Boston City Council Votes 10-3 to Pursue Fossil Fuel-Free Building Pilot

BOSTON — September 14, 2022 — Boston City Council voted 10-3 to advance a home rule petition seeking the city's entry into a state pilot program that could allow Boston to ban fossil fuels in new construction and major renovation projects. Councillor Ruthzee Louijeune, chair of the Committee on Government Operations, framed the vote as "just us raising our hand to say we want to be considered one of the ten cities," with the actual ordinance language to be developed later with labor, community, and council input. Opponents — Councillors Michael Flaherty, Mark Baker, and Erin J. Murphy — argued the Sept. 8 committee hearing excluded gas workers and plumbers unions and that a ban would raise electricity costs and harm affordable housing production. The session was also marked by a floor confrontation over Council President Edward M. Flynn's unilateral removal of Councillor Ricardo Arroyo from two committee chairmanships; Councillors Lara, Mejia, Louijeune, Coletta Zapata, Worrell, and Arroyo himself all called publicly for reinstatement, with the rules question referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration. The council separately approved five police department grants totaling more than $4.7 million for 911 staffing and mental health crisis training, with Flaherty noting the city's 911 call center is chronically understaffed and that many operators work 16-hour shifts with no weekends off.