Take Action: Protect the Neponset Watershed in the Mass Ready Act

Sample Message

Please call or email the conference committee members to advocate for Neponset River Watershed priorities.

Please also reach out to your own legislator to ask them to advocate for the following to the Conference Committee. You can find your legislator here.

To: Julian.Cyr@masenate.gov, Becca.Rausch@masenate.gov, Peter.Durant@masenate.gov, Christine.Barber@mahouse.gov, Michael.Finn@mahouse.gov, Ken.Sweezey@mahouse.gov

Subject Line: Mass Ready Act 

Dear Honorable Conferees: 

My name is [Insert Name], and I am from [town] (Add any affiliations here too). Thank you for your continued leadership on the Conference Committee for the Mass Ready Act.

As you work to reconcile the final version of this legislation, I wanted to help highlight the most important actions that you can take to ensure that the bond bill represents a step forward and not backward for the protection of Massachusetts water resources and to improve resilience to the impacts of climate change. 

Please include from the Senate version of the bill:

• Section 13 of S. 3064. This section codifies the Drought Management Task Force, which provides sound, scientific advice on water conservation measures during times of drought. This provision does the following:
  • Grants the state the authority to coordinate water savings when our rivers and water supplies are most at risk;
  • Makes non-essential outdoor watering rules consistent and clear for the public; and 
  • Reinforces the state’s housing and water expansion plans by supporting future access to clean and safe waters. 

The language does not affect water use for agriculture or business, and it does not purport to impose a “one-size-fits-all” approach to water conservation across the state.

This proposed language – endorsed by EEA – was overwhelmingly supported by the Senate, which passed the amendment. It was also among the most popular policy measures proposed to Mass Ready, as nearly 50 Representatives co-sponsored the amendment.

Get more information: https://neponset.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Fact-Sheet_Water-Conservation-Actions-in-Mass-Ready_July-2026-1.pdf

• 2000-7088 of S.3064. Authorization of $510,000,000 for the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Grant Program. This funding is vital to support municipal climate resilience efforts, and there currently isn’t enough of it. The amendment would bring the authorized level of funding from the House up to the same level as the Senate version of the bill. Get more information: https://www.massachusettsmvpcoalition.org/
• 2300-7031 of S.3064. Retain the earmarked authorization for $500,000 to design and construct “salt marsh restoration and enhancement projects that support coastal flood risk reduction, climate resilience or wildlife habitat improvement in the Neponset River Estuary.”

Please include from the House version of the bill:

• Section 66 of H.5518. This language would create a comprehensive residential flood disclosure policy. As of writing, Massachusetts is the only state in New England, and one of only 14 states without any sort of residential flood disclosure included in statute. Vermont and Maine passed their laws in 2024 after catastrophic flooding, and while Massachusetts experienced similar flooding in 2023, the Commonwealth still lags all of its neighbors when it comes to disclosure. In addition to being included by the Governor in S.2542, similar standalone legislation was filed by Rep. Walsh and Sen. Fernades (H.1345/S.753). Both bills were reported favorably by the Joint Committee on Financial Services and are currently before the House and Senate Committee on Ways and Means. 

Please reject from the Senate Version of the bill:

• SECTION 60 (lines 2298-2303) of S.3064:  Local wastewater by-laws would not apply to priority housing.
• SECTION 68 (lines 2639-2640) and SECTION 69 (lines 2687-2692) of S.3064.  Local wetland by-laws would not apply to priority housing.
• SECTION 108 (Lines 3516-3529) of S.3064 – Grant Preference Modifier. Gives preference for grants funded under the bond to municipalities that do not have local wastewater and wetlands rules.

Massachusetts faces both a lack of affordable and mid-range housing and climate change—issues impacting communities across the state, and needs a complementary approach that achieves its goals for housing AND climate resilience.

To achieve that balance between housing and climate goals, we must ensure that land use allows development AND protects natural resources. If housing is constructed too close to wetlands and without adequate stormwater management, it can cause flooding on the property and on adjacent properties.

Inadequately treated stormwater and wastewater are the two largest causes of water pollution statewide. Local water resource protection rules are designed to address these widespread impairments and to protect our water supplies, waterways and beaches from pollution.  

These Senate sections undermine local authority to protect wetlands and water resources through local regulation. These provisions undermine the overall purpose of the environmental bond and the programs it supports. Local environmental regulation is essential to protect water supplies and reduce risks to communities from flood hazards, at a time when those risks are escalating and causing widespread economic harm. Upholding these rules is essential to ensure that housing development is prioritized and accelerated in places and ways that are safe, healthy, and resilient. 

Please reject from the House version of the bill: 

• Sections 11B, 11C, 11D, lines 1913-1929 of H.5518. This language undermines the progress that the legislature and state agencies have made on water conservation. These sections propose changes to the Water Management Act (WMA) that would exempt one class of water users from state regulation–an outcome that agencies and the courts have repeatedly found is diametrically opposed to the goals of the legislature and against the best interest of Massachusetts citizens.

Massachusetts adopted the WMA in 1985 for the purpose of ensuring “an adequate volume and quality of water for all citizens of the commonwealth, both present and future” G.L. c.21G, § 3, par. 2. The legislature has repeatedly rejected the false notion that the WMA grants water rights to one class of users at the expense of another. 

Thank you for your consideration of these issues.

Sincerely,

[Insert Name]