the bill that makes it more difficult for rent escrowing to occur. The Senate bill requires landlords to file a lawsuit and start the eviction process before tenants have to start paying rent into an escrow account.
The conference committee is trying to reach a compromise on that issue and others that are rolled into the omnibus housing package.
‘Hot-Burner’ Issues
Another issue that is making a repeat appearance on MAR’s list of legislative goals has to do with how communities deal with septic system regulations. Realtors and homebuilders have been urging state lawmakers to institute a uniform Title 5 septic system code because they feel that communities are using stringent septic system regulations to discourage housing development.
Under current law, communities are allowed to enforce septic system regulations that are stricter than the state’s, and more than 100 Bay State towns and cities have done so, saying they are protecting their residents and the environment.
Realtors and builders, on the other hand, maintain that the stricter rules are not always justified or supported by scientific or environmental reasons and hinder the production of affordable housing.
“We’re certainly looking forward to them talking about Title 5,” said Mary O’Donoghue, chairman of government affairs for NEAR and a broker at the Andover office of The DeWolfe Cos.
In addition to Title 5, which O’Donoghue called a “hot-burner” issue, NEAR members are also going to be interested in learning more about efforts to change Chapter 40B, she said.
Chapter 40B issues have been at the forefront in many Bay State communities like Andover and North Andover recently. According to O’Donoghue, there are several projects totaling a few hundred housing units that have been proposed in Andover under the state’s anti-snob zoning law.
In communities where less than 10 percent of the housing stock is deemed affordable, like Andover, builders and developers can bypass local zoning and go directly to the state for approval of projects.
“Andover has very little land left, and the question is where can we go,” to develop affordable housing, she said.
MAR is among several advocacy groups that are fighting efforts to weaken Chapter 40B.
“It [Chapter 40B] is the most successful tool that we have to bring affordable housing to the people of the commonwealth,” said Wluka, owner of Wluka Real Estate in Sharon.
Last year’s legislative breakfast drew about 100 participants.
“We’ve had a terrific turnout from legislators,” said O’Donoghue.
Lawmakers who have indicated they will attend this year’s event include: Sens. Susan C. Fargo, D-Lincoln, and Susan C. Tucker, D-Andover; and Reps. Arthur J. Broadhurst, D-Methuen; Carol C. Cleven, R-Chelmsford; Barry R. Finegold, D-Andover; Colleen M. Garry, D-Dracut; Thomas A. Golden Jr., D-Lowell; William G. Green Jr., D-Billerica; Bradford R. Hill, R-Ipswich; Bradley H. Jones Jr., R-North Reading; James R. Miceli, D-Wilmington; Jose L. Santiago, D-Lawrence; and David M. Torrisi, D-North Andover.
