Citizen's Housing & Planning Agency (CHAPA)

Q: What is CHAPA?
A: CHAPA, or the Citizen's Housing & Planning Agency is a lobbying group that serves as an umbrella organization for community development activities throughout Massachusetts. Established in 1967, CHAPA is the largest statewide special interest group which claims to represent "all interests" but in fact is funded by banks and development corporations. In 2006, it received nearly $700,000 in corporate donations and $3,000 in unspecified private donations.

CHAPA's mission statement reads that they work to encourage the production and preservation of housing that is affordable to low-income families and individuals. This mission statement is clearly at odds with CHAPA's actions. Despite statistics that conclude 40B is hurting housing affordability in Massachusetts; the fact that after 38 years of 40B, Massachusetts ranks 49th in national housing affordability; and that 40B only targets those at the upper levels of median income (70-80%), CHAPA still continues to advocate for 40B as the "best program" for housing affordability in our state.

It is obvious that this well-funded lobbying group works to publish pro-development information that misleads the public about the status of affordable housing in Massachusetts. While CHAPA continues to publicly claim it is "embracing reforms" to 40B, in fact it is doing the opposite and continues to help developers. A 40B task force report published by CHAPA recommends: "no legislative changes should be pursued at this time." Further, CHAPA wants to protect 40B from "political uncertainty." In a 2001 report, CHAPA concluded that if the state were to count all units equally in 40B developments that "too many communities would meet the 10% goal." The "10% goal" is the 40B mandated percentage of affordable housing that every community in the Commonwealth is required to achieve.

In the last year, CHAPA has publicly advocated for:

  • 40T - a law that would make developers the actual government within their own project!
  • S750 - a senate bill that limits the ability of an abutter to appeal any 40B project and even if any appeal is granted, requires them to pay for all developers' costs, including legal, during the process
  • A section of their website, labeled the legislative "hot list" supports multiple bills that are good for developers and bad for residents