Massachusetts Bill S.1651
NELPAG is committed to getting outdoor-lighting legislation passed in the 2011-2012 legislative session — Massachusetts is now the only New England State that has not passed some kind of statewide outdoor-lighting legislation.
To that end, in December 2010, a bill to regulate outdoor lighting was introduced as identical versions in both the Senate (S01651) and the House (H01762). NELPAG members Mario Motta and Kelly Beatty wrote the text in consultation with a professional lighting engineer. An important departure from past versions is that the full-shielding requirement applies only to street and parking-lot lighting, which together account for an estimate 93% of all outdoor lighting. You can view a fact sheet about the bill here.
This bill would encourage energy-efficient lighting practices throughout the Commonwealth by requiring state- and municipally-funded projects to use fully-shielded exterior lighting in new or replacement installations, and to install that lighting only where it is needed. It also requires Mass Highways to review and update its criteria for roadway lighting, to demonstrate that its current standards and procedures conform to commonly accepted best practices.
The first of many steps on the long road to enactment came on June 22, 2011, at a public hearing before the Joint Committee on Telecommunication, Utilities and Energy. We petitioners were represented by Rep. Sean Garballey (the House cosponsor), lighting designer Glenn Heinmiller, and by NELPAG members Glenn Chaple and Kelly Beatty.
Now, we wait. the committee has until March 2012 to "report out" the bill, at which point it'll go to the Ways and Means Committee.
For more information about these bills and how you can help get one passed in the next session, contact NELPAG members Mario Motta ( mmotta@massmed.org ) or Kelly Beatty ( kbeatty@darksky.org ).
Notably, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association has proposed its own outdoor-lighting bill (SB1689/HB3065), which it submitted via the state reps in Fall River, home to Lightolier (a NEMA member). Among other things, NEMA's wording allows 2% uplight across the board for all fixtures and has many vaguely-worded exemptions. NELPAG is on record as opposing this legislation.