State Sen. Julian Cyr told the Nantucket Affordable Housing Trust on Jan. 7 that the Affordable Homes Act, signed last August, gives seasonal communities such as Nantucket a package of new authorities to preserve year‑round housing but does not by itself provide all the revenue local officials say they will need.

Cyr, a member of the state Senate, said the law “is a historic authorization of $5,160,000,000 to spend on housing over the next five years,” and that one of its 49 provisions creates a seasonal‑community designation and an accompanying policy toolkit that applies automatically to Nantucket and Dukes County. The designation, he said, unlocks tools including a year‑round housing trust, year‑round deed restrictions and expanded municipal authority to provide housing for public employees and artists.

The new authorities are intended to help communities whose housing markets see large seasonal swings in occupancy and price. Cyr said the designation will let towns establish a year‑round housing trust without a separate Home‑Rule petition and allow local governments to acquire or require deed restrictions that preserve homes for year‑round occupancy.

Details Cyr emphasized: the law contains a broad set of programs (he cited 49 policy items in the act), a multi‑year funding authorization, and a regulatory role for the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (HLC). He said HLC will issue guidance and regulations to implement the law and that the office had been asked to prioritize rules for the new year‑round deed restrictions, with “some real clarity” expected within roughly six months.

Cyr also listed tools available under the seasonal‑community designation: the ability to increase the residential property tax exemption up to 50 percent for qualifying properties, a requirement for biannual housing needs assessments, and a mandate that communities adopt bylaws that encourage tiny homes and development on undersized lots when those units are dedicated to year‑round housing. He described a seasonal communities advisory council that will advise HLC and the Legislature on additional needs and regulatory detail.

Trust members and public commenters pressed two recurring themes: how to preserve existing year‑round homes and how to pay for the work. Cyr said deed restrictions are the primary tool for preserving homes that otherwise would reenter the second‑home market: “That’s what the year‑round deed restriction is designed to do,” he said, describing programs in which a town or trust would buy deed restrictions when a property hits the market or accept voluntary restrictions from owners.

On revenue, Cyr said the most politically fraught item was a local‑option transfer fee, which did not survive reconciliation of the Affordable Homes Act. He said opposition came largely from the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and related groups, and that pursuit of a transfer fee remains a top priority: “We need significant revenue sources,” he said, adding local options such as room‑occupancy revenue or stabilization funds could also help.

Trust members raised other operational questions. Megan (Megan/“Meg” Bowers), the trust’s planning representative, asked whether Nantucket would need a separate new trust or could formalize the existing Affordable Housing Trust to serve the new year‑round role. Cyr said the draft HLC regulations will likely mirror Nantucket’s existing statute, and recommended the trust wait for the draft regulations and then review the local authorizing statute to decide whether to adopt the new regulatory vehicle or continue using the existing trust.

On other implementation issues, Cyr and trust members flagged procurement and insurance problems as barriers to building and preserving housing on Nantucket. Cyr said procurement costs and rising property valuations make construction and insurance more expensive, and suggested several implementation topics be raised with the seasonal communities advisory council so the state can consider statutory or regulatory fixes.

The presentation concluded with an offer from Cyr to continue working with the town and to bring legislative colleagues to Nantucket to see comparable models in Colorado and elsewhere. Trust members thanked Cyr and asked staff to monitor HLC’s forthcoming regulations and to channel local implementation questions through the town’s representative on the seasonal communities advisory council.