As the Massachusetts Senate considers amendments to the fiscal year 2015 budget proposal, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is taking the opportunity to dust off some of the legislative prowess he accrued over 17 years as a state representative. For his part, Mayor Walsh has teamed up with state Senator Linda Dorcena Forry on one such amendment that allows individual communities to control their own sale of alcoholic beverages later than 2 a.m.

Senator Dorcena Forry’s measure would explicitly allow for nightlife to stay open until 2 a.m. in the communities that are directly serviced by the MBTA’s late-night program. Boston, at the very center of the MBTA’s subway, bus, ferry and commuter rail transit lines, stands to benefit most from the amendment.

Current Massachusetts General Law provides that any such establishment that serves alcoholic beverages can do so no later than 2 a.m. during the week and 1 a.m. on Sunday. Should Forry’s amendment be implemented, the law will remain,”except in a city or town that is serviced by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Late-Night Service, as authorized by chapter 161A of the Massachusetts General Laws, and provided that the local governing body of such city or town accepts this provision.”

Walsh has made it abundantly clear he wants to keep Boston’s nightlife thriving past 2 a.m., possibly as late as 3:30 a.m., in order to add one more facet to Boston’s reputation as a world-class city. By doing this he expects a sturdier economy to emerge, one that’ll benefit from more entertainment, transportation, food and drink, and innovations from those burning the midnight oil.

Exactly one week ago, the mayor announced the formation of a 24-person late night task force charged with investigating and implementing other methods of keeping Boston open late. It’ll be up to them to consider various pilot programs aimed at helping local businesses make a smooth transition into the realm of extended service.

“The ability to conduct these pilots in conjunction with MBTA’s late-night service will give us the most accurate picture as to whether a late-night model works in Boston as it does in other U.S. world-class cities, such as New York City and Chicago,” Kaitlin Feeney, a spokeswoman of Mayor Walsh’s office, told BostInno in an email. “Any licensees eligible for an extension under the pilot will still be held to the standard public licensing process.”

The brainchild of Forry and Walsh stands to resound heartily with Bostonians and residents of the metro area. If MBTA late-night pilot data is any indication, support for the amendment will increase and become popular amongst residents who utilize the service. Ridership has grown steadily since the pilot program’s inauguration which bodes well for the amendment as it’s built in such a way that, with increased MBTA usage, will be increased nightlife engagement.

That opt-in sentiment also works well for all cities and towns with MBTA access in that if they don’t like the amendment they’re able to continue enforcing their laws as if nothing happened. For example, if neighboring Cambridge or Somerville wanted to continue issuing last call at 2 a.m., they’re welcome to do so at their own discretion. But if they want to follow Boston’s lead, they’re more than welcome to do that, as well.

BostInno spoke with Mayor Walsh’s Chief of Staff, Dan Koh, about why it’s important the amendment be included in the budget proposal as opposed to being filed as a separate bill. If it were filed independently, Boston would have to wait until January for it to be considered and likely passed along to a committee. By attaching it to the budget, Walsh and his task force can move swiftly and strike the iron while it’s hot.

“What this will give us is flexibility to implement the amendment,” Koh told BostInno over the phone. “We want to wait until we have recommendations by the task force. But when they say, ‘Hey Mayor, we think we want to have bars open until 3 a.m.,’ we can do that. We want to move fast and move smart on this. This could change late night culture not just in Boston, but in the entire region.”

Koh iterated to BostInno that incorporating the amendment is likely to happen well before the end of the year, and as early as the end of the summer.

Image via Senator Dorcena Forry’s Facebook