Letter from the Executive Director for June 2026: Hearing, Briefing

May was overflowing with activity for me, in part because I had two major personal events to speak at, but also there has been a lot of policy activity. The main policy happening is, of course, rent control.

On May 5 the deadline lapsed for the legislature to enact the rent control ballot measure. This is good! We didn’t want them to enact it. They technically have until the end of the formal session in July to act on our proposed compromise, but there is no indication that they will.

On May 14, I participated as a panelist in the Housing for Massachusetts legislative briefing on the ballot initiative. Senator Michael Moore spoke about the likely cost to taxpayers. Senator Patricia Jehlen, an advocate for rent control, was in attendance. The State House News Service story and variants of it were seen in many locations. I’m very grateful to Steffen Amun Ra on the MassLandlords Board of Directors for also making time to participate as a panelist.

In between those two legislative events, on May 6 I attended the SJC hearing on the challenge to rent control. This is detailed in this edition. Suffice it to say here, we’re in with a chance. That night I traveled a good bit of the way west from Boston to Greenfield for a rent control opposition fundraiser.

The Housing for Massachusetts campaign launched our first television ad.

The focus on fighting rent control cannot come at the expense of building toward our future, so I also gave interviews on various other subjects. I helped an MIT student identify what it would mean to thrive as a landlord and a renter in Cambridge. Spoiler alert: not everyone is thriving.

May’s crash course saw our 700th attendee. We’ve done a lot to create better rental housing by educating owners.

Finally, the most important thing for the long-term is to prevent and respond to climate change. Remember that the insurance industry holds the best data on how real the problem is. So I made time to participate in the Dept. of Energy Resources Energy Efficiency Advisory Council’s in-person planning meeting for the 2028-2030 MassSave Three-Year Plan, as well as a Massachusetts Emergency Management Administration’s flood risk planning Zoom. Remember that landlords in 21 designated equity communities are already eligible for 100% insulation, air sealing and removal of electric resistance, wood pellet, propane and oil heat. Take advantage now.

In this rent control fight there will be no bystanders. It will impact all of us because of how our tax and public revenue system is set up. And it will crush rental housing providers. So tell other landlords that they should join as a member, encourage others to join, become a property rights supporter and increase their level of support. Thank you for what you have already done to get us this far. We are gearing up to win!

Sincerely,

Doug

Executive Director

MassLandlords, Inc.