Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell filed suit against nine communities for their continued non-compliance with the MBTA Communities Law, including the towns of Dracut and Tewksbury.
The AG announced her legal action in a release this morning, also naming East Bridgewater, Halifax, Holden, Marblehead, Middleton, Wilmington and Winthrop in her action.
“While bringing a lawsuit is never my first choice, courts have consistently ruled that compliance with this law is mandatory, and the urgency of our housing shortage compels me to act to ensure that all MBTA Communities meet their legal responsibilities,” Campbell wrote. “My office remains ready to assist any town working to come into compliance with the law.”
The Town of Dracut shot down an effort that would bring it into compliance during a November 2024 Special Town Meeting, and a motion to reconsider was overwhelmingly rejected at the June 2025 Town Meeting.
“The Town of Dracut respects and strives to comply with all laws of the Commonwealth,” Town Manager Kate Hodges told InsideLowell. “However, the statute commonly referred to as the “MBTA Law” requires affirmative voter approval to amend local zoning. The Town convened two duly noticed Town Meetings at which these proposed zoning bylaws were fully presented and debated. On both occasions, the residents of Dracut exercised their lawful authority and voted the amendments down.”
“The Attorney General’s decision to initiate litigation, seeking to compel a particular outcome at Town Meeting, is deeply troubling,” Hodges continued. “I find this concerning both in my capacity as Dracut’s Town Manager and as someone with more than two decades of experience in local government. Regardless of one’s views on the policy objectives underlying the law, the ultimate decision rests with the voters of Dracut. That principle of local self-determination should be respected. I regret that the matter has reached this point.”
The nine communities were required to have compliant zoning districts by July 14, 2025. To date, 165 out of 177 cities and towns subject to the law have come into compliance with the law the state’s Supreme Judicial Court upheld the constitutionality of it in a case Milton, Massachusetts.
2 responses to “Attorney General Campbell Sues Dracut and Tewksbury”
With all do respect to the leadership team and the hard-working taxpayers and voters of Dracut, its always in EVERYONE’S best interest to work towards a legal instead of a political resolution because compliance with the MBTA law is determined by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and not local political votes. Its mandatory, not optional, and the town cant circumvent their statutory obligations. You’re all fighting a losing battle which in the end, will cost the town of Dracut and its very hardworking taxpayers so much more!
We the people voted twice for this corrupted unfunded mandate. Our Town Manager said it well. The people of Dracut have spoken. Where is our State Representative Colleen Garry? I guess she doesn’t have any clout at the Statehouse even though she is the longest female to serve in Massachusetts.