We were all disappointed that the “dark-sky bill” that we submitted to the Massachusetts legislature two years ago didn’t get enacted. Blame it (at least in part) on the COVID-19 pandemic’s slowdown of the already lengthy legislative process.

But we will not be deterred! IDA-MA’s officers, working with influential lighting designer Glenn Heinmiller, have retooled the language of the proposed statewide regulation. This week it was once again submitted for consideration by our steadfast legislative sponsors, Senate Majority Leader Cynthia Creem and Representative Sean Garballey.

The new title is “An Act to improve outdoor lighting, conserve energy, and increase dark-sky visibility”.

Right now is a critical time for these bills, and you can help ensure their passage by urging your local state Representative and Senator to become co-sponsors of the bill. Your reps will need to know the “docket number” in the Senate and House, which are SD.978 and HD.1547, respectively. (The two bills are identical — you can download a copy in PDF form here.)

(Use this link to find out who your reps are.) If contacting their offices by email, be sure to include and/or refer to this fact sheet that summarizes the bills’ key sections and the reasons that this legislation is needed.

This legislation would promote energy-efficient lighting practices throughout the Commonwealth by:
•  requiring municipal- and state-funded projects to use fully-shielded exterior lighting;
•  requiring that this lighting have a correlated color temperature (CCT) of no higher than 3000K;
•  establishing maximum illumination thresholds for municipal- and state-funded lighting projects;
•  requiring Mass. Dept. of Transportation to review and update its criteria for roadway lighting; and
•  requiring the Mass. Department of Public Utilities to establish reduced-rate tariffs for low-wattage LED streetlights and for streetlights that are dimmed or turned off during the night.

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During the last legislative session, these twin filings garnered bipartisan legislative support with a total of 24 co-sponsors. With your help, this time we’re aiming to get at least 50 co-sponsors! So please contact your state representatives right away to enlist their support.