Boston City Council Advances Property Tax Home Rule Petition 12-1 After Rejecting Four Amendments

BOSTON — February 12, 2025 — Boston City Council advances property tax home rule petition 12-1, rejecting four amendments in a four-hour floor fight. The council voted along near-unanimous lines to send docket 0236, a home rule petition that would allow the city to shift more of its property tax burden onto commercial properties and issue rebates to the roughly 77,000 homeowners who currently receive the residential exemption, to the Massachusetts State House ahead of a March 1 filing deadline. Government Operations Committee Chair Gabriela Coletta Zapata shepherded the measure, which includes a new fiscal guardrail requiring the city's unassigned fund balance to remain above 15 percent of general fund expenditures before any rebate is issued. The council defeated four floor amendments in succession: Councilor Edward M. Flynn's proposals for municipal worker and long-term homeowner exemptions each failed on constitutional grounds, Councilor Julia M. Mejia's bid to raise the small-business personal property tax exemption from $30,000 to $50,000 fell 4-8, and Councilor Erin J. Murphy's amendment to lift the residential exemption to 40 percent failed 4-5. Flynn cast the lone no vote on the final petition, arguing the council "passed this property tax shift last year with inaccurate data" and that the Senate would reject it again. The council also voted 11-0 to extend 12 active urban renewal plans through March 31, 2027, protecting negotiating leverage over nearly 12,000 units of affordable housing.