Chairman Panagiatakos, Chairman Kozcera, and Members of the Committee:

My name is Pam DiBona, I am the Legislative Director for the Environmental League of Massachusetts. The Environmental League is a citizen-based education and advocacy organization that works to bring about strong and responsible environmental policies in Massachusetts, a mission we have pursued for more than 100 years.

We do not oppose House 6286, but currently we cannot support this legislation. The Environmental League has some concerns about the legislation as proposed, which I will outline for you today.

In conjunction with this legislation, the Governor has identified "surplus" state properties comprising a little more than 1000 acres of land. The Environmental League holds that each parcel should be screened for its natural resource value and value as open space. At least one of the properties, the Tewskbury State Hospital, has been identified as an important link in a larger regional greenspace corridor. The Governor has indicated that the initial list of properties is incomplete and that the list will grow longer and encompass more acreage. We agree with the Governor that land subject to Article 97 land should not be included in this legislation, but urge that all properties should undergo proper review of the environmental value prior to opening them to development.

If a property is released for development, a good proportion of affordable housing (at least 25 percent) should be required, not just "preferred." If increasing access to low-income and affordable housing is the stated goal of the legislation, that should be a central requirement of the development plan.

While the Environmental League supports low-income and affordable housing and providing residents with opportunities to live in any community, this legislation facilitates and promotes additional housing development in communities outside of metropolitan Boston's reach. In fact, more than 90 percent of the acreage is outside of metro Boston. These communities offer limited public transportation options, and thus the divestment promotes sprawl in these communities, and impacts the region as a whole. Most of the surplus properties are in regions already impacted by unplanned and runaway growth.

In light of this, this bill should not go forward without the accompanying legislation proposed by the Governor which expands the Economic Development Incentive Program (H. 5285). We suggest, however, that the expanded program focus on cities in particular, to promote renovations of existing buildings for affordable housing. In addition, the legislature currently has an opportunity to maintain to several thousand "expiring use" properties in our metropolitan areas - which already provide affordable housing to thousands of Massachusetts residents.

Finally, the legislation should include provisions for consultation with regional and local planning groups. The I-495 Corridor Initiative, for example, has embarked on regional planning for water & sewer and transportation (including reverse commuting and intra-region public transportation). While we appreciate that under the bill the municipality can influence the development, not all towns have up-to-date Master Plans, and existing capacity to evaluate the sustainability of the new growth.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on this bill. We look forward to working with you as the bill is considered further in the Committee.