Court tosses rent-control ballot question because it has a religious component (opens in new tab)

The Supreme Judicial Court today dismissed a referendum proposed for the November election for rent control because it would have specifically called to exclude units in buildings owned by religious institutions for religious purposes, such as homes for retired priests and nuns. The initiative section of the constitution, , prohibits ballot questions on matters that are "naturally unsuitable for popular lawmaking," including religion. Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office had approved the...