麻州議會通過法案鼓勵亞裔在BMI 23 時就做檢測

Massachusetts House and Senate Come Together to “Screen at 23”

Joint Resolution Calls on the State’s Public Health System and Providers to Use BMI 23 When Screening Asian Americans for Diabetes

Boston, MA – (January 22, 2018) – Legislators from both the Massachusetts House and Senate have voted on a Joint Resolution to urge the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and other public and private health providers to screen Asian Americans for diabetes at a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 23, which is a lower screening BMI than for the general population.

Joslin’s Asian American Diabetes Initiative (AADI), along with a coalition of other diabetes organizations, led the effort to change screening guidelines for Asian Americans on a national level through the “Screen at 23” campaign. Now states are officially adopting the change as well.

In Massachusetts, screening at 23 BMI would reveal more than 6,000 additional cases of diabetes among Asian Americans and close to 20,000 new cases of prediabetes, allowing treatment, interventions and prevention to begin before damaging associated conditions develop or worsen.

“This is a significant milestone for all of us who have worked over the years in the AADI at Joslin. Screen at 23 is the first of several  important steps to ensure Asian-American populations have proper health care for their diabetes and we are so thankful to the Legislature, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and all of those who have advocated for the adoption of these screening guidelines,” said Dr. George L. King, Chief Scientific Officer, Joslin Diabetes Center.

Dr. LaShawn McIver, Senior Vice-President of Government Affairs and Advocacy at the American Diabetes Association (ADA) said, “The Legislature’s resolution brings attention to a critical health concern affecting the Asian American community. As more providers and patients become aware of the Screen at 23 guidelines, we are hopeful screening will become more widespread–and preventive steps can then be set in motion for those at risk of developing diabetes.”

"The science shows that when it comes to diabetes, Asian Americans are different; guidelines are now reflecting this reality, and screening practices must change to reflect these guidelines," shared Dr. Ho Luong Tran, President and CEO of the National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians (NCAPIP).

The “Screen at 23” campaign is coordinated by the NCAPIP, Joslin Diabetes Center, and members of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Diabetes Coalition.

The Massachusetts resolution was championed by State Representative Tackey Chan (D) and State Senator Jason Lewis (D), and an event will be held on the Grand Staircase at the Massachusetts State House to announce the resolution on Thursday, January 25, 2 p.m.

Visit Joslin’s Asian American Diabetes Initiative to find out more about AADI, and Screen at 23 website for more information on the campaign.

AG HEALEY SECURES MILLIONS IN RELIEF FOR MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS FACED WITH UNFAIR FORECLOSURE AND LOAN SERVICING PRACTICES

AG HEALEY SECURES MILLIONS IN RELIEF FOR MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS FACED WITH UNFAIR FORECLOSURE AND LOAN SERVICING PRACTICES

BOSTON – Attorney General Maura Healey has secured millions of dollars in relief for hundreds of Massachusetts residents in a settlement with a national mortgage servicer over its failure to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

Pursuant to an assurance of discontinuance, filed in Suffolk Superior Court, Nationstar Mortgage LLC (d/b/a Mr. Cooper) will provide direct payments and loan modifications to hundreds of homeowners in Massachusetts. The company will also update its practices and be subject to compliance oversight from the AG’s Office.

“In Massachusetts, mortgage servicers are required by law to help prevent unnecessary foreclosures and keep families in their homes,” said AG Healey. “Nationstar failed to stop foreclosures and this settlement gives homeowners in the hardest hit areas in Massachusetts a chance to stay in their homes. It also sends a clear message that we will hold accountable companies that are not following the law.”

The AG’s Office alleges that the company violated the MassachusettsAct to Prevent Unnecessary Foreclosure, known as “35B,” a landmark law passed in 2012 that protects certain borrowers from foreclosure. The law requires creditors to make a good faith effort to avoid foreclosure for borrowers whose mortgage loans have unfair subprime terms.  

Under the terms of the settlement, Nationstar is required to implement a loan modification program that will provide millions in borrower relief in the form of principal reductions, pay $500,000 in restitution to certain foreclosed-upon borrowers, and provide the loan modification review protections required by state law for borrowers who fall into default in the future.

At least 500-600 Massachusetts residents are eligible for loan modification review under the terms of the settlement and more than 100 foreclosed-upon borrowers will be eligible for restitution. Borrowers eligible for restitution will be contacted about how to apply for payments.

Nationstar is the largest non-bank mortgage servicer in the country. The AG’s Office began an investigation into Nationstar after receiving hundreds of complaints from Massachusetts consumers.

According to the AG’s Office, Nationstar allegedly offered unfair and deceptive short-term, interest-only loan modifications to borrowers that did not consider the borrower’s ability to repay the mortgage debt over the life of the modified loan. After one or two years, the monthly payments on those modifications ballooned to an amount higher than on which the borrower originally defaulted. The AG’s Office alleges that this loan modification program set borrowers up to fail and put them at heightened risk of foreclosure.

The AG’s Office also alleges that Nationstar failed to provide a fair opportunity for a modification review. When borrowers filled out and returned the necessary forms, Nationstar failed to log, track, and process those forms as required by the law. Instead, borrowers faced massive delays, repetitive requests for modification paperwork and were often denied loan modifications on the grounds that they had failed to submit proper documentation, which had indeed been submitted.

This case is part of the AG’s Office’s investigation of the mortgage servicing industry and its compliance with the Massachusetts Act to Prevent Unnecessary Foreclosures. The Office is committed to ensuring that all mortgage servicers respect the rights of homeowners under this important law.

The AG’s Office has been a national leader in securing restitution and other relief for borrowers from banks and servicers. The office has obtained recoveries and other relief from Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Royal Bank of Scotland, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Countrywide, Fremont Investment & Loan, Option One, HSBC, Ditech, PHH and others on behalf of Massachusetts homeowners. 

Consumers with questions or concerns about deceptive or abusive foreclosure and loan servicing practices can call the Attorney General’s consumer hotline at 617-727-8400 or file a complaint with the office.

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Lisa Dyen and Michael Lecaroz, and Division Chief Max Weinstein, with assistance from Paralegals Gabrielle Crossnoe and Sneha Pandya, all of AG Healey’s Consumer Protection Division.

AARP樂齡會調查揭示 亞太裔因詐騙備受財務和情緒傷害

AARP樂齡會調查揭示 亞太裔因詐騙備受財務和情緒傷害 AARP Fraud Survey Reveals the Financial and Emotional Toll among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders 50歲以上亞太裔騙案受害者平均損失15,000元，並出現情緒及健康問題。 AAPI Fraud Victims Age 50 and Older Lost More Than $15,000 on Average, Reported Emotional and Health-Related Issues Read the report and download the infographic at aarp.org/AAPIfraudsurvey. 【華盛頓哥倫比亞特區訊】—AARP樂齡會最近一項有關詐騙的研究調查顯示，近四成（39%）50歲以上亞太裔民眾或他們的家人曾有被欺詐的經歷。此外，三分之一（33%）受害者平均損失15,000元。而非財務的傷害更為普遍，大多數騙案受害者（72%）因此出現不同的情緒、身體或心理健康問題，包括感到憤怒、壓力和焦慮、睡眠困難和羞恥等。 “亞太裔社區的每個人都有被詐騙的風險，” AARP樂齡會多元文化領導部門亞太裔受眾副總裁郭為婉（Daphne Kwok）說。“這項調查提醒我們需要對欺詐和騙局加以防患，以防止財務損失和非財務傷害。AARP樂齡會希望幫助亞太裔社區的民眾和家庭，保護他們辛勤掙取的積蓄。” 提高警惕和教育是免受欺詐的主要方法，但是許多年齡50歲以上的亞太裔民眾經常過於自信，自以為有能力識破多數的騙局。調查顯示，近四分之三受訪者（73%）確信自己可以識破詐騙集團的引誘，但當他們進行一個有六道問題的普通欺詐知識測驗時，大多數人（71%）都未能過關，無法正確回答一半以上的問題。 一些針對50歲以上亞太裔民眾的詐騙類型包括： 國外彩票詐騙（36%） 與災難有關的慈善捐款（33%） 科技騙子假裝清除病毒（32%） 假冒國稅局來電要求補稅（24%） 釣魚電子郵件（20%） 針對詐騙造成的非財務傷害，AARP樂齡會提供以下建議緩解： 明白你並不孤單，感到憤怒、羞恥和尷尬十分正常。 將這些感受轉化成為行動。教育他人關注不同的騙局，避免再墜陷阱。與家人和朋友分享一些防騙的心得。 如果你仍然感到羞恥、尷尬或憤怒，請尋求專業幫助，包括與你的醫生或其他專業人士討論。 家庭成員還可以通過以下方式支持曾經被詐騙的受害者： 傾聽你的親友的遭遇，並施以同情。 提出問題，以更好地了解詐騙發生的情況和背景。 保持溝通渠道暢通。請記住，沮喪和憤怒等的情緒應發洩到騙局和肇事者身上，而不是受害者。 留意受害者是否出現可能再次被騙的行為，例如說：“我要贏錢……”或“那個好人在電話裡說……”。 閱讀免費的AARP樂齡會防止欺詐手冊，並與你的家人討論（詳情見下文）。 AARP樂齡會敦促所有因為騙局損失金錢的受害者立即通報消費者信用機構（各機構網站都有提供說明），如果涉及使用信用卡並要向信用卡公司報告。受害者還應該向聯邦貿易委員會及其州檢察長辦公室舉報詐騙。 瞭解詳情，請瀏覽網站：aarp.org/AAPIfraudsurvey。欲取得更多關於防止騙案的詳細指引，請下載免費的AARP防止欺詐手冊(英文版本) (中文版本)。 WASHINGTON, DC — Nearly four in ten (39 percent) Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) age 50 and older report that they or their family members have experienced fraud schemes, according to the recent fraud survey from AARP. Additionally, one-third (33 percent) of victims lost $15,000 on average. Non-financial costs are even more widespread, with most fraud victims (72 percent) experiencing some sort of emotional, physical or mental health impact, including anger, stress and anxiety, difficulty sleeping and shame. “Everyone in the AAPI community is at risk for fraud,” said Daphne Kwok, AARP Vice President of Multicultural Leadership, Asian American and Pacific Islander Audience Strategy. “This survey underscores the need to raise awareness around fraud and scams in order to protect against financial and non-financial loss. AARP seeks to help the AAPI community protect their families and their hard-earned savings.” Awareness and education are major factors in avoiding fraud, but many AAPIs age 50 and older may be overconfident in their ability to spot common scams. In the survey, nearly three of four participants (73 percent) were confident they could spot a fraudulent offer, yet the majority (71 percent) failed a general fraud knowledge quiz of six questions, unable to correctly answer more than half of the questions. Some of the most common types of fraud targeting AAPIs age 50 and older include: Foreign lottery scams (36 percent) Crisis-related charitable donations (33 percent) Tech support scammers offering virus removal (32 percent) IRS imposter calls to collect back taxes (24 percent) Phishing emails (20 percent) AARP offers advice on dealing with the non-financial impact of fraud, including: Understand you are not alone and that it's not unusual to experience feelings of anger, shame and embarrassment. Re-channel those feelings into action. Volunteer to help educate others about fraud. Share tips with family and friends. If you have continued feelings of shame, embarrassment or anger, seek professional help. Talk to your doctor or another professional. Family members can also support a victim of fraud by: Listening with an empathetic ear to your loved one. Asking questions to better understand the situation and context in which the fraud occurred. Keeping lines of communication open. Remember to focus frustration and anger on the scam and the perpetrator — not the victim. Listening for clues of continued participation, such as: “I’m going to win money” or “the nice man on the phone said.” Reading the free AARP Fraud Prevention Handbook and discussing it with your family members (see below for details). AARP urges people who have lost money to a scammer to report it immediately to the consumer credit bureaus (directions available on their websites) and credit card companies if a charge card was involved. Victims should also report scams to the Federal Trade Commission and their state Attorney General’s office. For more information, visit aarp.org/AAPIfraudsurvey. For detailed tips on avoiding fraud, download the free AARP Fraud Prevention Handbook in English and Chinese.

調查方法 AARP樂齡會委託研調機構“Asian American Decisions”，就50歲以上亞太裔民眾遭受欺詐和遇到騙案的情況進行今次調查。從2017年10月2日至11月6日期間，該機構在全國抽樣電話訪問1,120人。電話採訪以英語、普通話、廣東話、菲律賓語、越南語和韓語等多種不進語言進行。數據並經加權處理以反映50歲以上亞太裔民眾的人口分佈。在95%置信水平下，1120名受訪者的最高抽樣統計誤差為±2.93%。瞭解調查方法詳情，請瀏覽網站：aarp.org/AAPIfraudsurvey。 關於AARP: AARP樂齡會是全美最大的非營利機構及無黨派組織，旨在強化美國50歲以上的民眾以使他們在逐漸年長的過程中能夠選擇各自的生活方式。AARP樂齡會擁有將近3,800萬會員，及在全美50州、華盛頓特區、波多黎各和美屬維京群島均設有辦事處，藉此增進各個社區及致力倡導和改善與大多數家庭息息相關的議題，尤其是：醫療保健、財務安全、及個人發展。我們並關注在市場上的個人權益，因此不斷推出新的方案及悉心挑選值得冠以AARP樂齡會名稱的優質的產品和服務。作為可靠的消息和資訊來源，AARP樂齡會並出版全球發行量最大的《AARP樂齡會雜誌》(AARP The Magazine) 及《AARP樂齡會通報》(AARP Bulletin)。瞭解詳情，請瀏覽網站：www.aarp.org及通過社交媒體@AARP及@AARPadvocates關注我們。 Survey Methodology AARP commissioned Asian American Decisions to conduct a research study among Asian American and Pacific Islanders age 50-plus concerning fraud and scams. The national sample included a total of 1,120 interviews by telephone between Oct. 2 and Nov. 6, 2017. Telephone interviewing was conducted in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Korean. Data were weighted to reflect the AAPI 50-plus population. The total sample of 1,120 respondents yields a maximum statistical error of ± 2.93% at the 95% confidence interval. A full methodology statement is available at aarp.org/AAPIfraudsurvey. ABOUT AARP AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 38 million members and offices in every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, AARP works to strengthen communities and advocate for what matters most to families with a focus on health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also works for individuals in the marketplace by sparking new solutions and allowing carefully chosen, high-quality products and services to carry the AARP name.  As a trusted source for news and information, AARP produces the world’s largest circulation publications, AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @AARP and @AARPadvocates on social media.

AG HEALEY’S OFFICE RECOVERS MORE THAN $45 MILLION FOR MASSHEALTH IN 2017

AG HEALEY’S OFFICE RECOVERS MORE THAN $45 MILLION FOR MASSHEALTH IN 2017

BOSTON – Continuing her commitment to rooting out fraud in state programs and recovering taxpayer dollars, Attorney General Maura Healey today announced that her Medicaid Fraud Division recovered more than $45 million for the state’s Medicaid program in 2017.

The AG’s Medicaid Fraud Division is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of fraud against the state’s Medicaid program, known as MassHealth. The Division recovered nearly $11 for every dollar appropriated in the 2017 fiscal year budget for its work.

            “MassHealth provides critical health care services to many of our most vulnerable residents,” AG Healey said. “Our office works hard every day to stop fraud against the program, recover taxpayer dollars, and make sure those funds are used properly to benefit our residents.”

In 2017, AG Healey’s Medicaid Fraud Division pursued a variety of cases for Massachusetts that achieved substantial settlements from various entities including pharmacies, doctors, home health companies, and dental practices.

            In addition to the civil settlements, three individuals were convicted in 2017 after the Medicaid Fraud Division brought criminal charges against them for defrauding MassHealth. An additional nine people were criminally charged in 2017 and their cases are currently pending.

The Division prioritized cases involving providers who contribute to the opioid epidemic by illegally prescribing or dispensing pills. The AG’s Office reached a settlement with Walgreens over its improper dispensing of controlled substances that resulted in an additional $200,000 to the AG’sYouth Opioid Prevention grant program. The settlement also requires Walgreens, similar to a previous settlement with CVS in 2016, to strengthen its policies and procedures around the dispensing of opioids and requires its Massachusetts pharmacy staff to check the state’s Prescription Monitoring Program before filling prescriptions for commonly misused opioids.

In criminal cases reflecting AG Healey’s focus on fighting the opioid epidemic, a Dorchester doctor, Dr. Ashok Patel, was indicted in connection with charging patients cash for opioid addiction treatment already covered by MassHealth and illegally profiting off of vulnerable patients in Massachusetts.In May, another doctor, Dr. Fernando Jayma, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail for illegally prescribing opioids to patients for no legitimate medical purpose, some of whom had documented substance use disorder.

The Division has also focused on combating fraud, waste and abuse in the home health industry. In the largest settlement with a home health company in Massachusetts, Centrus Premier Home Care Inc. d/b/a/ Maxim Healthcare Services, Inc. agreed to pay more than $14 million to settle allegations that it improperly submitted claims and received overpayments for services from MassHealth after a voluntary provider overpayment disclosure. In August, Apria Healthcare, a nationwide provider of home healthcare products, paid more than $750,000 for directly billing people for services already covered by MassHealth, a payment that includes refunds to hundreds of affected MassHealth members.

In her continued efforts to address fraud in the home health industry, AG Healey criminally charged multiple individuals for false billing schemes. In October, Hellen Kiago and her company, Lifestream Healthcare Alliance,were indicted for allegedly stealing $2.7 million from MassHealth by routinely overbilling and falsely billing for services that were not authorized. In July,Harmony Home Health Care, owner Elena Kurbatzky and an employee were charged in connection with allegedly stealing nearly $2.7 million from MassHealth by falsely billing for services that were not authorized or provided to patients.

AG Healey’s Office also continues to maintain a leadership position nationally in the fight against fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicaid program. The $45 million recovered in 2017 is primarily the result of 24 civil settlements, 14 of which were multistate agreements.

Representatives from the AG’s Medicaid Fraud Division serve on national multistate fraud teams that negotiate the resolution of these cases, which in 2017 resulted in the return of $580 million to the federal government and state Medicaid programs across the country.

In October, as part of a multistate settlement, pharmaceutical company Mylan paid $20.3 million to MassHealth to resolve allegations that it knowingly underpaid rebates owed to the Medicaid program for EpiPens dispensed to MassHealth members.

Medicaid is a multi-billion-dollar joint state and federal program that provides health insurance for the economically disadvantaged. The Medicaid Fraud Division works cooperatively with MassHealth and other state and federal agencies to prosecute provider fraud in the Massachusetts Medicaid program. Many of the cases handled by the AG’s Office were referred by MassHealth.

波士頓佛光山義工聯誼

【波士頓佛光山餐會聯誼  感謝義工付出奉獻】

波士頓佛光山三佛中心於1月28日晚間舉辦義工聯誼餐會，並安排揚琴、古箏等樂器表演，穿插歌唱、摸彩等活動助興，對波士頓三佛中心及佛光會所有義工的付出與貢獻，表達敬意與謝意，場面溫馨熱絡。

三佛中心覺謙法師表示，在去年一整年舉辦多場法會、法事和善童班，也參與華埠中秋聯歡等僑社活動，三佛中心與波士頓佛光會的義工提供相當多的支援與協助，特別向大家致謝；覺謙法師也特別介紹專程從紐約前來波士頓的住持如揚法師、覺懺法師和知群法師，他們除了參與當天舉辦的皈依典禮，以及致送哈佛大學等4所名校「世界佛教美術圖說大辭典」的贈書典禮之外，也在晚間的聯誼餐會感謝義工無私的付出。

住持如揚法師在致詞時，特別以星雲大師述說過的小故事和會眾分享，強調「和諧」就會帶來「平安」、「健康」和「財富」；她感謝義工的支持，也祝願與會人士在新的一年都能對佛光山的人間佛教有更深的體悟。此外，如揚法師說明今年的農曆新年是狗年，佛光山的春聯是由星雲大師親筆所書的「忠義傳家」，象徵狗具備忠誠與公義的精神，而且在今年正好是星雲大師將十二生肖的農曆年春聯，以一筆字親自題字一輪，所以更具義意。

應邀出席的波士頓僑教中心主任歐宏偉表示，波士頓的三佛中心和僑教中心有很多類似之處，例如，場地規模雖然不大，但都能在覺謙法師、知深法師以及所有義工的協助下，展現小而精和小而美的精神與績效，積極舉辦多項大型活動並致力推展多元社區服務；歐宏偉也向與會僑胞鄉親賀歲，並轉達僑委會委員長吳新興博士和駐波士頓臺北經文處處長賴銘琪對大家的問候與祝福。 (文稿僑教中心提供，照片由波士頓三佛中心提供)

Baker-Polito Administration Testifies on Housing Choice Initiative

Baker-Polito Administration Testifies on Housing Choice Initiative

Governor Baker, Secretary Ash, Under Secretary Kornegay appear before the Joint Committee on Housing

BOSTON— Today, Governor Charlie Baker, Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Jay Ash and Undersecretary of Housing and Community Development Chrystal Kornegay testified at a hearing of the Joint Committee on Housing in support of the administration’s Housing Choice Initiative to substantially increase housing production across the Commonwealth, including legislation titled “An Act to Promote Housing Choices.”

TESTIMONY AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY BY GOV. CHARLIE BAKER: 

Chairman Honan, Chairman Boncore, and Vice Chairman McGonagle and members of the Joint Committee on Housing, thank you for opportunity to provide testimony in support of House  4075, “An Act to Promote Housing Choices.” 

As I emphasized in my State of the Commonwealth speech last week, we are grateful for our productive partnership with the Legislature.  We have a track record of success on issues like economic development, opioids, energy, and more.  Now, together, we must confront the issue of housing production in the Commonwealth.

It has been decades since this state produced enough housing to keep up with demand.  The result has been predictable.  A limited supply creates overheated demand and rising prices. 

Young people --- seniors --- young, working and middle class families can’t afford to rent or buy a home here in the Commonwealth.

We know that the Legislature recognizes the importance of this issue.  Senate President Chandler has championed the housing issue for decades.  Likewise, the House has been a great partner on housing issues like the Housing Bond Bill.  I also want to recognize that Chairman Honan and former Vice Chairwoman Dorcena Forry filed legislation that lowered voting thresholds for adoption of 40R smart growth zoning.

Thanks to this committee’s leadership, the House just engrossed the Housing Bond Bill, which will fund important programs to build and preserve affordable housing, to support our community development corporations, and to rehabilitate our state public housing stock.  I hope that the Senate will quickly take up that legislation.

The gap between housing demand and housing supply in the Commonwealth is one of the thorniest issues for State and local governments.  Massachusetts is one of the most expensive states to find a home, and it poses the most serious long-term hurdle to continued economic growth. 

This proposed legislation is part of our comprehensive strategy to build 135,000 new housing units over the next seven years. 

It builds on our new Housing Choice Initiative, and will facilitate housing production in partnership with our municipalities.

The Housing Choices bill before you offers a new approach to address that challenge by making it easier for local decision-makers — city and town officials —to adopt best practice zoning policies that will facilitate sustainable housing production across the Commonwealth.

  

We live in a great state.  U.S. News and World Report ranked Massachusetts the #1 state in which to live, work, and raise a family.  Education Week ranked our K-12 schools #1 in the country.  Bloomberg named Massachusetts the most innovative state.  And we offer incredible cultural, recreational, and other assets that make Massachusetts a place where families want to live and where employers want to grow.

Yet, we are building less than half the housing that we were building in the 1980s.  And we are not building the number of multi-family housing units that we need in diverse locations across the Commonwealth to accommodate the workforce we need to continue our economic growth. 

The bottom line: Massachusetts needs to build more housing to remain competitive economically and to serve the needs of all of our residents. 

Our Administration has been committed to a robust housing agenda, significantly expanding our investments in workforce and affordable housing and committing more than $1.1 billion in capital funding over the next five years, offering state land for housing development, and making a series of reforms to prompt housing production.

However, we also understand that there is no way that the State can fund enough subsidies to drive the level of housing production that we need to meet demand.

To really move the needle on housing production, we need to rely on the power of the market. That means we need to work with municipalities to set the conditions that will allow the market to meet housing demand.

Both Lt. Governor Polito and I served as members of our town select boards, and we understand that local government is closest to the people. 

Cities and towns are on the front lines of development issues.  As we seek to promote housing production, we believe this must be done in partnership with local elected and appointed officials.   Working with the Massachusetts Municipal Association and other municipal stakeholders, we are seeking to create a comprehensive system of incentives, rewards, and technical assistance to encourage municipalities to plan and encourage housing production.

We think that municipal legislative bodies are the best place to set local housing policy.  Accordingly, our legislative proposal makes no changes to local zoning bylaws but instead improves flexibility for town legislative bodies to make best practice, smart growth zoning changes.  It accomplishes this by removing a barrier that makes it hard for towns adopting these changes, even where they are broadly supported: a state law requiring a supermajority vote to change zoning. 

Nothing in the bill requires a municipality to change its zoning laws.  The bill simply makes it easier for cities and towns that do want to make zoning changes that promote smart housing growth to do so.

The bill also reflects a belief that policies encouraging housing growth should align with other values our Administration has championed, such as our commitment to encourage good stewardship of our environment and reduce greenhouse gases. 

Accordingly, our Housing Choice Initiative creates incentives and provides resources to adopt planning policies that direct growth toward downtowns and transit oriented locations.  Our legislation encourages municipalities to protect undeveloped land by adopting best practices, like cluster zoning and transfer of development rights.

We are pleased that this proposal has been well received by a variety of stakeholders.  When announcing our comprehensive Housing Choice Initiative, we were joined by the Massachusetts Municipal Association, individual municipal elected and appointed leaders, major business associations, planning organizations, housing advocates, and environmental groups. 

As we strive to find more creative ways to encourage more housing developments, our administration believes this bill is a key component of our long-term plan.  With your support, we can promote housing growth that is smart, responsive to local needs, and environmentally friendly.

Thank you for your time and attention.  With your leadership, we can make progress on an issue that has stubbornly resisted reform for a generation.  Working together, I am confident that we can find a way forward to a better Commonwealth.

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TESTIMONY AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY BY SEC. JAY ASH: 

 “An Act to Promote Housing Choices”

Massachusetts has a long and proud tradition of local home rule and the Baker-Polito Administration has a culture of respecting the role of municipal leaders in shaping their community’s future.  As the former City Manager of Chelsea, I appreciate that local decision making and buy in is key to successful housing production. 

In fact, I’m proud to be here as someone who helped facilitate the development of more than 2,000 housing units in Chelsea.  That housing production was a key part of the redevelopment of Chelsea as a vibrant and financially stable municipality.

I carry that experience across the Commonwealth as I travel to cities and towns and consult with municipal leaders about their own economic development and community visions. 

Housing, including multi-family housing, is a cornerstone of how we revitalize our downtowns, convert underutilized shopping centers, and build sustainable municipalities that are places where people want to live, work, and play.

For communities that want to pursue zoning that produces housing in sustainable locations, however, there’s long been a legal barrier that we believe the Legislature should eliminate:

·       State law bars cities and towns in Massachusetts from adopting changes to zoning laws unless the municipality is able to secure a 2/3 “supermajority” vote of its legislative body.

Only a handful of other states have similar requirements and none of our neighbors in New England place this sort of restriction on local decision making.

It is time to remove this barrier to the adoption of zoning changes that promote sustainable, appropriate and much needed housing production. 

Our legislation allows cities and towns to adopt best practice zoning techniques by majority vote of their legislative bodies.  These best practices will facilitate diverse housing production, they will revitalize our downtowns, and they will promote land conservation and environmental stewardship.

The legislation is simple. 

·       If a municipality wants to reduce house lot sizes or other dimensional restrictions so that homebuilders can create housing that is more affordable to the average buyer, then the voting threshold is a simple majority.

·       If a municipality wants to allow mixed use zoning in a downtown, then the voting threshold is a simple majority.

·       If a municipality wants to create zoning that clusters houses together and conserves land compared to a typical suburban development, then the voting threshold is a simple majority.

·       If a municipality wants to adopt 40R “smart growth zoning,” including our new starter home 40R districts, then the voting threshold is a simple majority.

·       If a municipality wants to allow accessory dwelling units – small apartments in the same building or on the same lot as an existing home — then the voting threshold is a simple majority.

If a municipality wants to allow changes to its zoning that foster the creation of more housing, then the voting requirement is a simple majority.  And if a municipality does not want to change its zoning, it does not have to.

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TESTIMONY AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY BY UNDER SEC. CHRYSTAL KORNEGAY: 

Housing Choice Initiative

In December, the Baker-Polito Administration announced the Housing Choice Initiative and filed “An Act to Promote Housing Choices.”  There are five parts to our comprehensive housing production strategy:

·       The first element is the Housing Choices bill that Secretary Ash just described.

·       Second, we announced a goal of creating 135,000 housing units by 2025.   It is important to set a target and then monitor progress, and we will do that.  In fact, working with Massachusetts Housing Partnership, we are working to improve housing data across the board.

·       Third, the administration has launched a “Housing Choice Designation” for cities and towns, modeled on the Green Communities Program.  We want to recognize those municipalities who are helping us meet our housing challenge.  Communities that achieve Housing Choice Designation will receive extra points on a wide variety of state capital grants as an incentive to build housing and to adopt housing production best practices.

·       Fourth, Housing Choice municipalities will have exclusive access to a new state grant program that will make grants of up to $500,000 for local capital projects.  Because we recognize that our smallest municipalities have different challenges, there will be a separate Small Town Grant Program for towns with less than 7,000 people. 

·       Fifth, we are streamlining access to technical assistance and adding resources for municipalities who want to plan for sustainable housing production.  Our new Housing Choice Program Director will coordinate the variety of technical assistance programs to make sure that any municipality that wants to plan for housing will have the right resources and expertise.  As part of this, MassHousing recently announced a new $2 million grant program that will support municipalities that want to drive their own housing future. 

Thank you again for the opportunity for us to come here in support of “An Act to Promote Housing Choices.”

We’re happy to take any questions.