Senate Skips on Transfer Fee, Casting Doubt on Its Future

A proposal to allow the Vineyard and other communities across the state to enact a fee on high-end home sales has stalled at the Massachusetts state house, dashing the hopes of Islanders who have sought the provision to chip away at the housing crisis.The local option transfer fee, proposed as part of a massive housing bill from Gov. Maura Healey, would have allowed communities to institute a tax between .5 and 2 per cent on home sales over a $1 million.But it was left out of the state Senate’s version of the bill released Monday, and it also was not included in the state House of Representatives version of the bill from earlier this month. Though there is a chance it could reemerge while the two chambers hash out their bills, the fee’s absence in both the House and Senate versions was a blow to Vineyard housing advocates.“It’s disappointing,” said Mark Leonard, an Oak Bluffs select board member and former affordable housing committee chair. “We have to figure out alternatives to overc...