Hung out to dry: Massachusetts bill would stop landlords from banning clotheslines

A bill on Beacon Hill aiming to shrink the state’s carbon footprint would stop property owners from banning the use of clotheslines in an effort to promote emission-free clothes drying.

“Using a clothesline, or at least having the option to use one is one of many small adjustments we have to make in how we do the daily business of living,” said State Sen. Michael Barrett of Lexington, appearing on WBUR’s Morning Edition.

The bill, titled “An Act Relative to Solar Drying of Laundry,” would prevent municipalities and homeowner’s associations from assessing fees to clotheslines users.

Barrett said residential buildings create 20% of the greenhouse gas emissions in Massachusetts, with clothes dryers contributing to that.

“Dealing with climate change is all about making adjustments,” said Barrett.

The bill states no private entity can charge a fee for using a clothesline, as can currently happen in the state now. The bill has been labeled “Right to Dry.”

The bill, which hasn’t seen much movement since an Oct. 22 joint hearing, is also supported by Bruce Tarr of Gloucester, a Republican and minority leader of the state Senate.

“It takes a while for legislators to get behind ideas sometimes and I want to encourage tiny steps that are common sense and help people engage in wiser, greener choices,” Barrett said, as reported in The Lowell Sun.

The law would give each municipality the right to move forward with “Right to Dry,” but some cities and towns, especially those with limited outdoor space in apartment or condo complexes, may oppose the law.

“There is going to be a healthy, local debate … on whether clotheslines in condos make sense for a given city,” said Barrett.

A homeowner, according to the bill, may “adopt rules that reasonably restrict the placement and use of a clothesline on the premises of a residential dwelling; provided, however, that those restrictions shall not prohibit the use of clotheslines.”

If the section is approved by a city or town, the bill states that question reading “Shall (the city or town) accept Section 36 of Chapter 184 of the General Laws relative to the solar drying of laundry?” should appear on an official ballot to voters during the next municipal or state election.

“The big picture here is that each of us is going to have to change lifestyles and different ways that make sense for us and our neighbors,” said Barrett.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2rGhvNv