Regional planning commissions say plans will be filed this year and urge clearer S.325 definitions

Charlie Baker, speaking for the state's regional planning commissions, told the Commerce & Economic Development committee that "all the RPCs are on track to submit our regional plans by the end of the calendar year." He framed the submissions as staggered pre‑application filings that will be reviewed by the Land Use Board for state designation.

Baker said the designations affect which towns can claim partial Act 250 exemptions and how land use areas line up with potential exemptions. He gave a rough sense of the land area towns are planning for growth: the eligible areas that towns have opted into amount to a small percentage of the state (Baker estimated roughly 2.2% in recent drafts, with legacy designations adding about 0.3%). He cautioned these were working estimates, saying the figures were "probably two months…