Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey and Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Rebecca Tepper recently announced proposed changes to Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) regulations to streamline certain housing projects. MEPA regulations establish review thresholds that determine what level of review must take place. Those projects include ecological restoration projects, urban renewal projects (not otherwise triggering thresholds outside of Section 11.03(12)), and, most importantly, residential projects. If this all sounds familiar, that’s because our client alert from June 2025 reported that the Healey administration was seeking to streamline the MEPA process for housing projects and ecological restoration projects through her proposed MassReadyAct. Either way, the proposed regulations, if enacted, should significantly cut down on costs and development time for residential projects by shortening the MEPA review period.