Over the past several months, lawmakers have been considering proposals commonly known as the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), which would give tenants or designated organizations new rights when owners seek to sell rental property. Rather than advancing through the usual process as stand-alone legislation, TOPA was added to the Legislature’s economic-development bill. The House ultimately approved a broad TOPA framework, while the Senate rejected that approach and instead adopted a more limited five-community pilot. Those competing versions must now be reconciled before the economic-development bill can become law.
Now, the House and Senate have appointed a six-member conference committee to negotiate the final economic-development bill. The conferees will now decide what, if anything, survives in the final bill.
A pilot does not resolve our fundamental objection to TOPA. A bad policy remains a bad policy whether it begins broadly or in five communities. The Senate proposal would establish a government-directed tenant-purchase program while leaving the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) to determine many of the rights, obligations, and transaction rules later through regulations.
A pilot also creates the structure and precedent for future expansion. If TOPA is sound policy, it should be debated openly as stand-alone legislation. If it is not, limiting it to five communities does not make it sound policy.
Please contact your State Representative and State Senator and ask them to urge the conference committee to remove all TOPA language from the final economic-development bill.
The conference committee consists of Representatives Aaron Michlewitz, Carole Fiola and Michael Soter, and Senators Barry Finegold, Michael Rodrigues and Peter Durant.
Below is a copy of a sample message to your state representative and state senator that you can copy and personalize.
Find your legislators here:
https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator
Sample Email to Your Representative and Senator
SUBJECT: Please Remove TOPA from the Economic Development Bill
Dear [Senator/Representative] [LAST NAME],
I am writing to ask you to urge the economic development conference committee (H.5576/S.3228) to remove all TOPA language from the final bill.
The House passed a broad TOPA proposal, while the Senate approved a five-community pilot. A bad policy does not become good policy simply because it begins as a pilot. Both approaches would establish government involvement in private property sales and create a framework that could be expanded in the future.
A policy this consequential should be considered as stand-alone legislation, not negotiated into a broad economic development bill.
Please ask the conference committee to remove TOPA from the final legislation.
Sincerely,
[NAME]
[ADDRESS]
[CITY/TOWN]