Boston City Council Advances Rent Stabilization Home Rule Petition 11-2

BOSTON — March 8, 2023 — Boston City Council votes 11-2 to send rent stabilization home rule petition to Beacon Hill. The council advanced Mayor Michelle Wu's proposal on March 8, which would cap annual rent increases at the Boston Metro CPI plus 6 percent with a 10 percent ceiling, cover roughly 128,000 of the city's 231,000 residential units, establish just-cause eviction protections, and create a rent board for tenant appeals. Committee on Government Operations Chair Ricardo Arroyo shepherded the measure, defeating a 9-4 vote a competing amendment by Councilor Michael Flaherty that would have exempted Boston residents who own six or fewer units from the rent-increase caps. Councilors Frank Baker and Erin J. Murphy cast the two dissenting votes on final passage. The council also voted 11-1 to pass a separate home rule petition formally abolishing the Boston Redevelopment Authority and the Economic Development Industrial Corporation, codifying the Boston Planning and Development Agency with a redirected mission focused on resilience, affordability, and equity — Baker the lone no vote on that measure as well.