by Jacob Love | Oct 15, 2026 | Featured News, Housing News
Federal regulators recently proposed changes to their rules implementing the Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”). As CHAPA reported when the proposal came out, the CRA is a critical law that prevents lending discrimination and encourages banks to invest in low- and moderate-income (“LMI”) communities.
The CRA and Affordable Housing
The CRA requires regulators to grade banks on their LMI community investment efforts and, crucially, to consider those grades when banks seek permission to expand. This incentive structure has become increasingly key for funding affordable housing development over the years.
For example, the current rules are responsible for driving 80% of private investment in the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program (“LIHTC”), which, in turn, is the “primary tool for building and preserving affordable housing” in the U.S. That puts the CRA at the center of ongoing efforts to address our nationwide affordable housing shortage.
LMI communities, especially extremely low-income households, are the hardest hit by that shortage. Thus, for the CRA to truly support those communities as intended, it must maintain strong incentives for banks to invest in affordable housing and boost our low-income housing stock.
Opposition to Proposed Changes
The proposed changes would instead do the opposite. As CHAPA outlined in a public comment opposing the proposal, the changes would:
- Weaken existing incentives for many banks to finance affordable housing; and
- Restrict the flow of flexible financial support for community development corporations.
The result will be fewer private resources available to support affordable housing development and, ultimately, fewer projects getting done. In the midst of the affordability crisis, the government should be encouraging more housing investment, not less. That is why CHAPA is calling on the federal government to reverse course and rescind the changes.
The public comment period on this proposal closed on 10/13. Under federal law, the government must now review and respond to comments before it can implement the changes.
by Jacob Love | Oct 14, 2026 | Featured News, Housing News
The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (“EOHLC”) recently sought public comment on proposed changes to its rules governing accessory dwelling units (“ADUs”) in Massachusetts.
These rules, which HLC first adopted in 2025, seek to ensure that homeowners across the Commonwealth can exercise their legal right to build ADUs on residentially zoned land. Achieving that goal is key because increasing ADU supply is a straightforward way to expand lower-cost housing options.
With that in mind, CHAPA submitted a public comment on HLC’s proposal last week. We broadly support the proposed changes because many of them: (1) give homeowners greater flexibility to design ADU projects that meet their individual needs; and (2) set clearer limits on municipal ADU restrictions. Some of the most important changes for protected use ADUs include:
- Adjusting gross floor area rules to boost size allowance and dwelling space;
- Preventing localities from exceeding state/federal regulations in some areas;
- Prohibiting mandates for unneeded + expensive utility/septic configurations;
- Requiring site plan review rules for ADUs to be written;
- Listing “accessory structures” that set a lenient dimensional floor for ADUs;
- Specifying the kinds of local fees that are off limits in the ADU context.
Additionally, CHAPA supports a new provision allowing municipalities to impose affordable housing restrictions on ADUs where they provide financial assistance or donate land for a project. This launches a new tool to create affordable housing that we badly need. And limiting the tool to these narrow situations strikes a good balance between promoting affordability and preserving the ADU use protection.
The public comment period closed on 10/9. HLC must now review and consider recommendations from the public comments before it can implement any final changes.
by Jacob Love | Oct 14, 2026 | Housing News
This past February, CHAPA and Klein Hornig LLP pushed back against a proposal from the U.S. Department of Housing Preservation and Development (“HUD”) that would rescind rules related to disparate impact liability under the federal Fair Housing Act (“FHA”). CHAPA’s public comments outlined how the proposed changes, if adopted, would exacerbate housing discrimination by limiting accountability for housing activities that have a discriminatory effect. Those changes remain on hold pending a final decision from HUD.
In the meantime, HUD has issued a supplementary proposal seeking to extend the scope of the planned rollback. The new proposal would end rules for HUD-funded programs, which forbid practices that have a discriminatory effect on program applicants or participants. The public comment period for these changes closed on 10/9. And, last week, CHAPA joined Klein Hornig and Harborlight Homes in submitting a new set of comments opposing the changes.
This new proposal, like the initial one, would reduce accountability for activities with a discriminatory impact. And because it effects rules for HUD programs, it threatens equitable access to things like rental assistance.
Under federal law, HUD must now review and respond to timely filed public comments before it can implement any part of the new proposal.
by Jenna Connolly | Sep 21, 2026 | Featured News, Housing News
In a critical victory for housing justice and affordability, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) has upheld the legality of the MBTA Communities Act and decisively dismissed the Town of Marshfield’s legal challenge. The ruling confirms once again that compliance with the state’s affordable housing law is non-negotiable and deals a decisive blow to attempts to undermine state mandates that expand access to housing.
The SJC held that the MBTA Communities Act does not violate the Home Rule Amendment of the Massachusetts Constitution and that Marshfield failed to show the Act is an unfunded mandate. This decision marks the second high-profile case in which the state’s highest court has unequivocally declared that the MBTA Communities Act is a valid exercise of the state Legislature’s power. Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR), and Nixon Peabody LLP celebrate the ruling as another landmark victory in the mission to create more affordable housing opportunities across Massachusetts.
In February, CHAPA, LCR, and Nixon Peabody filed an amicus brief with the SJC on behalf of 18 housing and civil rights organizations in defense of the MBTA Communities Act.
“Today’s decision allows communities to keep moving forward by creating more homes, stronger communities, and a thriving Commonwealth,” said Eric Shupin, Chief Executive Officer of Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA). “The Governor, the Attorney General, 168 MBTA Communities already in compliance, and the SJC have now all made clear that noncompliance is non-negotiable. CHAPA will continue to support using all the tools our state has, including the MBTA Communities Act, so everyone can find a safe, affordable home in the communities they choose. This is a victory for housing and opportunity across Massachusetts.”
Last year, a Superior Court judge issued a comprehensive decision dismissing unfunded mandate suits brought by Marshfield and other municipalities. In that opinion and the one issued today, the courts declined to follow the state auditor’s 2025 finding that the Act is an unfunded mandate.
“This decision affirms, once again, that the MBTA Communities Act is the law of the land in Massachusetts,” said Jacob Love, General Counsel for Policy at CHAPA. “We’re hopeful that today’s victory shuts the door on further legal challenges to the Act, so that the Commonwealth can continue to create the homes that Massachusetts residents need.”
“As today’s decision confirms, compliance with the MBTA Communities Act is, and always has been, mandatory,” said Jillian Lenson, Senior Attorney at Lawyers for Civil Rights. “Massachusetts’ lack of sufficient affordable housing for families is a crisis—and one that disproportionately impacts communities of color. It is well past time for all MBTA Communities to allow for critical multi-family development. This is now settled law, and compliance must continue to ensure greater access to housing.”
Signed into law in 2021, the MBTA Communities Act requires all municipalities served by the MBTA to designate an area where property owners can legally build apartments, townhomes, and other types of mid-scale multifamily housing. As of September 2026, over 10,000 new homes (with over 1,800 of them deed-restricted) have entered the pipeline in zoning districts adopted to comply with the MBTA Communities Act, providing potentially thousands of people—families, young adults, downsizing seniors, and more—with opportunities to find homes that fit their needs in Massachusetts.
###
Citizens’ Housing & Planning Association (CHAPA) is the leading statewide affordable housing policy organization in Massachusetts. Established in 1967, CHAPA advocates for increased opportunity and expanded access to housing so every person in Massachusetts can have a safe, affordable, and welcoming place to call home in the communities they choose. For more information, visit www.chapa.org.
Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) works with people of color, immigrants, and low-income communities to fight discrimination, foster equity, and pursue justice through creative and courageous legal advocacy, education, and economic empowerment. In partnership with law firms and community allies, LCR provides free, life-changing legal support to individuals, families, and small businesses. For more information, visit https://lawyersforcivilrights.org/.
Nixon Peabody LLP is an American Lawyer top-100 law firm in the United States and has offices worldwide. Our firm delivers exceptional service to our clients and our communities by combining high performance, entrepreneurial spirit, deep engagement, and an unwavering commitment to a culture of collaboration and humanity. Learn more at www.nixonpeabody.com.
by Jenna Connolly | Sep 21, 2026 | Housing News
CHAPA joins the push to legalize starter homes across Massachusetts and unlock more housing opportunities
Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA) today announced its endorsement of Yes on Question 7, the November 3 statewide ballot question concerning single-family homes on smaller residential lots. Question 7 would require municipalities to allow a single-family home on a residentially zoned lot of at least 5,000 square feet with access to public water and sewer service. If enacted, the starter homes ballot initiative could result in an estimated 2,200 to 5,700 net new homes per year, providing much-needed missing middle housing for residents and young people unable to compete with market prices.
“Massachusetts needs more housing options for people at different stages of life and at different price points,” said Eric Shupin, chief executive officer of CHAPA. “Question 7 would remove one barrier to creating more homes in communities that already have residential zoning and public infrastructure. Allowing single-family homes on smaller lots will make housing more affordable and help more people become homeowners, allow seniors to downsize, college kids to return to their hometowns, and communities to become stronger.”
For CHAPA, the rare ballot initiative endorsement reflects its work to ensure everyone in Massachusetts has a safe, affordable, and welcoming place to call home in the communities they choose. The organization said that allowing additional housing types and smaller lots can complement the many strategies needed to address housing availability and affordability in the Commonwealth.
“This campaign is an urgent effort to rein in out-of-control housing costs, expand opportunities for homeownership, and better meet the housing needs of young families, downsizing seniors, and first-time buyers,” said Andrew Mikula, chair of the Legalize Starter Homes ballot committee. “We’re honored to have the support of CHAPA, which has already put in decades of valuable work helping make housing more attainable and affordable for Massachusetts residents.”
Question 7 is one of nine statewide questions appearing on the November 3, 2026, Massachusetts ballot. For more information on the Yes on 7 campaign, please visit LegalizeStarterHomes.com.
by Jenna Connolly | Sep 18, 2026 | Housing News
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has today rejected yet another challenge to the legality of the MBTA Communities Act. This decision marks the second high-profile case, following Attorney General v. Milton in early 2025, in which the state’s highest court has explicitly held that the Act is a valid exercise of the State Legislature’s power.
In dismissing the Town of Marshfield’s case, the Court made two key rulings. Most notably, it declared that the Act unequivocally does not violate the Home Rule Amendment of the Massachusetts Constitution. The Court explained that Act “addresses the Commonwealth’s housing crisis” which is a subject that “falls squarely within the Legislature’s retained authority under the Home Rule Amendment.”
Second, the Court held that Marshfield failed to present any facts at all supporting its claim that the Act constitutes an unfunded mandate. In making that point, the Court emphasized that the State Auditor’s 2025 opinion, which found that the Act is an unfunded mandate, was immaterial because it “did not identify any municipality-specific mandatory costs” imposed by the Act “much less any costs imposed on Marshfield.”
Ultimately, today’s ruling once again affirms that the MBTA Communities Act is the law of the land in Massachusetts. The Act thus remains a binding mandate for covered cities and towns to help address our affordable housing shortage by zoning for multi-family housing.
