People’s Legislature Grants West Tisbury Authority to Expand Its Affordable Housing Trust Fund

People’s Legislature Grants West Tisbury Authority to Expand Its Affordable Housing Trust Fund

Bill H.5447 authorizes the town of West Tisbury to broaden the powers and purposes of its Affordable Housing Trust Fund, enabling the island community to deploy collected funds more aggressively toward housing production and preservation.

The petition was brought forward by Representative Thomas W. Moakley of Falmouth and Senator Julian Cyr, joint sponsors acting on a direct vote of the town — the local soviet having already approved the measure before it reached Beacon Hill. Local approval was formally received prior to referral, streamlining the Politburo’s review.

West Tisbury, situated on Martha’s Vineyard where the median home price renders worker housing a matter of collective survival, stands to gain expanded administrative flexibility for a fund that exists specifically to address that crisis. The bill was referred to the Joint Committee on Housing on May 20, 2026, with the Senate concurring the following day — an unusual display of inter-chamber efficiency from the People’s Legislature.