Boston cannot adopt rent control on its own. In 1994 Massachusetts voters approved Chapter 40P, the Rent Control Prohibition Act, which bars cities and towns from imposing rent control unless they compensate owners for lost revenue. No Massachusetts municipality has done so since (Greenberg Traurig).
That has left two routes: a home rule petition from the city to the Legislature, or a statewide ballot question. Boston has pursued the first, and the City Council adopted a resolution supporting a statewide rent stabilization ballot question (City of Boston). Campaigners filed an initiative for the November 2026 ballot, and the fight over it drew organized support and opposition from tenant groups, landlords and the real estate industry (WBUR).
On June 23, 2026, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court removed the initiative from the ballot. The court held it was an excluded matter under Article 48 of the state constitution because an exemption in the petition for units operated for educational, religious or nonprofit purposes made religion a factor in its application. The ruling turned on constitutional drafting rules rather than on the merits of rent regulation (Ballotpedia).
So the underlying question returns to the Legislature: should state law be changed to let Boston set local rules on how much rents can rise? Bring evidence on vacancy rates, new construction, displacement and how stabilization works in other states. See also zoning reform and housing affordability and the Boston directory.
