Chilmark, West Tisbury and Oak Bluffs became the first towns to weigh in on proposed changes to draft housing bank legislation, with all three voting not to modify the document’s structure before sending it off to the state.

All six Island towns voted in their spring town meetings to approve the formation of an Islandwide housing bank that would be funded by a two per cent real estate transfer tax.

But the bill has since stalled at the state level, prompting state Sen. Julian Cyr and Rep. Dylan Fernandes to suggest that Island towns pare down the document and remove its specific transfer tax provision because they planned to file a statewide transfer tax bill in the upcoming legislative session.

The Island towns, they said, could then use their broader housing bank legislation to administer the funds that came from the statewide tax, were it to pass.

But after discussing the suggested changes in recent weeks, the towns of West Tisbury, Chilmark and Oak Bluffs opted not to make any edits to the document, deciding to submit it to the state with the two per cent tax and other town-specific language that was voted on at town meetings.

Other towns, including Aquinnah, are scheduled to discuss the changes in upcoming weeks.

At a Chilmark select board meeting last week, select board member Jim Malkin discussed different options for the town, including editing the 27-page document. He ultimately suggested the town send it to the state unaltered, except for a few minor language tweaks.

“Since the voters voted overwhelmingly for the housing bank act as it was proposed, that to me seems to be what we should send,” he said. The select board agreed, approving the measure unanimously.

In a statement to the Gazette, Coalition to Create the Martha’s Vineyard Housing Bank coordinator Laura Silber applauded the decision. “We hope the other select boards will take the same action so that the Housing Bank Act can be filed with the state legislature this session, in accordance with the will of the Island voters,” she wrote.

In West Tisbury, John Abrams, who also serves on the coalition, echoed her sentiment, saying that “speed and unity are the most important things” with regard to submitting the legislation. Mr. Abrams said that voting for the same option as Chilmark might “send a signal” to the other boards about how to proceed. Mr. Abrams and Ms. Silber also said they had identified two additional amendments to address the legislators’ concerns, which could be made after the draft was submitted to the state.

The West Tisbury board voted to make the same recommendation as Chilmark, with select board member Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter hoping to preserve the “little bit of each town” that is represented in the 27-page document.

On Tuesday, the Oak Bluffs select board followed suit, voting Tuesday to send the full 27-page housing bank document to the state legislature.

After a presentation from affordable housing committee member Mark Leonard, the board quickly reached consensus to stand in line with other Island towns.

“As much as we like to put our own stamp on things … I think we should try to stick with the agreement,” said select board member Emma Green-Beach.

Board member Ryan Ruley added that the other two options place the town in an unfavorable position.

“I think we put ourselves in a precarious position if we don’t support what was voted on on the town meeting floor,” he said.

If at least one more select board votes for the same recommendation, the draft legislation will be sent off to the state legislature for review.