New and continued discussions for City Council

Some of the Motions, Orders, and Resolutions from this week’s Council meeting may look familiar as they are items that were re-filed from last year.

Hearing orders on matters including Boston Police Department’s Body-Worn Camera Program, the Right of Free Petition, and Grade Configurations in Boston Public Schools are matters the Council hopes to take further action on this year.

New matters were also introduced, including Speculation in the Boston Housing Market, Regulation of the Taxi Industry, Transportation Network Companies and Self-Driving Vehicles, and Plans to Reconstruct the Long Island Bridge and Reopen Service Facilities.

Councilor Edwards introduced her first matter before the Council, regarding housing speculation, stating that Boston is facing a housing crisis and a wealth gap directly related to people’s ability to own a home. She made several new suggestions on how we can address this issue, including taxing the flipping of residential properties into luxury condos or apartments. The matter was assigned to the Committee on Housing & Community Development.

Councilor Baker introduced a hearing order to look at how self-driving cars will impact Boston’s taxi and ride-sharing services. He stated that the purpose of this hearing order is to learn more about the City’s autonomous vehicle regulations, but most importantly, focus on how this could possibly affect Boston’s workforce. The matter was jointly assigned to the Committee on Planning, Development & Transportation and the Committee on Jobs, Wages & Workforce Development.

To see other Motions, Orders and Resolutions from this week’s meeting, click here.