Session Laws

Whereas, The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to immediately authorize the district planning commission to determine the population in accordance with the most recent state census, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 7 of chapter 40B of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1984 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "four C", in line 18, the words:- ; provided, however, that the national census or the annual national census estimate, whichever is the most recent, shall be used in any planning district in which the governing body of each city and town comprising such planning district accepts the provisions of this proviso.

SECTION 2. The third paragraph of section 7 of chapter 9 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1984 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the third sentence and inserting in place thereof the following seven sentences:- If he shall find that any census return submitted to him by a city or town has not been submitted in proper form or contains significant errors, he may refuse to accept the same, and, in the event of such refusal, he shall return the same to the selectmen of the town or to the city manager or mayor of the city of origin for correction. If such correction is not submitted and accepted by November first of said year the governor shall appoint a decennial census commission, hereinafter called the commission. Said commission shall consist of five members one of whom shall be designated as chairman. No more than three members of the commission shall be of the same major political party and the other two members shall be of the other major political party. The members of the commission shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for their expenses actually and necessarily incurred in the discharge of their official duties. The commission shall examine the original submission and may inspect the records of any city or town and call upon the mayor, city manager, selectmen or municipal census supervisor thereof for such further information as it desires. The commission shall determine and verify the census for such city or town which then shall be accepted by the secretary.

SECTION 3. The provisions of section two of this act shall take effect as of January first, nineteen hundred and eighty-five.