In the months since our reworked “dark-sky” bills (S.2147 and H.3306) were submitted to the state legislature, several chapter officers and volunteers have worked behind the scenes to raise awareness and to build support on Beacon Hill.

In late September, however, these proposed bills finally got the chance to enjoy some time in the legislative spotlight.

First, thanks to the initiative of Sen. Cynthia Creem and Rep. Sean Garballey (our principal legislative sponsors) and their staffs, a virtual but information-backed briefing for legislators took place on Sept. 28th. IDA-MA got to showcase why light pollution is a problem and how the proposed legislation would help to curb it at the state and municipal level. In addition to opening statements by Rep. Garballey and Sen. Creem, legislators who attended the September 28th briefing heard from Kelly Beatty, James Lowenthal, Mario Motta, and Tim Brothers.

You can watch the briefing in its entirety by following this playback link.

The next day, the virtual venue shifted to an online public hearing before the legislature’s Joint Committee for Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy. The same IDA-MA representatives, along with Sen. Creem, Rep. Garballey, and researcher Avalon Owens (Tufts University), offered compelling testimony about the outdoor-lighting bill.

The hearing also included the presentation of a joint letter of support from Sierra Club MA, Mass Audubon, and 16 other stakeholder groups.

Next Steps

Now we await action by the Joint Committee. With luck, it will “report out” the bills favorably in the coming weeks, after which it moves to the Senate Ways & Means Committee for further scrutiny.

And although the bills have 31 bipartisan sponsors, it would help greatly to have more. So please check here and here to see if your legislators have signed on to support these bills and, if not, contact them right away to urge them to do so.