HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4018        FILED ON: 2/25/2009

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1136

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand Nine

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an act authorizing the city of Cambridge to place municipal charge liens on real property in the city of Cambridge for nonpayment of any local charges, fees, or fines..

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.  The City of Cambridge may impose a lien on property located within said city for any local charge, fee, or fine that has not been paid by the due date; said lien shall be known as a municipal charges lien; provided, however, that a vote by the Cambridge City Council shall be taken to approve each type of charge, fee, or fine that shall be allowed to be collected in this manner.  For purposes of this act, “local charge, fee, or fine” shall mean any charge, fee, or fine imposed by the City of Cambridge pursuant to any general law, special law, regulation, ordinance, order, local regulation.

SECTION 2.  A lien authorized under this act shall take effect upon recording of the unpaid local charge, fee, or fine, by parcel of land and by the name of the property owner assessed for the local charge, fee, or fine in the registry of deeds of Middlesex County.

SECTION 3.  If a local charge, fee, or fine that is secured by a municipal charges lien remains unpaid when the tax assessor is preparing a real estate tax list and warrant to be committed under section fifty-three of chapter fifty-nine of the General Laws, then the board or officer in charge of the collection of the local charge, fee, or fine shall certify such local charge, fee, or fine to the assessor, who shall forthwith add such local charge, fee or fine to the tax on the property to which it relates and commit it with the warrant to the collector of taxes as part of such tax.

SECTION 4.  If the property to which a local charge, fee, or fine relates is tax exempt then such local charge, fee, or fine shall be committed as the tax.

SECTION 5.  A lien under this act may be discharged by filing in the registry of deeds of Middlesex County, a certificated from the tax collector that all local charges, fees, or fines constituting the lien, together with any interest and costs thereon, have been paid or legally abated.

SECTION 6.  All costs of recording or discharging a lien under this act shall be borne by the owner of the subject property.