We are pleased to tell you that the legislation we've been promoting to sustain CPA cleared an important hurdle Tuesday, when the Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Business gave it a favorable recommendation. The bill, SB 90, An Act to Sustain Community Preservation, now moves forward to the House Ways and Means Committee, which will take it up when legislators return from their holiday recess in January.
 
SB 90 would guarantee a minimum annual CPA trust fund match of 75% for each community participating in the program. In addition, it would broaden participation in CPA by making it easier for cities and less affluent communities to join, and clarify allowable uses of CPA funds (notably allowing CPA funding for existing outdoor recreational facilities).
 
The Coalition's original version of SB 90 was amended slightly in Committee to more clearly define the ways in which CPA funds can support community housing. This amendment was originally proposed by Citizens Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), a founding member of the Community Preservation Coalition, and was supported by the Coalition. The revised housing language can be found here.
 
What's next for SB 90? 
 

There is still much to accomplish before the bill becomes law, as it must gain the approval of other committees and win passage by the full House and Senate. Stay tuned for further information on how you can continue to support SB 90.
 
The Coalition wishes to thank Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Business Chairs Linda Dorcena Forry (House) and Michael O. Moore (Senate) for their support of SB 90, and for working with us to report out an effective bill that will sustain CPA. We also want to thank the other members of the committee, our 81 legislative co-sponsors in the House and Senate, and especially the bill's chief sponsors, Senator Cynthia Stone Creem and Representative Stephen Kulik. 
 
Most importantly, we thank you, our CPA supporters across Massachusetts, for all your letter-writing, hearing testimony, personal calls, e-mails, and visits to your legislators in support of CPA and this bill. We could not have come this far without you!
 
More information on SB 90 can be found on the Coalition's Pending Legislation page.